Bill Text: NJ A2398 | 2026-2027 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: "Public Utility Fair Profit Act"; requires public utilities to take certain actions regarding excess profits and directs fines for violations to fund utility assistance programs.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Introduced) 2026-01-13 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee [A2398 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2026-A2398-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman WILLIAM F. MOEN, JR.
District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)
SYNOPSIS
"Public Utility Fair Profit Act"; requires public utilities to take certain actions regarding excess profits and directs fines for violations to fund utility assistance programs.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning public utility profits, designated as the "Public Utility Fair Profit Act," and supplementing Title 48 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):
"Bill credits" means credits issued to customers to be applied to future utility statements.
"Board" means the Board of Public Utilities.
"Excess profit" means the amount of actual revenues collected by a public utility during a reporting period that exceeds the utility's total revenue requirement approved by the board for the reporting period.
"Public utility" or "utility" means a public utility, as defined in R.S.48:2-13, that provides electric or gas, service.
"Reporting period" means the 12-month period prescribed by the board for the purpose of a public utility's compliance with P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
"Total revenue requirement" means the total amount of revenue that a public utility is approved to recover through utility rates during a reporting period, as approved by the board in the utility's most recent base rate case, and including any additional amounts of revenue that the board has approved the public utility to recover through an alternative rate recovery mechanism during the reporting period, including, but not limited to, any charge approved pursuant to an infrastructure investment program.
"Utility assistance program" means any State program that offers financial assistance for utility services to residential customers or otherwise establishes utility protections for residential customers.
2. a. No later than three months following the completion of its reporting period, a public utility shall perform an annual review of the actual revenues collected by the utility during the reporting period and the total revenue requirement approved by the board for that reporting period, which review shall be used to determine the utility's excess profits, if any, for the reporting period.
b. If a public utility collected excess profits during the previous reporting period, the public utility shall redistribute its excess profits to customers, in a proportional manner, through a refund mechanism to be reviewed and approved by the board, including:
(1) bill credits applied to future utility bills;
(2) direct payments for customers with unpaid balances; or
(3) direct payments for customers who are enrolled in a utility assistance program.
c. A public utility shall redistribute its excess profits to customers, pursuant to subsection b. of this section, in such intervals and forms as may be prescribed by the board. A public utility shall have 45 days to comply with the board's order to redistribute its excess profits. Any excess profits redistributed to customers pursuant to this section shall not be recoverable from ratepayers of the utility.
3. a. Within five months following the completion of its reporting period, a public utility shall file an annual financial report with the board in a manner and form to be determined by the board. The annual report shall include, at a minimum, information documenting the actual revenues collected by the utility during the reporting period, the total revenue requirement approved by the board for the reporting period, and if excess profits were collected, any credits or payments issued to customers pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
b. A public utility that fails to redistribute excess profits to customers within 45 days of being ordered to do so by the board, as required pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), or that knowingly misrepresents any information contained in the financial report submitted pursuant to this section, shall be subject to a fine in an amount determined by the board, except not to exceed the lesser of five percent of the public utility's total revenue requirement or 105 percent of the excess profits for the reporting period. The civil penalty provided for in this section shall be recovered in an administrative proceeding held pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.). Any monies recovered pursuant to this penalty shall be allocated to supplement existing funding for utility assistance programs administered by the board. Any penalty imposed pursuant to this section shall not be recoverable from ratepayers of the utility.
4. The board shall adopt, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations as may be necessary for the implementation of this act.
5. This act shall take effect immediately, except that sections 2 and 3 of this act shall remain inoperative until the board adopts rules and regulations pursuant to section 4 of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill, which is designated as the "Public Utility Fair Profit Act," requires each electric public utility and gas public utility to annually review its actual revenues collected during the year and its total revenue requirement to determine if the public utility collected excess profits during that year.
After any year in which a public utility collected excess profits, the bill requires the public utility to redistribute its excess profits to customers, in a proportional manner and in such intervals as may be prescribed by the board, through a refund mechanism subject to board approval, including:
(1) bill credits applied to future utility bills;
(2) direct payments for customers with unpaid balances; or
(3) direct payments for customers who are enrolled in a utility assistance program.
The bill provides that a public utility has 45 days to comply with the board's order to redistribute its excess profits. The excess profit redistributed by a public utility is not recoverable from ratepayers of the utility.
Public utilities are required to file an annual financial report with the board in a manner and form to be determined by the board. At a minimum, the report is to include information documenting the public utility's actual revenues collected, the total revenue requirement, and if excess profits were collected, any bill credits or direct payments issued to customers.
A public utility that fails to redistribute excess profits to customers within 45 days of being ordered to do so by the board, or that knowingly misrepresents any information contained in the financial report, will be subject to a fine in an amount determined by the board, not to exceed the lesser of five percent of the public utility's total revenue requirement or 105 percent of the public utility's excess profits. This civil penalty is to be recovered in an administrative proceeding and will be allocated to supplement existing funding for utility assistance programs. Public utilities are prohibited from recovering any penalty from ratepayers.
The bill defines "excess profit" as the amount of actual revenues collected by a public utility during a reporting period that exceeds the utility's total revenue requirement approved by the board for the reporting period. "Total revenue requirement" means the total amount of revenue that a public utility is approved to recover through utility rates during a reporting period, as approved by the board in the utility's most recent base rate case, and including any additional amounts of revenue that the board has approved the public utility to recover through an alternative rate recovery mechanism during the reporting period, including, but not limited to, any charge approved pursuant to an infrastructure investment program.
