Testimony in Freehold questions JCP&L plan
FREEHOLD — State Sen. Linda Greenstein, D-14, is opposing a 4.5 percent rate increase proposed by Jersey Central Power & Light during a utilities hearing last week.
According to a press release from Ms. Greenstein, the increase is designed to raise another $603 million from the pockets of consumers.
According to the release, Ms. Greenstein spoke out during a packed public hearing hosted by the state Board of Public Utilities, which is considering the increase.
The Freehold Town Hall hearing room served as a venue for the hearing and was attended by around 100 people, many of them seniors.
The utility says it needs to raise $603 million to help offset what it says is $630 million it spent on repairing damage done by Superstorm Sandy last October, according to the release.
But Ms. Greenstein testified that New Jersey’s Division of the Rate Counsel has found sufficient evidence that JCP&L over billed consumers by more than $90 million in 2010.
Stefanie Brand, director of the Division of the Rate Counsel, found that JCP&L saw a 12.4 percent profit in 2010, while BPU orders called for an 8.5 percent profit maximum, leaving the company with an extra $90 million.
”Where did all the money go?” Greenstein questioned in the release. “This makes me seriously question, as should the BPU, what investments in infrastructure JCP&L could and should have been making in recent years that might have mitigated the impact of Superstorm Sandy. Because they clearly did not do enough.”
According to the release, Sen. Greenstein called on the BPU to ensure that any rate increase that may be awarded is spent on improvements here in New Jersey and not siphoned off as profit to the Akron, Ohio-based parent company, FirstEnergy Corp.
”The JCP&L rate hike request could have a very significant impact on what people pay for their utility bills,” said the Senator. “The public should not pay a single dime more for electric rates than is absolutely necessary.”
Sen. Greenstein represents tens of thousands of seniors in her 14th Legislative District, many concentrated in the large adult communities centered around both Monroe and Cranbury townships.
”Many seniors in my legislative district as well as around the state are struggling on fixed incomes and every dollar JCP&L takes from their pockets could well cause them to sacrifice food and medicines,” Greenstein said. “We cannot let the corporate greed of a company from Ohio with a very poor record of service trump the needs of our seniors and other hardworking residents who are struggling just to get by in these very difficult times.”