Rate cushion confusion

Politico

5 days ago

Good morning and welcome to the weekly Monday edition of the New York & New Jersey Energy newsletter. We'll take a look at the week ahead and look back on what you may have missed last week.
MANY CUSHIONS — New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy's administration has created so many overlapping credits to deal with rising energy rates it's now hard to keep track of them and where the money is coming from.
Some of the money is basically a loan from utility companies that customers have to pay back. Some of it comes from surcharges and fees that customers have already paid or will pay to the state but that some customers, particularly low- and moderate-income households, are getting back as targeted rate relief.
Republicans have criticized Democrats for focusing on rate relief without tackling larger supply-demand issues that have driven up the prices in the first place.
To clarify, here's each major bucket:
$30 for two months, all residential customers: These are utility bill deferrals given by utility companies at the BPU's request. The credits will come off the July and August bills for all of the state's 3.9 million residential customers. The $60 must be paid back in $10 interest-free installments over the next six months, from September through February.
$100 once, all residential customers: This comes out of the $430 million ratepayer relief package Gov. Phil Murphy and legislative Democrats announced just before the June primary election. The package includes monies from the state's Clean Energy Fund, the BPU's share of Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative proceeds, and the Solar Alternative Compliance Payment account. The BPU still needs to approve the details of this one.
About $150, low to moderate income customers: Another chunk of money that comes out of the $430 million package. About 280,000 customers are expected to receive a $25 per month bill credit paid for by state subsidies from August through February.
$20 to $200 per month, low-income customers: This money comes from the universal service fund, which is funded by ratepayers, and is generally for households with income at or below 60 percent of the state median income. The BPU recently approved a plan to increase the minimum and maximum credit, which was $5 and $180 in past years, and is pushing to enroll far more people because 80 percent of people who are eligible are not enrolled. — Ry Rivard
HEAT WATCH: New York and New Jersey along with a large swath of the country are bracing for a brutal heat wave to kick off summer — just in time for primary day in New York. Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency in 32 counties, including New York City, after Saturday's thunderstorms and heavy rains knocked out power and drenched parts of upstate New York. Outages impacted more than 50,000 people, according to Hochul's office. Three people, including two children, were killed in Oneida County after a tree fell on their homes.
New York's grid operator says the state has plenty of power to meet demand on the system during the heat wave. Some schools have announced modified schedules. Hundreds of cooling centers will be open in New York City as voters head to the polls.
New Jersey's grid operator, PJM, issued an emergency alert saying it may require all generators to operate at maximum output capability. The projected demand for Monday, as of Sunday, was 160 GW. The 13-state grid's all-time, one-day highest power use was more than 165 GW in summer 2006. — Ry Rivard
ICYMI: LOVETT TO HOCHUL: Former Daily News and New York Post scribe Ken Lovett is joining the Hochul administration.
Lovett, a former Eichor Strategies consultant, will serve as a senior communications adviser for energy and environment — a crucial issue area for Hochul ahead of her reelection bid. The governor has discussed energy projects with President Donald Trump, conversations that have included a controversial pipeline and wind energy efforts.
Lovett, a former senior adviser at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, will serve as a direct adviser to Hochul and communications director Anthony Hogrebe.
'Nobody knows state government better than Ken Lovett, and we're thrilled to have his experience and expertise as we continue to bring Governor Hochul's message to New Yorkers.' — Nick Reisman
— Lovett authored an opinion piece a few months ago praising New York's progress toward renewables and supporting Hochul's exploration of nuclear energy.
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Here's what we're watching this week:
MONDAY— Gov. Kathy Hochul makes an announcement at the New York Power Authority's Niagara Power Project, 11 a.m.
— Environmental activists hold a press conference and rally on the 'Formosa Four' protesters' case ahead of a court hearing, 8:15 a.m., the lawn of Livingston Town Hall and Municipal Court, 357 S. Livingston Ave., Livingston, New Jersey.
— The New Jersey budget deal is expected to drop early this week, with a vote expected mid to late week ahead of the June 30 deadline.
TUESDAY— NYSERDA's board has committee meetings, starting at 10 a.m.
WEDNESDAY— The Long Island Power Authority board of trustees meets, 11 a.m., LIPA Office, 333 Earle Ovington Blvd., 4th Floor, Uniondale.
— The New York State Energy Planning Board meets, 1 p.m., Albany Capital Center.
— The Hudson River PCBs Superfund Site community advisory group meets, 1 p.m., Saratoga Town Hall, 12 Spring St., Schuylerville.
AROUND NEW YORK
— Republican Long Island lawmakers want to save the clean energy tax credits that Congress looks poised to kill.
— Newsday details the lobbying efforts that defeated a plastics and packaging reduction measure in the final days of session.
— Duane Lake residents still fighting to get inclusion in septic replacement program.
Around New Jersey
— New Jersey lawmakers scrutinize energy-hungry data centers.
— More pollution expected from New Jersey sites.
— Roselle Park employees fear retaliation as town shutters site of possible toxic exposure.
What you may have missed
PACKAGING FALLOUT — POLITICO's Marie J. French: State lawmakers whiffed on an aggressive measure to reduce plastic and packaging waste in New York on the final day of Albany's legislative session. The Assembly did not pass the sweeping proposal to mandate reductions in packaging by producers and charge them for disposal costs. Supporters had hailed it as the strongest proposal in the country while business opponents argued it would lead to higher consumer costs and the unavailability of some packaged food products.
STORAGE BIDS — The BPU approved new subsidies for batteries at its board meeting. The subsidies are dubbed the Garden State Energy Storage Program. The bid period opens next week. According to the board order, the state will target procuring 'at least 1,000 MW of transmission-scale energy storage over the course of multiple solicitations.' The first solicitation aims to award 350-750 MW by Oct. 31, with a prequalification process commencing on June 25 and final bids due Aug. 20. The board will have one or more rounds of bidding in 2026. — Ry Rivard
E-BIKE BATTERY RETURNS: The Assembly gave final passage to a measure expanding the state's battery recycling requirements to cover e-bike batteries. Problems with lithium-ion e-bike batteries have caused deadly fires in New York City, with some fires starting in the waste stream once those batteries are thrown out. This bill would address disposal, requiring manufacturers of the batteries to work with retailers to accept back depleted batteries. The Department of Environmental Conservation would consult with the New York City Fire Department and others before developing regulations. Firefighters have raised concerns about the measure, proposing restrictions on accepting batteries at residential and mixed-use locations, Republican lawmakers said during the debate on the bill. 'It endangers the lives of people living in those buildings,' said Republican Assemblymember Michael Durso.
Assemblymember Deborah Glick, who sponsored the bill, said she hopes the consultation requirements address some of those concerns. She said the bill would improve safety overall by removing these batteries from the waste stream. 'We have no restrictions on the sale, the repair, or the charging in any of the locations currently,' Glick said. 'They're charging them now and there are no regulations, so it seems to me this is a fairly modest proposal.' — Marie J. French
100-FOOT RULE PASSES — POLITICO's Marie J. French: Property owners looking to hook up to the state's existing gas system would face higher costs under a bill headed to Gov. Kathy Hochul's desk.
Lawmakers passed an incremental measure Monday aimed at reining in the expansion of gas service. The bill requires that residential customers pay the full cost of any new pipeline to connect to the gas system. Right now, utilities pay for up to 100 feet of new pipe and pass those expenses on to other ratepayers.
'If you are putting up a new home, you should pay for the connection. That's all this says,' said Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon, the sponsor of the bill. 'And the connection, by the way, should be paid for by the person who's putting it in, instead of your neighbors — which is not a good way to get off on the right foot with your neighbors.'