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BL England Plant Gets Below Market Rates and Millions in Subsidies

South Jersey Gas Seeks Rate Increase Before Pipeline is Even Built

South Jersey Homes and Businesses Will Pay More To Subsidize BL England

Corporate Profits Prevail Over Public Interest

“Today, a new era of accountability and transparency is here.” ~~~ Gov. Chris Christie, Inaugural speech, Jan. 19, 2010

Compliance and Ethics Program: Since our company was founded, we have had a reputation for being an honest and fair company with which to do business. Over time, we have demonstrated the ability to operate transparently by establishing policies and procedures that ensure integrity and fair business practices. ~~~ South Jersey Industries

[Update below]

On November 29, 2013, South Jersey Gas announced their request to BPU for a huge rate increase, which would cost the average homeowner, at least $18 per month:

Should the full amount of the request be approved, a typical heating customer’s monthly bill at 100-therms would increase by $18.43, from $128.31 to $146.74.

For context of how much gas 100 therms is, consider the fact that the proposed Pinelands pipeline to BL England  is designed to carry 20 million therms per year – so, doing the math, the proposed rate increase, if applied equally to the BL England plant, should be a whopping $307,176 per month.

But that ain’t gonna happen – businesses and homeowners will see huge rate increases while BL England gets cheaper gas and exempted from energy taxes and charges.

That’s right – BL England will pay far less for gas than other south jersey businesses and homeowners. All while consumers pay for the lion’s share of a $100 million private gas pipeline dedicated to the BL England plant, as well as the $8 million bribe to the Pinelands Commission to get it approved.

Is that all part of SJG’s “honest and fair business practices”?

The SJG rate increase request appears to include an up front recovery of the full costs of the controversial $100 million Pinelands pipeline, which was scheduled to begin construction in 2013.

Do typical local construction contractors get paid up front for work not even done yet? (see the controversial Christie policy that allowed that:  GAS UTILITIES LOOK FOR RAPID RECOVERY OF COSTS FOR UPGRADING INFRASTRUCTURE)

This filing primarily seeks to recover costs for $553 million of necessary infrastructure investments made to enhance the safety and reliability of SJG’s system that will have been and will be spent between September 2010 and the end of 2014. 

But regardless of whether this huge SJG rate increase reflects the costs of the proposed Pinelands pipeline, why did Board of Public Utilities (BPU) keep the economic details of a below market gas deal between South Jersey Gas Co. (SJG) and the BL England plant (BLE) secret?

Is that part of Gov. Christie’s “new era of transparency”?

Here is the secrecy provision from the BPU’s April 29, 2013 Order:

(Source: BPU Order April 2013)

If you look at the fine print of you gas and electric bill, you might see that as a consumer of energy, you pay a very small per unit energy consumed fee  known as the “Societal Benefits Charge” –  that funds clean energy programs is NJ. It cost a homeowner a few dollars a month, but large energy consumers, like the BL England plant, could pay millions of dollars a year.

So why did BPU grant BL England millions of dollars of subsidies from exemptions from charges like the Societal Benefits Charge, paid by all other energy consumers?

Here are the exemptions from the BPU Order:

(Source: BPU April 2013 Order)

Could that secrecy and all those millions of dollars in subsidies and loopholes it be the result of insider access and revolving door lobbying of well connected former officials?

Consider the fact that BL England’s lead legal Counsel is John Valeri, now at Wolff Samson – a former lawyer from the Whitman Governor’s Office and EPA.

So it is almost certain that Valeri’s inside access produced these kind of results, which provide huge corporate profits but are strongly not in the public interest or those of south jersey ratepayers.

Did Mr. Valeri work on any energy issue while employed by the Governor?

Why aren’t any of these issues investigated or reported in the press?

Are there any intrepid reporters out there? There are at least 3 huge stories here –

• corporate subsides, tax breaks and loopholes – while small consumers get screwed
• secret regulatory deals
• revolving door access from former Governor’s Office lawyers and questionable ethics

Hello!

