LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE
SENATE, No. 2879
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
DATED: DECEMBER 2, 2024
SUMMARY
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Synopsis: |
Creates Office of Sustainability. |
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Type of Impact: |
Indeterminate fiscal net impact across State government. |
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Agencies Affected: |
Department of the Treasury. Board of Public Utilities. Potentially every State agency. |
Office of Legislative Services Estimate
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Fiscal Impact |
Magnitude |
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State Operating Costs of Office of Sustainability |
Indeterminate |
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State Capital Costs of Energy Efficiency Projects |
Indeterminate |
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State Energy Cost Reductions |
Indeterminate |
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· The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) cannot determine the direction or magnitude of the fiscal net impact on the State of creating and operating an Office of Sustainability. This is so because several key parameters are in need of further specification.
· The Office of Sustainability’s position count, organizational structure, and operating budget are unspecified, thereby precluding an assessment of the office’s annual operating expenses.
· The energy efficiency initiatives that the Office of Sustainability would implement are unspecified; thereby precluding an analysis of the initiatives’ capital costs, their financing method-sensitive distribution over time, and the resultant annual energy cost savings.
· The relationship of the Office of Sustainability with the existing State Energy Office in the Board of Public Utilities is unaddressed. The State Energy Office currently exercises functions that are substantially similar to those of the envisioned Office of Sustainability.
BILL DESCRIPTION
The bill creates the Office of Sustainability in the Department of the Treasury. Pursuant to the bill, the office would be under the supervision of a director, who would be appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate, and would report to the State Treasurer. Jointly with Treasury’s Division of Purchase and Property, the office is to develop environmental sustainability measures for State-owned and -leased buildings and see to their implementation.
Specifically, for State buildings the office is to:
(1) develop and implement initiatives that increase energy efficiency, improve the procurement of energy, augment water conservation, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
(2) develop and oversee an energy audit program and ensure the implementation of energy audit recommendations; and
(3) coordinate with the Division of Purchase and Property for the procurement of various energy efficient and environmentally sustainable products.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
None received.
OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
The OLS cannot determine the direction or magnitude of the fiscal net impact on the State of creating and operating an Office of Sustainability. This is so because several key parameters are in need of further specification.
Firstly, the office’s position count, organizational structure, and operating budget are unspecified, thereby precluding an assessment of the office’s annual operating expenses.
Secondly, the energy efficiency initiatives that the Office of Sustainability would implement are unspecified; thereby precluding an analysis of the initiatives’ capital costs, their financing method-sensitive distribution over time, and the resultant annual energy cost savings.
Thirdly, the relationship of the Office of Sustainability with the existing State Energy Office in the Board of Public Utilities is unaddressed. The State Energy Office currently exercises functions that are substantially similar to those of the envisioned Office of Sustainability. The two offices could conceivably duplicate efforts; divide responsibilities between them; or the existing State Energy Office could be renamed the Office of Sustainability, transferred to the Department of the Treasury, and run without any substantial changes.
The State Energy Office, part of the Division of State Energy Services, identifies opportunities for reducing the energy consumption in State facilities. As part of its mission, the office manages the energy savings improvement program for State-owned and -operated buildings in accordance with State law. For reference only, the OLS notes that in the FY 2021 State Energy Report, the division reported that current energy performance contract projects were expected to result in energy cost savings of more than $3 million annually.
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Section: |
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Analyst: |
Assistant Fiscal Analyst |
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Approved: |
Thomas Koenig Legislative Budget and Finance Officer |
This legislative fiscal estimate has been produced by the Office of Legislative Services due to the failure of the Executive Branch to respond to our request for a fiscal note.
This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980, c.67 (C.52:13B-6 et seq.).