S4374: Expands certain requirements concerning automatic enrollment for utility bill payment assistance…

SENATE, No. 4374 STATE OF NEW JERSEY 222nd LEGISLATURE INTRODUCED JUNE 1, 2026 Sponsored by: Senator NICHOLAS P. SCUTARI District 22 (Somerset and Union) Senator NILSA I. CRUZ-PEREZ District 5 (Camden and Gloucester) SYNOPSIS Expands certain requirements concerning automatic enrollment for utility bill payment assistance programs. CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT As introduced. An Act concerning automatic enrollment in certain utility bill payment assistance programs and supplementing P.L.2025, c.387 (C.48:2-29.60). Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey: 1. a. As used in this section: "Ongoing assistance" means assistance, including monetary assistance, provided to residential recipients of a needs-based assistance program that does not expire upon reaching a pre-determined total amount of assistance received or pre-determined total time period during which assistance was received. "Nonprofit organization" means a private nonprofit organization that is exempt from federal taxation pursuant to section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. s.501(c)(3) that administers a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance in the State on behalf of a utility company. "Utility company" means public utility, as defined in R.S.48:2-13, or a municipality, county, water district, authority, or other public agency which provides electric, gas, water, or wastewater utility service, that administers a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance in the State. b. Within three months of the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Department of Community Affairs shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with nonprofit organizations and utility companies. A memorandum of understanding entered into pursuant to this section shall: (1) within one month of the effective date of the memorandum of understanding, and on a recurring basis, as frequently as possible, but not less than quarterly, require the nonprofit organization or utility company to furnish to the department a list of utility customers, the eligibility criteria for any utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance administered by the nonprofit or utility company, and a description of information needed to enroll a household into such program, including information necessary to determine the amount of assistance for which the household is eligible; (2) within six months of the effective date of the memorandum of understanding, and on a recurring basis, as frequently as possible, but not less than quarterly, require the department to: (a) utilize recipient data from the "Universal Service Fund," established pursuant to section 12 of P.L.1999, c.23 (C.48:3-60), and the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, established pursuant to 42 U.S.C. s.8621 et seq., to identify households eligible for a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance administered by the nonprofit organization or utility company based on the information received pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection; and (b) furnish a list of households eligible, including information as may be necessary to determine the amount of assistance for which an eligible household qualifies, for each utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance administered by the nonprofit organization or utility company to the nonprofit organization or utility company. (3) notwithstanding any State law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, and only to the extent permitted by federal law, within seven months of the effective date of the memorandum of understanding, and on a recurring basis promptly after receiving a list pursuant to subparagraph (b) of paragraph (2) of this subsection, require the nonprofit organization or utility company to: (a) if the list provided pursuant to subparagraph (b) of paragraph (2) of this subsection does not include all necessary information to enroll a household into a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance or to determine the amount of assistance for which the household would qualify if the household applied for assistance directly to the program, seek necessary information from utility customer households; and (b) to the extent funding is available for such purpose, automatically enroll, based on the list received pursuant to subparagraph (b) of paragraph (2) of this subsection and information collected pursuant to subparagraph (a) of this paragraph, eligible households into utility bill payment assistance programs that provide ongoing assistance administered by the nonprofit or utility company and shall provide the maximum amount of ongoing assistance for which the household is eligible based upon the household's income and other relevant household characteristics pursuant to program rules, except that if sufficient information to determine that amount is unavailable the household shall be enrolled at the minimum benefit level available and the nonprofit or utility company shall provide the household with an opportunity following enrollment to provide additional information demonstrating eligibility for a higher benefit level. A nonprofit or utility company shall not automatically enroll a household into a utility bill payment assistance program that provides a one-time grant or other limited-use assistance. c. A memorandum of understanding entered into pursuant to this section shall include provisions related to maintaining the confidentiality of sensitive household information and the accessibility, security, maintenance, and destruction of sensitive household information, which provisions shall include, but shall not be limited to, efforts to secure consent as needed from recipients of the "Universal Service Fund," established pursuant to section 12 of P.L.1999, c.23 (C.48:3-60), and the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, established pursuant to 42 U.S.C. s.8621 et seq., to share certain enrollment information with nonprofit organization and utility companies pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection b. of this section. d. The Department of Community Affairs shall annually report to the Governor, and to the Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the name of any nonprofit organizations or utility companies that administer a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance in the State that declines, or fails, to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the department pursuant to this section. 2. The Department of Community Affairs shall pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), promulgate rules and regulations, as necessary, to effectuate the provisions of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). 3. This act shall take effect immediately. STATEMENT This bill requires the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) to, within three months of the bill's effective date, enter into a memorandum of understanding with nonprofit organizations and utility companies that administer utility bill payment assistance programs that provide ongoing assistance to residential customers. The memorandum of understanding is to require, on a timeline specified in the bill: 1) a nonprofit organization or utility company to provide DCA with a list of utility customers and the eligibility criteria for any utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance administered by the nonprofit or utility company; 2) the DCA to, utilizing the information provided by the nonprofit or utility company and data concerning Universal Service Fund and Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program data, identify households eligible for a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance administered by the nonprofit organization or utility company; and 3) the nonprofit organization or utility company to automatically enroll eligible households into utility bill payment assistance programs that provide ongoing assistance administered by the nonprofit or utility company. Under the bill, the DCA is required to report to the Governor, and to the Legislature, the name of any nonprofit organization that administers a utility bill payment assistance program in the State that declines, or fails, to enter into a memorandum of understanding pursuant to the bill.