Thanks to the leadership of New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and the state legislature, New Jersey has set ambitious goals for a clean energy future that put the state at the forefront of bold climate change action. Now it’s up to all of us – community leaders, energy companies, citizens and businesses – to do our part to help New Jersey meet those goals, deliver a clean energy future, help families and businesses save money, and create new jobs.
Learn more about the seven elements of New Jersey’s bold plan for a clean energy future and what they mean for you.
Thanks to the leadership of New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and the state legislature, New Jersey has set ambitious goals for a clean energy future that put the state at the forefront of bold climate change action. Now it’s up to all of us – community leaders, energy companies, citizens and businesses – to do our part to help New Jersey meet those goals, deliver a clean energy future, help families and businesses save money, and create new jobs.
Learn more about the seven elements of New Jersey’s bold plan for a clean energy future and what they mean for you.
Energy efficiency saves U.S. consumers approximately $90 billion every year on their energy bills and could help cut greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. by more than 50% by 2050.
New Jersey lags behind other states when it comes to being energy efficient and is falling further behind. New Jersey ranks 34th for electricity saved through energy efficiency, according to the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE).
The Clean Energy Act established ambitious energy efficiency goals that will help to improve this ranking, calling on energy companies to reduce electricity use by 2% annually and natural gas consumption by 0.75% by 2024. More progress is needed in public policy space to help support these targets.
The time has come to translate those goals into actions that protect the environment and public health and lower energy costs.
The states that save the most energy – including eight of ACEEE’s top 10 – administer energy efficiency programs through their local energy companies – leveraging their unique customer relationships, energy expertise and resources. Energy companies can be an efficient and effective driving force to promote energy efficiency.
The state and its energy companies can collaborate to ensure that all New Jersey residents, businesses and local governments have access to energy efficiency programs that meet their needs, including:
Energy companies already have an obligation to serve all of the state’s residents, so expanding this responsibility to include energy efficiency, especially for low-income residents who need the most help, is a logical next step.
Energy efficiency also can help create jobs and new economic opportunities. Specifically, the Clean Energy Job Training Program ensures every resident can benefit from new jobs in energy efficiency. A renewed focus on energy efficiency will help New Jersey residents obtain the necessary skills to thrive in a growing job market. In their 2019 U.S. Energy and Employment Report, the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) and the Energy Futures Initiative (EFI) found that almost 34,000 New Jersey residents were employed in energy efficiency jobs in 2017. One year later, the state saw an increase of over 2,000 energy efficiency jobs, with more than 36,000 residents employed in that sector in 2018.
Jobs associated with energy efficiency programs have higher-than-median hourly wages and a higher percentage of union representation, compared with the rest of the workforce. There is a powerful opportunity to create good jobs that are critical to addressing climate change and building a clean energy future.
The Clean Energy Act also lays out a path to increased efficiency in buildings across New Jersey. New construction codes will ensure that existing buildings are rehabilitated for maximum efficiency through retrofitting and upgraded equipment. These standards also will ensure new state-funded buildings are built to at least LEED Silver standards, established through certification by the U.S. Green Building Council’s rating system.
New Jersey’s most recent Energy Master Plan (EMP) envisions that energy companies will leverage the benefits of the existing, highly reliable power grid that they own and manage to build electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, creating an ideal environment to electrify transportation. Establishing a convenient network of charging stations would support greater use of electric vehicles.
New Jersey has set a goal of having 330,000 light-duty electric vehicles in service by 2025. The EMP envisions public/ private partners building the infrastructure to support large-scale use of electric vehicles, educating drivers on the value of EVs and prioritizing state use of electric vehicles – for example NJTransit buses. The state and its energy companies can work together to provide grants and other financial incentives to offset the costs of electric vehicle charging. Providing rebates, grants and incentives to residential customers, businesses, nonprofits, schools and public transit organizations will help them take the initial steps to connect to clean electric transportation options.
To help reach the goals set by the EMP, this year Governor Murphy signed Senate Bill 2252, groundbreaking legislation to jumpstart the market for EVs in New Jersey. The new law establishes up to $5,000 in rebates for residents who purchase EVs and allows the state to create incentive programs for purchase and installation of in-home EV charging equipment. This new legislation also requires the state to build 1,600 new EV chargers by December 31st, 2025 and exclusively purchase zero emission buses after 2032.
The New Jersey legislature and Governor Murphy worked together to pass and enact the Clean Energy Act of 2018. In addition, the Governor has signed multiple executive orders focusing on renewable energy, including directives to reenter the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and promote offshore wind energy. Building on this platform, the Energy Master Plan (EMP) outlines a guide to further harness offshore wind and solar energy, while also focusing on New Jersey’s historically underserved communities.
The EMP also places an emphasis on energy storage, an important aspect of a thriving renewable energy future. Increased energy storage will, among other things, allow energy companies to incorporate more renewable energy assets onto the power grid and store energy generated by renewables for later use. The state conducted an energy storage analysis exploring best practices to reach its goals of 600 MW of energy storage by 2021 and 2,000 MW by 2030, placing an emphasis on finding low-cost solutions.
