Legislator
Legislator > Rob Clifton
State Assemblymember
Rob Clifton
(R) - New Jersey
New Jersey Assembly District 12
In Office - Started: 01/10/2012
contact info
Matawan Office
14 Cliffwood Ave.
Suite 240
Matawan, NJ 07747
Suite 240
Matawan, NJ 07747
Phone: 732-970-6386
General Capitol Building Address
P.O. Box 068
State House, 145 W. State St.
Trenton, NJ 08625-0068
State House, 145 W. State St.
Trenton, NJ 08625-0068
Phone: 609-847-3905
| Bill | Bill Name | Summary | Progress |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3309 | Establishes "Motor Vehicle Open Recall Notice and Fair Compensation Act"; revises motor vehicle franchise agreements. | Establishes "Motor Vehicle Open Recall Notice and Fair Compensation Act"; revises motor vehicle franchise agreements. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A5910 | Modifies definition of Class I renewable energy to include nuclear fission; provides CBT tax credit for production of clean baseload power. | This bill would modify the definition of "Class I renewable energy" in the "Energy Discount and Energy Competition Act," P.L.1999, c.23 (C.48:3-49 et al.), to include energy produced through nuclear fission. The bill would also provide a Corporation Business Tax (CBT) tax credit for the production of clean baseload energy. The bill defines "clean baseload energy" as any form of electric energy production which is able to reliably produce energy continuously and at a constant rate, without emitting greenhouse gases as a byproduct, including nuclear fission. The amount of the tax credit would be set at $1,000 per gigawatt hour of clean baseload energy produced. The intent of this bill is to support existing nuclear power stations in the State and to incentivize the new generation assets using nuclear fission by recognizing fission as a clean Class I renewable energy source and by incentivizing production through a targeted tax credit. Nuclear power has the potential to be a transformational technology for the State, as it is the only currently viable form of electricity production that is able to reliably produce power, at scale, without greenhouse gas emissions. | In Committee |
| AR198 | Establishes the "Assembly Special Committee on Staten Island Annexation." | This Assembly Resolution establishes the bipartisan "Assembly Special Committee on Staten Island Annexation." The committee will consist of 12 members of the General Assembly. Six members will be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and six members will be appointed by the Minority Leader of the General Assembly. The committee will organize within 30 days after the effective date of this resolution. The committee will have two co-chairpersons and two co-vice chairpersons. The Speaker of the General Assembly will appoint a co-chairperson and a co-vice chairperson, and the Minority Leader of the General Assembly will appoint a co-chairperson and a co-vice chairperson, all from among the committee's membership. The committee will investigate and report on the historical, legal, and geographic claims of the State of New Jersey to Staten Island. The committee will examine information including, but not limited to, colonial-era land grants, the 1834 boundary compact between New York and New Jersey, and any relevant case law. The committee will explore all lawful avenues by which the State of New Jersey may assert or pursue annexation of Staten Island, subject to the consent of its residents, the State of New York, and the United States Congress. The committee will also solicit testimony from experts in their respective fields concerning the historical, legal, and geographic claims. At the conclusion of its work, the committee will develop and publish a report containing its findings and recommendations. The committee will expire upon the conclusion of the committee's work. | In Committee |
| A5909 | Establishes one-time grant program to support implementation of free, full-day kindergarten programs in certain school districts; appropriates $5 million. | This bill directs the Commissioner of Education to establish a one-time grant program to support the implementation of free, full-day kindergarten programs in school districts that do not currently offer the programs. The most recent information for the 2024-2025 school year indicates there are 10 school districts that do not offer free, full-day kindergarten: Moorestown Township Public School District; Haddonfield School District; Metuchen Public School District; Monroe Township School District; Millstone Township School District; School District Of The Chathams; Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District; Hillsborough Township Public School District; Cranford Public School District; and Westfield Public School District. The bill requires school districts to submit an application to the commissioner that includes a plan on how the district will implement free, full-day kindergarten and the costs associated with doing so. The bill appropriates $5 million for the grant program, and the grants would be evenly distributed to the eligible districts. | In Committee |
| A5939 | Requires Department of Agriculture to conduct inspections of on-farm dairy processing activities. | This bill would transfer the authority of all on-farm dairy processing inspection activities from the Department of Health to the Department of Agriculture. The Department of Agriculture would be required to collaborate with the Department of Health and local boards of health to oversee all on-farm dairy processing activities. | In Committee |
| A3558 | Establishes State definition of antisemitism. | Establishes State definition of antisemitism. | In Committee |
| S3418 | Authorizes certain types of permanent structures, recently constructed or erected on preserved farmland, to be used, in certain cases, for purposes of holding special occasion events thereon. | An Act concerning the use of certain recently constructed permanent structures for special occasion events held on preserved farmland, and amending P.L.2023, c.9. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A3361 | Establishes limit on rent increase for certain dwelling sites for modular or industrialized buildings or manufactured homes. | An Act concerning rent increases for certain dwelling sites for modular or industrialized buildings or manufactured homes and supplementing chapter 27D of Title 52 of the Revised Statutes. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| S1067 | Directs DHS to conduct landscape analysis of available mental health services. | Directs DHS to conduct landscape analysis of available mental health services. | Vetoed |
| A4603 | Allows commercial farmer to be awarded reasonable costs and attorney fees for defending against bad faith complaints under "Right to Farm Act". | This bill would strengthen the legal protections provided to farmers under the "Right to Farm Act." Specifically, the bill would allow farmers to recover reasonable costs and attorney fees incurred in the defense of bad faith complaints against commercial agricultural operations, activities or structures when a county agriculture development board or the State Agriculture Development Committee (SADC), as applicable: 1) finds the farmer is entitled to the irrebuttable presumption established under the "Right to Farm Act"; and 2) determines, supported by a preponderance of the evidence, that the complaint was brought in bad faith and all or a portion of the costs and attorney fees are reasonable. Under the "Right to Farm Act," the established irrebuttable presumption is that a commercial agricultural operation, activity or structure or specific operation or practice does not constitute a public or private nuisance, or does not otherwise invade or interfere with the use and enjoyment of any other land or property, if: 1) the commercial agricultural operation, activity or structure conforms to agricultural management practices recommended and adopted by the SADC, or the specific operation or practice of the commercial agricultural operation has been determined to constitute a generally accepted agricultural operation or practice, either by the appropriate county agriculture development board or the SADC, as applicable; and 2) the commercial agricultural operation, activity or structure or specific operation or practice complies with all relevant federal and State statutes and regulations, and does not pose a direct threat to public health and safety. Under the bill, a farmer seeking an award of reasonable costs and attorney fees would submit an application therefor to the county agriculture development board or the SADC as applicable, after being found entitled to the irrebuttable presumption. The county agriculture development board or the SADC would then determine, whether a preponderance of the evidence supports a determination that the complaint was made in bad faith and if the costs and fees, or a portion thereof, are reasonable. If so, the county agriculture development board or the SADC would issue an order for the person filing the complaint to pay the reasonable costs and fees to the farmer. | Passed |
| A4380 | Establishes "Motor Vehicle Open Recall Notice and Fair Compensation Act"; revises motor vehicle franchise agreements. | Establishes "Motor Vehicle Open Recall Notice and Fair Compensation Act"; revises motor vehicle franchise agreements. | In Committee |
| A4928 | Establishes eligibility requirements for State small business set-aside program. | This bill establishes requirements for eligibility when the State implements a small business set-aside program. The State currently has a small business set-aside program. This bill clarifies that only businesses without an applicable federal revenue standard established by federal regulations are required to have a certain maximum number of employees. This bill also alters the definitions of gross revenue from a standard of three years in business to a standard of five years in business. The requirements established in this bill will be in addition to any and all rules or regulations, except that these requirements will supersede the rules and regulations adopted as N.J.A.C. 17:13-2.1(a). | Crossed Over |
| A4799 | Establishes "Jersey Craft Beverage Retailer Promotion and Grant Program" in EDA. | Establishes "Jersey Craft Beverage Retailer Promotion and Grant Program" in EDA. | In Committee |
| A1825 | Establishes certain guidelines for SHBP, SEHBP, and Medicaid concerning step therapy protocols. | An Act concerning step therapy protocols and supplementing Titles 30 and 52 of the Revised Statutes. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A4163 | Requires health insurers to provide coverage for biomarker precision medical testing. | An Act concerning health insurance coverage for biomarker precision medical testing and supplementing various parts of the statutory law. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| S3587 | Upgrades, and in some circumstances provides for extended terms of imprisonment for, certain retail theft crimes, addresses gift card fraud, and authorizes new Attorney General initiatives to address organized retail theft. | An Act concerning retail theft, amending and supplementing various parts of the statutory law, and making an appropriation. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A5496 | Establishes Behavioral Mental Health Advisory Board in Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services in DHS. | This bill establishes the Behavioral Mental Health Advisory Board in the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the Department of Human Services (DHS). The purpose of the board will be to review all aspects of behavioral mental health services in New Jersey and make recommendations for legislation or other such action as it deems appropriate with regard to improving, expanding, and facilitating the provision of behavioral mental health services to the citizens of this State, including, but not limited to: coordinating services among providers; facilitating access to comprehensive behavioral mental health care and treatment; maximizing the effective use of available funding; establishing new programs or revising existing programs; promoting enhanced communication and information exchanges; and any other matters the advisory board deems necessary and appropriate. The board will consist of 17 members: the Commissioners of Health, Human Services, and Children and Families, or their designees, who would serve ex officio; and 14 public members, with four members to be appointed by the Governor, and five members each to be appointed by the Senate President and the Speaker of the General Assembly. The members to be appointed by the Governor would include: one person upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Association of Mental Health and Addiction Agencies; one person upon the recommendation of the National Alliance on Mental Illness New Jersey; one person upon the recommendation of the Mental Health Association in New Jersey; and one person upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Primary Care Association. The members to be appointed by the President of the Senate would include: one person upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians; one person upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Association of Health Plans; one psychiatrist upon the recommendation of the Medical Society of New Jersey; one health care provider, upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Office of the Drug Policy Alliance, who specializes in substance abuse treatment; and one person upon the recommendation of the National Center for Advocacy and Recovery for Behavioral Health New Jersey. The members to be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly would include: one person upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Hospital Association; one person upon the recommendation of the Advocates for Children of New Jersey; one health care provider, upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, who specializes in treating children and adolescents; one health care provider, upon the recommendation of the Health Care Association of New Jersey, who specializes in treating geriatric patients; and one person upon the recommendation of Parent to Parent New Jersey. Vacancies in the membership will be filled in the same manner provided for the original appointments. The board will organize as soon as practicable following appointments, and will select a chairperson and vice-chairperson from among the members. The chairperson will appoint a secretary who need not be a member of the board. The public members will serve without compensation, but will be reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties and within the limits of funds available to the board, and the board will be entitled to call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of the employees of any State, county, or municipal department, board, bureau, commission, or agency as it may require and as may be available to it for its purposes. The DHS will provide staff support to the board. The board also will submit an annual report to the Governor and to the Legislature with its findings and its recommendations with regard to improving the provision of behavioral mental health services in New Jersey. The second report submitted, and each report thereafter, will include a description and analysis of any actions taken on recommendations included in the prior year's report. | In Committee |
| ACR159 | Proposes constitutional amendment to require State reimbursement to municipalities for total property tax exemption provided to veterans having permanent and total service-connected disabilities. | This concurrent resolution proposes an amendment to the State Constitution to require the State to annually reimburse municipalities for the lost property tax revenue related to providing a 100 percent property tax exemption to certain veterans with disabilities. Under current law, veterans having permanent and total service-connected disabilities may qualify for a property tax exemption equal to the full amount of their property tax bill. However, the State is not required to reimburse municipalities for the costs related to the total property tax exemption. Accordingly, counties, school districts, and other local entities that are authorized to impose property taxes are not themselves reimbursed for the costs related to the total property tax exemption provided to certain veterans with disabilities. Although property tax exemptions do not reduce the total amount of property tax revenue collected by a municipality, exempting some properties from taxation shifts the tax burden onto other, nonexempt properties within the municipality. As a result, property tax exemptions may lead to an increase in property taxes for the owners of nonexempt properties. This constitutional amendment would require the State to provide an annual reimbursement to municipalities for the total amount of the total property tax exemption provided to veterans having permanent and total service-connected disabilities. Specifically, the amount of the annual reimbursement would be equal to the total value of property taxes that would have otherwise been collected by the municipality for each property receiving the total property tax exemption provided to veterans having permanent and total service-connected disabilities. A municipality would be required to reimburse each county, school district, and other local entity that is authorized to impose property tax in that municipality. Each reimbursement would be in an amount equal to the property taxes that would have otherwise been due to the county, school district, or other local entity from each tax-exempt property. | In Committee |
| A5495 | Lowers age which family court may waive jurisdiction of juvenile delinquency case. | This bill lowers the age which the family court may waive jurisdiction of a juvenile delinquency case. Under current law, the Superior Court, Chancery Division, Family Part may waive jurisdiction of a juvenile delinquency case to an appropriate court and prosecuting authority without consent of the juvenile upon motion by a prosecutor if: the juvenile is 15 and commits a delinquent act which if committed by an adult would constitute certain violent crimes or drug-related crimes. The court is required to consider such motion while also considering such factors including, but not limited to, the age and maturity of the juvenile, the degree of criminal sophistication exhibited by the juvenile, and the nature and circumstances of the offenses charged. This bill would lower the age at which the court may consider a motion by a prosecutor to waive jurisdiction to 14 years old. | In Committee |
| A5500 | Requires nursing homes to provide training to staff in behavioral health issues. | This bill requires the Commissioner of Health, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, to establish a training program for nursing home staff (certified nurse aides, licensed practical nurses, registered professional nurses, and other health care professionals who provide direct care to nursing home residents) in the care of residents who have behavioral health issues. The training program would include, but not be limited to: sensitivity to behavioral health issues among residents of nursing homes; information about depression and other psychiatric disorders, as appropriate; and the use of medication to treat those disorders. The bill requires nursing homes to provide the training annually. | In Committee |
| A5499 | Requires employer to provide one additional paid sick day per benefit year to paid first responders for healthcare diagnostic testing. | This bill requires that paid first responders be provided with one additional paid sick day per benefit year for healthcare diagnostic testing. The bill defines "first responder" to mean any paid law enforcement officer; paid firefighter; paid member of a duly incorporated first aid, emergency, ambulance, or rescue squad association; paid emergency medical technician; or paid paramedic. In addition, the bill defines "healthcare diagnostic testing" to mean medical tests or procedures recommended by a healthcare provider to prevent or diagnose a condition that may relate to the employee's duties as a first responder as determined by the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development (commissioner). The bill requires the commissioner, in consultation as necessary with any State, county, or municipal employers, to adopt rules and regulations necessary to implement the bill. | In Committee |
