How Utility Service Is Divided Across New Jersey

New Jersey packs more than nine million people into a small state, so utility service here is a patchwork rather than one system. Four investor-owned electric companies, four gas companies, several private water companies and dozens of local authorities each cover their own territory. The office you need depends on your street address, not on the county line you cross on the way to work.

Two kinds of providers matter most. Investor-owned companies, such as New Jersey American Water or Atlantic City Electric, are regulated by the state. Municipal and county utilities authorities are public bodies created by a town or county. They answer to appointed commissioners and set their own rates by board vote.

Knowing which type serves you tells you where to send a billing question, where to appeal a decision and which agency can step in if the problem is not fixed.

Who Regulates Electric, Gas and Water in New Jersey

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) is the state regulator. It reviews rates, approves major projects and sets service rules for investor-owned electric, gas, water and wastewater companies. Its customer assistance staff also handle complaints about those companies. The governing statutes sit in Title 48 of the New Jersey statutes, which covers public utilities.

Three other bodies are worth knowing:

Municipal authorities generally set rates through their own board votes instead of a BPU rate case. Their meetings are public under the Open Public Meetings Act, so a rate increase can be questioned in person.

Electric and Gas: Four Companies, Four Territories

New Jersey opened its electric and gas markets to competition under a 1999 law. That means the wires and pipes are still owned by one local company, but you can buy the supply itself from a licensed third party. Your territory decides which company delivers the energy.

In broad terms, Public Service Electric and Gas covers a wide urban band from the northeast corridor toward the Camden area. Jersey Central Power and Light covers much of the northwest, central region and Jersey Shore. Atlantic City Electric serves the southern counties. Rockland Electric covers small pockets in the north. For gas, PSE&G, New Jersey Natural Gas, South Jersey Gas and Elizabethtown Gas split the state by region.

Our listings include two Atlantic City Electric entries: Auburn Road in Swedesboro (Gloucester County, 856-467-1933) and 1101 Wheaton Avenue in Millville (Cumberland County, 856-825-2734). Many company sites are operations centers rather than walk-in payment counters, so call before you drive. Most account changes can be handled by phone or online.

Water and Sewer: Where Local Authorities Take Over

Water is the most local of the utilities. In the Trenton and Hamilton area, New Jersey American Water Company lists an office at 989 Lenox Drive (609-512-9400), and Aqua New Jersey is listed on Black Forest Road in Hamilton (609-587-5406). Both are in Mercer County.

Most other water and sewer listings are public bodies. Examples include the Atlantic City Municipal Utilities Authority on North Virginia Avenue, the Jersey City Municipal Utilities Authority on Route 440, the Kearny Municipal Utilities Authority on Central Avenue and the Newark Department of Water and Sewer Utilities on Broad Street. Smaller systems appear too, such as Egg Harbor Water Works on Liverpool Avenue and the City of Wildwood Water Utility on New Jersey Avenue.

An authority is created under state law by a governing body, and its commissioners are appointed rather than elected. Each posts its own rate schedule, and many publish bills, forms and meeting dates on a municipal website. Your water bill often names the authority and gives a customer service number.

Metro Core, Shore and Rural Northwest: What Changes by Region

Morris County leads our listings with 23 entries, and Randolph alone has five, including Advanced Power Technologies on Route 10. Some listings are private electrical businesses rather than the company that sends your bill. Twinmac Electric Contractor in Fair Lawn is one example. Call a business like that for wiring work, not to open an account.

In the northeast, cities such as Newark, Jersey City, Kearny and Perth Amboy run large, older systems. Newark's water and sewer department, for instance, has worked on lead service line replacement. Dense service areas mean more staff, more online tools and, usually, more crowded phone lines on billing deadlines.

The shore tells a different story. Ocean County has 18 listings, including Berkeley Township Municipal Utilities on Station Road, the Jackson Township Municipal Utilities Authority on Manhattan Street, the Brick Township Municipal Utilities Authority on Route 88 and Ocean County Utilities in Stafford. Many shore homes are seasonal, so water use swings sharply between winter and summer, and Wildwood sees the same pattern.

In the rural northwest, such as Newton in Sussex County, a local body like the Stillwater Water District (973-579-1579) may serve a limited area. Outside those areas, homes often rely on private wells and septic systems. New Jersey's Private Well Testing Act requires water testing when a home with a well is sold, and the owner is responsible for the well afterward.

What to Bring and Who to Call First

Utility offices handle routine requests faster when you arrive prepared. For a new account or transfer, have these ready:

Start with the company or authority named on your bill. If an investor-owned company does not resolve a dispute, you can then contact the BPU. If a municipal authority does not respond, take the issue to its board or your town clerk. Between November 15 and March 15, the state's Winter Termination Program also limits shutoffs for residential heating customers, which gives you time to arrange a payment plan.

