Requires regional representation for members of BPU.

A1478

ASSEMBLY, No. 1478

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman ANTWAN L. MCCLELLAN

District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Simonsen

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires regional representation for members of BPU.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
establishing a regional residency requirement for
members of the Board of Public Utilities and amending R.S.48:2-1.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.�� R.S.48:2-1 is amended to
read as follows:

���� 48:2-1.� a.�� The Board of
Public Utilities, named pursuant to Reorganization Plan No. 001-1994, effective
on July 4, 1994, and allocated in, but not of, the Department of the Treasury
pursuant to that plan, is continued and is designated as the Board of Public
Utilities or the "board."

���� b.��� The board shall consist
of five citizens of this State
, with at least one member that resides in
each of the northern, central, and southern regions of the State,
who shall
devote their entire time to the duties of the board and shall not engage in any
occupation, profession or other gainful employment.�
As used in this
subsection: �northern region� means Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic,
Sussex, and Warren counties; �central region� means Hunterdon, Middlesex,
Monmouth, Mercer, Ocean, Somerset, and Union counties; and �southern region�
means Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem
counties.��

���� c.���� Members of the board
shall be appointed by the Governor, with the advice and consent of the Senate,
for terms of six years.� The terms of office of the members of the board shall
continue until their successors are appointed and qualified.� No person shall
act as a member of the board until that person's appointment has been confirmed
by the Senate.� Not more than three of the members of the board shall be
members of the same political party.� All vacancies, except through the
expiration of term, shall be filled for the unexpired term only.

����
d.� For each appointment to
the Board of Public Utilities made after the effective date of P.L.�� , c.����
(C.�� ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Governor shall
ensure compliance with the required geographic representation provided in subsection
b. of this section.

(cf: P.L.2001, c.132, s.1)

���� 2.� This act shall take effect
immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill imposes certain
residency requirements for members of the Board of Public Utilities (BPU).�
Under the bill, of the five members appointed to serve on the BPU, at least one
member is required to reside in each of the northern, central, and southern
regions of the State. The bill defines the northern region as Bergen, Essex,
Hudson, Morris, Passaic, Sussex, and Warren counties; the central region as Hunterdon,
Middlesex, Monmouth, Mercer, Ocean, Somerset, and Union counties; and the
southern region as Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland,
Gloucester, and Salem counties.� The bill would provide that, for each
appointment made after the effective date of the bill, the Governor would be
required to ensure compliance with the required geographic representation.