| A5497 | Directs DCA to establish grants division to oversee grant administration, establish grants application portal, and implement public information campaign. | This bill directs the Commissioner of Community Affairs (commissioner) to establish a division, which is to be known as GrantsNJ, within the Department of Community Affairs for the purpose of providing a centralized resource for residents to access information about, and to apply for, grants offered by State agencies. The division is to coordinate with State agencies to identify potential public and private funding sources to supplement grants administered by State agencies for the purpose of maximizing available grant funds available to residents. The division is required to develop and administer a centralized, comprehensive, grants application Internet portal, which is to: (1) list all grants available to New Jersey residents; (2) organize available grants by type, including, but not limited to, categories of grants for individuals, businesses, nonprofits, educational institutions, and municipalities; (3) summarize eligibility criteria and application links and deadlines for each grant; (4) provide tutorials and frequently asked questions to guide applicants through the application process; (5) provide multilingual and other accessibility support for applicants; and (6) provide any other relevant grant application information as determined by the division. Notwithstanding any provision of law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, the bill directs the GrantsNJ division to enter into a memorandum of understanding with each State department, agency, board, or commission that administers grants for the purpose of that State department, agency, board, or commission: (1) providing a standardized Internet-based application form for each grant the State department, agency, board, or commission administers that is listed on the division's Internet website; and (2) assisting the division in developing the Internet portal described the bill. The bill provides that each State department, agency, board, or commission is to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the division, and is to make a good faith effort, to the extent not prohibited pursuant to federal law, to allow for inclusion of as many grants offered or administered by the department, agency, board, or commission as possible on the Internet portal developed pursuant to the bill. The bill directs the commissioner to develop and implement a public information campaign concerning the establishment of the Internet portal described in the bill and the availability of grants offered by State agencies to residents. The public information campaign is to include, but not be limited to, workshops and Internet-based webinars, and is to prioritize the dissemination of this information to underserved communities and small businesses. The bill requires that, no later than 12 months after the effective date of the bill, and annually thereafter, the GrantsNJ division is to submit to the Governor and to the Legislature a report that is to provide information including, but not limited to, grant utilization rates, grant accessibility improvements, metrics on the public information campaign, and the impact of grant funding on communities, including specific success stories. | In Committee |
| ACR158 | Amends Constitution to dedicate money credited to the "9-1-1 System and Emergency Response Trust Fund Account" to maintain 9-1-1 system and emergency response. | This concurrent resolution proposes an amendment to the State Constitution prohibiting money from being drawn from the "9-1-1 System and Emergency Response Trust Fund Account" for any purpose or in any manner other than as established under current law. Under current law, money from the "9-1-1 System and Emergency Response Trust Fund Account" is used for: funding the State's capital equipment, facilities, and operating expenses that arise from emergency response; emergency response training; operating the Office of Emergency Telecommunications Services; operating the Statewide Public Safety Communications Commission; implementing the requirements of the Federal Communications Commission concerning 9-1-1 service; planning, designing, or implementing automatic location identification technology; and planning, designing, or acquiring replacement equipment or systems related to enhanced 9-1-1 network service. In the past, money from the trust fund account has been used for other purposes. This amendment to the State Constitution prohibits money in the trust fund account from being used for any purpose other than those established under current law. | In Committee |
| ACR160 | Proposes constitutional amendment to exclude military disability income from the $10,000 income limit for eligibility for the senior citizens and disabled persons property tax deduction. | If approved by the voters of the State, this proposed constitutional amendment would exclude from the calculation of income for eligibility for the senior citizens and disabled persons property tax deduction, disability income from the United States Veterans Administration (USVA). This type of income is provided by the USVA to veterans who have a service-connected disability. Senior citizens and disabled persons who earn over $10,000 annually, exclusive of Social Security benefits or any State or federal program that provides benefits in lieu of Social Security benefits, are not eligible to receive the senior and disabled property tax deduction. This amendment would exclude these disability payments from the calculation of income to qualify for that deduction. | In Committee |
| A5498 | "Honoring and Listening to Our First Responders Act"; establishes offense of interfering with official duties of first responder under certain circumstances. | This bill establishes the "Honoring and Listening to Our First Responders Act" or the "HALO Act." This bill provides that it is a disorderly persons offense for a person to disregard a request from a first responder to maintain distance and to knowingly approach or remain within 25 feet of the first responder with the purpose to: · obstruct, impair, or interfere with the first responder's performance of official duties; or· interfere with the first responder's performance of official duties by threatening, intimidating, or harassing the first responder. Under the bill, "first responder" would include any law enforcement officer, paid or volunteer firefighter, or paid or volunteer member of a duly incorporated first aid, emergency, ambulance, or rescue squad association. A disorderly persons offense is punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to six months, a fine of up to $1,000, or both. The bill provides that prosecution and conviction for an offense under the bill would not preclude the prosecution and conviction of a person under any other applicable provision of law. | In Committee |
| A3169 | Allows property tax rebate for disabled veterans. | Allows property tax rebate for disabled veterans. | In Committee |
| AJR219 | Designates September of each year as "Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Awareness Month" in NJ. | This bill designates September of each year as "Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Awareness Month" in New Jersey. Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a muscular degenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of muscle tissue and function. DMD is caused by genetic mutations on the X chromosome, which affects approximately 1 out of every 3,500 male infants. Symptoms of DMD generally present between ages two and three and rapidly progress, with many individuals with DMD requiring wheelchair assistance between ages 10 and 12 and a breathing ventilator by age 20. Individuals with DMD may also experience paralysis and cardiopulmonary complications, including difficulty breathing or heart failure. DMD is a fatal disease with an average life expectancy of 25 years. While there is no cure for DMD, non-profit organizations across the country and in New Jersey are dedicated to raising awareness of DMD, advocating for improved care and access to treatment, and funding research to cure this devastating disease. Efforts to improve patients' access to treatment are critical as research indicates that optimal care can help to significantly increase the life expectancy for individuals with DMD. In addition, increasing awareness of DMD may help promote empathy and understanding, foster a sense of community, strengthen advocacy efforts, and encourage social and emotional support for the young people and families affected by DMD. To join and support ongoing public awareness and advocacy efforts, September of each year is designated as "Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Awareness Month" in New Jersey. The Governor is requested to issue a proclamation annually to recognize September of each year as "Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Awareness Month" and call upon relevant State agencies, organizations, and citizens of the State to observe the month with appropriate awareness activities and programs. | In Committee |
| A5419 | Prohibits health care professionals from providing gender-affirming health care services to persons under 21 years of age. | This bill prohibits health care professionals from providing gender-affirming health care services to persons under 21 years of age. A health care professional who violates the provisions of the bill will be subject to discipline for professional misconduct. The bill defines "gender-affirming health care services" to mean all supplies, care, and services of a medical, surgical, therapeutic, diagnostic, preventative, rehabilitative, or supportive nature, including medication, relating to the treatment of gender dysphoria and gender incongruence. Gender-affirming health care services, as defined under the bill, does not include supplies, care, and services of a behavioral health, mental health, or psychiatric nature. | In Committee |
| A4051 | Prohibits sale of cats, dogs, or rabbits by pet shops; repeals "Pet Purchase Protection Act." | Prohibits sale of cats, dogs, or rabbits by pet shops; repeals "Pet Purchase Protection Act." | In Committee |
| A4755 | Upgrades, and in some circumstances provides for extended terms of imprisonment for, certain retail theft crimes, addresses gift card fraud, and authorizes new Attorney General initiatives to address organized retail theft. | Upgrades, and in some circumstances provides for extended terms of imprisonment for, certain retail theft crimes, addresses gift card fraud, and authorizes new Attorney General initiatives to address organized retail theft. | In Committee |
| A1673 | "Right to Mental Health for Individuals who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing Act"; establishes certain requirements concerning provision of mental health services to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. | "Right to Mental Health for Individuals who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing Act"; establishes certain requirements concerning provision of mental health services to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. | In Committee |
| A4556 | Authorizes certain types of permanent structures, recently constructed or erected on preserved farmland, to be used, in certain cases, for purposes of holding special occasion events thereon. | Authorizes certain types of permanent structures, recently constructed or erected on preserved farmland, to be used, in certain cases, for purposes of holding special occasion events thereon. | In Committee |
| A5298 | Requires DEP and New Jersey Infrastructure Bank to provide priority for principal forgiveness on environmental infrastructure project loans to municipalities in coastal areas. | This bill would requires the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank (I-Bank) to provide priority for principal forgiveness on environmental infrastructure project loans to municipalities in coastal areas. The DEP and the I-Bank finance the State's Water Bank program, which provides financing, in the form of low-interest loans, often with a certain amount of principal forgiveness, in support of wastewater and drinking water projects throughout the State. | In Committee |
| A5276 | Requires certain law enforcement entities and courts to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. | This bill requires every law enforcement agency to notify the appropriate federal immigration authorities when a person who is arrested and charged with any crime and certain offenses is a non-citizen who is unlawfully present in this county. The purpose of notifying federal immigration authorities is to initiate deportation proceedings. Under the bill, "federal immigration authority" is defined as any officer, employee, or person otherwise paid by or acting as an agent of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement or United States Customs and Border Protection, or any division thereof, or any officer, employee, or person otherwise paid by or acting as an agent of the United States Department of Homeland Security who is charged with immigration enforcement. The bill also requires every sentencing court to immediately contact appropriate federal immigration authorities in order to initiate deportation proceedings upon convicting a non-citizen who is unlawfully present in this country of certain crimes or offenses. Finally, correctional facilities in which the convicted non-citizen is held would be required to contact appropriate federal immigration authorities for the purpose of initiating deportation proceedings. Parole or probation officers with a supervisory role over a convicted non-citizen also would be required to contact federal immigration authorities for the purpose of initiating deportation proceedings. The crimes and offenses included under the bill that would require notification are any crime of the first through fourth degree or any disorderly or petty disorderly persons offense involving the unlawful manufacture, distribution, possession and use of controlled dangerous substances, theft, robbery, or any other crime or offense resulting in detention. | In Committee |
| A5301 | Expands available protections against fraudulent recording of quitclaim deed. | This bill enhances protections against fraudulent recordings of quitclaim deeds by expressly authorizing a property owner to request notification and a delay in the recording, any time a quitclaim deed is submitted for recording on the owner's property. If a property owner submits this request, the bill requires the county recording officer (officer) to notify the property owner any time a person submits a request to record a quitclaim deed on the owner's property, and to wait to record the quitclaim deed until no less than 10 business days, and not more than 12 business days, have passed following the day when the officer sends the notification. To facilitate the notification requirement, the bill directs the officer to accept and retain a submission from a property owner of the owner's preferred mailing address or e-mail address, or both. A "county recording officer" is also known as the "register of deeds and mortgages" in some counties, and the "county clerk" in the others. A "quitclaim deed" is a form of a deed through which a grantor makes no promises concerning the extent of the present ownership of the property at issue, and no future promises concerning the property at issue, but conveys whatever estate or interest the grantor purports to have in the real property at issue. The bill allows the officer to collect a fee from property owners submitting notification requests to offset the cost of the notification requirement. The bill takes effect on the first day of the third month next following enactment in order to allow recording offices to adjust fees. | In Committee |
| ACR153 | Determines that DEP rules and regulations to implement "Advanced Clean Trucks" program are inconsistent with legislative intent. | This concurrent resolution embodies the finding of the Legislature that the rule and regulations adopted by the Department of Environmental Protection in the December 20, 2021 New Jersey Register, 53 N.J.R. 2148(a), are not consistent with the intent of the Legislature. The Department of Environmental Protection would have 30 days from the date of transmittal of this resolution to amend or withdraw the rules and regulations or the Legislature may, by passage of another concurrent resolution, exercise its authority under the Constitution to invalidate the rules and regulations in whole or in part. | In Committee |
| A5299 | Prohibits certain electric public utility rate increases and requires certain protections for ratepayers. | This bill prohibits any electric public utility from increasing the rate charged to ratepayers after the bill's enactment for the purpose of recovering the cost of installing smart meters. Beginning on the date 30 days prior to, and until 30 days after, the effective date of any electric public utility rate increase, the bill requires an electric public utility to publish the following information on its Internet website and in any customer communication, including, but not limited to, a paper or electronic bill: (1) the amount and effective date of the rate increase; (2) the reasons for the rate increase; (3) an explanation of any anticipated impact on ratepayer bills, including, but not limited to, a clear statement of the percentage by which ratepayer bills are expected to increase; and (4) information on how ratepayers can provide feedback on the impact of or file a complaint concerning the rate increase. The Board of Public Utilities (board) is authorized to impose a fine of up to $10,000 if the board finds that an electric public utility violated this requirement. An electric public utility is required to report to the federal Department of Energy any rate increase expected to result in an average increase of five percent or greater of ratepayer bills, no less than 60 days prior to the effective date of the rate increase. Within its report to the Department of Energy, an electric public utility is required to include the following information: (1) the amount and effective date of the rate increase; (2) the reasons for the rate increase; (3) an explanation of any anticipated impact on ratepayer bills, including, but not limited to, a clear statement of the percentage by which ratepayer bills are expected to increase; and (4) any measures the electric public utility may take to mitigate the rate increase's impact on ratepayer bills. An electric public utility is also required to provide to the federal Department of Energy an annual report on: (1) any trends in the duration, location, and cause of an electric public utility's electric service interruptions, including, but not limited to, a summary of electric service interruptions during the preceding calendar year; and (2) any trends in overdue bills from an electric public utility's ratepayers during the preceding calendar year. The bill prohibits an electric public utility from disconnecting electric service to or assessing a late fee for bill nonpayment to any ratepayer affected by a rate increase resulting in an average increase of five percent or greater of ratepayer bills within six months following that rate increase. | In Committee |
| A4968 | Modifies list of transportation infrastructure projects eligible to receive loans from NJ Infrastructure Bank for FY2025. | An Act concerning the expenditure of funds by the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank to finance a portion of the cost of certain transportation infrastructure projects and amending P.L.2024, c.43. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A5216 | Prohibits health insurance carriers from placing time limit on coverage of anesthesia services before, during, or after medical or surgical procedures. | This bill prohibits health insurance carriers from placing a time limit on the coverage of anesthesia services before, during, or after a medical or surgical procedure. Under the bill, a carrier (including an insurance company, health service corporation, hospital service corporation, medical service corporation, or health maintenance organization authorized to issue health benefits plans in the State) will be prohibited from limiting coverage based on the amount of time in which anesthesia services are used before, during, or after a medical or surgical procedure. For the purpose of this bill, "anesthesia services" means the same as the prevailing medical coding standards found within the American Medical Association's Current Procedural Terminology code for anesthesia, including anesthesia modifier codes. | In Committee |
| ACR138 | Honors 40th anniversary of Jersey Fresh program. | This concurrent resolution honors the 40th anniversary of the Jersey Fresh program. The agricultural industry is critical to ensuring New Jersey residents have access to healthy food and plays a key role in the State's economy by helping to keep property taxes low, increase property values, and garner State revenue. In 1984, the New Jersey Department of Agriculture established the Jersey Fresh program, the first in the nation state-sponsored agricultural commodity marketing and quality grading program, to promote the State's agricultural industry. The Jersey Fresh program helps support family owned farms across New Jersey through its marketing campaigns that inform shoppers of what produce is in season and encourage consumers to shop local. The Jersey Fresh program's distinct label placed on locally harvested produce assists consumers easily differentiate fruits and vegetables grown in New Jersey from other produce in the marketplace. The Jersey Fresh program encourages consumers to purchase locally grown produce through its quality and freshness guarantees. Specifically, the Jersey Fresh quality grading program requires Jersey Fresh produce to meet U.S. No. 1 Fresh for Processing grade or better. With this added quality assurance, the Jersey Fresh label guarantees that its produce was freshly harvested in New Jersey, has been inspected, and meets high quality standards. The Jersey Fresh program has demonstrated success in increasing New Jersey consumers' awareness of, and willingness to purchase, locally harvested produce. Consumer recognition of Jersey Fresh products has extended beyond the State to the mid-Atlantic and New England markets and, in 2020, was on par with that of other major national brands. Today, the Jersey Fresh program is recognized as a national model for other state-sponsored agricultural branding programs. The Jersey Fresh program's innovative marketing strategies have contributed to the program's longevity and popularity. New Jersey produces over 100 types of fruits and vegetables and is nationally ranked in the top 10 producers of blueberries, peaches, bell peppers, squash, tomatoes, and cranberries. The Jersey Fresh program has expanded across the State and is available to New Jersey residents in every county, including at over 2,000 On-Farm Markets run by local New Jersey farmers, community farmers markets, major retail stores, wineries, breweries, and distilleries. The Jersey Fresh program's popularity and demonstrated success has also inspired related programs modeled after the Jersey Fresh program, including the Made with Jersey Fresh program, which identifies processed food made with fresh, locally sourced ingredients; the Jersey Grown program, which advertises New Jersey grown plants, trees, shrubs, and flowers; the Jersey Raised program, which markets livestock raised in New Jersey; and the Jersey Seafood program, which promotes aquacultured and wild-caught fish and seafood products harvested off of New Jersey's coast. | Crossed Over |
