Sponsored by:
Senator VIN GOPAL
District 11 (Monmouth)
Senator STEVEN V. OROHO
District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)
Senator PAUL A. SARLO
District 36 (Bergen and Passaic)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senators Ruiz, O'Scanlon and Connors
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits State from mandating electric heating or water heating systems.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As amended by the Senate on December 20, 2021.
An Act concerning certain electric heating and water heating systems and supplementing Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Notwithstanding 1the provisions of1 any other law, or rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto, to the contrary, the Department of Community Affairs, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Board of Public Utilities, 1[and] or1 any other State agency shall not adopt rules or regulations that mandate the use of an electric heating system as the sole or primary means of heating buildings in the State, including but not limited to, residences or commercial buildings 1, until the Department of Community Affairs issues the report required by section 2 of this act1 .
b. Notwithstanding 1the provisions of1 any other law, or rule or regulation adopted pursuant thereto, to the contrary, the Department of Community Affairs, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Board of Public Utilities, or any other State agency shall not adopt rules or regulations that mandate the use of an electric water heating system as the sole or primary means of providing hot water to buildings in the State, including but not limited to, residences or commercial buildings 1, until the Department of Community Affairs issues the report required by section 2 of this act1 .
c. Nothing in this section shall be construed to abrogate or modify the ability of a State agency or a private entity to implement a program to incentivize the voluntary installation or use of electric heating systems or electric water heating systems.
d. Nothing in this section shall be construed to abrogate or modify the ability of a person to utilize an electric heating system as the sole or primary means of heating a building, or to utilize an electric water heating system as the sole or primary means of providing hot water to a building.
12. a. No later than 24 months after the effective date of this act, the Department of Community Affairs, in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Board of Public Utilities, shall hold a minimum of six public hearings, at least one of which shall be located in the each of the northern, central, and southern regions of the State, on the electrification of space and water heating in residences and commercial buildings. The hearings shall solicit input, at a minimum, on the following:
(1) the cost of retrofitting an existing building to use solely electric heating systems and electric water heating systems;
(2) the increased cost, if any, for the construction of a new building that uses solely electric heating systems and electric water heating systems, versus that of a new building that includes natural gas heating systems;
(3) the cost of operating a building that uses solely electric heating systems and electric water heating systems, including any applicable demand charges for electricity;
(4) the impact on ratepayers to modify the State's electric distribution system to accommodate residential and commercial buildings that use solely electric heating systems and electric water heating systems, as well as the increased use of electric vehicles;
(5) the impact on low-income ratepayers of the modifications described in paragraph (4) of this subsection;
(6) the potential for meeting the State's greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals established by the "Global Warming Response Act," P.L.2007, c.112 (C.26:2C-37 et al.) by using low- and zero-emission alternatives to existing fossil fuels;
(7) the potential reduction in air pollution and increase in public health benefits that may result from an electrified residential and commercial building sector;
(8) the impact a mandate for the use of electric heating systems and electric water heating systems in residential and commercial buildings would have on workers in the fossil fuel industry and what jobs with comparable compensation and lifestyles are available as a replacement;
(9) the environmental and economic impacts of using low- and zero-emission alternatives to existing fossil fuels in existing residential and commercial buildings, versus a mandate for the use of electric heating systems and electric water heating systems;
(10) the greenhouse gas emission reduction cost, in dollars per ton of greenhouse gas, for both the use of low- and zero-emission alternatives to fossil fuels in existing residential and commercial buildings in the State, and a mandate for the use of electric heating systems and electric water heating systems;
(11) an examination of impacts to consumers, utilities, and State and local governments of the costs described in paragraph (10) of this subsection; and
(12) the impact of a mandate for the use of electric heating systems and electric water heating systems in residential and commercial buildings on the accessibility to, and eligibility for, government utility assistance programs for residents of the State.
b. No later than 30 months after the effective date of this act, the Department of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Board of Public Utilities, shall prepare and submit to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the Legislature a report that summarizes the information solicited at the public hearings required by subsection a. of this section and recommends legislative and regulatory actions related to greenhouse gas emissions from residential and commercial buildings in the State.1
1[2.] 3.1 This act shall take effect immediately.