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S3370
SENATE, No. 3370
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 5, 2026
Sponsored by:
Senator� ANTHONY M. BUCCO
District 25 (Morris and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
���� �Load Forecast Accountability Act�; requires BPU to
review electricity load forecasting in State.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� As introduced.
��
An Act
requiring BPU to investigate electricity load
forecasting and supplementing Title 48 of the Revised Statutes.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� This act shall be known
and may be cited as the �Load Forecast Accountability Act.�
���� 2.��� The Legislature finds
and declares that: �
���� a.���� PJM Interconnection,
L.L.C. (PJM) predicts that by 2030, 32 GW of load will be added to the electric
grid.� While some of this load is attributable to the electrification of
vehicles and buildings, and other large-load additions, PJM reports that
approximately 30 GW is attributable to data centers.
���� b.��� PJM relies upon load
forecasts submitted by electric public utilities in the State to establish
system planning needs and capacity requirements, as well as their associated
costs.
���� c.���� Accurate load
forecasting is essential to ensure the adequacy of electric supply and to
maintain system reliability.� Accurate load forecasting also protects New
Jersey consumers from unnecessary costs caused by the overbuilding or
underbuilding of system resources.
���� d.��� However, the method in
which PJM collects load forecast information from electric public utilities is
opaque.� The lack of transparency undermines the confidence that policymakers,
regulators, and stakeholders need in order to rely upon the results of such
forecasts.
���� e.���� Therefore, there is a
critical need for the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to review load
forecast information from New Jersey utilities to address this issue, and to
coordinate with PJM and neighboring state regulators for system-wide planning
and to prevent duplicative counting of projects and customer contracts.
���� 3.��� a.� As used in this
section:
���� �Board� means the Board of
Public Utilities or its successor agency.
���� �Electric public utility�
means a public utility, as that term is defined in R.S.48:2-13, that transmits
and distributes electricity to end users within the State.
���� �Load-forecasting information�
means any information used to estimate future peak demand within an electric
public utility�s service territory that is provided by that electric public
utility to PJM and utilized by PJM in establishing the reliability requirement
in PJM�s capacity market.� �Load-forecasting information� shall not include
short-term or day-ahead forecasting information.
���� �PJM Interconnection, L.L.C.�
or �PJM� means the same as` the term is defined in section 3 of P.L.1999, c.23
(C.48:3-51).
���� �Regulatory authorities� means
state electric utility regulatory agencies with regulatory jurisdiction within
the PJM region.
���� b.��� Notwithstanding any law,
rule, or regulation to the contrary, the board shall require each electric
public utility to provide to the board any load-forecasting information
provided by the electric public utility to PJM.� The board shall further
require each electric public utility to provide to the board, on a periodic
basis, all load-forecasting information available to the electric public
utility.
���� c.���� The board shall review
the load-forecasting information provided by electric public utilities pursuant
to subsection b. of this section and shall analyze the potential impact of the load-forecasting
information on load-forecasting in the State.
���� d.��� The board shall
coordinate with PJM to ensure load-forecasting information from the State is
incorporated into PJM�s regional planning in a fair, accurate, and
non-duplicative manner.� The board shall further coordinate with PJM and other
regulatory authorities to ensure that new large loads and customer contracts
are accounted for in a non-duplicative manner.
���� e.���� Beginning in 2026 the
board shall submit, no later than June 30 of each year, an annual report to the
Governor and to the Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164
(C.52:14-19.1), summarizing and updating the information received pursuant to subsection
b. of this section, the board�s analysis of the information received pursuant
to subsection c. of this section, and the board�s efforts to implement the
provisions of subsection d. of this section.
���� f.���� The board shall adopt,
pursuant to the �Administrative Procedure Act,� P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et
seq.), rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of
P.L. , c.
(C. ) (pending before the
Legislature as this bill), including rules and regulations on the handling of confidential
information received from electric public utilities.
���� 4.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and shall expire in 2035 upon submission of the board�s
report in that calendar year, as required pursuant to subsection e. of section
3 of P.L. , c.
(C. ) (pending before the
Legislature as this bill).
STATEMENT
���� This bill requires the Board
of Public Utilities (board) to collect load-forecasting information from
electric public utilities.� The bill further requires the board to analyze the
potential impact of the load-forecasting information on load-forecasting for
the State.� Additionally, the bill requires the board to coordinate with: (1)
PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (PJM) to ensure load-forecasting information is
incorporated into PJM�s regional planning in a fair, accurate, and
non-duplicative manner; and (2) PJM and other regulatory authorities to ensure
that new large loads and customer contracts are accounted for in a
non-duplicative manner.
���� The bill also requires the
board to provide annual reports to the Governor and to the Legislature that
include a summary of the load-forecasting information collected, the board�s
analysis of the load-forecasting information, and the board�s efforts to
coordinate with PJM and other regulatory authorities.
���� As used in this bill,
�load-forecasting information� means any information used to estimate future
peak demand within an electric public utility�s service territory that is
provided by that electric public utility to PJM and utilized by PJM in establishing
the reliability requirement in PJM�s capacity market.� Under the bill,
�load-forecasting information� does not include short-term or day-ahead
forecasts.��