Ridgewood NJ, Senator Anthony M. Bucco (R-25) said a new study commissioned by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) to show the cost to ratepayers of implementing Governor Murphy’s new Energy Master Plan is based on false assumptions and ignores huge costs associated with the electrification of homes, businesses, and transportation in New Jersey:
Trenton NJ, Board of Public Utilities President Joseph Fiordaliso at Wednesday’s post Isaias press conference : Thank you, Governor. Just as a matter of some comparison here, as the Governor mentioned, at the peak, we had 1.4 million people approximately without power, or customers. Sandy, Super Storm Sandy, at its peak, we had 1.7 million customers without power. Here’s a storm that just came through the entire state of New Jersey thank goodness at a more rapid pace than Sandy, but we still had devastating damage. And New Jersey was probably one of the hardest hit states from this particular storm. We are now down to, as the Governor mentioned, approximately 977,000 people without power. So we have – excuse me – almost 500,000 people who have been restored. Regionally, 3.5 million were without power in 14 states. New Jersey got literally whacked, and it really left its mark throughout the entire state. If you were to ask me what region of New Jersey was hit the hardest, I would have difficulty explaining or recognizing any particular area. The entire state was ravaged by this quick-moving storm.