Overview
- The House passed the Utility RELIEF Act Monday, with Senate leaders expecting a final vote before the session ends at midnight.
- Most households would save about $150 a year, or roughly $12.50 a month, from a temporary rollback of the EmPOWER energy‑efficiency surcharge that appears on electric bills.
- The bill bars utilities from charging ratepayers for executive bonuses or a PJM regional grid membership fee and orders a one‑year pause on forecast‑based rate cases for a Public Service Commission study.
- Large data centers would have to pay for the transmission upgrades they trigger, and the plan adds a PSC registry and faster permits for facilities that install on‑site clean energy to ease grid strain.
- The measure invests $100 million from the state clean energy fund in new solar and battery projects and creates a bill‑cap program for limited‑income customers to curb monthly costs.