New Jersey slammed with the worst electric bill spike of all 50 states
⚡ NJ saw the biggest electric bill jump in the U.S. in 2025, rising 16.9%.
⚡ Democrats blame Trump, but New Jersey leaders say there are other factors.
A new report from Democrats in Congress finds that electricity costs spiked more in New Jersey than in any other state last year.
In 2025, the Garden State saw a 16.9% increase in costs compared to the year before, according to the Joint Economic Committee minority. The average New Jersey household paid $1,800 for electricity over the whole year — that's $260 more than in 2024. According to U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J. 5th District, energy costs in New Jersey have soared 45% in two years.
The JEC report also said that national electric costs increased by 6.4%, or $110 more, in one year. Only Washington, D.C., beats New Jersey with a hike of 23.5% in 2025.
While the spike leads every other state, New Jersey doesn't pay more overall. It ranked 18th in that metric. In several states, like Connecticut and Maryland, the average household pays well over $2,000 a year for its electricity.
Which states have the most expensive electric bills?
Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5
The congressional Democrats who released the report blame President Donald Trump for the electric rate hikes.
“American families don’t need a report to tell them that the President has broken his campaign promise to slash energy costs; they already feel the impact of President Trump’s actions every single day,” said U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H.
But even New Jersey Democrats admit that there's more at play than Trump. On Monday, U.S. Rep. Gottheimer said electricity demand has outpaced the supply because of green energy goals that closed nuclear and natural gas plants.
"I’d love to get us off of fossil fuels today or next week and speed up our transition to alternative energies like solar. But, we didn’t leave much room for reality," said Gottheimer.
On her first day in office, Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed an executive order to freeze electric rates. She largely blamed the hike increase on PJM, the grid operator for 13 states, including New Jersey.
A May 2025 report from New Jersey Policy Perspective, a think tank, said that PJM was holding up green energy projects and choking the supply of new electricity generation. However, PJM said the report was based on old information and that the grid operator updated its processes in 2022.
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Average NJ gas prices as of March 12, 2026
Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5