| A5177 | Modifies cost thresholds for reimbursement of extraordinary special education costs; requires State to bear full cost of nonpublic school transportation for certain school districts. | This bill modifies the cost thresholds for reimbursement of extraordinary special education costs and requires the State to bear the full cost of nonpublic school transportation for certain school districts. Pursuant to current law, a school district is reimbursed for certain special education costs in the form of extraordinary special education aid. Eligible costs are: 90 percent of costs in excess of $40,000 for students educated in an in-district public school program with non-disabled peers; 75 percent of costs in excess of $40,000 for students educated in a separate public school program for students with disabilities; and 75 percent of tuition costs in excess of $55,000 for students educated in a separate private school for students with disabilities. The bill decreases the cost threshold from $40,000 to $35,000 for students educated in public school programs that are integrated into the classroom. The bill also provides for a gradual phase-in of full funding of extraordinary special education aid over the span of five years. Current law requires a school district to provide transportation services to public school students who live remote from school. "Remote" for school transportation purposes means residing more than two miles from the school of attendance for students enrolled in grades kindergarten through eight and more than two and one-half miles for students enrolled in high school. If a school district provides mandatory busing services to public school students, then it is also required to provide transportation to nonpublic school students who live remote, but no more than 20 miles, from school. The required transportation services for nonpublic school students, however, are to be provided by school districts within a maximum per pupil limit that is established on an annual basis. If a school district is unable to provide the services within the maximum per pupil limit, then the district provides students' parents with an aid-in-lieu-of transportation payment equal to that maximum amount. The State reimburses districts for nonpublic school student transportation costs above $710 per pupil and up to the maximum per pupil amount. Instead of the current reimbursement structure, this bill requires the State to cover the full costs, up to the maximum per pupil amount, to certain eligible school districts providing required transportation to eligible nonpublic school students. As defined in the bill, an eligible school district is one that is required to provide transportation to more than 5,000 students and in which 25 percent or more of the total number of students requiring transportation is comprised of nonpublic school students. It is the sponsor's intent to support school districts that experience an undue burden from providing transportation services to an extraordinary number of public school and nonpublic school students. Eligible school districts pursuant to this bill will benefit from the additional financial relief and will better enable them to provide the nonpublic school student transportation services as required by State law. | In Committee |
| A5179 | Requires appointment of State monitor to school districts that receive 70 percent or more of revenue from State aid. | This bill requires a State monitor to be appointed in a school district if the percentage of the school district's revenue derived from State aid is 70 percent or greater of total revenue according to the most recent information reported in the Department of Education's Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending. A monitor appointed pursuant to the bill's provisions is to have direct oversight of a board of education's business operations and personnel matters and generally have the same powers as a State monitor appointed pursuant to current State law known as the "School District Fiscal Accountability Act." According to the 2024 version of the Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending, the following school districts received 70 percent or more of their total revenue from State sources in the 2022-2023 school year: District NameCountyRevenue: State %Trenton Public School DistrictMercer86.3%Plainfield CityUnion84.7%Union CityHudson84.6%City Of Orange Twp.Essex83.3%Camden CityCamden82.8%Bridgeton CityCumberland82.0%Elizabeth CityUnion81.5%Pleasantville CityAtlantic81.1%Gloucester CityCamden80.8%Irvington TownshipEssex80.8%Keansburg BoroMonmouth80.2%East OrangeEssex79.9%Vineland CityCumberland79.7%New Brunswick CityMiddlesex79.7%Newark CityEssex79.2%Paterson CityPassaic78.7%Pemberton Twp.Burlington78.3%Folsom BoroAtlantic78.1%Perth Amboy CityMiddlesex78.1%Lindenwold BoroCamden75.6%Fairfield Twp.Cumberland75.4%Lakehurst BoroOcean75.4%West New York SchoolsHudson74.8%Cumberland Co. VocationalCumberland74.5%Passaic CityPassaic73.9%Millville CityCumberland73.2%Salem CitySalem71.4%Garfield CityBergen71.2%Penns Grove-Carneys Point RegionalSalem70.0% | In Committee |
| A5176 | Authorizes creation of "250th Anniversary Revolutionary War" license plates. | This bill requires the Chief Administrator (chief administrator) of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) to issue 250th Anniversary Revolutionary War license plates. The design of the license plate is to be chosen by the chief administrator, in consultation with the New Jersey Historical Commission (historical commission) in the Department of State. In addition to the required motor vehicle registration fees, there is an application fee of $50 and an annual renewal fee of $10 for the license plates. After deducting the costs to implement the plates, the additional fees collected are to be deposited into the "250th Anniversary Revolutionary War License Plate Fund." The proceeds of the fund are to be appropriated annually to support and preserve Revolutionary War sites throughout New Jersey. The chief administrator is required to annually certify the average cost of producing, issuing, renewing, and publicizing the availability of the specialty license plates. If the average cost per plate exceeds $50 in two consecutive fiscal years, the chief administrator may discontinue the license plate program. The bill also requires that the Chair of the New Jersey Historical Commission appoint a liaison to represent the historical commission in all communications with the MVC regarding the license plates. The bill provides that State or other public funds may not be used by the MVC for the initial cost to implement the license plate program. The bill requires the historical commission, or an individual or entity designated by the historical commission, to contribute non-public monies, not to exceed $25,000, to offset the initial costs to design, produce, issue, and publicize the license plates and for any computer programming necessary to implement the program. The bill authorizes the historical commission to receive funds from private sources to be used to offset the initial costs. The MVC is not required to design, produce, issue, or publicize the availability of the license plates, or make any necessary programming changes, until: (1) the historical commission, or an individual or entity designated by the historical commission, has provided the MVC with the money necessary to offset the initial costs incurred by the MVC in establishing the license plate program; and (2) the historical commission has provided the MVC with a minimum of 500 completed applications for the license plates, upon the availability for purchase of those license plates. The provisions of the bill will remain inoperative until the first day of the 13th month following the date when the appropriate applications and fees required to offset the initial costs incurred by the MVC are provided by the historical commission or its designee. The bill expires on the last day of the 12th month following the bill's enactment if sufficient applications and fees to offset the initial costs are not received by that date. | In Committee |
| A5175 | Reinstates automatic COLAs for retirement benefits of certain PFRS members. | This bill reinstates automatic cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) for annual pension, ordinary disability pension, or accidental disability pension retirement benefits for certain members of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS). Provisions contained in P.L.2011, c.78 (C.43:3C-16 et al.), signed into law on June 28, 2011, had suspended the automatic annual adjustment for current and future retirees and beneficiaries of PFRS and other State-administered retirement systems until those systems reach a target funded ratio. Decades of underfunding those systems by the State had placed the systems in precarious financial conditions. Although this bill does not reinstate COLAs for other retirees, it serves as the first step in reinstating COLAs for all retirees of the State-administered retirement systems. Through the prioritization of PFRS, the State will begin this process with retired first responders, police and firefighters, to provide them greater financial security and stability at a time when inflation has significantly eroded the value of their retirement benefit payments, which are already based on the lower salaries of years ago. To that end, the bill includes restrictions intended to limit costs and focus on segments among PFRS retirees expected to be most in need of an immediate benefit. Under the bill, members of PFRS will receive automatic COLAs for annual pension, ordinary disability pension, and accidental disability pension benefits if the member has been retired and receiving retirement benefits for a minimum of ten years. Longer-term retirees generally will have lower pension benefits and be less able to obtain employment to offset the erosion of their benefits. Members of PFRS who are hired more than 30 days following the effective date of this act will not be considered eligible to receive these automatic COLAs. Additionally, members who are enrolled in deferred retirement will not be considered eligible for these automatic COLAs, nor will members who retired with 20 or more years of service but less than 25 years of service. The COLAs will only apply to future pension benefit payments. The bill does not provide for retroactive COLAs. The adjustment in eligible members' pension benefits will be calculated based on an amount up to $75,000 of a retiree's benefit for the first year following the enactment of this bill. Eligible members receiving up to $75,000 of pension benefits will receive a COLA tied to the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. This will ensure that greater initial benefits will be provided to those likely to be most in need. The adjustment in eligible member's pension benefits will be limited to one percent if the member receives more than $75,000 in benefits for the first year following the enactment of the bill. After the first calendar year following the enactment of the bill, the $75,000 threshold will be adjusted annually according to the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, except that the adjustment will be calculated at a rate not to exceed three percent. The bill also grants the cost-of-living adjustment to the monthly pension or survivorship benefit of a surviving spouse, child, or beneficiary that is provided by PFRS. Under the bill, if the Board of Trustees of PFRS fails to comply with the provisions of this bill within six months following the effective date, then the State Treasurer will be responsible for implementing the cost-of-living adjustments. The bill requires the Legislature to appropriate monies from the General Fund as necessary to effectuate the cost-of-living adjustments established under the bill that are sufficient to cover both State and local expenses, and to reimburse each PFRS local employer for the full cost incurred. The bill further provides that this appropriation will take precedence over any additional funding added to the annual State budget by the Legislature through non-emergency supplemental appropriations, resolutions or other changes to the Governor's budget message. | In Committee |
| A4229 | Requires NJEDA to establish loan program to assist beginning farmers in financing capital purchases. | Requires NJEDA to establish loan program to assist beginning farmers in financing capital purchases. | Crossed Over |
| A3561 | Establishes crime of doxxing. | This bill establishes the crime of doxxing. Under the bill, doxxing occurs if a person, with the purpose to subject another person to violence, stalking, physical restraining, mental anguish, or to cause a person to fear for their own safety or that of another, knowingly discloses personal identifying information without the person's consent. A crime is committed under the bill when the disclosure: (1) creates a substantial risk of serious bodily injury or physical harm to the person or a close relation of the person; (2) creates a substantial risk that the person or a close relation of the person is subjected to stalking; or (3) inflicts mental anguish upon the person or a close relation of the person and places the person or close relation in reasonable fear of physical harm. Under the bill, "close relation" is defined as a spouse; domestic partner; partner in a civil union couple; former spouse, former domestic partner; former partner in a civil union; parent, stepparent, grandparent, sibling, stepsibling, child, stepchild, or grandchild, whether related by blood or by law; any person who is a present household member, or who was, within the prior six months, a household member; or any person with a significant personal or professional relationship. The crime of doxxing does not occur if the disclosure was made: (1) in good faith to inform any member of the public of conduct by the person that the actor reasonably believed to be unlawful; (2) in good faith to inform law enforcement of conduct committed by the person that the actor reasonably believed to constitute a crime; or (3) while cooperating in an official investigation or prosecution of a violation of N.J.S.A.2C:33-4.1, cyber harassment. The bill also establishes a rebuttable presumption that the actor did not act with the purpose established under the bill if the personal identifying information of another person was disclosed for the primary purpose of: (a) publishing, disseminating, or reporting in good faith conduct by an elected public official or law enforcement officer acting in their official capacity that the actor reasonably believe to be unlawful or an abuse of authority; or (b) engaging in lawful and constitutionally protected activity as it pertains to speech, assembly, press, or petition. Doxxing is a crime of the fourth degree unless the disclosure results in any serious bodily injury, physical harm, or stalking, at which time it becomes a crime of the third degree. A crime of the fourth degree is punishable by up to 18 months imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000, or both. A crime of the third degree is punishable by three to five years imprisonment, a fine of up to $15,000, or both. | In Committee |
| A5104 | Requires law enforcement agencies to adopt policies of cooperation with federal immigration officials. | This bill requires interstate, State, county, county park, and municipal police departments or forces and educational institutions that appoint law enforcement officers to adopt a policy of cooperation with federal immigration authorities. The bill defines "law enforcement officer" as a person whose public duties include the power to act as an officer for the detection, apprehension, arrest and conviction of offenders against the laws of this State. Additionally, the bill provides that subject to the approval of the Attorney General, the State would be required to defend a law enforcement officer in any civil action seeking to impose liability arising out of any actual or alleged act, error, or omission that occurred while cooperating with federal immigration authorities, provided that the actual or alleged act, error, or omission did not result from intentional or willful and wanton misconduct on the part the law enforcement officer. The bill also provides that a law enforcement officer would be indemnified and held harmless by the State in the amount of any settlement or judgment obtained against the law enforcement officer for complying with the bill's provisions and cooperating with federal immigration authorities provided that the actual or alleged act, error, or omission did not result from intentional or willful and wanton misconduct on the part the law enforcement officer. | In Committee |
| A5103 | "Small Modular Nuclear Energy Incentive Act." | This bill, to be known as the "Small Modular Nuclear Energy Incentive Act," would direct the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) to establish a program to solicit bids for the construction of new small modular nuclear reactors in the State. The bill would authorize the BPU to issue financial incentives to SMRs, to be known as SMR incentives, for each megawatt hour of electric energy produced by the reactor. The amount of the incentive would be determined through a competitive solicitation process. Private entities would submit bids to the BPU, which state the level of SMR incentive they estimate they would require to achieve profitability. The BPU would select the lowest bids, except that the bill authorizes the BPU to give preference to certain projects, for example projects sited at former nuclear energy facilities or fossil fuel power plants. The bill would authorize the BPU to use moneys in the "Global Warming Solutions Fund," which serves as the repository for funds collected by the State under the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), in order to fund the SMR incentives. The bill would direct the BPU to develop the program within one year after the bill's enactment, and to begin the first competitive solicitation round within two years after the bill's enactment. The bill would restrict the owner or operator of an SMR that receives an incentive from otherwise profiting from the environmental attributes of the energy it produces. Finally, the bill would require each SMR that is selected to participate in the incentive program to pay an annual administrative fee to the BPU, to compensate the BPU for its costs in administering the program. | In Committee |
