NJ make it legal to use small solar units
Plug-in gadgets can offset electricity usage
By: Katie Sobko
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Governor Mikie Sherrill continued her efforts to keep utility rates from rising by signing legislation on Tuesday,
September 1, [2026] that will bring balcony solar to New Jersey.
.....
Balcony solar systems are small units that fit on a balcony or patio and can be used to offset electricity usage.
..... The units can be purchased Online or at a home improvement store and then plugged into a standard outlet.
.... "Some in politics like we have to choose between affordability and sustainability, as if lower electric bills have to come at the cost of our green spaces or the clime, but that couldn't be further from the truth," she said. "We can protect families' budget and the environment at the same time."
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New Jersey is the ninth state in the country to take this step. the governor noted that the units are common in Europe and that more than a million of them in Germany produce close to a gigawatt of electricity or enough to power about a million households.
..... The legislation unanimously passed both chambers of the state Legislature in June. [2026]
..... Assemblyman Robert Karabinchak said this is just one step being taken and that more will come to save New Jersey ratepayers on their utility bills.
..... "Renters will be able to do this. People who own condos, townhouses, will be able to do this. This opportunity is here for you," he said. "Even on a cloudy day like this, this panel is producing energy that would help you where you live and for your family."
..... This isn't the first step Sherrill has taken to address soaring utility costs and the need for more energy supply in the Garden State.
..... She
signed legislation in July [2026] to kick-start the constructions of nuclear energy generation facilities in New Jersey. She said at the time that the new law will cerate a competitive process to build nuclear energy projects hat can power hundreds of thousands of homes.
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Sherrill has been vocal about her desire not just to freeze prices where they are but to find ways to bring them down.
..... Just minutes after taking the oath of office in January, [2026] she made good on her promise to declare a state of emergency to freeze utility costs on day one of her administration by signing two executive orders to that effect.
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The first order calls for the Board of Public Utilities to "pause or modify utility actions that could further increase bills.' and it gives the board the authority to "set just and reasonable pubic utility rates, to investigate any matter concerning any public utility, and to require any public utility to furnish safe, adequate, and proper service."
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It also provides credits due to be issued July 1[2026] to help offset electricity costs.
..... Sherrill's second order is where that "state of emergency" phasing comes into play, declaring the emergency under the state's Civilian Defense and Disaster control Act to call for the creation and expansion of state programs to develop new power generation.
..... The order calls for starting and streamline programs to bring on new solar and battery storage generation. It also directs state agencies to identify permit reforms to speed up new energy projects.
.... Electric utilities will also have to report energy request form AI data centers to the Board of Public Utilizes, and the order creates a Nuclear Power Task Force to help the state lead the way n building new nuclear power generation.
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New Jersey is part of a 13-state electricity grid operated by PJM Interconnection. It is responsible for operating the electric grid for a huge swath of the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, stretching from New Jersey to North Carolina and from the coast into Illinois, covering about 70 million residents within its service area.
..... Sherrill has also set her sights on data centers and their energy consumption.
..... The governor signed legislation last week focused on bringing more transparency to data centers by requiring them to provide water and energy usage reports to the Board of Public Utilities.
..... She also signed legislation to cerate a different ratepayer class for data center, so that there emery costs aren't passed on to other customers, and to require them to pay for infrastructure upgrades.