Update: 12/19/13 – Looks like BL England got a much better deal from BPU and that south jersey consumers got screwed, compared to this deal in central Jersey. South Jersey consumers pay 60% of the $100 million pipeline, which is dedicated to the BL England plant. The Cape May “reliability” crap is cover for that ripoff. On top of that abuse, south jersey consumers pay far more for gas than BL England does::

N.J. Natural Gas strikes long-term deal to provide service to Sayreville power plant

“Red Oak, a natural gas-fired plant, will be responsible for the cost of connecting to NJNG’s distribution main, which now runs within 600 feet of the facility.

New Jersey Natural Gas, which is a subsidiary of New Jersey Resources, said its customers won’t pay for the cost of connecting or providing natural gas service to the plant.” – end update]

Back Door Industry Access Blocks and Delays Protections

Delays meant that many DEP rules were postponed or never issued

[Update: 7/23/14 – The DEP quietly filed a NJ Register notice to readopt the Highlands rules on 12/2/13. The readoption procedure was a recent change in law under the bill that extended the expiration date from 5 to 7 years. I testified in opposition to that bill and wrote about it, but missed that provision at the time. Mea culpa. Regardless, that still makes my point that the issue was managed under the radar. DEP did not publicly defend the rules and the public was given no opportunity to participate in the re-adioption process, as was the case under prior law. Post updated today because I am noticing hits on this, probable in response to this – Sorry, I can not spend tome updating all posts in light of new information. end update.

Update: 12/16/13 – Some people, who apparently know nothing about rule making, are spinning to downplay this story as “the DEP extended the rules earlier this month”.

Even if true (an I reviewed most recent NJ Registers and did not see an extension notice), that makes my point.

It is unusual to have a rule expire and a huge embarrassment to allow a major rule to expire, especially after having the Legislature extend the sunset period from 5 to 7 years. Rules don’t technically “expire” in a legal sense (like a contract does, i.e. and become null and void), but remain in effect pending the formal extension, which occurs via Governor’s notice of extension.

That’s why the law requires that any extension after expiration be subject to a notification in the NJ Register – to hold the agency that allowed the rule to expire accountable and public notice their mismanagement and indecision. The extension must also state a specific deadline for the agency to adopt rules.

Second, an extension is NOT a re-adoption of the rule.  If DEP were to readopt the rule, that would be a reversal of DEP’s prior position, in response to the Farm Burea litigation, to weaken the rules.

Last, the extension occurred AFTER the election, which was precisely my political point. The Christie DEP dodged accountability and delayed major policy decisions and action for political reasons.

There seem to be many useful idiots running around the Highlands who don’t know what they are talking about.

In fact, I discussed this issue very recently with 2 members of the Highlands coalition. Their response was “be quiet” don’t bring attention to this because the Administration might weaken the rules. Idiots – as if closing your eyes will make the problem go away. Ed update]

For almost 4 years now, I have written numerous posts about Governor Christie’s across the board assault on government and our regulatory protections via “regulatory relief” and “red tape” policies, and the threats they pose to public health and the environment.

In his first hour in office, Governor Christie issued:

• Executive Order #1 establishing a moratorium of regulations;
• Executive Order #2 calling for “immediate regulatory relief”, cost benefit analysis, and rollback of NJ’s strict State standards to their federal minimum;
• Executive Order #3 attacking regulations as “job killing red tape” and
• Executive Order #4 prohibiting unfunded state regulatory mandates on local governments

I have explained how those policies have blocked DEP from issuing new rules in light of new science and new needs – and how the Christie DEP has set a record low for the number of regulations they have adopted.

I have written about how those policies inject new considerations, like cost benefit analysis into the rule making process and how this elevates economic considerations above public health and the environment and how all this undercuts science and harms various standards and protections.