Municipal utility departments throughout New Jersey provide electricity, water, sewer, and related services to millions of residents and businesses. Utility governance in New Jersey is shaped by the state's public utility commission, which regulates investor-owned utilities, while municipally owned systems operate under local authority.

Utilities locations are available in 126 cities across New Jersey. They are spread across 21 counties.

Cities with the highest concentration of utility offices include Trenton, Randolph, Swedesboro, reflecting their larger populations and service area demands.

New Jersey residents should contact their local utility provider directly for account setup, billing questions, and outage reporting. State-level utility assistance programs may also be available through the state's health and human services agency.

Utilities by Counties

A
B
C
E
G
H
M
O
P
S
U
W

New Jersey residents who need help paying utility bills may qualify for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), administered through the state's community services offices. Contact your local utility provider to inquire about budget billing, shut-off protection, and additional assistance programs available in your area.

Browse Utilities by county across New Jersey to find your local utility department's contact information and service office locations.

Using the New Jersey Utilities Listings When You Move or Start a Project

A new address in New Jersey usually means setting up several accounts at once. Electric and gas often come from different companies. Water and sewer may come from a third provider, and the town may handle other services. Use the listings above to find the office that serves your municipality, then confirm hours by phone before you drive over, since some sites are operations yards rather than payment counters.

Look at your own county for local examples. Atlantic County listings include the Atlantic City Municipal Utilities Authority and Egg Harbor Water Works. Gloucester County includes the Borough of Glassboro Water and Sewer and the Monroe Municipal Utilities Authority on Glassboro Road. Bergen County includes electrical businesses like Twinmac Electric Contractor in Fair Lawn.

When you buy a home, ask the municipality or authority for a final water and sewer reading before closing. Unpaid municipal water and sewer charges can be treated as a lien on the property, so settle them at the table instead of discovering them later.

It depends on who sends the bill. Investor-owned electric, gas and water companies, such as Atlantic City Electric or New Jersey American Water, are regulated by the Board of Public Utilities, which takes consumer complaints after you have first tried the company directly. Municipal utilities authorities, such as the Brick Township or Jackson Township authorities, set their own rates and answer to appointed commissioners and the local governing body. Start with customer service, put the dispute in writing and keep dates and account numbers. For a municipal authority, you can also raise the issue at a public board meeting.

Yes. New Jersey opened its electric and gas markets to competition under a 1999 state law, so you may buy supply from a licensed third-party company. Your local utility still delivers the energy, reads the meter, fixes outages and responds to emergencies. If you do nothing, you stay on the utility's default supply. Before you switch, compare the price per kilowatt-hour or therm, check whether the rate is fixed or variable, and look for early termination fees. The BPU publishes a list of licensed suppliers, and you will need the account number from a recent bill to make the change.

New Jersey runs a Winter Termination Program from November 15 through March 15. During those months, the state generally bars gas and electric companies from shutting off residential customers who use that service to heat their homes, even when a bill is unpaid. The protection is not forgiveness: the balance remains and the company can still bill you. Call the utility early to ask about a deferred payment agreement, and ask about the Universal Service Fund and the Payment Assistance for Gas and Electric program. If a shutoff notice arrives outside those months, respond before the date printed on it.

Check your most recent bill, which names the water company or authority. If you do not receive one, your landlord or the municipal clerk can tell you. Our listings show both models: the Washington Township Municipal Utilities Authority in Morris County is a public body, while New Jersey American Water Company and Aqua New Jersey are private companies regulated by the BPU. Every public water system must deliver an annual water quality report, called a Consumer Confidence Report, by July 1, and NJDEP enforces the standards. If you rely on a private well, you are responsible for testing it.

Treat gas and wires as emergencies. If you smell gas, leave the building immediately, avoid switches and phones inside, and call 911 and your gas company from outside. For a downed power line, stay well back, assume it is live, and call 911 and the electric company. For an ordinary outage, use your electric company's outage line or app rather than a municipal office. Atlantic City Electric lists offices in Swedesboro and Millville, but emergencies go to the company line printed on your bill, so save that number in your phone now.

Yes. New Jersey's Underground Facility Protection Act requires anyone who digs, homeowners included, to contact New Jersey 811 before breaking ground. Call 811 or file a request online at least three full business days before you dig, not counting weekends and holidays. Utility crews then mark buried gas, electric, water, sewer and telecom lines with paint or flags. Lines run close together in dense areas of Bergen, Essex and Hudson counties, and striking one can cause injury and costly repairs. Wait until every utility has responded or marked its lines before you start.

Several programs exist. The Universal Service Fund helps income-eligible households with gas and electric bills and is administered through the Department of Community Affairs. LIHEAP, the federal program, helps with heating costs. Nonprofit programs such as NJ SHARES and PAGE offer one-time help to households in a short-term crisis. Water and sewer help varies, so ask your authority or water company about hardship options and payment plans. You can call 211 to be pointed to a local agency. Bring photo ID, proof of income, a recent bill and your account number to speed up the application.