What’s under attack in New Jersey

The EPA is revising its rules for phasing out hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which are chemicals used in air conditioning and refrigeration that harm the ozone layer. The changes address requests from industry and allow equipment made or imported before January 1, 2025, to continue being installed, while still restricting new HFC use going forward. This affects manufacturers and installers of refrigeration and air conditioning systems across many industries.

The federal government is ending a program that has paid incentives to public utilities, local governments, and non-profit electric cooperatives for producing renewable energy. These payments will completely stop on September 30, 2026. This change finalizes the official rules to match the law that created the program.

This bill would reduce the special powers that the state's utilities agency (BPU) currently has to override local government decisions about offshore wind projects. Instead of the state being able to push through offshore wind development regardless of local concerns, towns and cities would have more say in whether these projects happen in their areas.

This bill would limit certain construction rights and property interests that developers currently have for offshore wind projects in New Jersey. It would also reduce the power that the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) has to override local government decisions about offshore wind development. The bill is currently being reviewed by the Assembly committee that handles telecommunications and utilities.

The federal Department of Energy is putting a temporary hold on new rules that required clean energy (like solar or wind) in newly built federal buildings and major renovations. While they review how to implement these rules, the government is not yet enforcing compliance with the clean energy requirements. This delay affects federal construction projects nationwide.

The federal government is changing how it calculates fuel efficiency ratings for electric vehicles. They're removing a specific factor (called the fuel content factor) from the calculation because a court ruled that including it went beyond what the law allowed. This change will affect how car manufacturers must meet fuel economy standards.

This bill calls for an immediate pause on sonar testing (underwater sound technology) and wind turbine mapping surveys off New Jersey's coast because of recent, unexplained deaths of marine animals in the area. The goal is to protect ocean life while the causes of these deaths are investigated. Supporters want to stop these activities until experts can determine whether they're harming sea creatures.

This bill would prevent New Jersey's Economic Development Authority from providing financial aid or subsidies to wind energy projects. Wind energy companies would no longer be able to receive government money to help fund their operations. This could impact New Jersey's ability to develop wind power as part of its clean energy goals.

This bill would prevent New Jersey utility companies from passing certain costs of offshore wind projects directly to customers through their electricity bills. Instead of ratepayers covering these expenses, the costs would need to be paid through other means. The goal is to protect consumers from higher utility bills due to offshore wind development.

This bill would require offshore wind energy projects to get approval from local governments before building certain infrastructure near New Jersey's coast. Currently, some wind projects can proceed with state approval alone, but this bill shifts some decision-making power to cities and towns. The goal is to give communities more say in major energy projects that affect their areas.

This bill prevents electric utility companies from charging regular customers for certain costs related to offshore wind energy projects. Instead of spreading these costs to everyday ratepayers, the bill requires these expenses to be handled differently. The goal is to protect residential customers from paying extra fees on their electric bills for offshore wind development.

This federal bill requires the U.S. military to review how offshore wind farms might affect military operations, radar systems, and sonar capabilities. Before offshore wind projects can move forward, the military must certify that they won't interfere with national defense. The bill was introduced in Congress and sent to the Armed Services Committee for review.