Stack Pushes Senate to Reject Electricity Price Hike Plan

A New Jersey Senate committee on Monday advanced a resolution from Senator Brian P. Stack urging federal regulators to cancel and redo a recent electricity pricing auction that could lead to monthly bill increases of 17 to 20 percent, according to projections cited in the resolution.

The auction, held in July 2024 by PJM Interconnection, set prices for electricity supply in 2025 and 2026 across New Jersey and other states. The resulting price was nearly ten times higher than the year before, triggering concerns from state regulators and oversight groups about the fairness of the process.

PJM is a federally regulated organization responsible for managing electricity flow and reliability across 13 states and Washington, D.C. To make sure there will be enough electricity in the future, PJM runs auctions three years ahead of time where power companies bid to supply capacity.

Those auction results directly affect electricity rates. In New Jersey, most households and small businesses receive electricity through the state’s Basic Generation Service, which uses PJM’s prices to set consumer rates. A major spike in auction prices, like the one in 2024, can lead to higher monthly bills.

In April 2025, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to investigate the July 2024 auction, describing the results as “exorbitant” and warning they “may have been subject to market manipulation.”

PJM Senior Manager for External Communications Jeffrey Shields responded, “New Jersey has insufficient generation in?state to meet its needs, and has to make up this difference through imports.” He added, “PJM has not seen evidence that supports a finding of market manipulation in the 2025/26 capacity auction, but we take such allegations very seriously. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Office of Enforcement is the right place to address such a concern, and PJM will follow any directives we receive from FERC.”

The resolution backed by the Senate Economic Growth Committee urges FERC to reject the 2024 results and require PJM to hold a new auction. It also points to concerns of possible design flaws and signs of market manipulation.

“New Jersey families and businesses are now facing higher electric bills because of a capacity auction process that appears rigged against the public interest,” said Senator Stack (D-Hudson). “The results of PJM’s auction raise serious questions about market manipulation and artificial scarcity that demand immediate federal scrutiny. We are committed to keeping energy costs affordable and will not stand by while PJM’s failures and questionable practices burden our residents.”

The resolution now moves to the full Senate for further consideration.