MANCHESTER – The mayor and council’s message to the residents of the community is “Don’t enroll in independent power provider companies until you learn what deal the municipality has struck with one.”
That message was delivered during a recent Manchester Township Coordinating Council meeting and later that same day, during a Township Council meeting.
Mayor Joseph Hankins remarked during the MCC session that “I don’t know if we can get where we want to be but if we can get a better price we will. Don’t think this is the end of the world but it stinks.”
The mayor said that the township was planning to submit a bid about energy purchases so you should look for that information coming out soon.
Council Vice President James Vaccaro made a similar plea during that night’s council meeting advising residents to wait until the township reports on their work concerning an energy aggregate provider.
Concerned residents at that meeting held at the Crestwood Village V clubhouse expressed their frustration and anger over high bills noting that by June they will have received a 33% increase in their energy bills from Jersey Central Power & Light. JCP&L representatives blamed the increases on market factors of supply and demand and the importation of energy from other states.
The mayor’s confidential aide Judy Noonan who also serves as senior liaison was present at that meeting and asked “who regulates these companies that are giving us these prices?”
JCP&L representative Christopher Hoenig responded “the BPU (Board of Public Utilities) oversees the auction process. This extends beyond the borders of New Jersey as well. New Jersey does have a rate council that is also involved in this process.”
Jersey Central Power & Light representative Christopher Hoenig speaks to Manchester Township seniors and elected officials who demanded some answers about the utility company’s service failures and its plans for equipment upgrades. (Photo by Bob Vosseller)
Noonan noted that the state’s office of the Public Advocate should be involved in this and expressed the view that they weren’t doing their job in protecting residents from unreasonable rates from energy aggregate firms. “The state has nothing to do with it?”
Hoenig couldn’t answer that question which was fielded to 9th District Senator Carmen Amato, who attended with Assemblyman Brian Rumpf. Amato said that a seminar will be held in Manchester in the next four to six weeks “to get those individuals (utility firms) come out again to organize a way to get your rates down whether it is through subsidies or BPU or various companies.”
Hoenig defended the installation of smart meters which many residents expressed concern over.
“Smart meters undergo rigorous testing. The standards are extremely strict. Old meters are tested when they are removed and new meters are tested before they are installed. The technology of these meters is state of the art and are designed to assure accurate readings,” Hoenig remarked.
“There are a lot of positives to these meters. There will be tools available that will help you understand energy consumption to use electricity more efficiently,” he said. “I know this will be an unpopular opinion. We have found no correlation between smart meters and increased electric consumption in bills. We are seeing increased usage across our territory regardless of meter type.”
He noted that energy bills in January were between 20 to 30% higher than January’s bills of 2024. “We have not completed smart meter installation across our territory footprint but we are seeing increased usage across our entire footprint.”
Hoenig said the smart meters are expected to end estimated meter readings. “We won’t have to send anybody out to read them.” He added that the meters will help the company’s restoration work.
He noted energy consumption programs that can be found at energysavenj.com and bill reduction programs.
One Whiting resident noted that she was on the firm’s budget program. “My budgeted bill was $90 a month and it has doubled. I even had credit on my account. Can you explain this to me?”
As individual bill cases were not being heard at the MCC meeting she was asked to come up afterwards to speak to the JCP&L representatives present so that they could examine why that happened.
Others expressed having similar big jumps in their bills and that they were concerned giving that they are on a fixed income.
“It is market driven,” Hoenig said. “There are external market factors that play a role in that. The increase that we are seeing is largely driven by an increase in consumption and a decrease of power plants online. In New Jersey we import about 20% of the electricity that is used so we are influenced by what happens in surrounding states.”
Resident Gail Apgar commended officials who were trying to get “our voices heard” in Trenton. “We have to start calling our governor’s office.”
Hankins told The Manchester Times, “I think we need to look at getting our own power suppliers in New Jersey.”
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