Gov. Phil Murphy’s announcement comes less than a month before a statewide rate hike scheduled to begin on June 1.
By Megan VerHelst, Patch Staff
NEW JERSEY — Gov. Phil Murphy unveiled a series of executive actions on Wednesday that he said will help New Jersey residents manage electric costs ahead of a rate hike scheduled to begin on June 1.
The announcement comes two weeks after the state Board of Public Utilities (BPU) said it would require New Jersey’s four electric utility companies — Atlantic City Electric, PSE&G, Jersey Central Power & Light and Rockland Energy — to come up with plans to mitigate overall bill impacts to residential customers during high usage summer months.
The state also asked the utility companies to defer rate increases until later in the year during lower-usage months, as well as identify other opportunities to stabilize rates and provide cost-saving opportunities wherever possible.
Murphy’s office said the filings were received by May 7.
“New Jersey ratepayers are preparing for an unprecedented increase in utility costs,” Murphy said in a statement. “While the utilities are not responsible for the rate increases, they have a responsibility to protect ratepayers. It’s clear that New Jersey’s four hometown electric utilities need to deliver more reasonable options.”
In Wednesday’s announcement, Murphy said he plans to build on his administration’s previous efforts by implementing several additional measures to mitigate utility costs. Those measures include:
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