The Obama Administration’s  “Regulatory Czar” Cass Sunstein frankly admitted how that works:

In his revealing book, Sunstein tells us why: It is because he, Sunstein, had the authority to “say no to members of the president’s Cabinet”; to deposit “highly touted rules, beloved by regulators, onto the shit list“; to ensure that some rules “never saw the light of day”; to impose cost-benefit analysis “wherever the law allowed”; and to “transform cost-benefit analysis from an analytical tool into a “rule of decision,” meaning that “[a]gencies could not go forward”if their rules flunked OIRA’s cost-benefit test. (see: Sunstein’s ‘Simpler Government’ Is Legally Suspect, Overly Secretive And Politically Unaccountable

BTW, NJ law does not even allow cost benefit analysis, so Gov. Christie has managed to weaken all NJ laws by the stroke of his Executive Order pen, an over-reach that cries out for legislative oversight and veto.

I’ve explained how Gov. Christie’s Executive Order #2 is designed to provide “regulatory relief “. I’ve shown how the key mechanisms to do that is to provide regulated industry access – sometimes through “Red Tape Czar” Lt. Gov Guadagno’s Office  – and an advance notice on DEP’s development of rules – a heads up that has amounted to a veto power, based on the paucity of DEP  rules adopted.

EO #2 mandates: that DEP (and all State agencies)

“Engage in the “advance notice of rules” by soliciting the advice and views of knowledgeable persons from outside of New Jersey State government, including the private sector and academia, in advance of any rulemaking to provide valuable insights on the proposed rules, and to prevent unworkable, overly-proscriptive or ill-advised rules from being adopted. 

There can be no doubt what the intent of that EO is – to kill “unworkable, ill-advised and overly prescriptive” regulations before they even see the light of day and are publicly proposed- as determined by lobbyists and lawyers for the Chamber of Commerce, the Business & Industry Association, the NJ Chemistry Council, and the NJ Petroleum Council.

And I have warned about why the Lt. Governor’s “Red Tape Czar” role to provide access and review draft regulations prior to their proposal invites abuse, from developing science and regulatory standards, to pay to play to, opportunities for industry lawyers and scientists to gut rules before they are even proposed.

I’ve been working on a story about a huge backlog in DEP rules that are slated to expire in 2014, but have not yet finished my research.

However, reading this story in today’s Washington Post: White House delayed enacting rules ahead of 2012 election to avoid controversy prompts me to accelerate and unfurl the first story in what I had planned as a series.

The WaPo reports:

The White House systematically delayed enacting a series of rules on the environment, worker safety and health care to prevent them from becoming points of contention before the 2012 election, according to documents and interviews with current and former administration officials. […]

The delays meant that rules were postponed or never issued. The stalled regulations included crucial elements of the Affordable Care Act, what bodies of water deserved federal protection, pollution controls forindustrial boilers and limits on dangerous silica exposure in the workplace. […]

At the Environmental Protection Agency, for example, a former official said that only two managers had the authority to request a major rule in 2012: then-administrator Lisa P. Jackson and deputy administrator Bob Perciasepe. Perciasepe and OIRA’s director at the time, Cass Sunstein, would have “weekly and sometimes semi-weekly discussions” to discuss rules that affected the economy, one said, because they had political consequences, the person said. […]

Several significant EPA proposals were withheld as a result of those meetings, officials said, including a proposal requiring cleaner gasoline and lower-pollution vehicles that had won the support of automakers but angered the oil industry.

Well, we have a very similar story to tell right here in NJ.

As I’ve written, based on multiple source in state government and several illustrations, the Governor issued a state government wide edict for state agencies to avoid controversy and stay below the radar in the months before the election.

One of those controversies is the DEP regulations that strictly limit development in the NJ Highlands (for a small taste of that debate, see:  Is Bob Martin Sabotaging The Highlands Septic Density Standard?

Martin was able to defer that debate on the Highlands – and many other rules – because the Legislature amended the law to extend the “sunset” expiration timeframe from 5 years to 7 years.

But now, the jig is up – there’s no place to hide.

Those controversial DEP Highlands regulations expired on November 2, 2013.

The DEP allowed the rules to expire for political reasons to avoid controversy before Gov. Christie’s election.

Will NJ’s press corps jump on that story now that the WaPo has opened the door?

