The Ocean County Library in Toms River was packed on Wednesday for an energy assistance event to connect residents to programs that can help them pay their energy bills.
As utility prices rise statewide, more people are attending these events, hosted by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, to learn how to save money on their bills.
“We have been doing them throughout the last year,” said Christine Guhl-Sadovy, president of BPU. “We’re going to continue to do that more frequently to make sure that we’re providing the opportunity for people to get energy assistance if they need it.”
“In the senior community, these are ridiculous charges for people who live on fixed incomes,” said Waretown resident Mitch Bernstein, who says his natural gas bill has nearly doubled from this time last year.
“Social Security goes up like up a fraction, and the electric bill goes up like this,” said Toms River resident Debbie Onorato. “We need help.”
New Jersey ratepayers are set to pay up to 20% more on their monthly electricity bills beginning in June.
There was criticism of the BPU after the most recent electricity auction. The BPU has argued that the increase in costs is the fault of grid operator PJM, while statewide officials have blamed a variety of people and policies.
