Bill > A4233

Introduced Session

This bill directs the Commissioner of Environmental Protection ("commissioner"), in consultation with the Commissioner of Education and the Commissioner of Health, to develop a school tick remediation policy, and incorporate the policy into the already existing integrated pest management policy of the public or private school, to reduce the presence of ticks on the school property of the school or the schools located within counties that, according to Lyme disease data collected by the Department of Health, have a high incidence of Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases. The bill requires the commissioner, in developing the school tick remediation policy, to identify environmental variables commonly found within counties identified by the Department of Health to have a high incidence of Lyme disease. The bill further requires the commissioner, in developing the school tick remediation policy, to include simple, cost-effective, and pesticide-free recommendations and solutions that take into consideration the most common environmental variables identified within each county identified by the New Jersey Department of Health Vector-borne Surveillance Reports to have a high incidence of Lyme disease. The bill requires the superintendent of a school district, the board of trustees of a charter school, and the principal or chief administrator of a private school to: (1) adopt and implement a school tick remediation policy for the school property consistent with the policy developed by the commissioner; (2) adopt and implement recommendations and solutions to reduce the presence of ticks on school property consistent with the simple, cost-effective, and pesticide-free recommendations and solutions identified for the county where the school property is located by the commissioner; (3) contract with, and provide oversight of, entities qualified to diagnose and treat tick infestations; (4) require contracted entities to evaluate the presence of ticks on school property, identify areas of high tick activity on school property, and provide a list of areas identified to have high tick activity on school property; and (5) provide oversight of the application of a low-impact pesticide only if the simple, cost-effective, and pesticide-free recommendations and solutions developed by the commissioner are not sufficient to reduce the presence of ticks on school property. Furthermore, the bill designates the integrated pest management coordinator to carry out the school tick remediation policy. The bill requires the integrated pest management coordinator to: (1) maintain certain information; (2) act as the main point of contact for inquiries about the school tick remediation policy; (3) maintain material safety data sheets and labels for all pesticides that are used for the purpose of reducing the presence of ticks on the school property; (4) communicate with staff, nurses, teachers, and coaches of the schools concerning the school tick remediation policy, and educate them about tick activity and disease prevention; and (5) communicate with parents of students of the schools through seasonal reminders about tick activity, and provide educational material to parents concerning tick activity and disease prevention.

Committee Categories

Erik Peterson (R)*,  John DiMaio (R), 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Education Committee (on 05/02/2024)

Official Document