TRENTON, NJ — A new bill introduced on Wednesday aims to prohibit the collection of certain costs associated with offshore wind projects from New Jersey ratepayers. Senator Holly T. Schepisi of District 39 in Bergen is the sponsor of Senate No. 3078, which seeks amendments to the existing “Offshore Wind Economic Development Act.”
The proposed legislation specifies that the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) cannot require ratepayers to pay or prepay any costs linked to the subsidies for qualified offshore wind projects. Currently, through the offshore wind renewable energy certificate (OREC) program, such projects can sell ORECs to electric power suppliers, funded by ratepayer surcharges that are later reimbursed from OREC sales revenues.
This bill aims to eliminate the financial burden on ratepayers by forbidding the BPU from imposing any form of payment or prepayment related to OREC surcharges or similar fees intended to cover the subsidy costs of these wind projects. This move could potentially shift the financial responsibilities from public utility customers to another funding mechanism.