MEDSIS, the grid modernization working group, filed its Report with the Commission. The Report includes recommendations and "learnings" for Commission consideration. Of particular interest with respect to competitive energy markets, the Report recommends that:

1) The Commission should create a new stand-alone website or enhance the existing website to house up to-date competitive energy supplier offers as well as energy education material. A marketing campaign should accompany the availability of this new website to increase customer awareness of the site.

2) With regard to utility ownership of Distributed Energy Resources, utilities should be allowed to operate energy storage assets in wholesale markets to the benefit of ratepayers; utilities should be allowed to own front-of-the-meter energy storage assets for the primary purpose of providing grid reliability services; utilities should be able to control energy storage assets behind-the-meter if they are to be used as a grid reliability asset and only if customers and third party providers consent to such control; utilities should not at this time be allowed to own storage assets behind-the-meter at this time; utilities should continue to be allowed to own solar PV assets as long as it is not for the purposes of selling retail electricity to customers; utilities should be allowed to own wind, biomass, waste-to-energy, cogeneration and/or micro turbine assets as long as it is not for the purposes of selling retail electricity to customers.

3) the Commission should reconvene the Dynamic Pricing working group and direct them to formulate the details of a new residential dynamic pricing program.

4) The Commission should direct Pepco to proceed with investigating the implementation of the Green Button Connect My Data functionality in accordance with standards established by the Green Button Alliance. Third parties seeking access to customer data via an electronic interface with Pepco should adhere to Pepco’s cybersecurity standards for protection of this data, and the Commission should have the authority to audit third parties’ systems and processes to ensure compliance with these standards. The Commission should ensure utilities and energy service providers develop policies and practices to address the integrity and confidentiality of customer data and should ensure the information security of all interfaces, devices and operations involving customer data sharing includes but is not limited to the following:
1. An opt-out data sharing policy for aggregated data to protect customer privacy and personally identifiable information (PII)
2. An opt-in customer data sharing agreement for PII data.

The full text of the MEDSIS Report is available on the NEM Website.

As directed by the Commission in its order authorizing supplier consolidated billing (SCB), Staff held the first meeting of the SCB workgroup this week. The first task of the workgroup is developing a timeline for SCB implementation, including a procedural schedule for Commission review, that is to be filed with the Commission by July 3rd. The full text of the SCB Order is available on the NEM Website.

Governor Murphy signed S604 and S605 establishing a new procedure for electric and natural gas supplier license renewal. The new law provides that a "license shall not expire . . . so long as the licensee pays to the Board, within 30 days before the anniversary date of the last approved licensing application, a license renewal fee, as determined by the Board, accompanied by an annual information update on a form prescribed by the Board." The law requires that the "annual information update" be "limited" to: 1) information filed by the supplier as part of the licensing process; 2) the supplier's most recent quarterly NJ sales and use tax report; 3) the supplier's most recent 12 month and calendar year sales volume in New Jersey, by customer class; 4) whether the supplier or any of its "key operating personnel, officers, directors, partners, owners, or listed stockholders have been subject to or are subject to any regulatory investigations or disciplinary proceedings connected with the sale of [electricity/natural gas] in any other state or federal jurisdiction"; 5) whether the supplier or its "key operating personnel, officers, directors, partners, owners, or listed stockholders have filed for bankruptcy in the last seven years or are the subject of any current bankruptcy proceedings; and 6) any certifications deemed necessary by the Board. The full texts of S604 and S605 are available on the NEM Website.