New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill recently joined governors from 12 other states, as well as the mayor of Washington D.C., in the launch of the bipartisan PJM Governors’ Collaborative. The new organization is designed to provide states with a stronger and more unified voice in regional grid decisions that can affect electricity costs and economic growth, among other issues.
“We are facing an energy affordability crisis. Driving down costs for New Jerseyans will require strong, coordinated action across state and party lines to hold PJM and utility companies accountable and build a reliable grid that can power our interconnected region for years to come. This Collaborative brings red and blue states to the same table to share solutions, find common ground, and speak with one voice to ensure PJM puts the people, not member profits, first. I look forward to working with our partnering governors and states to drive this much needed work forward.”
The announcement was made at the Second Annual Governors’ Summit on the State of PJM Interconnection, where the 12 governors released a signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) formally establishing the organization. The MOU marks a bipartisan objective, which is increasing state and consumer representation in PJM’s governance and decision-making process. This will work to help guarantee affordable, safe and reliable electricity for both residents and businesses.
Increasing electricity demand, delays in connecting new generation to the grid, generator retirements, supply-chain constraints and a tightening power supply are all issues that have recently plagued PJM. The MOU looks at the 833 percent increase in costs in PJM’s capacity auction for the 2025/2026 delivery year compared to previous years. It also points out that PJM has failed to acquire enough resources to ensure reliability in the auctions for the 2027/2028 and 2028/2029 delivery years.
As these issues persist, governing states and stakeholders must participate in PJM decision-making following many basic structures that were established decades ago. The twelve governors argue that these structures have not kept up with the changes of the electricity sector. They also believe that PJM’s current decision-making model does not properly represent the states and consumers that it serves.
PJM coordinates the movement of wholesale electricity across an area that covers all or parts of 13 states and the District of Columbia. The Collaborative creates an avenue for the participating governors and their administrations to share information and identify common areas of interest. When sufficient agreement is present, the group can act together to face issues regarding PJM.
The Collaborative will look to coordinate participating states in developing joint positions regarding JPM, as well as promote greater state and consumer representation in JPM decision-making.
Governors from Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia, as well as the Mayor of the District of Columbia, will be part of the Collaborative with Gov. Sherrill.
To view the full MOU, click here.