ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE UNANIMOUSLY APPROVES KARROW-SPONSORED ENERGY BILL THAT WILL REDUCE BUSINESS, CONSUMER ELECTRIC COSTS

Energy legislation, sponsored by Assemblywoman Marcia Karrow, that is designed to help lower electric costs for businesses and residents, is a step closer to becoming law following action today by the Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee.

The Committee unanimously approved Karrow’s bill, A-843, which directs the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) to provide equal opportunities for prospective businesses throughout the state to apply for and receive incentives for funding under programs the BPU determines shall be funded by the Societal Benefits Charge (SBC). The SBC, which is imposed on all energy consumers, can cost companies hundreds of thousands of dollars annually, thus limiting energy efficiencies.

Anyone who pays into SBC should be able to tap into it to receive grants for programs such as solar energy. However, former Governor Jim McGreevey signed an Executive Order on his first day in office which prohibits anyone who builds in a designated “no growth” area from receiving such grants in areas such as the Highlands and Pinelands.

“McGreevey’s Executive Order is ridiculous,” stated Karrow, R-Hunterdon and Warren. “These are exactly the places where we most want to reduce the carbon footprint – in our pristine open spaces where the water supply is critical to the entire state. Ironically, McGreevey’s ban prohibiting infrastructure grants into environmentally sensitive ‘no growth’ areas also applies to BPU grants that create a cleaner environment.”

Karrow, who called passage of the bill “a huge step forward for the business community and ratepayers,” said, “meeting our state’s vast energy needs plays a major role in New Jersey’s economic health. This state has one of the least business-friendly environments in the nation. It’s time we start implementing legislation and policies that will benefit businesses, not hinder them. We need to level the playing field, because right now, the high cost of electricity in this state is impacting the business community’s ability to compete with their counter-parts around the world.”

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