We’ll keep you posted, as we write about the other major DEP rules slated to expire this year.

The Curious Case of a Commissioner’s Recusal

Attorney General’s Office and Ethics Commission Target Critic 

Days After Voicing Criticism of Review Process, Commissioner Ed Lloyd Barred 

The real reason why Lloyd was decapitated

“It’s like we’ve been rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. It’s time to look at the iceberg.” ~~~  Ed Lloyd, NJ Pinelands Commissioner, during meeting on December 4, 2013, reported in  Among Pinelands commissioners, qualms over proposed pipeline

[Update: 1/9/14 – Mike Powell of the NY Times nails it:  Fighting a Pipeline, but Feeling and Fearing Christie’s Influence – we’re pleased to have contributed to that effort.  – end update]

By now, it is widely known that Pinelands Commissioner Ed Lloyd was issued a highly unusual mandatory recusal Order by the State Ethics Commission just hours prior to last Friday’s meeting.

[Correction: According to the NY Times story today, the recusal Order did NOT come from the State Ethics Commission, but from orders from the Gov. office, implemented by either the Attorney General’s Office or Ms. Roth, the Pinelands Ethics Officer.]

I’d like to explain why that Order was issued and why it is so important.

On December 12, the NJ State Ethics Commission issued an oral opinion to Lloyd over the phone with no process whatsoever, providing no written ethics charge as to the alleged factual and legal basis for Lloyd’s alleged conflict of interest. The Order pre-empted any opportunity for Lloyd to seek guidance from the Pineland Commission’s Ethics Officer, or his own private attorney , or an advisory opinion from the Ethics Commission, as the Ethics Commission’s own rules provide, or otherwise rebut or challenge the Ethics Commission’s facts or decision.

Curiously, according to Lloyd’s chronology, the Ethics Commission’s Thursday (12/12) afternoon Order followed a prior call on Friday December 6 from the Attorney General’s Office. The AG’s call, which asked Lloyd to recuse, came just 2 days after Lloyd’s critical comments at the December 4 meeting of the P&I Committee (see quote above from Philadelphia Inquirer story).

So, the latest episode in this pattern is very unusual, to say the least.

How did an ethics allegation get to the AG’s Office? How then was the Ethics Commission apprised? Who filed the ethics allegation and on what basis? Were the AG’s Office and Ethics Commission in contact with each other?

Ironically, one could say the Ethics Commission acted unethically, at least procedurally, because their Order lacked any process, never mind due process.  Because of the prior AG intervention, the Ethics Commission’s Order created the reasonable appearance of a conspiracy to target Lloyd in retaliation for his criticism of the Commission’s review of the pipeline.

The alleged basis for Lloyd’s alleged conflict of interest is that Lloyd is on the Board of the Eastern Environmental Law Center (EELC). Apparently, and the details and timing here remain fuzzy, a junior EELC lawyer wrote a letter to Chairman Lohbauer urging an extension of the public comment period and identifying a defect in the Commission’s public notice of the pipeline hearing on December 9. That EELC  letter was not written on behalf of any client and it took no policy position.

Subsequently, at some point the letter was withdrawn by an EELC senior lawyer because it violated EELC policy which prohibits intervention without representing a client. Lloyd has no involvement in the day to day operations of EELC lawyers and was not aware of the letter in question.

So, the basis for a the alleged conflict is tenuous, at best.

Read the news reports for the details, see:

• Pinelands board member told to recuse himself over pipeline
• Ed Lloyd, state Pinelands Commission member, targeted by Christie’s administration

But aside from these details and chronology, it is critically important to understand why Commissioner Lloyd was targeted and disqualified from participating in the Commission’s deliberations.

The reasons are twofold:

1) At the December 4 meeting, Lloyd did not just make a red meat “Deck chairs on the Titanic” soundbite criticism.

Lloyd is a prominent and highly competent lawyer. He is a professor at Columbia Law School. He is an intellectual leader on the Commission.