| S3201 | Upgrades certain penalties for assaulting law enforcement officer and requires offender to be tested for communicable diseases in certain instances. | An Act upgrading certain penalties for assault and requiring testing for communicable diseases, and revising various parts of statutory law. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A5010 | Requires SADC and any local board acquiring farmland for preservation purposes to provide partial payment to landowner, in advance of settlement, to demonstrate good faith intent to proceed with settlement and acquisition. | This bill would amend and supplement the State's farmland preservation laws in order to require State and local purchasers of farmland development easements and fee simple titles to tentatively provide applicant landowners, in advance of settlement, with a portion of the total funds that are to be paid by the State or local purchaser for acquisition of the development easement or fee simple title. Specifically, the bill would provide that, whenever the State Agriculture Development Committee (committee) or a county agriculture development board or subregional agricultural retention board (board) receives a landowner's completed application seeking to sell thereto a development easement on, or fee simple title to, farmland for farmland preservation purposes, and prior to settlement on the proposed acquisition, the committee or board, as the case may be, will be required to award and disburse an advance payment, to the applicant landowner, demonstrating the committee or board's good faith intention to proceed with settlement and to, thereby, effectuate the State or local acquisition of the development easement or fee simple title at the final negotiated purchase price, as determined pursuant to subsection e. of section 8 of P.L.2016, c.12 (C.13:8C-50), in compliance with all of the agreed-upon terms, contingencies, and conditions set forth in the final, negotiated purchase agreement. An advance payment awarded under the bill would be disbursed to the landowner: 1) in a single lump-sum payment; and 2) in an amount that is equal to 20 percent of the appraised fair market value of the development easement or the fee simple title, or, to the extent that a final purchase price has been negotiated and agreed-upon, in an amount that is equal to 20 percent of the higher of the appraised fair market value or the final negotiated purchase price of the development easement or the fee simple title, as the case may be. Any sum of moneys which is distributed to a landowner, through a good faith advance payment awarded under the bill: 1) is to be deducted from the final negotiated purchase price required to be paid, by the committee or the board, at the time of settlement on the State or local farmland acquisition project; or 2) if the purchase agreement is voided, cancelled, or otherwise abandoned by either party prior to settlement, or if settlement otherwise does not occur, is to be fully repaid by the landowner to, and recouped by, the committee or board, and dedicated for use in financing other State and local farmland acquisition projects. The bill would further provide, moreover, that any advance payment funds which are owed by a landowner and are due to be repaid to the committee or board, as a result of the voiding, cancellation, abandonment, or other negation of a settlement agreement for the acquisition of a farmland development easement or fee simple title, will constitute a debt of the landowner to the State or locality, as the case may be, which may be recovered, from the landowner, by the respective committee or board to which the debt is owed. All owners of the subject property, at the time of incurrence of the debt thereon (i.e., at the time of settlement default), would be jointly and severally liable for all recoverable debt-related costs, as set forth in the bill. Under the bill's provisions, any moneys that are due to the committee or board and owed by a landowner, as a result of the voiding, cancellation, abandonment, or other negation of settlement on the acquisition of a farmland development easement or fee simple title, would constitute a debt of the landowner to the State or locality, as the case may be, which debt may be recovered, from the landowner, by the respective committee or board to which the debt is owed. An advance payment debt owed by a landowner, under the bill's provisions, would constitute a lien on all property owned by the landowner. The lien would attach whenever a notice of lien, incorporating the name of the landowner, and both a description of the subject property of the landowner for which the debt was incurred, and an identification of the amount of advance payment funds disbursed to the landowner, as well as any related costs expended by the committee or the board, is duly filed with the county register of deeds and mortgages or other county clerk (county recording officer), as applicable. Upon receipt of a notice of lien filed pursuant to this paragraph, the county recording officer would be required to promptly record, in the public records of the county in which the relevant property is located, a claim of lien stating the description of the property, the name and primary address of the owner of record, the amount due, and the date when due, as set forth in the notice of lien filed by the committee or board. Such lien, in the amount committed by the committee or board for advance payment and related costs, would be understood to attach to the revenues and all real and personal property of the landowner, whether or not the landowner is insolvent. The bill would provide that any notice of lien, filed and entered under the bill and affecting the property that is the subject of settlement default establishing the debt, would create a lien having priority over all other claims or liens which are or have been filed against such subject property. However, any such notice of lien that affects any property of the landowner, other than the property that is the subject of settlement default establishing the debt, would create a lien that has priority, from the day of the filing of the notice of the lien, over all other claims and liens filed against the property, but which would not affect any valid lien, right, or interest in such property that has been filed, in accordance with established procedure, prior to the filing of a notice of lien under the bill's provisions. A lien entered under the bill would be enforceable, through the sale of the subject property, in the same manner provided for the enforcement of municipal liens pursuant to the State's existing "tax sale law," R.S.54:5-1 et seq., and In Rem Tax Foreclosure Act (1948), P.L.1948, c.96 (C.54:5-104.29 et seq.), as appropriate. | In Committee |
| A5016 | Modifies requirements for associations to protect structural integrity of certain buildings; expands timeframes for associations to establish adequate reserves. | This bill amends a recent enactment, P.L.2023, c.214, (C.52:27D-132.2 et al.), which imposed various requirements upon associations responsible for the management and maintenance of the common elements and facilities of residential buildings within planned real estate developments. The bill also limits applicability of the capital reserve study and funding requirements of P.L.2023, c.214, (C.52:27D-132.2 et al.) to residential condominium and cooperative buildings that are three stories or more in height. The bill further modifies current law to enable impacted associations to increase the amounts required to hold in necessary reserve funds over a longer period of time. The Legislature enacted P.L.2023, c.214 for the purpose of enhancing the structural integrity of the primary load bearing systems of residential buildings. However, language contained in the underlying enactment may be interpreted as having imposed requirements to protect against failures of common areas and capital improvements even though they do not impact a building's structural integrity. The recent enactment may also be interpreted as imposing requirements on non-residential buildings as well as residential ones. This bill modifies language from the recent enactment to address these issues and to limit applicability of P.L.2023, c.214 to residential buildings that are three stories or more in height. Additionally, the bill would double the timeframe imposed under current law within which an impacted association is required to establish and maintain a reserve fund in an adequate amount. | In Committee |
| A2378 | Upgrades certain penalties for assaulting law enforcement officer and requires offender to be tested for communicable diseases in certain instances. | Upgrades certain penalties for assaulting law enforcement officer and requires offender to be tested for communicable diseases in certain instances. | In Committee |
| A2717 | Authorizes proportional property tax exemption for honorably discharged veterans having a service-connected permanent disability and proclaims that the State shall reimburse municipalities for costs of exemption. | The bill grants a property tax exemption to honorably discharged veterans having a service-connected disability in proportion to their disability percentage rating. The exemption is only granted to those with a disability percentage rating of at least 30 percent, and the exemption is capped at $10,000. Those with a 100 percent disability percentage rating would still be allowed a 100 percent property tax exemption without a cap, as is the case under current law. In addition, the bill grants those honorably discharged veterans having less than a 100 percent service-connected disability, but who are unemployable, a 100 percent property tax exemption, which matches the current 100 percent property tax exemption for honorably discharged veterans having a 100 percent disability percentage rating. As under current law, the bill allows the 100 percent property tax exemption to extend to the surviving spouse of a veteran. However, the newly allowed property tax exemption for a veteran with a less than 100 percent property tax exemption would not extend to the surviving spouse. The bill also eliminates all references to medical conditions so that any service-connected disability, as determined by the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs, will make a veteran eligible for the property tax exemption. Finally, the bill proclaims that the State shall annually reimburse taxing districts, including for administrative costs, for the property tax exemptions granted to disabled veterans and their surviving spouses. The bill includes reporting provisions so proper reimbursement can be made. | In Committee |
| A1432 | Authorizes use of school bus monitoring systems. | Authorizes use of school bus monitoring systems. | In Committee |
| A1912 | Requires certain State employees to receive training in cybersecurity best practices. | This bill requires State employees to receive training regarding using best safety practices while utilizing State computers. The bill requires the New Jersey Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Cell (NJCCIC) in the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, to establish the cybersecurity training program for all State employees in the Executive and Legislative Branch of government who have access to a State computer. The bill requires the Director of the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness to adopt guidelines to implement the program. The training should include a review of best practices for using State computers including updating passwords; detecting phishing scams; preventing ransomware, spyware infections, and identity theft; and preventing and responding to data breaches. The NJCCIC provides cybersecurity information sharing, threat analysis, and incident reporting. Located at the Regional Operations Intelligence Center (ROIC), the NJCCIC promotes Statewide awareness of local cyber threats and widespread adoption of best practices. Cybersecurity is a growing concern for State government and the private sector. It has enormous implications for government security, economic prosperity, and public safety. | In Committee |
| A4779 | Provides gross income tax credits for portion of homeowners' association payments used in fund infrastructure improvements within common interest communities. | This bill would provide a refundable gross income tax credit to resident taxpayers for a portion of homeowners' association assessments that are paid by taxpayers for primary residences within any common interest community, and which are used by the homeowners' association to support infrastructure improvements within the community. A taxpayer would be eligible for the credit regardless of whether the primary residence is subject to property taxes or an agreement for payments in lieu of taxes ("PILOT payments"). Specifically, the homeowners' association infrastructure improvement tax credit would equal the amount of "homeowners' association assessments constituting infrastructure improvements" paid by the taxpayer during the taxable year. The bill defines "homeowners' association assessments constituting infrastructure improvements" to include 18 percent of the total homeowners' association assessments paid by a taxpayer during a taxable year. When filing a tax return that includes a claim for the credit, a taxpayer would be required to submit a copy of a certification, issued upon application by the taxpayer to their homeowners' association, that calculates the amount of the homeowners' association assessments constituting infrastructure improvements paid by the taxpayer during the taxable year for which the credit is claimed. | In Committee |
| A3060 | Permits designation of special event zones for traffic regulation purposes during certain large events. | This bill permits the designation of "special event zones" for the purpose of regulating traffic during certain "special events," which the bill defines as any automotive or motor vehicle events occurring on or near a roadway, which events either have been approved by the county or municipality in which the event is located, or are expected to have 25 or more persons in attendance. When a special event occurs, or is expected to occur, on any roadway under the jurisdiction of the Department of Transportation (DOT), the bill permits the Commissioner of Transportation to designate all or part of the roadway, including any parking structures or other property located within the designated area, as a special event zone. Similarly, when a special event occurs, or is expected to occur, on a roadway under the jurisdiction of a county or municipality, the county or municipality may also designate the area as a special event zone. In either case, the special event zone would remain in effect for the duration of the special event, and including a reasonable period of time before and after the special event. While the special event zone remains in effect, the DOT, municipality, or county, as applicable, would be required to maintain appropriate signage on or along the special event zone. Under the bill, certain traffic regulations would be altered within the special event zone while the zone remains in effect, including: (1) an allowance for the DOT, county, or municipality, as applicable, to reduce the established speed limitations, as such reductions are deemed necessary to ensure public safety; and (2) the prohibition of "exhibition driving," which the bill defines to include certain forms of disruptive or erratic driving; and (3) the imposition of increased penalties for certain traffic offenses. Specifically, the bill provides that a person would be subject to a fine not exceeding $1,000 after committing the following traffic offenses within a special event zone: (1) operating a motor vehicle in excess of the posted speed limitation; (2) careless driving; and (3) operating a motor vehicle for a wager, in a race, or for the purposes of making a speed record. Additionally, a person who engages in exhibition driving or reckless driving within a special event zone would be subject to a fine not exceeding $1,000, a term of imprisonment of up to 60 days, or both. Under current law, the Commissioner of Transportation is required to approve certain types of local traffic regulations before those regulations may take effect. Under the bill, the designation of a special event zone by a county or municipal would take effect without requiring the approval of the commissioner. | Crossed Over |
| A2610 | Extends annual horse racing purse subsidies through State fiscal year 2029. | An Act concerning horse racing purse subsidies and amending P.L.2019, c.36. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A1341 | Requires certain group homes to install electronic monitoring devices in common areas, upon request and with uniform resident consent, and to permit consensual use of such devices in private rooms. | This bill would provide certain requirements in association with the use of electronic monitoring devices (EMDs) at group homes for individuals with developmental disabilities. An "EMD" is a camera or other electronic device that uses video, but not audio, recording capabilities to monitor the activities taking place in the area where the device is installed. The safety and quality of life of individuals with developmental disabilities who receive care from group homes is of paramount concern, and the use of video monitoring is one way in which the State can better ensure the prevention of, and the institution of a more proactive response to, the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of group home residents. This bill would make video monitoring technology more readily available in group home settings, while taking great care to strike the important and delicate balance between protecting the privacy rights and protecting the overall well-being of group home residents. Specifically, the bill would enable, but not require, group home residents or their authorized representatives, as the case may be, to cooperatively and collectively decide whether to allow for the installation and use of EMDs in the common areas of the group homes, and to individually decide whether to allow for the installation and use of EMDs in the private residential room of each such resident, so that the treatment of such residents can be recorded and instances of abuse, neglect, or exploitation documented with video evidence. In providing these authorizations, the bill respects the rights of all individuals with developmental disabilities, places a premium on their individuality, and recognizes that different people have different needs and preferences with respect to the use of video surveillance. Scope of Bill The term "group home" is defined more broadly in this bill than it is in other laws. Specifically, the term is defined to mean a living arrangement that is operated in a residence or residences leased or owned by a licensee; which living arrangement either provides the opportunity for multiple adults with developmental disabilities to live together in a non-institutional, home-based setting or provides the opportunity for a single adult with developmental disabilities and extreme behavioral difficulties to live more independently, outside of an institution, while still receiving full-time care; and in which on-site staff provides supervision, training, or assistance, in a variety of forms and intensity, as required to prevent or delay the institutionalization of the individual or individuals residing in the home or to otherwise assist the individual or individuals as they move toward independence. "Group home" does not include a living arrangement that is dedicated for use by children with developmental disabilities. The revised definition used in the bill makes it clear that this term not only includes facilities that house multiple persons with developmental disabilities, but also includes facilities that, while commonly referred to as supervised apartments, provide group home-style living for a single person who has developmental disabilities and particularly severe behavioral difficulties that prevent them from being housed in a group home with other disabled persons. The bill would require group homes, as defined thereunder, to install EMDs in the common areas, upon the agreement, request, and uniform consent of all residents. "Common areas" is defined to include entrances, living areas, dining areas, stairwells, and outdoor areas, but not bathroom areas. The bill would additionally require group homes to permit the installation and use of EMDs in the private rooms of group home residents. The bill is not intended to impose new electronic monitoring requirements on those group home providers who already engage in electronic monitoring pursuant to an internal organizational policy. As a result, the bill includes a provision that grandfathers-in and exempts from the bill's provisions those group homes that have already installed, and are utilizing, EMDs as of the bill's effective date. Specifically, the bill provides that any such group home: 1) may continue to use previously installed EMDs in accordance with the organization's written policies; 2) will not be required to comply with the bill's consent requirements in order to continue utilizing the devices; and 3) will not be required to remove the existing devices from service unless the residents collectively indicate, within six months after the bill's effective date, that they want such devices to be removed. To the extent that a group home's common areas or private rooms do not contain EMDs on the bill's effective date, the licensee will be required to comply with the bill when installing new EMDs in such unmonitored areas. The bill is intended to give residents - particularly those with severe behavioral difficulties - the right to request electronic monitoring in the group home, as necessary to ensure their safe care. The bill is not intended to impose new electronic monitoring requirements on providers that already engage in electronic monitoring; and it is not intended to require other group home providers to commence electronic monitoring, except in those cases where the residents have requested and agreed to such monitoring. Installation and Use of EMDs in Common Areas Under the bill's provisions, any group home that does not have EMDs already installed in the group home's common areas will be required to install EMDs in those common areas, upon the collective request of the residents and the residents' authorized representatives, if all of the residents of the group home and their authorized representatives agree to have EMDs installed and expressly consent to the installation and use of such devices. A licensee will be prohibited from requiring the group home's current residents to consent to the installation and use of EMDs in the common areas as a condition of their continued residency in the group home. A licensee operating a group home that does not have EMDs already installed in the common areas will be required: 1) within six months after the group home adopts an internal electronic monitoring policy pursuant to the bill's provisions, to take affirmative action to determine whether the residents of the group home and their authorized representatives want and collectively consent to have EMDs installed and used in the group home's common areas; 2) annually provide written notice to all residents and their authorized representatives informing them of their right to collectively request and consent to the installation and use of EMDs in the group home's common areas; and 3) install new EMDs in the common areas within one year after receipt of a collective request therefor. The bill would require any group home that installs and uses EMDs in its common areas, pursuant to the agreement, request, and consent of