ASSEMBLY TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND UTILITIES COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

ASSEMBLY, No. 5462

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  JUNE 12, 2025

      The Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Assembly Bill No. 5462. 

      As amended and reported, this bill requires each electric public utility in the State to develop and submit to the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) a tariff for large load data centers. 

      Specifically, the bill applies to data centers that have a maximum monthly demand of at least 100 megawatts.  The bill requires the tariff to be designed to:  (1) ensure that non-data center ratepayers are protected from any increased costs that result from increased electricity demand caused by large load data centers; and (2) incentivize large load data centers to develop and utilize methods to increase energy efficiency, including through the use of technologies that capture and utilize the heat produced by the large load data center.  Beginning one year after the bill’s enactment, an electric public utility is to apply the tariff to each large load data center located in the electric public utility’s service area. 

      The bill also provides that all rates, terms, and conditions established by the BPU for large load data centers are to reasonably protect ratepayers against increased costs resulting from new transmission, distribution, capacity, or energy rates resulting solely or primarily from serving large load data center customers.  The bill authorizes the BPU to impose certain requirements on electric public utilities in order to protect ratepayers, including ensuring that any new large load data center customer provides adequate financial guarantees that they will take at least 85 percent of service they request for a period of not less than 10 years from when service commences. 

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The committee amendments to the bill: 

      (1) provide that the bill applies to large load data centers, rather than all data centers, and define “large load data center”;

      (2) authorize the BPU to establish rates specific to large load data centers for use by an electric public utility in formulating the tariffs required under the bill;

      (3) authorize the BPU to impose certain requirements on electric public utilities in order to protect ratepayers against increased costs resulting from new transmission, distribution, capacity, or energy rates resulting from serving large load data center customers; and

      (4) update the synopsis of the bill.