Bill > S2876

Introduced Session

This bill requires the Department of Human Services (DHS) together with the Department of the Treasury (treasury) to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), the Board of Public Utilities (BPU), and any other State agency that administers a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance to recipients. The memorandum of understanding is to require DHS and the treasury to provide information to DCA, BPU, and any other State agency that administers a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance to recipients concerning recipients of or households eligible for any of the following needs-based public assistance programs: (1) Temporary Assistance for Needy Families; (2) Work First New Jersey; (3) the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; (4) the federal supplemental security income program; and (5) any other State or federal needs-based public assistance program, as provided for in the memorandum of understanding. The information provided by DHS and the treasury is required to include information necessary to enroll those recipients of or households eligible for needs-based public assistance into certain utility bill payment assistance programs administered by DCA, BPU, and any other State agency that administers a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance to recipients. Based on the information received from DHS and the treasury pursuant to the memorandums of understanding, DCA, BPU, and any other State agency that administers a utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance to recipients are required to review the eligibility criteria and recipient data for any needs-based public assistance program administered by the respective agency to identify the information necessary to enroll those recipients of needs-based public assistance programs into certain utility bill payment assistance programs. This bill requires DCA, BPU, and any other State agency that administers a utility bill payment assistance program that provides 2 ongoing assistance to recipients to, pursuant to the memorandum of understanding and only to the extent permitted by federal law, automatically enroll eligible households into the Universal Service Fund, the Winter Termination Program, the Summer Termination Program, and any other State utility bill payment assistance program that provides ongoing assistance to recipients. Under the bill, a State agency is not to automatically enroll a household into a utility bill payment assistance program that provides a one-time grant or other limited-use assistance.

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Committee Categories

Angela Mcknight (D)*,  Shirley Turner (D)*,  Troy Singleton (D), 

Withdrawn Because Approved P.L.2025, c.387. (on 01/13/2026)

Official Document