Transcription
The meeting has started. Thank you. Good morning everyone. Welcome to the third quarterly public comment meeting of 2025 for the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. Madame Secretary, will you please read the public notice statement?
Good morning. Adequate public notice has been given pursuant to the Open Public Meeting Act. Notice have been posted at the board's office and website and emailed to the department of state and to newspapers of board circulation within the state. Thank you. Can I have a roll call, please?
Commissioner Crystal Doo here. Commissioner Bange here. And President Gadobi here.
Well, again, good morning everyone um to our welcome to the quarterly public meeting. Our next board agenda meeting is October 8th at 10 a.m. It is in person in the BPU's Joe Fidilisa boardroom and also livereamed. Um, but this opportunity uh this quarterly meeting provides an opportunity for comment from the public on general matters. Um, and we welcome input from the public year round, but this is an opportunity to to bring up policy matters before the full board. So, um, just want to remind folks that if you are submitting written comments for this quarterly meeting, please do that by the close of business on October 1st, 2025. Um but if if you are commenting today or providing written comments, you should please avoid matters that are contested before the board. This again is uh for raising general policy issues for the board's consideration. Um, but please do again um not submit comments or or um speak today on matters that are contested before the board. While all are welcome to attend, only pre-registered speakers have the ability to contribute today. Um, but there is the opportunity to submit written comments. As I said, we don't have the chat feature enabled. So, you would have to pre-register to speak today. But the meeting again is live streamed on YouTube and will remain available and you can submit those comment period. I mean those public comments in writing um if you do not have the opportunity to speak today.
Any opening remarks from my colleagues?
None for me, Madam President. Thank you. None for me. Thank you. Thank you.
Okay. Um we have uh a few registered speakers. Um I think four and there are a few other um registrants that are here um in in listening mode. Um, so Lauren, if you could start with our first registered speaker, that would be great.
Our first registered speaker doesn't appear to be online. So the next one will be Judith Forbes. Judith, you may now mute your mic to speak.
Thank you. Can you hear me?
Yes, we can hear you, Miss Forbes.
Okay. Um, I have two comments to make and sort of questions. The first one was, um, why I should pay $15 a month when JCPNL only comes out maybe six times a year. I did call and speak to several employees of your agency and they explained that it's basically the cost to try to maintain their equipment that isn't that they really want to phase out. So from that perspective, I imagine they'll keep on raising the price per month um to read the analog meter um similar to what's allowed by the telephone company for landline telephones which are becoming outrageous for the cost of it. But I still question that you aren't requiring the electric companies to just absorb that cost and have less profit for their shareholders since many of the people or at least some of the people who want to maint retain their analog meter may not really be able to afford the extra money per month.
So, my second comment is based on um what I believe I would get in the mail that the company JCPNL would come out and wrap my water heater to keep it the water warmer longer. I was told that perhaps a metal barrier be behind the uh smart meter could deflect any energy um or waves that are coming out of the smart meter that might enter the house. And so I'm asking you to seriously consider having the electric companies offer that option, whether the customer has to pay some or the company will pay for the entire procedure. Um I'm just wondering if you have any comments on it or whether or not you'll even consider what I'm saying. Thank you.
Um yes, thank you for your comments. Um, so I the metal shield that you're referring to, I I think we would need to look more into that. Um, our staff I think had an email communication with you um that they made me aware of. Um, so we do, you know, we appreciate you raising that and we we can look into that. for the AMI the smart meters overall. There are a lot of benefits to smart meters in terms of grid management and helping to um provide information to the utilities to bring service back online after storms or outage events. So there are significant benefits associated and and cost reduction benefits that that impact everyone. Um, but we do understand you know that that that might be cost prohibitive. Uh there are significant benefits though to having a smart meter and having customers throughout the service territory um utilize smart meters so that we can work with the utilities to get the information they need to get people back online after storms and outage events. Um, but we can certainly you know look look more into what you're referring to in terms of the metal shield. I'm not familiar with that technology so I would have to look into that.
Okay, we sorry. Um, we will move on to the next register speaker. Um, Paul Lina Okconor, you may now mute your mic.
Hi. Uh, good morning and happy Friday board members, BPU staff and right pairs listening. I'm Paulina Okconor, executive director of the New Jersey Offshore Wind Alliance, or NJOA for short, and I serve as the voice of the Offshore Wind Industry in our beautiful Garden State. And as always, thank you for the opportunity to testify. I'll try to keep my remarks brief, but I do want to raise just a few things.
First, let me commend the BPU for holding the resource adequacy conference in August. It was an energy nerd's dream come true, or as the kids say, it was gas, which is meant to be a funny energy joke. Um, so kudos to the B uh BPU staff and specifically Katherine Perry for the great work and insightful policy perspectives. I think that kind of conference underscores the need for robust energy planning that includes an all of the above approach which of course includes offshore wind. Um, and as the cost of electricity has become the new price of eggs, we're all hyper aware that increase in our energy bills has been the dominant topic of conversation. Um, allow me to reiterate that price stab and increased energy production are imperative to addressing our energy needs, both of which can be done in part through offshore wind. And while the industry is facing challenges at the federal level, there are ways developers and the state can work together now. And while affordability is front and center, some of our advice for policy actions to accelerate energy affordability are to streamline permitting to speed renewable project timelines, align state incentives with federal programs to maximize private investment, support workforce training to fill new clean energy jobs statewide, and here I'd like to shout out the newly released green jobs report, and of course, last but not least, modernize transmission to integrate more wind, solar, and storage.
And on that last point, we were disappointed in the board's action in August meeting, choosing to delay the state agreement approach. However, we're hopeful that this is a stay, not a cancellation. Transmission planning and development is critical to the clean energy transition. Dare I say there is no transition without transmission. So, while we understand the board's choice, we urge continued planning and investment to ensure our grid is reliable and resilient in the face of increased challenges. No large-scale source of electricity generation, whether it be renewable or thermal, is well positioned to dramatically scale up in the state without transmission investment. But I do want to commend the state in participating in the bipartisan northeast states collaborative on interregional transmission to pursue transmission planning and we will be responding to the RFI that's out. Um and finally, as always, the offshore wind industry stands ready to work with the state and federal government as well as PJN to solve for our energy challenges. We hope to continue conversations on procurement and permitting reform and appreciate appreciate the work of this administration on that. So, thank you.
Paulina. Appreciate your comments and thank you for your acknowledgement of the staff's work. Our next register speaker is Jay Weissbond, but he does not appear to be online. Um, and going back to the first register speaker, she does not appear to be online either.
Okay. Um, well, we are only at 1010 so we if I could ask that we at least um stay stay here and keep the line open for just 5 minutes to 10:15 so we can give those couple of folks who are registered the opportunity to join so we can if if I can ask um my fellow commissioners are are you okay with that?
Yes, absolutely. Thank you.
Um, so we'll we'll stay on and and uh Lauren if you could just um, you know, notify us if if anyone joins in the next few minutes and then if not, then we can adjourn.
No problem. Thanks.
Okay. Not hearing from you, Lauren. I'm going to assume that we have not um we have not gotten our additional speakers online. Is that correct?
Yeah, that's correct.
Okay. Well, that concludes our speakers lists. Um, we really appreciate everyone coming and listening in. If I um if I can ask for a motion to adjourn our quarterly meeting.
So moved.
Second.
All those in favor?
I.
Thank you everyone. Have a wonderful weekend.
Thank you. Take care. Have a good one.