Bill > A2109

Introduced Session

In January 1972, when the "Relocation Assistance Act," P.L.1971, c.362, (C.20:4-1 et seq.) became effective, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, was 41.1. In April 2004, the CPI-U was 187.4, more than 4.5 times as great. As a result, the real dollar value of the relocation assistance authorized by the "Relocation Assistance Act" was, in 2004, less than 22% of what it was in 1972. The bill permits for a 4.5-fold increase in all of the statutory assistance amounts over two years and for the indexing of the amounts to changes in the CPI-U beginning 36 months after the effective date of the bill. These new amounts were calculated when the bill was first introduced in 2004. (The average CPI-U for 2015 was 236.5, or 5.75 times the CPI-U in January 1972.) The two-year phase-in of the higher relocation assistance amounts is necessary in order to give entities engaged in the planning process for redevelopment projects the time necessary to plan for the larger increases. The phase-in will require an immediate increase of up to 150 percent, an additional increase of up to 150 percent in 12 months, and a final increase of up to another 150 percent in 24 months over the current allowable and base amounts.

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Jerry Green (D)*,  Mila Jasey (D)*,  Raj Mukherji (D)*, 

Reported out of Asm. Comm. with Amendments, and Referred to Assembly Appropriations Committee (on 02/07/2019)