On December 4, Lloyd broached the fundamental legal and policy issue and exposed fatal flaws in the Commission’s reliance upon the MOA mechanism to circumvent the CMP and the review of the draft MOA (see: All Hell Broke Loose Today at Pinelands Commission).

Lloyd correctly noted that the appropriate mechanisms under CMP rules was a “waiver of strict compliance” (see NJAC 7:50-4.61 et seq), not the MOA pathway. The waiver alternative has stricter standards and would avoid the appearance of the $8 million bribe created by the MOA. It is a far superior alternative path.

Lloyd challenged his fellow Commissioners to consider the basic legal and policy issue of whether the waiver mechanisms should be pursued instead of the legally and ethically flawed MOA.

It was widely expected that Lloyd would lead that discussion at the Friday (12/13) Commission meeting. That discussion had a very good chance of derailing the MOA and the proposed pipeline, in favor of the “waiver of strict compliance” alternative review path.

Lloyd was knocked out to prevent that discussion among the Commissioners.

The Christie Administration did not force Lloyd out of VOTING on the pipeline MOA (he was a certain NO), they decapitated him as a preemptive strike to avoid Commission discussion of the waiver option.

Supporters of the pipeline need 8 YES votes – (that’s why they rushed in such an unseemly way to fill recently deceased Commissioner John Haas’ seat).

Lloyd was a certain NO vote. It does not help them get to 8 YES votes by eliminating a NO vote.

Decapitation of the intellectual leader to prevent public discussion of a better alternative is why this was done – and that’s what makes it so ugly and Nixonian.

2) Secondarily, Lloyd was targeted to intimidate and send a message to any other Commissioners who might be undecided or exploring their consciences.

The message was loud and crystal clear: a NO vote on the pipeline will lead to your replacement on the Commission (see:

• Will Pinelands Commissioners Walk The Plank and Kill Christie’s $500 Million Gas Pipeline and Power Plant Project?

The Governor already did that last year at the D&R Canal Commission, and for far less important stakes, see:

• Gov. Christie’s Retaliatory Massacre at the D&R Canal Commission

The true face of of the Christie Administration was unmasked in these attacks on the independence and integrity of the Pinelands Commission.

We are witnessing an absolutely terrifying display of raw power, arrogance, lawlessness, retaliatory intimidation and a transparent effort to crush dissent and send a message to any Pinelands Commissioner’s who might vote to block the Administration’s pipeline.

Someone must stand up and say NO to this un-American display.

Romney Vetting of “Pufferfish” Correct on “Mafia-esque approach to politics”

The last political leader that had these kind of character flaws was Richard Nixon

l’état, c’est moi!

 [Important Updates Below]

Just a very quick note in response to the exploding scandal over the George Washington Bridge lane closures.

There seems to be a lot of Claude Raines “Shocked, I’m just shocked” that Gov. Christie and his loyal political hacks would abuse government powers to retaliate against and intimidate opponents – and then lie and dissemble to cover up that ugly behavior.

Anyone who has known or followed the Gov., or who is just paying attention, knows that this is a deep character flaw in our morbidly obese Governor.

It is a feature, not a bug. And his governing “style” has crept into every corner of State government.

He is mad with power, brooks no criticism, and bullies, intimidates and smears opponents.

The people that work for him are afraid of him.

He keeps opponents in line by threats.

He is a control freak, withholds information, is a serial abuser of OPRA, governs in secret, and suppresses public participation in government decisions (thus the “Red Tape Czar”” and “Sandy Czar”).

That’s just how he rolls.

He is an authoritarian demagogue – or the kind of ugly politician John Dean wrote about in his recent book “Conservatives without Conscience“.

The GW Bridge scandal is just the tip of a large and growing iceberg. I can offer up several examples just at DEP and related “in but not of” entities and Commissions.

Yesterday’s outrageous behind the scenes abuse of power in disqualifying Pinelands Commissioner and Columbia Law School professor Ed Lloyd on trumped up”conflict of interest” ethics allegations is just the most recent. For that story, see:

• Pinelands board member told to recuse himself over pipeline
• Ed Lloyd, state Pinelands Commission member, targeted by Christie’s administration

The last political leader I can recall that had these kind of character flaws was Richard Nixon.

