The Star Ledger published the following article on June 27, 2013. To read the full article, click here.
N.J. Senate confirms Dianne Solomon as BPU commissioner
By Alexi Friedman/The Star-Ledger
on June 27, 2013 at 2:23 PM, updated June 27, 2013 at 2:29 PMThe state Senate today confirmed Gov. Chris Christie’s nomination of Dianne Solomon as a commissioner on the Board of Public Utilities, the regulatory body for New Jersey’s public utilities. There are five commissioners on the board.
Solomon, the wife of former BPU commissioner Lee Solomon, was confirmed, 38-0, as part of a package of other nominees, said Chris Donnelly, a spokesman for Senate Democrats. The position pays $125,000 a year.
Earlier in the week, Solomon, 58, appeared before the Senate judiciary committee, which unanimously approved her nomination without asking any questions. According to a copy of the written statement she was to have given, Solomon said in part that she felt “qualified for the position” and called herself “dedicated to public service.”
She had been a commissioner with the South Jersey Transportation Authority, for which the governor also selected her.
Solomon is also a certified chair umpire with the United States Tennis Association, has worked as an account administrator and was executive director of the Philadelphia Holocaust Remembrance Foundation.
Solomon joins the board at a particularly busy time. The BPU is in the middle of several rate cases, including a $3.9 billion infrastructure upgrade request from Public Service Electric & Gas and a $600 million Hurricane Sandy-related reimbursement filing from Jersey Central Power & Light. This week, the BPU approved a requested rate hike from Atlantic City Electric, but cut the amount from $70 million to $25.5 million.