New Jerseyans want deliberate, determined, and smart climate policy that helps everyone live healthier lives. This will require taking steps every day toward a more resilient and sustainable built environment and economy. S249/A4844, a bill that is currently making its way through the New Jersey legislature, is a forward-looking policy that would reduce the cost of—and increase the availability of—efficient electric appliances in the state.
Buildings are a large source of greenhouse gas emissions in New Jersey, accounting for more than a quarter of the state’s total. Transitioning our homes and other buildings to use the most efficient, electric equipment is a key part of the solution to both the climate and affordability crises. S249/A4844 makes it easier and more affordable for New Jerseyans to embrace these efficient systems.
What does the bill do? Lower costs!
S249/A4844 empowers the Board of Public Utilities and the state’s utilities to establish beneficial building electrification programs for those customers who wish to participate. If the bill passes, homeowners and renters will see rebates and discounts extended to efficient appliances that accurately reflect the benefits of replacing outdated, inefficient, and air-polluting home appliances with new and improved upgrades. This bill recognizes that for residents, businesses, and utilities, everyone benefits from having cost-effective, efficient, and healthy electric appliances such as whole-home and cold-weather heat pumps, two-way air conditioners, and heat pump water heaters.
This is a consumer-choice bill—with no one being forced to make a decision that is wrong for their family or for their pocketbook. This bill is about giving—not taking. Its most concrete contribution to residents will be significantly expanding incentives for electric appliances, putting them on a more equal playing field with older health-harming fossil fuel technologies.
What does this mean for New Jersey? Cheaper bills!
Enabling this choice can also increase the affordability of energy bills. Utility customers that heat their homes with high-efficiency heat pumps can save up to 41 percent on their bills. Switching buildings to electric heat pumps will also make it more economical to operate the electric grid, further reducing costs for electric customers.
The average furnaces and water heaters last a decade or two: Upgrading to heat pumps when current equipment breaks means that the transition to electric buildings will happen deliberately and with enough time for grid planners and utilities to adjust plans as needed. For buildings that are already electrified, heat pumps offer best-in-class efficiencies and can use less energy than other technologies, reducing strain on the grid. Homeowners and renters in older buildings that switch to an electric heat pump get two new appliances—an AC and heater—that are more efficient than the most efficient existing gas alternatives.
What needs to happen?
The Garden State should act decisively and advance S249/A4844 to create financial and technical assistance incentives for electric customers who choose to install new electric heat pumps. This bill is critical to achieving New Jersey’s climate goals and can provide immediate relief to the state’s rising energy costs.
The bill requires nothing of residents while providing greater opportunity to make the best choices for their health and wallets, given the range of options and the values they present. It’s a forward-looking bill: Traveling in low visibility just requires caution and forethought; it doesn’t require stalling.
New Jersey has made bold commitments to pursue policies that can lower our energy bills, clean up our air, and tackle emissions from our buildings. Its leaders have worked hard to deliver on these promises, but more needs to be done.
The legislature has an opportunity to deliver on those commitments. If S249/A4844 advances, it could mean that thousands in new rebates and incentives might soon be available to residents to help them have healthier, more affordable homes. With energy costs in New Jersey set to rise later this summer, this legislation provides a straightforward method to contain costs at a critical moment.
