New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) President Joseph Fiordaliso put on quite a show this Wednesday, Save Jerseyans, right after his Phil Murphy-packed board brazenly circumvented the legislature to advance the governor’s “decarbonization” agenda.
“There has been a lot of misinformation,” Fiordaliso alleged. “And, yes, fear-mongering out there and I want to put an end to it once and for all. We are not coming for your gas stove or your local pizza shops oven. We are not forcing you – anyone – to do anything in any way.”
The geriatric and fussy master of ceremonies didn’t stop there.
“I cannot emphasize more that we are not mandating anything, so enough of the misinformation out there. Enough,” added the play-acting Fiordaliso. “Those who tell you otherwise are wrong and spreading lies. Shame on those who at a time where the world should be engaging in meaningful dialogue about the impacts of climate change and ways to incentivize change like we are doing here today rather than focusing their time excuse me, on their next effort to deceive the public. We have enough of that going around in this country today. We don’t need more.”
We’ve seen this playbook before. It’s all we see some days from Left. In the present era, rather than engage on substance, Democrats and their allies scream “fake news” in order to win the argument without having the argument. Otherwise they’d risk the exposure of their nakedly unsupportable views and scams.
In this case, proof that the BPU is in fact “coming for your gas stove” is in the ACTUAL ORDER adopted on Wednesday by the BPU…
https://twitter.com/Mmakarski/status/1684267719619756032
Mike Makarski (of our friends at Affordable Energy for New Jersey) is referring to “ORDER DIRECTING THUTILITIES TO PROPOSE SECOND TRIENNIUM ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND PEAK DEMAND REDUCTION PROGRAMS.”
If you read through it, the BPU is directing electric companies to establish decarbonization programs (“BD programs”) to incentivize the switch from fossil fuel appliances to electric ones. However, in the same introduction (page 87 of 202), the BPU explains that “[f]uture manifestations of BD Programs could include policy and programs to promote carbon-free on-site energy generation.”
There’s other language in there, too, such as a mandate for utilities to “adopt a consistent set of minimum performance specifications for the BD measures statewide and should take into account existing standards to maximize alignment with other state and federal incentives.”
Fiordaliso is the liar, folks, but I have seen worse ones in my time of covering politics and public affairs. I’ll give him that.
The BPU is inarguably laying the groundwork for banning gas stoves, pizza ovens, water heaters (see Mike’s cite above), dryers, and a host of natural gas fixtures of every day living. It’s in the text of their own work product.
No, they’re not busting down your door to steal your gas range… today. Fiordaliso deliberately argues against something no one is claiming as a way of marginalizing the opposition. It’s an classic tactic of bullies everywhere.
They ARE casing your house and preparing to do just that in the very near future. More explicit bans on sale and instillation are around the corner once the “BD” measures are in place and “minimum specifications” are established – as set forth in the order – which will amount to a de facto ban on gas appliances once the state begins enforcing them. Simply pointing that out is hardly “lying” or spreading “misinformation.” Quite the opposite. It’s incumbent upon those of us who actually take the time to read this stuff to sound the alarm about what Fiordaliso and Murphy’s other goons are setting into motion.