The man’s rise to power must be blocked.

[Update #1: 12/15/13: The Nixon people called this “ratfucking”:

Port Authority exec behind GWB closure bought Web addresses named for agency chief, Barbara Buono – end update]

[Update #2: 12/15/13 – to illustrate the systemic poison of Christie, check out this reader comment (in boldface) on Tom Moran’s superb editorial today: Bridge-gate nips at Christie’s heels –  the intro to the comment is Moran’s in italics

“The saddest moment in Monday’s hearing came when the poor guy who manages the bridge, Robert Durando, was asked if he feared that objecting to this crazy scheme would get him fired.

He dodged. Wisniewski pressed him to answer. And Durando was paralyzed for a good 20 seconds, shaking his head and sighing, afraid to answer, and afraid not to.

“I didn’t want to tempt fate,” he finally squeaked out.

“I thought he was going to cry,” Wisniewski says. “I felt bad that these guys have to work under these conditions.”

These working conditions are prevalent in all State agencies under this administration. If you speak up or complain about the administration unlawful activities. You are disciplined. The Governor’s administration has removed Civil Service protected Hearing Officers with “at will” political hacks to give his administration the decision they want. State Agencies are now run by the lawyers not administrators. – end update]

[Update #3 12/15/13 – I rarely agree with Mulshine, but he nails this one:  GW scandal is a bridge to Chris Christie’s past – end update]

[Update #4 – 12/17/13– in a devastating piece, the NY Times nails the Christie MO:  Cornered by Accusations, Christie Parries With Jokes and Stonewalls With Snarls.

[Update #5: 12/25/13 – This story has legs: NY Times page 1: Stories Add Up As Bully Image Trails Christie]

The Times now joins the Wall Street Journal in exposing Christie. Could it be that media elites are finally waking up to the dangers he represents and will take Christie down? – end update]

DEP’s New Plan Seeks Waivers From DEP Flood Regulations & D&R Canal Park Master Plan

Do You Want “Safe, Managed, Pedestrian Pathways” Though Mature Forests?

Lovely sycamores along riverfront walk - these trees would be cut down and this portion of the trail, above the wing dam, closed to public access.

The Christie Pinelands Commission just abused Thanksgiving to ram through a controversial pipeline approval.

Now – here they go again!

The Christie DEP is emulating those same abusive tactics to ram a controversial Bulls Island tree removal plan through over the Christmas and New Year holidays.

What is it about Bull’s Island that explains this intransigence? The murderous trees have sinned, and so now they must pay?

From our friends at PEER:

NEW JERSEY BULL’S ISLAND TREE HARVEST ON FAST TRACK

Plan Confines Visitor Access to “Safe, Managed, Pedestrian Pathway”

Posted on Dec 10, 2013

The Delaware & Raritan Canal Commission could approve the DEP application within 30 days after it is deemed complete. DEP also wants the Commission to waive its visual impact rules which discourage tree removal. The project would, however, be subject to consultation with the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, which raised concerns about a broader DEP clear-cut plan on Bull’s Island in 2012. PEER generated more than 20,000 signatures on an on-line petition in protest of that earlier plan.

“While we are pleased that DEP is not planning another huge clear-cut, it is still planning to take down a large number of old growth sycamores. The state should not short-circuit a full review by waiving permit rules,” Wolfe added, suggesting that the portfolio of DEP’s contractor does not feature ecological restoration work. “Of all the ecological work DEP could be doing, its persistence with this questionable project is mystifying.”

###

See the DEP Bull’s Island project application

View DEP contractor’s portfolio

Look at 20,000 signers protest 2012 Bull’s Island clear-cut plan

Revisit eco-problems with DEP’s 2012 Bull’s Island plan

New Jersey PEER is a state chapter of a national alliance of state and federal agency resource professionals working to ensure environmental ethics and government accountability

huge sycamore on Bull's Island - will this tree go?