the residents, to: 1) require each person employed by the group home to provide express written consent to the use of the EMDs in the group home's common areas, as a condition of the person's employment; 2) ensure that a prominent written notice is posted at the entrance and exit doors to the home informing visitors that they will be subject to electronic video monitoring while present in the home; and 3) ensure that, following the installation of EMDs in the common areas, the group home only allows residence by those individuals who consent to the ongoing use of EMDs in the group home's common areas. The licensee is to comply with the first two of these requirements within one year after receiving a collective request from residents authorizing electronic monitoring of the common areas. The EMDs installed in a group home's common areas are to be unobstructed and recording at all times. Each licensee will be required to inspect the devices, and document the results of each inspection, on a weekly basis. The DHS will further be required to annually conduct an on-site device inspection, as part of its broader group home inspection authority, in order to ensure that the EMDs installed in a group home's common areas are functioning properly, as required by the bill. A resident or the resident's authorized representative will be authorized to access and review any footage that is recorded by an EMD in the common areas of the group home; provided that the person first submits a request indicating that the resident has experienced, or that the resident or authorized representative has witnessed, an incident of abuse, neglect, or exploitation occurring in the common areas. A group home licensee may require that a resident or the resident's authorized representative remain on the premises of the group home when accessing and reviewing footage recorded in the common areas. All of the costs associated with installation and maintenance of an EMD in the group home's common areas are to be paid by the group home licensee. The bill would specify that an individual's refusal to consent to the use of EMDs in a group home's common areas may not be used as a basis to prevent the timely placement of the individual in appropriate housing without surveillance. Removal of EMDs from Common Areas A group home that has EMDs installed in the common areas will be required to remove those EMDs from service, as provided by the bill, if all of the residents of the group home and their authorized representatives collectively agree to, and request, the removal of the EMDs from the common areas. The bill provides that, if the EMDs in a group home's common areas were already in operation as of the bill's effective date, the licensee will be required to take affirmative action, within six months after the bill's effective date, to determine whether the residents of the group home and their authorized representatives want, and collectively agree, to have the existing EMDs removed from the common areas. If the residents do not collectively agree to the removal of the EMDs, the licensee will be authorized to: 1) continue using the devices in the common areas, in accordance with the group home's internal policies, as provided by section 7 of the bill (which is the section of the bill that exempts from the bill's requirements any group home that already has EMDs installed as of the bill's effective date); and 2) accept, as new residents, only those persons who consent to the ongoing use of the devices in the common areas. The bill further provides that, if the EMDs in a group home's common areas were not in operation as of the bill's effective date, or if the EMDs existing in a group home's common areas on the bill's effective date were removed by the licensee pursuant to the collective agreement of residents, as described above, the licensee will be required to provide written notice to all residents and their authorized representatives, within 10 days after EMDs are newly placed into the common areas under the bill, and annually thereafter, informing the residents and their authorized representatives of their right to collectively request the removal of existing EMDs from the group home's common areas. The bill requires a group home licensee to remove any EMDs from the common areas within one year after receipt of a collective request from residents therefor. Installation and Use of EMDs in Private Rooms The bill would further require all group homes to permit EMDs to be installed and used, on a voluntary and noncompulsory basis, in the private rooms of residents. The installation and use of EMDs in a private single occupancy room may be done by the resident or the resident's authorized representative, at any time, following the resident's provision of written notice to the licensee of the resident's intent to engage in electronic monitoring of the private room. Such written notice is to be submitted to the licensee at least 15 days prior to installation of the devices in the private single occupancy room. Any resident, or the authorized representative thereof, who provides such a notice of intent to install EMDs in a private single occupancy room, or who so installs such devices, will be deemed to have implicitly consented to electronic monitoring of the private room. The installation and use of EMDs in a private double occupancy room may be effectuated only with the express written consent of the roommates of the resident who requested the monitoring, or of the roommates' authorized representatives, as the case may be. A roommate may place conditions on his or her consent to the use of EMDs within the double occupancy room, including conditions that require the EMDs to be pointed away from the consenting roommate at all times during operation, or at certain specified times. The roommate's consent to electronic monitoring, and any conditions on the roommate's consent, are to be memorialized in a formal electronic monitoring agreement that is executed between the consenting roommate and the resident who requested the monitoring, or between their authorized representatives, as appropriate. The licensee, either through its own activities or through a third-party's activities, will be required to ensure that the conditions established in the agreement are followed. If a resident's roommate or the roommate's authorized representative, as appropriate, refuses to consent to the installation and use of an EMD in a private double occupancy room, or if the licensee is unable to ensure compliance with the conditions on such installation and use that are imposed by a consenting roommate or the roommate's authorized representative, the licensee will be required, within a reasonable period of time, and to the extent practicable, to transfer the resident requesting the installation of the device to a different private room, in order to accommodate the resident's request for private monitoring. If a request for private monitoring cannot be accommodated, the resident or resident's authorized representative may notify the DHS, which will be required to make every reasonable attempt to timely transfer the resident to a group home that can accommodate the request. All of the costs associated with installation and maintenance of an EMD in a private room are to be paid by the resident who requested the monitoring, or by the authorized representative thereof. Any recordings produced by an EMD installed in a private room will remain the property, and are to be retained in the possession, of the resident or the authorized representative who installed the EMD in the private room. The bill would specify that a licensee may not require a resident or the resident's authorized representative, as a condition of installing or using an EMD in the resident's private room, to turn over to the licensee, or to otherwise allow the licensee to access or review, any recordings that are produced by the EMD in the private room. Whenever an EMD is proposed to be installed in a private double occupancy room, the consenting roommate or authorized representative thereof, as the case may be, may elect to provide that, as a condition of the installation and ongoing use of the device in the room, the roommate and the roommate's authorized representative shall have the right and ability to access and review any recordings that are produced by the EMD, upon request submitted to the resident or authorized representative who owns the device. This condition, if elected by a consenting roommate or the roommate's authorized representative, is to be memorialized in the electronic monitoring agreement that is executed pursuant to bill's provisions. Any such electronic monitoring agreement will also be required to describe the procedures or protocols that are to be used by the owner of the device to ensure that the consenting roommate or the authorized representative thereof, as the case may be, is provided with timely access to all relevant footage recorded by the device, upon submission of a request therefor.Removal of EMDs from Private Rooms A resident, or the authorized representative thereof, who installs an EMD in a private single-occupancy room or private double-occupancy room will be authorized to remove the device from service at any time following its installation. Any resident or authorized representative who removes an EMD will be required to provide written notice of such removal, to the licensee, within 48 hours after the device is removed from service. Whenever the roommate of a resident, or the roommate's authorized representative, revokes the roommate's previously granted consent for the use of EMDs in a private double-occupancy room, the licensee will be required to transfer the resident who installed the devices to another private room, if possible, or to another group home, if necessary, to accommodate the resident's preexisting request for electronic monitoring. (This is the same requirement that applies, under the bill, whenever a roommate refuses to consent to, or imposes unattainable conditions on, the use of an EMD in a private double-occupancy room). Additional Provisions The bill would require a group home licensee, when seeking to obtain consent from residents for electronic monitoring, to comply with best practices that apply to professional interactions or communications being undertaken with persons with developmental disabilities, and particularly, with those persons who have difficulty with communication or understanding. The DHS would be authorized to impose any additional consent or consent declination requirements that it deems to be necessary. Any recordings produced by an EMD in a group home's common areas will be the property of the group home licensee, and are to be retained by the licensee for a period of 90 days. Any consent forms, consent declination forms, and notice of intent forms submitted under the bill are to be retained by the group home for a period of time to be determined by the DHS. The bill requires each group home employee to maintain the confidentiality of each recording that is retained by the licensee pursuant to the bill, and it prohibits group home employees from disclosing any such recording to any person who is not authorized by law to receive or review it. The bill similarly provides that any authorized representative who installs an EMD in a private single-occupancy or double-occupancy room, and any resident of a private double-occupancy room where an EMD has been installed, will be required to maintain the confidentiality of recordings produced by the installed device and will be prohibited from disclosing any such recording to any person who is not authorized by law to receive or review it. The bill would specify that nothing in its provisions is to be construed to prohibit a group home employee or resident, or a resident's authorized representative, from disclosing a recording, upon request or otherwise, to a State or local law enforcement agency or officer or to any other person who is authorized by law to investigate, prosecute, or take other official remedial action to address instances of abuse, neglect, exploitation, or other improper care or treatment occurring in the group home. Within 180 days after the bill's effective date, each group home will be required to develop and submit to the division a written internal policy specifying the procedures and protocols that are to be used by program staff when installing and utilizing EMDs, when removing EMDs from the common areas, and when transferring, to another room or group home, a resident whose request for private electronic monitoring cannot be accommodated. The internal EMD policy is also to: 1) describe the make and model of EMDs that may be used within the group home; 2) authorize the use of various types of EMDs in the home; and 3) indicate how the licensee will ensure the proper installation, positioning, and use of EMDs in a private double-occupancy room, in a manner that is consistent with all conditions established by the consenting roommate, and establish protocols and procedures to be used by the licensee when an EMD in a private double-occupancy room makes an unauthorized recording of the roommate. Finally, the policy is to describe the procedures and protocols that will be used in the review of footage recorded by EMDs in the group home. Among other things, such procedures and protocols are to identify the persons who will have access to recorded footage, and the standards that are to identify, at a minimum, the types of information that will constitute incidents of abuse, neglect, or exploitation, as are required to be submitted by a resident or the resident's authorized representative in order to receive authorization to access and review any footage that is recorded by an electronic monitoring device in the common areas of the group home. Whenever a licensee receives notice about a complaint, allegation, or reported incident of abuse, neglect, or exploitation occurring within the group home, the licensee will be required to forward to the DHS, for appropriate review, all potentially relevant footage recorded by EMDs in: 1) the common areas of the group home; 2) the private room of the resident who is the alleged victim of the abuse, neglect, or exploitation; and 3) any other private room where the abuse, neglect, or exploitation is alleged to have occurred. Notwithstanding the provisions of the bill to the contrary, any resident or authorized representative who is in possession of potentially relevant footage related to an incident of abuse, neglect, or exploitation will be required to turn over the pertinent recording or recordings to the licensee, upon request, for transmission to the division. However, the bill specifies that nothing in its provisions may be deemed to authorize a licensee to review, or to make copies of, any footage contained on those private recordings, absent the express written consent of the resident or authorized representative. Any residential program that fails to comply with the bill's requirements will be subject to a penalty of $5,000 for the first offense, and a penalty of $10,000 for the second or subsequent offense, as well as an appropriate administrative penalty, the amount of which is to be determined by the DHS. However, a group home licensee will not be subject to penalties or other disciplinary action for failing to comply with the bill's requirements if the group home licensee establishes, through documentation or otherwise, that the group home is exempt from compliance with the bill's provisions related to the placement of EMDs in unmonitored areas. The Commissioner of Human Services, in consultation with the assistant commissioner of the Division of Developmental Disabilities, will be required to annually report to the Governor and Legislature on the implementation of the bill's provisions. Each annual report is to include: 1) a list of group homes that are currently using EMDs in the common areas; 2) a list of group homes that have not installed EMDs in the common areas; 3) a list of group homes that have failed to install and use EMDs in the common areas, despite the licensee's receipt of uniform resident consent, and an indication of the penalties imposed in response to such failures; 4) a list of group homes that are exempt from the bill's provisions; 5) a list of group homes that have authorized the use of EMDs in the private rooms of one or more residents, and an indication of the number and percentage of private single occupancy rooms and the number and percentage of private double occupancy rooms in each such facility where EMDs are installed and being used; 6) a list of group homes that have removed EMDs from the common areas, pursuant to the collective request of residents; 7) to the extent known, a list of group homes that have failed to remove EMDs from the common areas, despite the licensee's receipt of a collective request from residents, and an indication of the penalties imposed in response to such failures; and 8) recommendations for legislative, executive, or other action that can be taken to improve compliance with the bill or otherwise expand the consensual use of EMDs in group homes. The commissioner, in consultation with the assistant commissioners, will also be required to post, at a publicly accessible location on the department's Internet website, the various lists of group homes that the department has produced for its annual reports. Each list posted online is to be searchable both by location and by name of group home. The commissioner will be required to annually update the website to ensure that each posted list contains the most recently reported data. In addition to the commissioner's annual reports, the bill requires the Ombudsman for Individuals with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities and Their Families to include, in each of the ombudsman's annual reports, a section evaluating the implementation of the bill and providing recommendations for improvement. The bill further requires the commissioner, within five years of the bill's effective date, to provide the Governor and Legislature with a written report that: 1) identifies best practices for the installation and use of EMDs under the bill; 2) identifies best practices and provides recommendations regarding the obtaining of informed consent for electronic monitoring under the bill; and 3) provides recommendations for the implementation of new legislation, policies, protocols, and procedures related to the use of EMDs in group homes. | Dead |
| S2875 | Makes certain changes to calculation of minimum loss ratio requirements for health benefits plans in individual and small employer markets. | An Act concerning minimum loss ratios for certain health benefits plans and amending P.L.1992, c.161 and P.L.1992, c.162. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A3972 | Makes certain changes to calculation of minimum loss ratio requirements for health benefits plans in individual and small employer markets. | Makes certain changes to calculation of minimum loss ratio requirements for health benefits plans in individual and small employer markets. | In Committee |
| A4629 | Allows exclusion of certain small business income from taxation under gross income tax and corporation business tax. | This bill excludes up to $50,000 of the income earned by qualified small businesses from taxation under the corporation business tax and the gross income tax. The provisions of this bill would apply to tax periods beginning after December 31, 2024. Under the bill, a ²qualified small business² is defined to include a business entity that: (1) is independently owned and operated, with management owning at least a 51 percent ownership interest in the corporation and being responsible for both its daily and long-term operations; (2) has its principal business operations located in the State; (3) is registered to do business in this State with the Director of the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services; (4) earned gross revenues not more than $2 million during the applicable tax period; and (5) employed not more than 20 full-time or part-time employees during the taxable year, not including certain seasonal employees, except that a majority of the employees are required to be residents of this State. | In Committee |
| A4450 | Establishes "Jersey Vines Program" in Department of Agriculture. | This bill directs the Secretary of Agriculture, in conjunction with the State Board of Agriculture, to develop and implement a "Jersey Vines Program" to encourage, advertise, and promote the sale of wine produced in the State by plenary winery and farm winery licensees. The wines promoted by the program would be produced using grapes, fruits, and other ingredients that are cultivated and grown in New Jersey. The Jersey Vines Program would increase consumer awareness of the New Jersey wine industry, organize advertising campaigns and create marketing programs to promote wine produced in the State, disseminate information about the variety and availability of wine produced in the State, disseminate information about certain wineries, vineyards, and farms in the State, and create a labeling program (similar to the "Jersey Fresh" program) to identify wine produced in the State as "Jersey Vines" wine. | In Committee |
