Bill > A521

Introduced Session

This bill would require owner of certain buildings to test the drinking water of the building for the presence of Legionella bacteria. Specifically, the bill would apply to acute care facilities, assisted living facilities, boarding houses, county correctional facilities, hospitals, multiple dwellings, nursing homes, units of public housing that have received funding from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, rooming houses, and State correctional facilities. The bill would require the building owner to test water from a tap in the building, at least once per year. The water sampling and testing would be required to be performed using a set of best practices developed by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), under the bill. In addition, the water testing would be required to be performed by a laboratory accredited by the DEP. The bill would also require the building owner to transmit the test results to the DEP. If the test results reveal the presence of excessive Legionella contamination, according to a standard to be developed by the DEP under the bill, the building owner would be required to immediately notify residents and other users of the building. If the drinking water in the service line connected to the building has been tested for Legionella in the previous month, and the test result was negative, the bill would require the building owner to begin remediation of the Legionella contamination within 30 days, and the remediation would be required to be completed within six months. A violation of the bill's provisions would be considered a violation of the "Safe Drinking Water Act," P.L.1977, c.224 (C.58:12A-1 et seq.), which could result in civil administrative penalties of up to $25,000 per violation.

Committee Categories

Wayne DeAngelo (D)*,  Shanique Speight (D)*, 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Environment, Natural Resources, and Solid Waste Committee (on 01/09/2024)

Official Document