Bill Text: NJ A1242 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Exempts purchases of natural gas and electricity for residential customers from sales and use tax during coldest months of year.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-09 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee [A1242 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-A1242-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman ALEX SAUICKIE
District 12 (Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Exempts purchases of natural gas and electricity for residential customers from sales and use tax during coldest months of year.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act exempting the purchases of natural gas and electricity from taxation under the "Sales and Use Tax" during the coldest months of the year and supplementing P.L.1966, c.30 (C.54:32B-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Beginning on December 1 of each year and ending on April 15 of the succeeding calendar year, receipts from the retail sales of natural gas and electricity for residential use shall be exempt from the tax imposed pursuant to the "Sales and Use Tax Act," P.L.1966, c.30 (C.54:32B-1 et seq.).
b. A public utility that provides natural gas or electrical services for residential customers shall, at the conclusion of each monthly billing cycle, deduct from each customer's bill the amount that represents the State sales and use tax otherwise due on the retail sale.
c. The Director of the Division of Taxation, in consultation with the Board of Public Utilities, shall adopt rules and regulations in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) as deemed necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill exempts from the State sales and use tax the retail sales of natural gas and electrical services for residential customers from December 1 of each year through April 15 of the succeeding calendar year. Public utilities that provide natural gas and electric services would be required, at the conclusion of each monthly billing cycle, to deduct from each customer's bill the amount that represents the sales and use tax.
The State of New Jersey finds itself in the midst of a worsening affordability crisis. Inflation has made it harder to afford basic goods and services while disruptions brought on by the war in Ukraine have sent global energy costs soaring. Locally, this had led to an increase in residential energy costs with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities recently approving double-digit rate increases for the State's four largest gas providers. These rate hikes ranged from 15 percent to 25 percent and, if implemented fully by gas providers, would represent an increase to the average household's energy bill of approximately $300 annually. With the regular occurrence of harsh winters in our area, it is imperative for the State to find ways to help ease this financial burden. By exempting the purchase of natural gas and electrical services from the sales and use tax for the duration of each winter season, residents will be able to find some measure of relief in the face of rising costs.