| A4294 | Permits school districts to receive loans from State to support operating budget under certain circumstances. | This bill permits school districts to receive loans from the State to support the district's operating budget if the district is anticipating a significant budgetary shortfall. The bill establishes the School District Budget Relief Loan Account for the purpose of providing loans to school districts that have significant budgetary shortfalls that would otherwise require the elimination of multiple nonmandatory programs including: advanced placement courses and other specialized instructional programs; kindergarten; sports teams; student clubs and other programs, such as honor societies; musical programs, including bands; and student body government programs. A school district that has submitted an application for a loan would be allowed to delay submission of a proposed budget, the holding of public hearings on the proposed budget, the date for the notification of nontenured staff, and any additional budgeting deadlines that the Commissioner of Education deems appropriate until a decision has been made to approve or deny the loan application and the school district has been notified of the decision. Beginning in the 2024-2025 school year, a school district is to be able to apply for a loan after the district has received its State school aid notice following the State budget message by the Governor. Within 30 days of enactment, the commissioner is to develop a process by which districts are able to apply for the loans. The loan application is to include the following information: (1) the nature and amount of the budgetary shortfall, including an explanation as to why the district is unable to make sufficient changes to its budget through personnel and program reductions or general fund tax levy increases; (2) an analysis of the impact of the budgetary shortfall on the district's ability to provide a thorough and efficient education, which may include a description of the impact of the budgetary shortfall on student learning and participation in extracurricular activities, and which is required to include a demonstration that the district spent below adequacy in the year prior to the budget year for which the district is applying for the loan; (3) information about the district's general fund tax levy, including a demonstration that, in each of the five years preceding the budget year for which the district is applying for the loan, the district increased its general fund tax levy by at least two percent; and (4) information concerning the district's capital reserve fund balance and capital outlay budget. Prior to submitting the application for a loan to the department, a district is required to first submit its application and a preliminary budget to the executive county superintended and, if a State monitor has been appointed to the district, the district's State monitor. The executive county superintendent and, if applicable, the State monitor are to review the information provided and indicate to the commissioner whether they recommend that the commissioner approve the loan to the district. When making a decision regarding a district's loan application, the commissioner is to consider whether the loan is necessary to ensure the provision of a thorough and efficient education. For any district for which a State monitor has been appointed, the commissioner is required to approve the loan application if the State monitor has indicated that viable budget reductions and general fund tax levy increases are not sufficient to meet the budgetary shortfall. If the commissioner denies a district's loan application, the commissioner shall provide written documentation to the superintendent of the district which shall explain the reasons why the commissioner has determined that the quality of education in the district is better served by denial of the application than by approval. | In Committee |
| A4230 | Amends appropriations act to provide funding for restoration of State school aid reductions for certain school districts; shifts $64,920,000 from certain appropriations for purposes of restoring aid; provides supplemental appropriation of $145,215,047. | This bill amends the FY 2024 appropriations act to provide funding for the restoration of State school aid reductions for certain school districts. The bill ensures that: 1) school districts that previously received an allotment of Supplemental Stabilization Aid under P.L.2023, c.32 receive such aid in the same amount allocated to the district under that law; and 2) that a school district proposed to experience a State school aid reduction in the 2024-2025 school year receive an additional amount of State school aid equal to the difference between the amount of aid received in the 2023-2024 school year and the amount of aid proposed for the 2024-2025 school year. The total funds that would be appropriated under the bill to effectuate these purposes is $210,135,047. The bill would shift a total of approximately $64.9 million in funds from current FY 2024 appropriations, as well as certain unexpended balances from appropriations made in prior fiscal years, to provide for a portion of the total funding needed to effectuate the purposes of the bill. In order to provide for the remaining need, the bill appropriates an additional $145.2 million from the General Fund for the bill's purposes. | In Committee |
| A4256 | Requires AG to repeal law enforcement directive restricting law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities. | This bill requires the Attorney General to repeal Attorney General Law Enforcement Directive No. 2018-6, which restricts law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Under the directive, among other provisions, State, county, and local law enforcement are prohibited from providing certain assistance to federal immigration authorities when the sole purpose is to enforce federal civil immigration law. In addition to other restrictions, the directive prohibits law enforcement from providing notice of a detained individual's upcoming release from custody or continuing the detention of a person past the time the person would be released from custody based solely on a civil immigration detainer request, with certain exceptions. The restrictions set forth in this directive pose a danger to the citizens of this State and are a substantial threat to public safety. Therefore, it is imperative that this directive be repealed. | In Committee |
| A4257 | Concerns applicability of sales tax to certain horse-boarding charges in New Jersey. | This bill clarifies the sales tax collection responsibilities of horse-boarding businesses in New Jersey by providing an exemption from tax for the lease or rental of certain stable stalls and charges for horse boarding and certain other relate services. Under the bill, the taxable service of "furnishing space for storage" is redefined to exclude from tax charges for the lease or rental of certain stable stalls. The bill provides that the service of "furnishing space for storage" does not include, and the taxable service therefore does not apply to, charges for the lease or rental of a stall in a barn, stable, or other similar structure or facility for the boarding or stabling or for the keeping or holding of a horse, pony, mule, donkey, or hinny. The bill exempts from tax certain charges for boarding a horse. The bill provides that charges for storing a horse, pony, mule, donkey, or hinny in a barn, stable, or other similar structure or facility by a person engaged in the business of boarding or stabling or otherwise keeping or holding horses, ponies, mules, donkeys, or hinnies are exempt from the sales tax. The bill also exempts from tax certain services provided for the care of horses boarded by persons engaged in the business of boarding horses. The bill provides that charges for maintaining or servicing a horse, pony, mule, donkey, or hinny that is boarded or stabled or that is kept or held in a barn, stable, or other similar structure or facility by a person engaged in the business of boarding or stabling or otherwise keeping or holding horses, ponies, mules, donkeys, or hinnies are exempt from the sales tax. This bill provides that the tax exemptions established by the bill would apply to taxable years beginning on or after January 1 next following the bill's date of enactment. | In Committee |
| A920 | Updates scope of practice of optometrists. | Updates scope of practice of optometrists. | In Committee |
| A3683 | Establishes "Patient Protection and Safe Staffing Act." | This bill establishes the "Patient Protection and Safe Staffing Act," which provides certain staffing standards in State hospitals, ambulatory surgical facilities, developmental centers, and psychiatric hospitals. Specifically, the bill provides that, in addition to existing staffing requirements provided by law or regulation, the Commissioner of Health is to adopt regulations that provide minimum direct care registered professional nurse-to-patient staffing ratios and unlicensed assistive personnel-to-patient staffing ratios for all patient units in general and special hospitals and ambulatory surgical facilities, in accordance with the minimum staffing requirements that are established by the bill. The regulations adopted by the Commissioner of Health are not to decrease any staffing ratios that are already in effect on the bill's effective date. The bill provides that the Commissioner of Health is to require all general and special hospitals and ambulatory surgical facilities to employ an acuity and staffing system for the purpose of increasing staffing levels above the minimum levels established in the bill, or otherwise provided by law or regulation, in order to ensure adequate staffing of each unit, service, or department. The bill requires the Department of Health to enforce the bill's requirements by conducting periodic inspections and responding to complaints. A registered professional nurse or other staff member, a collective bargaining agent of a staff member, or a member of the public, who believes that the hospital or facility in which the nurse or staff member is employed is in violation of the requirements established by the bill, may file a complaint with the Commissioner of Health. In responding to a complaint, the commissioner will be required to conduct an investigation to determine whether or not a hospital or facility is in violation. Following the completion of an investigation, in which investigation the department determines a hospital or facility to be in violation of the requirements established by the bill, the hospital or facility may be issued a civil penalty in increasing amounts for repeat violations. Any money collected by the court in payment of a civil penalty imposed will be conveyed to the State Treasurer for deposit into the Patient Protection and Staffing Fund (fund) established by the bill. Moneys in the fund will be dedicated and used only for the purposes of increasing the number of inspectors employed by the Department of Health to enforce the provisions of the bill, advancing nursing recruitment and retentions programs, supporting student loan forgiveness for nursing students, and increasing pay for nursing teaching staff. Finally, in addition to the above-described requirements applicable to the Commissioner of Health, the bill requires the Commissioner of Human Services to conduct a review of Department of Human Services regulations concerning registered professional nurse staffing standards in developmental centers and State psychiatric hospitals, and to revise the regulations, as appropriate, to reflect safe staffing practices and assure adequate staffing at the facilities. | In Committee |
| ACR119 | Proposes constitutional amendment to make State trustee of public natural resources and guarantee to the people other environmental rights. | This concurrent resolution proposes an amendment to the State Constitution that would grant every person the right to a clean and healthy environment, and make the State the trustee of all public natural resources. Specifically, the proposed constitutional amendment would provide that every person has a right to a clean and healthy environment, including pure water, clean air, and ecologically healthy habitats, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic, and aesthetic qualities of the environment. The amendment provides that the State shall not infringe upon these rights, by action or inaction. The amendment would also provide that the State's public natural resources, including its waters, air, flora, fauna, climate, and public lands, are the common property of all of the people, including both present and future generations. The State would serve as trustee of these resources and have a duty to conserve and maintain them for the benefit of all people. Finally, the amendment would provide that the rights established in the amendment are self-executing, and are in addition to any rights conferred by the public trust doctrine or common law. | In Committee |
| A3589 | Provides that salary and other costs associated with Commissioner of Education's appointment of State monitor and other staff under "School District Fiscal Accountability Act" will be paid by State. | This bill provides that the salary and other costs associated with a State monitor and any additional staff appointed by the Commissioner of Education under the provisions of the "School District Fiscal Accountability Act," P.L.2006, c.15 (C.18A:7A-54 et seq.), to provide direct oversight of a board of education's business operations and personnel matters will be paid by the State. Under current law, these costs are assumed by the school district. It is the sponsor's contention that the current State policy requiring school districts to assume the costs of a State appointed monitor can result in a perfect "Catch 22" for districts experiencing fiscal distress, forcing them to spend scarce resources to prove that they have scarce resources. A perfect example is that of the Jackson Township, New Jersey school district. Prior to the enactment of the State law that currently dictates school funding, commonly known as "S2," the district had no serious fiscal issues. Now, six years later, the district has lost approximately $20 million in State aid, resulting in the elimination of 215 positions, including both teachers and non-instructional staff. The district has had to request a $13.9 million loan from the State to balance its 2023-2024 budget. According to the sponsor, it is blatantly obvious to even a casual observer that the Jackson Township school district is experiencing dire fiscal stress, and the State's requirement that the district pay for a monitor hired by the State to prove this only compounds this problem. This bill squarely places the burden of payment for the monitor where it truly belongs, on the State. | In Committee |
| A309 | Designates, as State and public holiday, September 11 as Patriot Day. | This bill designates, as a State and public holiday, September 11 of each year as Patriot Day. The September 11 "9/11" attacks were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by the militant Islamic extremist network al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. The attacks killed nearly 3,000 people in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Among the number of victims, approximately 750 were New Jersey citizens, accounting for the most lives lost in any state after New York. In the wake of significant fatalities, an indeterminate number of injuries, and substantial long-term health consequences, 9/11 remains the deadliest terrorist attack on United States soil. In honor of the lives lost in the attacks, many memorials have been erected across the nation as sites for commemoration and remembrance, including the 9/11 Memorial in New York City that opened on September 11, 2011. New Jersey has over 150 memorial sites statewide honoring the memory of the New Jersey residents who tragically perished in the attacks. On December 18, 2001, The United States Congress memorialized this historic event by officially naming September 11 "Patriot Day" to commemorate the anniversary of the 9/11 and, in 2009, Congress named September 11 a National Day of Service and Remembrance. September 11 is a solemn day not only in our country's history but also in the State of New Jersey. Every year on this day New Jersey citizens join together to honor, remember, and pay tribute to the residents who lives were lost in the attacks. It is thus fitting and proper that the State of New Jersey designate September 11, known as "Patriot Day," as a State and public holiday, in honor of the New Jersey victims of 9/11. | In Committee |
| A1106 | Allows gross income tax deduction for functional improvements and home repairs made to taxpayer's primary residence. | This bill provides State taxpayers with a gross income tax deduction for functional improvements and repair and maintenance performed on a taxpayer's primary residence. Specifically, a taxpayer may claim a deduction for all: "functional improvement expenses" paid by the taxpayer for expenses incurred for the purpose of considerably prolonging the useful life of the taxpayer's primary residence and materially improving the operating condition of the taxpayer's primary residence; and for all "repair and maintenance expenses" paid by the taxpayer for work performed on that taxpayer's primary residence in order to maintain the property in an ordinarily efficient operating condition. The term "primary residence" means a residence located in this State that is actually and continually occupied as a taxpayer's permanent residence, including mobile homes and co-op units. Improvements that adapt all or part of a residence for new uses (e.g., renovating a basement), remodel an aspect of a residence for aesthetic purposes, or that do not concern an essential aspect of the habitability of the residence do not qualify for this deduction. The gross income tax deduction made available by this bill covers expenses incurred by a property owner or a property renter. This bill does not impose a limit on the amount of expenses that may be claimed by a taxpayer for a taxable year. However, if a married couple files separate tax returns, they each may claim half of the same functional improvement or repair and maintenance expense. This mechanism allows both spouses to benefit from the deduction made available by this bill while avoiding potential "double-dipping." This bill eases the burdens placed on New Jersey taxpayers associated with maintaining a home. By offering this gross income tax deduction, this bill encourages investing in our homes, promotes the safety and welfare of our communities, and encourages more individuals to reside in this State. | In Committee |
| A1248 | Includes payments in lieu of property taxes eligible as property taxes under the homestead property tax reimbursement program. | This bill would make a property owner who pays a payment in lieu of property taxes (PILOT) to the municipality in which the property owner's real property is located eligible for homestead property tax reimbursement (colloquially, "senior freeze"). Under current law, only property owners who pay property taxes are eligible for homestead property tax reimbursement payments. | In Committee |
| A944 | Eliminates certain practice restrictions for advanced practice nurses. | This bill eliminates practice restrictions for advanced practice nurses (APNs), including restrictions that limit the ability of APNs to prescribe medications and administer anesthesia, and establishes new requirements for APNs to prescribe medications. The bill expressly provides that, notwithstanding the provisions of any other law or regulation to the contrary, an APN with greater than 24 months or 2,400 hours of licensed, active, advanced nursing practice will be authorized to practice without a joint protocol with a collaborating provider. With regard to prescribing medications, the bill requires the use of New Jersey Prescription Blanks and satisfying continuing professional education requirements related to pharmacology and prescribing controlled substances. An APN with fewer than 24 months or 2,400 hours of licensed, active, advanced nursing practice in an initial role will be permitted to prescribe medication only if a formal joint protocol with a physician or experienced advanced practice nurse is in place. The bill revises the requirements for APNs to authorize patients for medical cannabis and to issue written instructions for medical cannabis, to provide that the APN will only be required to meet the requirements set forth under the "Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act," P.L.2009, c.307 (C.24:6I-1 et al.). Those requirements include: possessing active State and federal registrations to prescribe controlled dangerous substances; being the health care practitioner responsible for the ongoing treatment of a patient's qualifying medical condition; and complying with various other requirements for issuing written instructions for medical cannabis. The bill further provides that every APN who is an APN-Anesthesia and who has completed 24 months or 2,400 hours of licensed, active, advanced nursing practice in an initial role will be authorized to practice as an APN-Anesthesia to the full scope of practice for APNs-Anesthesia, without any requirement for supervision by a licensed physician and without any requirement that the APN-Anesthesia enter into joint protocols with a licensed physician. The bill provides that any State law or regulation that requires the signature or similar endorsement of a physician will be deemed to require the same of an APN, to the extent consistent with an APN's scope of practice. The bill revises and repeals certain sections of law that are obviated by the changes made under the bill. | In Committee |
