STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Division of The Ratepayer Advocate
31 Clinton Street, 11th Fl
P. O. Box 46005
Newark, New Jersey 07101
Press Release
For Immediate Release Friday, July 25, 2003 |
For
Further Information |
Ratepayer Advocate Seema M. Singh’s Comment on
Board of Public Utilities’ Decisions on JCP&L’s Deferred Balance, Base
Rate Case and Performance Standards
This
was a good day for Jersey Central Power & Light ratepayers.
Instead of an 11 percent increase that the utility was seeking for its
residential customers, customers will see their electric bills increase by
approximately 3 percent starting August 1st.
While
I am never happy about rate increases, the 3 percent increase is compared to the
rate increases that are averaging about 15 percent for the other electric
utilities in New Jersey. The Board’s action today on JCP&L’s deferred
balance and base rate case is an acceptable decision.
I
am very pleased that the BPU endorsed performance standards for JCP&L, which
the Ratepayer Advocate has long advocated. Shareholder dollars – and not the ratepayers’ money –
are now at risk if JCP&L does not deliver reliable service.
The
BPU will evaluate appropriate performance standards during a six-month to a
year-long review for JCP&L at the urging of Governor McGreevey.
We applaud Governor McGreevey for taking this significant step to ensure
that JCP&L customers receive reliable service.
Setting
permanent performance standards for JCP&L, and giving the Board of Public
Utilities the authority to impose penalties to be paid out of company profits if
the utility fails to live up to those standards, puts the shareholders’ money
on the line.
The
Ratepayer Advocate has been advocating that the risk be taken off the ratepayers
and put on the shareholders. The
ratepayers have been paying for bad service long enough.
It’s time to hold management and the company’s owners responsible for
poor performance.
The Division of the Ratepayer
Advocate represents the interests of utility consumers and serves as an active
participant in every case where New Jersey utilities seek changes in their rates
or services. The Ratepayer Advocate
also gives consumers a voice in setting long-range energy, water, and
telecommunications policy that will affect the delivery of utility services well
into the future. Additional
information on this and other matters can be found at the Division of Ratepayer
Advocate’s website at http://www.rpa.state.nj.us