Bill Text: NJ A249 | 2014-2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires electric public utilities to repair or install street lights within certain time periods after municipal notification.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-16 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee [A249 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2014-A249-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
216th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2014 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman SEAN T. KEAN
District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)
Assemblyman DAVID P. RIBLE
District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman Handlin
SYNOPSIS
Requires electric public utilities to repair or install street lights within certain time periods after municipal notification.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act concerning street light repair and installation 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):
"Board" means the Board of Public Utilities or any successor agency.
"Emergency situation" means conditions resulting from natural forces or human activities beyond the control of the utility, or which pose an imminent or existing threat of loss of electrical, water, power, telephone, or other telecommunication service, or which pose an imminent or existing threat to the safety and security of persons or property, or both, or which require immediate action by a utility to prevent bodily harm or substantial property damage from occurring.
"Major catastrophic event" means a natural or humanly caused occurrence arising from conditions beyond the control of the utility, including, but not limited to, a terrorist attack, thunderstorm, tornado, hurricane, flood, heat wave, snow storm, ice storm, or an earthquake, which results in: (1) a sustained interruption of utility service to at least 10 percent of the customers in an operating area or 10 percent of the customers of a municipality or county located in an operating area; or (2) the declaration of a state of emergency or disaster by the State or by the federal government.
"Utility" means an electric public utility, as that term is defined in R.S.48:2-13, that transmits and distributes electricity to end users within this State.
2. a. After the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), a utility shall repair a street light owned or operated by that utility within 72 hours after notice is provided to the utility by the chief law enforcement officer of the municipality where the street light outage has occurred.
b. After the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), if the chief law enforcement officer of a municipality determines that a street light needs to be installed on an existing pole owned by a utility, the utility shall install the street light within 90 days after notice is provided by the chief law enforcement officer of a municipality to the utility where the street light installation notification or request has occurred. The requesting municipality shall reimburse the utility for the installation, in accordance with the utility's tariff applicable to street lighting service.
c. The provisions of this section: (1) shall not affect any board regulation concerning street light lamp or accessory inspection requirements or routine street light repairs or any utility tariff that otherwise establishes the terms and conditions for the provision of street lighting service by the utility; and (2) shall not apply to any notification or request made pursuant to subsection a. or b. of this section when the utility to whom the notification or request is made experiences an emergency situation or a major catastrophic event has occurred within the utility's service territory within the time requirements established pursuant to board regulation, provided that the utility undertaking the repair or installation notifies the chief law enforcement officer of the municipality in which the repair or installation is to occur of any delay in responding to the request at the earliest reasonable opportunity and that all reasonable efforts are taken by the utility to comply with the requirements of subsections a. or b. of this section after responding to the emergency situation or major catastrophic event.
3. A utility that violates the provisions of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) or any rule, regulation, or order of the board promulgated or issued thereunder shall be liable for a civil administrative penalty of $50 per day for each violation. Civil administrative penalties shall be recovered in a summary proceeding pursuant to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.). The Superior Court shall have jurisdiction to enforce the provisions of the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999" in connection with P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). Consistent with section 1 of P.L.1988, c.100, (C.48:2-21.14), any civil administrative penalty imposed under P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall not be recoverable from ratepayers.
4. This act shall take effect 60 days following the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires an electric public utility (utility) to repair a street light owned or operated by that utility within 72 hours after notice is provided to the utility by the chief law enforcement officer of the municipality where the street light outage has occurred. The bill also requires a utility to install a street light on an existing pole owned by the utility within 90 days after notice is provided to the utility by the chief law enforcement officer of a municipality where the street light installation notification or request has occurred provided that the chief law enforcement officer of that municipality first determines that a street light needs to be installed on that pole. The bill would not affect any Board of Public Utilities (board) regulation concerning street light lamp or accessory inspection requirements or routine street light repairs or any utility tariff that otherwise establishes the terms and conditions for the provision of street lighting service by the utility. The bill provides an exemption to the time period requirements if the utility experiences an emergency situation of major catastrophic event, as those terms are defined in the bill, within its service territory within the time period of the request or notification or as determined by the board, provided that the utility undertaking the repair or installation notifies the chief law enforcement officer of the municipality in which the repair or installation is to occur of any delay in responding to the request at the earliest reasonable opportunity and that all reasonable efforts are taken by the utility to comply with the time period requirements after responding to the emergency situation or major catastrophic event.
The bill provides that any utility that violates the provisions of the bill shall be liable for a civil administrative penalty of $50 per day for each violation. Civil administrative penalties shall be recovered in a summary proceeding pursuant to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.). The Superior Court shall have jurisdiction to enforce the provisions of the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999" in connection with the bill. Consistent with section 1 of P.L.1988, c.100, (C.48:2-21.14), any civil administrative penalty imposed under the bill shall not be recoverable from ratepayers.