| A1254 | Requires DOLWD to process unemployment claims within two weeks of filing. | This bill requires the Department of Labor and Workforce Development to process claims for unemployment benefits within two weeks of filing by a claimant. Current law provides that the department is required to process claims within three weeks. The bill requires the department to establish and maintain a telephone hotline available, at a minimum, weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. through which members of the public and claimants may request general or individualized information that the department is required to provide pursuant to the "unemployment compensation law" (R.S.43:21-1 et seq.). Under the bill, the department is required to display the phone number prominently for the hotline on its webpage. Under the bill, the department is required sufficiently staff the hotline so that a caller will not, on average, wait more than approximately 30 minutes before speaking with a representative, and an automated system will inform a caller of the number of calls ahead of the caller. The bill requires the representatives employed by the hotline to be trained to knowledgeably: (1) Address general inquiries regarding the program and benefits; and (2) Assist with specific claim questions, issues, concerns, and troubleshooting, including but not limited to: assessing whether an individual is likely to qualify for unemployment compensation; providing instructions on how to file an unemployment compensation claim and assistance in obtaining and interpreting information on the 1099 tax form; and providing information on an individual's pending unemployment claim, including but not limited to, the status of the claim, potential solutions and troubleshooting of any issues regarding an individual's eligibility or other barriers to the individual collecting unemployment compensation benefits. The bill requires the department to employ any personnel in addition to its existing workforce that is necessary to process claims to maintain compliance with the claim processing requirements of the bill. Within the sponsor's district, many individuals have had to wait months, and in some cases over a year, for a claim resolution. It is the sponsor's hope that this bill will improve the processing of claims for unemployment benefits. | In Committee |
| A969 | Requires COAH to calculate affordable housing obligations on Statewide basis. | This bill would change the calculation of affordable housing obligations to a Statewide perspective rather than a local level. In addition, under the bill, the Council on Affordable Housing would submit a report every five years on housing affordability. The report would calculate the ratio of the median cost, including property taxes, mortgage rates and payments, insurance, cost of utilities, and other necessary factors in the discretion of the council, to maintain the home to the median income for the State. This report would be used to update the growth-share calculation each time the council issues a report. | In Committee |
| A1052 | Requires issuance of tourniquets to law enforcement officers; requires emergency service vehicles be equipped with tourniquets. | This bill requires tourniquets to be issued to all State, county, and municipal law enforcement officers and requires all emergency service vehicles to be equipped with a tourniquet. Tourniquets are not currently issued to all law enforcement officers in this State. In addition, tourniquets are not currently included as part of the basic equipment and supplies required for emergency vehicles pursuant to regulations promulgated by the Commissioner of Health. In the United States, the use of tourniquets fell out of favor following the civil war when they were questioned due to complications associated with their indiscriminate use. Until recently, tourniquets were thought to be a last resort, to be used only when more conventional methods (direct pressure, elevation, pressure point, and pressure dressing) were unsuccessful. In recent years there has been a resurgence in the use of tourniquets. The "first use" of the tourniquet has been found to save numerous lives in a number of emergencies including the Boston Marathon bombings and active shooter incidents. Victims of motor vehicle accidents have been saved in New Jersey by officers to whom tourniquets have been issued. It is the sponsor's view that these life-saving tools should be issued to all law enforcement officers, and be part of the basic equipment and supplies required for emergency vehicles in this State. Under the bill, a tourniquet is required to be issued to every State, county, and municipal law enforcement officer, and every basic life support ambulance and mobility assistance vehicle licensed by the Department of Health is required to be equipped with a tourniquet. The cost of the tourniquets issued to law enforcement officers under the bill may be funded by forfeiture funds received by the Attorney General as instrumentalities of crime. Finally, the bill authorizes the Attorney General and the Commissioner of Health to promulgate guidelines or directives in order to enforce the provisions of the bill. | In Committee |
| A788 | Permits any member of PERS to receive accidental disability retirement allowance for disability resulting from participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup options. | A law recently enacted, P.L.2019, 157, provided that a member or retiree of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS), the State Police Retirement System (SPRS), and the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) is eligible to receive an accidental disability retirement allowance for a permanent and total disability resulting from participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations. The law provides that permanent and total disability resulting from a qualifying condition or impairment of health will be presumed to have occurred during and as a result of the performance of a member's regular or assigned duties if the member participated in World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations for a minimum of eight hours. The law permits a member who did not participate in those operations for a minimum of eight hours to be eligible for the presumption under certain circumstances. The law also provides for a reclassification of a retiree's retirement from a service retirement or an ordinary disability retirement to an accidental disability retirement under certain circumstances. The law applies regardless of whether the PERS member or retiree was enrolled in the PERS at the time of the participation in the rescue, recovery and cleanup operations. Currently, the PERS portion of the bill applies only to: any member or retiree who is or was enrolled in the PERS because the member or retiree did not meet the age or medical requirements for enrollment in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System on the basis of the position held; and to any emergency medical technician who is a member or retiree of the Public Employees' Retirement System. The bill amends the relevant provisions of the PERS to provide this benefit to any member of the PERS. | In Committee |
| A2706 | Limits to 14 days effective period of certain emergency orders, rules, or regulations. | This bill provides that any order, rule, or regulation issued by the Governor pursuant to the "Civil Defense and Disaster Control Act" will terminate on the 15th day after issuance, unless the Legislature approves a greater period of time by way of concurrent resolution. The bill prohibits the Governor from issuing an order, rule, or regulation to the same or substantially same effect as one terminated pursuant to the bill for the same emergency. The bill does not apply to orders, rules, or regulations: (1) rescinding an order, rule, or regulation issued pursuant to the "Civil Defense and Disaster Control Act"; (2) issued pursuant to direction by or agreement with the federal government, in compliance with federal law, or to the extent that application of the bill would jeopardize the receipt of federal funds by the State; (3) applying exclusively to the executive branch; (4) issued under the Governor's authority as the Commander-in-Chief of the military and naval forces of the State; or (5) issued pursuant to a provision of law providing for a greater period, notwithstanding that the order, rule, or regulation may also cite to an authority provided under the "Civil Defense and Disaster Control Act." | In Committee |
| A1537 | Authorizes holder of limited brewery license to engage in certain activities. | This bill amends current law to authorize certain activities in which a holder of a limited brewery license is permitted to engage. Specifically, this bill authorizes the holder of a limited brewery license to engage in activities which include, but are not limited to: (1) holding an unlimited number of on-premises special events, for which the license holder may sell tickets without requiring the license holder to obtain a permit or provide electronic notification to the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), and (2) up to 18 off-premises special events per year pursuant to a permit issued by the director of the ABC for each event. If an event is to be held on a publicly-owned or controlled property, the licensee would be required to obtain consent from the political subdivision that owns or controls the property or the chief law enforcement officer of the law enforcement agency that has jurisdiction over the property. Under the bill, a license holder also is permitted to deliver its product to a consumer's home; sell soda, whether or not manufactured by the license holder; coordinate with a food vendor to provide food on the licensed premises; and provide menus to consumers. In addition, the bill eliminates the requirement that the license holder provide a tour to a consumer prior to serving alcoholic beverages for consumption on the licensed premises. The bill further provides that pourers and servers employed by the licensed brewery are not required to be certified by an industry-recognized server training program. The bill defines "on-premises special event" to mean an event that is open to the public and held on the licensed premises or the sidewalk, parking lot, or other area owned by the license holder that is adjacent to or adjoining the licensed premises and includes, but is not limited to: private parties such as birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, civic and political functions, professional and trade association events, class reunion and alumni events; trivia and quiz games; paint and sip; craftmaking; pop up shops; DJs, live music, and open mic; televised or streamed sporting events; educational events and seminars; movies and theatrical events; animal adoption, to the extent permitted by local ordinance; and yoga and other exercise classes. "Off-premises special events" are defined as special events that take place at a location other than on the licensed premises or the sidewalk, parking lot, or other area owned by the license holder that is adjacent to or adjoining the licensed premises and include, but are not limited to: beer, music, and arts festivals; civic events; foot races, mud races, bike races and other athletic events; limited brewery anniversary celebrations; and holiday celebrations. | In Committee |
| ACR48 | Proposes constitutional amendment to provide property tax exemption for primary residence of surviving spouse of law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty. | If approved by the voters of the State, this proposed constitutional amendment would provide a property tax exemption for the primary residence of a surviving spouse of a law enforcement officer who is killed in the line of duty. The primary residence would be exempt from property taxation as long as the surviving spouse owns and occupies the residence as his or her primary residence, and does not remarry. | In Committee |
| A493 | Establishes certain requirements concerning resident supervision at residential health care facilities. | This bill requires that the rules and regulations adopted for residential health care facilities include a requirement that all residential buildings at the facility have at least two staff members on duty at all times to provide resident supervision, which supervision may be a primary or secondary duty of the staff members. The rules and regulations are to additionally require that all residential health care facilities develop, maintain, and enforce a comprehensive plan concerning residents who leave the premises of the facility, including protocols for identifying and immediately reporting incidents in which a resident is missing for 24 hours. The Department of Health (DOH) oversees residential health care facilities that are located with, and operated by, another DOH-licensed facility, and the Department of Community Affairs oversees free-standing residential health care facilities that are not located with, or operated by, a DOH-licensed facility. Each department will be responsible for ensuring its respective rules and regulations concerning residential health care facilities are consistent with the requirements of the bill. | In Committee |
| AR28 | Urges federal government to approve construction of oil and natural gas pipelines within United States including those that have been shut down or have had approval denied. | This resolution urges the federal government to take action to approve the construction of oil and natural gas pipelines within the United States, including approving pipelines that have been shut down or disapproved. The United States relies, and will continue to rely for many years, on gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel despite the recent focus on renewable energy and alternative sources of energy. In order to fuel the country's economy, the United States will need more oil and natural gas while also developing additional alternative energy sources. Constructing more pipelines within the United States would help the country achieve energy independence and enhance national security by reducing reliance on energy from the Middle East, Russia, and Venezuela. Constructing more pipelines within the United States would also result in lower oil prices and provide a significant economic advantage to the United States. Although the United States has achieved significant levels of energy independence in recent years, there is always room to improve the country's energy independence. Steps have been taken to create greater North American energy independence, including the Keystone XL Pipeline, which would have connected the United States oil supply to oil fields in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin in Alberta, providing oil at a rate of up to 830,000 barrels per day. The Keystone XL Pipeline would have increased the United States' energy independence, lowered the cost of gasoline, produced up to 11,000 high-paying jobs for United States citizens, and resulted in more stable trade relationships. President Trump issued a Presidential Permit to begin construction on the cross-border segment of the Keystone XL Pipeline, however, the permit for this construction was revoked by President Biden. The reapproval and continued construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline is very important for the energy independence of the United States. In addition, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia has resulted in global tension and fear. The United States and other European nations have responded by enforcing strict economic sanctions on Russia. One of the sanctions is the decertification of the Nord Stream 2 Pipeline, which stretches for 1,200 kilometres from Vyborg, Russia through the Baltic Sea to Lubmin, Germany and was designed to carry natural gas from Russia to Western Europe. The decertification of the Nord Stream 2 Pipeline will likely also have global economic consequences. It is more important than ever for the United States to become more energy independent. Based on the geopolitical, energy security, environmental, and economic benefits of oil and natural gas pipeline construction within the United States, it is in the country's, and by extension New Jersey's, best interests to support the construction of oil and natural gas pipelines, including the approval of pipelines that have been shut down or disapproved, within the United States. | In Committee |
| A487 | Requires DOT to conduct study and issue report on use of rock salt on roadways. | This bill requires the Commissioner of Transportation (commissioner), in consultation with the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, to conduct a study on the use of rock salt on roadways in this State and to prepare and submit a written report to the Governor and the Legislature on the topic. The written report is to include: (1) information on the amount and cost of rock salt used by the Department of Transportation (department) over the prior 10 years; (2) efforts that have been undertaken by the department to reduce the use of rock salt over the prior 10 years; (3) how the use of rock salt on roadways has impacted the levels of sodium chloride in the State's lakes, waterways, wells, and drinking water and how increased levels of sodium chloride impact aquatic life, fisheries, irrigation, recreation, and the quality of life of New Jersey residents; (4) information on indirect costs associated with the use of rock salt by the department; (5) information on alternatives to rock salt that have been utilized by the department; and (6) an analysis of feasible alternatives to rock salt that could be utilized by the department in the future, including an analysis of the financial and environmental advantages and disadvantages of each feasible alternative. In addition to the written report, the commissioner is authorized to submit a proposal for legislation that improves the laws of this State regarding the use of rock salt to clear snow and ice from the State's roadways. | In Committee |
| A1280 | Establishes School Funding Commission to study school funding formula and prepare report that will serve as basis of new formula. | This bill establishes the School Funding Commission to study issues related to school funding and issue a report with its findings and recommendations that will be the basis of a new school funding formula in the State. The commission will be composed of 26 members including the Commissioner of Education, nine members appointed by the Governor, five members appointed each by the Senate President and the Speaker of the General Assembly, and three members appointed each by the Minority Leader of the Senate and the Minority Leader of the General Assembly. The members will include persons with knowledge and experience in school finance or State budgeting or finance and members who have been recommended for appointment by various educational organizations in the State. The Commissioner of Education will serve as the chairperson of the commission and staff and related support services for the commission will be provided by the Department Education. The bill provides that it will be the duty of the commission to study:· New Jersey's current school funding formula, the "School Funding Reform Act of 2008," P.L.2007, c.260 (C.18A:7F-43 et al.), and the various aid categories under the formula, including: preschool aid; transportation aid with a focus on the aid used to provide transportation to students attending charter schools and nonpublic schools; security aid; and special education aid with a focus on the effects of census based funding under the current formula and the feasibility of utilizing a tiered funding system; · the effects of the current funding formula on the education of at-risk students and students with limited English proficiency;· the school funding formulas of the states surrounding New Jersey in order to identify the positive and negatives aspects of each of these funding formulas;· the ability of municipalities in the State to raise adequate taxes for the support of public schools;· the allocation of property taxes for school purposes;· the impact of identified State policies and how they may affect school funding in each county and municipality;· the impact of the use of payments in lieu of taxes and other tax incentive programs on the ability of municipalities to support public schools; and· the benefits of a reorganization of the Department of Education in regard to the implementation of the State's school funding formula. The commission is required to issue a final report containing its findings and recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature no later than one year after the organizational meeting of the commission. The report will be posted prominently on the Department of Education's Internet website. | In Committee |
| A1333 | Increases, from 18 percent to 30 percent, amount of rental payments defined as rent constituting property taxes for purposes of deduction from gross income for property tax payments. | This bill amends the "Property Tax Deduction Act," (N.J.S.A.54A:3A-15 et seq.) to provide additional income tax relief for tenants by increasing, from 18 percent to 30 percent, the amount of rent defined as "rent constituting property taxes". Under the "Property Tax Deduction Act," a taxpayer is entitled to a deduction of up to $15,000 from gross income for property taxes, or the rental equivalent thereof paid by tenants, due and paid for that calendar year on a taxpayer's homestead. For tenants, the amount of the deduction is based on the amount of "rent constituting property taxes". Current law sets the amount of rent constituting property taxes at 18 percent of the rent paid by the taxpayer for the occupancy, during the taxable year, of a unit of residential real property which the taxpayer occupies a principal residence. This bill increases the amount rent constituting property taxes from 18 percent of rent paid to 30 percent of rent paid. Increasing the cap on the amount of rental payments defined as rent constituting property taxes would allow eligible gross income taxpayers to deduct a higher amount of rent from their gross income, thereby lowering in the amount of gross income subject to taxation and reducing a tenant's tax burden. | In Committee |