By prioritizing offshore wind energy, the EMP will help the state reach its goal of 7,500 MW of offshore wind power by 2035. Offshore wind is a promising renewable energy source and a growing job market. New Jersey already is working with major companies in the wind industry to base operations in the state through the Offshore Wind Tax Credit and create a job-training program to train residents for the new industry.
New Jersey is prioritizing solar energy and working with a consultant to model the costs of solar electric generation facilities while aiming toward least-cost solutions. New Jersey also will support community solar development in historically underserved communities. Combined with the state’s investments in offshore wind, solar energy development will allow New Jersey to become a national clean energy hub.
To move toward the state’s renewable energy goals, New Jersey energy companies will support the incorporation of additional distributed energy resources (DER) such as solar systems, wind turbines, fuel cells and battery storage, among numerous others, onto the energy grid. To comply with the Clean Energy Act, New Jersey will engage with energy companies to ensure planning and cost allocation of DERs are fair and reasonable. The state also will develop low-cost loans or financing for DERs so all New Jersey communities have access to these resources. Further, New Jersey will establish energy goals and incremental milestones on the path to 100% clean energy and model carbon-neutral electricity generation scenarios with a focus on least-cost options.
To modernize New Jersey’s energy grid, the Energy Master Plan prioritizes investments in Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI), or smart meters, a system of smart networks, data management systems and communications networks that maximize grid efficiency.
Smart meters also will provide New Jersey residents and businesses with more accurate and detailed information about their energy bills and consumption habits, empowering them to evaluate clean energy objectives, such as cost savings and alternative rate designs.
Smart meters also will further enable the use of in-home assistants like Alexa, smart thermostats and mobile devices to manage energy services and usage, in addition to paving the way for even more customized products and services that fit customers’ specific needs.
In February 2020, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities paved the way for AMI/smart meters by lifting a moratorium on preapproval for installing the devices. The BPU also ordered all New Jersey energy companies to file or revise plans to implement AMI/smart meter programs within 180 days.
The Energy Master Plan directs the state to work with local community groups in historically underserved areas to identify energy needs and create customized community energy plans. In addition, the state will continue to support programs that prioritize clean energy while making energy service more affordable, such as the Comfort Partners Program, Weatherization Assistance Program and Winter Termination Program.
The plan also will support clean energy efforts in low- and moderate-income communities, such as community solar projects, electric public transportation and electric vehicle charging stations. The state will promote clean energy workforce opportunities and training, as well as other programs to ensure all residents can transition into the new job economy.
As part of the Energy Master Plan, New Jersey will establish clean energy workforce and vocational training programs to ensure the state is equipped with a skilled workforce. New Jersey also will consider establishing a Green Bank to provide public financing for clean energy projects and subsidize community renewable energy projects while encouraging local workforces to participate.
Through the creation of the New Jersey Wind Innovation & New Development (WIND) Institute, the state will establish a hub for job training, education and research for the future of wind energy. Similarly, a Carbon-Neutral New Technology Incubator will house the same programs as the WIND Institute, with a focus on net-zero carbon priorities. Further, a Clean Buildings Hub will provide job training and education for engineers, contractors, real estate agents and other relevant workforces in building electrification.
Focused on transitioning new buildings to net-zero carbon new construction, the Energy Master Plan maps out a way to expand and accelerate New Jersey’s Residential New Construction (RNC) Program.
As part of New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program, the RNC Program establishes statewide efficiency standards based on national platforms such as the EPA ENERGY STAR® Multifamily High-Rise Program, EPA ENERGY STAR® Certified New Homes Program, and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Zero Energy Ready Home Program. The state will provide financing to residents, small businesses and local governments for affordable energy audits, reports and system design advice, and low-cost installations for energy efficiency equipment. Through these cost-cutting mechanisms, New Jersey can ensure these programs are accessible to all communities.
In addition to the RNC Program, energy companies also can be an invaluable resource for builders of net-zero carbon new construction. Energy companies generally have longstanding relationships with builders because every new building in New Jersey must connect to the power grid through the local energy company. Further, many energy companies have dedicated teams and resources available to builders, which provides unique insights into the types of energy efficiency programs that would work best and the ability to identify and market the programs to builders.
To help New Jersey reduce energy use and emissions from the building sector, Governor Murphy signed Executive Order 100 to create PACT (Protecting Against Climate Threats) on January 27th. This critical new executive order directs the state to introduce sweeping regulatory reforms that reduce emissions and mitigate the effects of climate change, like incorporating climate change considerations into environmental land use and construction. Energy companies need to be at the forefront of these changes, working with builders and the state to leverage the power of energy efficiency for green building and green infrastructure.
In addition, New Jersey will promote a statewide transition away from oil- and propane-fueled buildings by incentivizing electrified heat pumps, water heaters and other appliances.