By Dena Mottola Jaborska
New Jersey residents and businesses already struggling under record-high utility costs could face even bigger bills if a fast-tracked state Senate legislation passes into law. S4876 would slap ratepayers with what would likely be a portion of a $20 to $30 billion bill to build a nuclear power plant, severely hampering Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill’s plans to make utilities more affordable throughout the Garden State.
It’s no wonder the bill’s almost universal opposition includes advocacy groups, business alliances, and even proponents of nuclear power. These experts understand, and testified at a Senate committee hearing, that New Jersey residents and businesses can’t afford yet another utility hike—one that will cost the average residential household at least an additional $55 a month, according to our state’s Division of Rate Counsel estimate.
It gets worse. New Jersey ratepayers would be on the hook for construction costs long before the plant produces a single watt of power. Ratepayers would also be responsible for some additional dollars tied to construction, no matter how large the budget overrun or how long the delays. There would be no opportunity to review or revise the policy, even if the construction of the plant goes awry, or if federal energy subsidies are ever extended for New Jersey, making ratepayer subsidies unnecessary.
Read full op-ed here.