Bucco: Murphy Refuses to Discuss Extreme Costs & Future Mandates as His Green Energy Plan Advances

Senator Anthony M. Bucco said Governor Phil Murphy continues to refuse to discuss the huge costs and State mandates likely coming down the pike as he plows forward with his plans to fully electrify New Jersey.

“The BPU just issued a preliminary road map for electrifying all of the homes and buildings across the state, but there wasn’t a single mention of the expected cost or of the mandates that are likely to be necessary to force the conversion of the 80% of New Jersey homes that currently rely on clean natural gas for heating, cooking, and hot water,” said Bucco (R-25). “Governor Murphy should be honest with New Jerseyans about the pain and expense they’ll have to suffer to achieve the green energy utopia he envisions by 2050.”

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) recently released a 21-page Building Decarbonization Straw Proposal that identifies potential strategies to encourage customers to replace mechanical systems and appliances that rely on “delivered fuels” like natural gas, oil, and propane to electric.

While the proposal briefly mentions that the governor’s Energy Master Plan calls for the building sector to be fully electrified “with an early focus on new construction,” it doesn’t acknowledge that likely means bans on new natural gas hookups, similar to those recently enacted in New York.

As with prior documents related to Governor Murphy’s energy plan, the building electrification plan fails to include an expected price tag.

An independent nonprofit estimated the cost of New Jersey’s total transition to green energy by 2050 as proposed by Governor Murphy in his Energy Master Plan at $1.4 trillion.

Bucco said the 30% federal tax credit for energy efficiency upgrades that the plan appears to rely on won’t move the needle for the millions of homeowners with functional mechanical systems that can cost tens-of-thousands of dollars to replace and have decades-long lifespans.

“It’s no surprise that Governor Murphy refuses to give New Jerseyans a straight answer about the astronomical cost of his plan to convert every home and business to green energy,” added Bucco. “Given his track record and lack of transparency so far, I would be shocked if he doesn’t follow New York in banning natural gas hookups in new construction, but he likely won’t want to issue an order until after the election in November. Mandates to force existing home and building owners to undertake expensive conversions to meet his extreme green energy goals are sure to follow.”