New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill recently signed major legislation that will hold utility companies and data centers accountable and provide relief to millions of resident households through immediate bill credits.

On July 7, three bills targeting consumer energy savings are reportedly estimated to save N.J. ratepayers more than $1 billion annually.

The first bill, the Advanced Grid Technologies Act (S4411), strengthens state oversight of utility infrastructure investments to prevent excessive spending while supporting grid modernization. Bill two, Repeal ROE Adder (S1673), eliminates an automatic return-on-equity bonus, cutting inflated profit margins utilities receive simply for being connected to the regional grid operator PJM or a regional transmission organization that officials deem “unnecessary.”

Lastly, the Data Center Fair Share Act (S731) ensures big tech and hyperscalers pay for their own electrification demands. By establishing a separate rate-setting process, data centers will foot the bill for their fair share of energy—permanently shifting those heavy infrastructure costs away from New Jersey households.

A $25 credit to all 3.6 million N.J. electric customers was also announced through the Residential Universal Bill Credit (RUBC) program. RUBC is a state initiative to provide direct relief to New Jerseyans and help offset rising energy costs on residential utility bills.

"For too long, New Jersey families have paid the price for poor oversight, outdated policies, and rising demand on our electric grid by unchecked actors,” said Gov. Sherrill in a statement. “We're putting money back into people's pockets while holding utility companies and large data centers accountable through stronger oversight and smarter incentives that will drive down costs and strengthen our grid.”

In 2024, New Jersey electricity shutoffs exceeded 128,000 customers, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Electricity rates have since risen by more than 16% in N.J., heavily tied to the rapid expansion of AI data centers.

Gov. Sherrill notes the newly signed ratepayer protection bills build on a series of aggressive climate measures taken in the last six months. This includes approving 18 new clean energy projects (15 solar and three battery storage).

Additionally, N.J. will support up to 3,000 MW of new solar capacity under a Community Solar Energy Program expansion, backed by $79 million in NJEDA grants supporting 10 separate large-scale clean energy projects.