Bill Text: NJ A1408 | 2014-2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires electric, gas, and water public utilities to provide bill credits to volunteer fire companies, first aid, rescue, and emergency squads, and nonprofit homeless and domestic violence assistance organizations.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-16 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee [A1408 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2014-A1408-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
216th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2014 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman UPENDRA J. CHIVUKULA
District 17 (Middlesex and Somerset)
Assemblywoman VALERIE VAINIERI HUTTLE
District 37 (Bergen)
Assemblywoman SHAVONDA E. SUMTER
District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman DeAngelo and Assemblywoman Mosquera
SYNOPSIS
Requires electric, gas, and water public utilities to provide bill credits to volunteer fire companies, first aid, rescue, and emergency squads, and nonprofit homeless and domestic violence assistance organizations.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act providing for bill credits to certain organizations against charges for their electric, gas, and water service, and supplementing Title 48 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The provisions of any law, rule, regulation, or order to the contrary notwithstanding, each electric, gas, and water public utility, as defined in R.S.48:2-13, that provides service to a facility operated by a volunteer fire company, by a first aid, rescue, or emergency squad, or by a nonprofit homeless or domestic violence assistance organization, shall allow a credit against total charges in each billing period for the electric, gas, or water public utility's distribution service, as appropriate, to that facility. The amount of the bill credit shall be such percentage of the amount of such distribution service charge as shall be established by the Board of Public Utilities.
2. This act shall take effect immediately, but shall remain inoperative for 60 days following the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires electric, gas, and water public utilities that provide service to facilities operated by volunteer fire companies, first aid, rescue, or emergency squads, or nonprofit homeless or domestic violence assistance organizations, to provide for a credit in each periodic bill for the electric, gas, or water public utility's distribution service charges, as appropriate, to that facility. The amount of the bill credit, to be established by the Board of Public Utilities, would be a percentage of the amount of the utility's distribution service charges.
The intent of the bill is to reduce the costs of operating volunteer emergency service organization facilities, used by fire companies, first aid, rescue, or emergency squads, who must rely on financial assistance from municipalities and counties and contributions from the public. Further, reducing the costs of operating the facilities of nonprofit homeless or domestic violence assistance organizations who also must rely on contributions from the public will help them remain financially viable.