| A1443 | Establishes procedures for disqualification from public office or employment upon conviction of certain crimes; creates registry. | This bill would amend N.J.S.2C:51-2 concerning forfeiture of public office, position or employment upon conviction of certain criminal offenses. Currently under subsection b. of N.J.S.2C:51-2 a court shall enter an order of forfeiture when the defendant is found guilty or pleads guilty in State court, or upon application of a county prosecutor or Attorney General when the criminal offense is based on another state's law or federal law. Currently under subsection d. of N.J.S.2C:51-2 any person convicted of an offense "involving or touching" his public office, position, or employment is forever disqualified from holding any office or position of honor, trust or profit in the State or any of its administrative or political subdivision. This bill would establish a procedure for disqualification in subsection d. similar to the procedure set out in N.J.S.2C:51-2 under subsection b. concerning forfeiture. The bill would require that the court order concerning the disqualification of employment set forth in subsection d. of N.J.S.2C:51-2 be entered at the same time the court enters the order of forfeiture set forth in subsection b. of N.J.S.2C:51-2. However, if the conviction is for an offense under the laws of another state or of the United States, the county prosecutor or the Attorney General would be required to make an application to a Superior Court judge designated by the Chief Justice for a disqualification order. This disqualification order would be deemed to have taken effect on the date the person was found guilty by the trier of fact or pled guilty to the offense. The Administrative Office of the Courts would be required to establish and maintain a central registry of all persons who have had disqualification orders entered pursuant to subsection d of the statute. | In Committee |
| A977 | Indexes for inflation taxable income brackets under New Jersey gross income tax. | This bill indexes for inflation the taxable income brackets under the New Jersey gross income tax. This adds to the State personal income tax a common-sense taxpayer protection called inflation indexing that has been provided under the federal income tax since the 1980s. Inflation indexing means that tax brackets are revised annually to reflect nominal price and wage increases that result from inflation. When tax brackets are not indexed for inflation it results in what is called "bracket creep," which is an increase in effective tax rates caused by inflation. Higher income can bump a taxpayer into the next tax bracket, even if that higher income is merely keeping pace with inflation. A lack of inflation adjustment can also push more of a taxpayer's income into the highest bracket for which they qualify. The final result is a tax increase that occurs without any legislation being passed. Indexing addresses this by altering each bracket level each year by the level of annual inflation. Under this bill the inflation adjustment for taxable income brackets is the national consumer price index for all urban consumers as prepared by the United States Department of Labor. This is the same measure of inflation that is used for indexing the taxable income brackets under the federal Internal Revenue Code. The bill compares an annual inflation measure from the year prior to the one for which taxes will be imposed to a base year measure from the year prior to the one in which the bill is enacted. This delay allows the Director of the Division of Taxation to determine the adjusted amounts when the tax year begins. | In Committee |
| ACR47 | Proposes constitutional amendment to require Statewide calculation of affordable housing obligation. | This amendment to the State Constitution would require that the constitutional affordable housing obligation be calculated at the State level. Currently, municipal affordable housing obligations mandated by the State Constitution are calculated based upon regional housing needs. This amendment would eliminate that requirement. Accordingly, any affordable housing obligation placed on a municipality would no longer be based on regional housing needs. Instead, this amendment would require the Legislature to pass laws providing for the calculation of the affordable housing needs of the entire State. This single number calculation of affordable housing units needed Statewide would represent the exclusive affordable housing obligation required by the State Constitution. | In Committee |
| A1754 | Allows certain volunteer firefighters, rescue and first aid squad members to claim $2,000 gross income tax exemption. | This bill permits eligible volunteer firefighters and first aid or rescue squad members to take an additional $2,000 exemption as a deduction from gross income under the New Jersey gross income tax. The bill specifically sets forth eligibility requirements for persons who want to claim the additional personal exemption. Fire company members would be eligible if they serve as a volunteer for the entire tax year, respond to at least 60 percent of regular alarms and 60 percent of drills, and have attained the rank of Firefighter I Certified. First aid and rescue squad members would be eligible if they serve as a volunteer for the entire tax year, respond to at least 10 percent of regular alarms and 60 percent of drills, and have passed an approved training program or qualified as an emergency medical technician. Volunteers that have duty hours would be eligible if they serve at least 400 duty hours during any calendar year, with no more than 50 percent as drills. The bill requires the Director of Taxation, in consultation with the Commissioner of Community Affairs and the Commissioner of Health, to promulgate rules or regulations to effect certain provisions of the bill. The official in charge of each fire department or force or first aid or rescue squad is required to submit annually to the appropriate State agency a list of members who have met the committee substitute requirements. | In Committee |
| A489 | Includes certain canvassing and solicitation activities as violation of consumer fraud act. | This bill provides that it is an unlawful practice under the consumer fraud act, P.L.1960, c.39 (C.56:8-1 et seq.), for a person to engage in canvassing or solicitation of real estate owners, with regard to selling or buying real estate, unless the person is a real estate broker, broker-salesperson, salesperson, or referral agent licensed in this State pursuant to R.S.45:15-1 et seq. As used in the bill, "canvassing" means distributing printed material or any other thing from house to house, or calling in person upon the occupants of any house seeking to distribute printed material, or in any other way, including by telephone or by means of digital communication, advertising any services or offering anything of value with regard to buying, offering to buy, selling, or offering to sell real estate of any kind or description; and "solicitation" means any attempt to buy, offer to buy, sell, or offer to sell real estate of any kind or description by sample or otherwise house to house, by telephone or by means of digital communication, or offer to render services from house to house, by telephone, or by means of digital communication, with or without accepting payment or partial payment for the same. The bill also provides that the provisions of the bill will not be construed to supersede or preempt any ordinance, resolution, or regulation of a unit of local government that prohibits or limits canvassing and solicitation of any nature. An unlawful practice under the consumer fraud act is punishable by a monetary penalty of not more than $10,000 for a first offense, and not more than $20,000 for any subsequent offense. In addition, a violation can result in cease and desist orders issued by the Attorney General, the assessment of punitive damages, and the awarding of treble damages and costs to the injured party. | In Committee |
| A1234 | Establishes certain exceptions for emergency personnel operating personal watercraft while providing rescue services. | This bill affords emergency personnel certain exceptions under the law while operating a personal water craft, often referred to as a jet ski, in performance of official duties. Under current law, jet ski operators are prohibited from exceeding minimum headway speed within 100 feet of the shoreline, buoys or signs that mark the boundaries of a swimming area, any person in the water, or residential dwelling units. Jet ski operators are also prohibited from operating the vessel in manner that makes it airborne within 100 feet of another vessel. This bill waives these requirements for any law enforcement officer, a member of a fire department, a member of a State, county or municipal beach patrol, or emergency medical services personnel who are operating a jet ski while in actual performance of their official duties. | In Committee |
| A488 | Establishes Overdose Fatality and Near Fatality Review Board. | The bill establishes the Overdose Fatality and Near Fatality Review Board in, but not of, the Department of Human Services. The purpose of the board would be to review overdose fatalities and near fatalities in New Jersey and to identify their causes, their relationship to governmental support systems, and methods of prevention. Specifically, the 13-member board would consist of the Commissioners of Health and Human Services, the Attorney General, and the Superintendent of State Police, or their designees; the State Medical Examiner, and the Executive Director of the Governor's Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, who shall serve ex-officio; and seven public members appointed by the Governor. The public members would include representatives from the New Jersey Prosecutors Office, the Facing Addiction Task Force, The Partnership for a Drug Free New Jersey, New Jersey Prevention Network, and the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse New Jersey, a physician with expertise in drug addiction and substance use disorder treatment, and a substance use disorder counselor. The board would identify all overdose fatalities and near fatalities involving controlled substances or controlled substance analogs that occur in the New Jersey and determine which overdose fatalities and near fatalities would receive full review. Under the provisions of the bill, the board would be allowed to establish local or regional community-based teams to review the facts and circumstances surrounding the overdose fatalities and near fatalities identified by the board. The teams would include, at a minimum, members of the medical, law enforcement, forensic pathology, and drug addiction and substance use disorder treatment fields. The teams could add additional members or seek the advice of experts in other fields, according to the facts of a case. Each team would submit a report about its findings and recommendations, based on its review, to the board's chairperson. The board would then to review the reports submitted by each team and issue an annual report to the Governor and the Legislature. The report would include specific information about cases reviewed by the board and recommendations for achieving better coordination and collaboration among State and local agencies and system-wide improvements in services to prevent overdose fatalities and near fatalities. The bill requires the board to maintain a master confidential file containing identifying information and information on an overdose fatality and the circumstances surrounding the fatality. The file would contain similar information for a near fatality reviewed by the board. The file would serve as the minimum record of the case and would not be subject to discovery, but could be used by the board's chairperson to refer a case for an appropriate agency to investigate or to provide services. The board would also be able to subpoena and review school, private medical, hospital, substance use disorder treatment, mental health, and other pertinent records of the person whose overdose death or near fatality is being reviewed, except as provided in any federal or State statute, regulation, or Executive Order relating to the confidentiality of criminal investigations, criminal investigative files, and medical records from programs or activities involving substance use disorder education, prevention, training, treatment, or rehabilitation. If, as a result of a records review, the board believes that an overdose fatality or near fatality is the result of another person's actions, the board would be required to notify or verify that notification has been made to the county prosecutor where the fatality or near fatality occurred or was pronounced. The bill stipulates that board members could not be held liable for any civil damages as a result of providing in good faith any reports, records, opinions, or recommendations pursuant to the provisions of the bill, and allows the board to solicit and receive grants or funds for its purposes made available by governmental, public, private, nonprofit, or for-profit agencies. | In Committee |
| A482 | Requires disclosure of original purchase price for land to be sold to a county, county agriculture development board, or municipality for farmland preservation purposes. | This bill requires, when selling real property or a development easement on real property for farmland preservation purposes to a county, county agriculture development board, or municipality, the individual, corporation, limited liability company, or other legal entity selling the property or easement to disclose, prior to sale, the price that it paid for the real property. | In Committee |
| A1125 | "Fully Funding Schools and Cutting Property Taxes Act"; repeals certain sections of law; requires additional aid to lower property taxes commensurate with residents' ability to support schools; appropriates $2.9 billion. | The bill is to be known as the "Fully Funding Schools and Cutting Property Taxes Act." The bill requires that, beginning with the 2023-2024 school year, State school aid will be provided to school districts at levels consistent with the School Funding Reform Act of 2008 (SFRA) up to their adequacy budget, and prevents future cuts to State aid. It also requires a school district to reduce its tax levy in an amount equal to any increase in State school aid above the prior budget year under certain circumstances, allowing the district to subsequently increase its levy from a lower level than the prior budget year. It is the sponsors' intent to bring equity to New Jersey's school system by increasing State aid contributions to SFRA adequacy budget levels in a manner consistent with the "thorough and efficient" education clause in the State Constitution (N.J. Const. art. VIII, sec. 4, par.1). Providing school aid in this manner will reduce property taxes based on the ability of each school district's residents to support schools. The bill repeals certain sections of law enacted as part of P.L.2018, c.67 (commonly referred to "S2") that resulted in loss of aid and higher property taxes in certain school districts. The bill requires the State to provide aid to school districts equal to the greatest amount of:· aid according to the SFRA; · aid according to the SFRA and, if applicable, additional aid to provided to school districts that lost funding as a result of the implementation of S2; or· State school aid received in any of the school years between and including the 2017-2018 school year and the 2022-2023 school year. Under the bill, a district may petition the Commissioner of Education and State Treasurer for additional aid if it demonstrates a willingness to reduce its adjusted tax levy by an amount equal to any additional aid received. The bill requires a school district to reduce its school tax levy by the same amount of their State school aid increase above the prior year if the total tax levy of the municipality or municipalities comprising the district is more than five percent of school district income. After lowering its levy commensurate with a State aid increase, a school district may increase its levy by an amount necessary to cover an increase in per pupil administrative costs and deferred revenue. The bill requires a district to submit a proposal to voters of the district if it wishes to exceed this limitation. If the voters do not approve the proposal, a school district may add to its adjusted tax levy the difference between the maximum amount to be raised by taxation for the current budget year and the actual amount to be raised by taxation for the current school year if the amount of State school aid and the adjusted tax levy is below the adequacy budget in the next three succeeding budget years. Lastly, the bill appropriates $2,946,618,000 for the purposes of providing additional aid under the bill. The bill stipulates that any unexpended balances are appropriated to the Schools Development Authority for the purposes of supporting school facilities projects and supporting emergent needs and capital maintenance in school districts. | In Committee |
| A486 | Requires testing for infectious disease for certain persons who have been administered opioid antidote by first responder. | This bill would supplement the "Overdose Prevention Act," P.L.2013, c.46 (C.24:6J-1 et al.) to provide for the court-ordered testing of certain persons who have been administered an opioid antidote by a first responder. The bill provides that a professional or an emergency medical responder (as those terms are defined in the "Overdose Prevention Act," which include emergency medical technicians, sterile syringe access program workers, and law enforcement officers) who administers an opioid antidote to a person may notify the local public health officer within 24 hours if the contact with the person or an object involved or was likely to involve the transmission of the person's bodily fluid to the professional or emergency medical responder. Upon the emergency medical responder's request, the public health officer is required to seek consent from the person who was administered the opioid antidote to voluntarily submit to serological tests or other medically appropriate tests, including repeat or confirmatory tests, for infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis, and any other infectious diseases that can be transmitted by contact with bodily fluids. If the person does not consent and submit to testing within 24 hours of the public health officer's request, the public health officer is required to file an emergency application for a court order requiring the person to submit to testing. The court is to grant the order for testing if the court finds, by a preponderance of evidence, that there is a risk that an infectious disease was transmitted as a result of the contact. The court order would require testing to be performed as soon as practicable by a health care provider or at a health care facility licensed or authorized to administer the ordered testing. The results of any testing would be disclosed to the person tested and the professional or emergency medical responder who requested the testing, but are not to be disclosed to any other individual except as authorized by law or court order. A consent order for testing and any test results would be confidential and could not be used for any law enforcement purposes or as evidence in any civil proceeding. A person who knowingly discloses or uses such confidential information in violation of the bill would be guilty of a fourth degree crime. The bill authorizes the court to order the person who was administered the opioid antidote to reimburse the State for the costs of the tests. A person who performs a test ordered in accordance with accepted medical standards for the performance of such tests would be immune from civil and criminal liability arising from their conduct. The bill is not to be construed to preclude or limit any other testing for HIV, hepatitis, or any other infectious disease that is otherwise permitted by statute, court rule, or common law. | In Committee |
| ACR38 | Proposes constitutional amendment permitting Gold Star families to receive veteran's property tax deduction. | This constitutional amendment would extend the veteran's property tax deduction, currently $250 per year, to Gold Star families. The deduction would be equal to those already authorized for honorably discharged wartime veterans. A Gold Star Family in this context is the parent, brother, sister, child, legal guardian, or other legal custodian of a member of the armed services who died while on active duty for the United States. Unmarried surviving spouses of such veterans are already eligible for the benefit. Under the amendment, only one deduction would be permitted per Gold Star Family, and the priority for the deduction among eligible family members would be established by law. | In Committee |
| A2560 | Requires DEP to develop, and solid waste management districts to use, standardized labels for recycling bins. | This bill would require the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), within one year, to develop a system of standardized labels, which identify recycling bins and containers according to the recyclable materials that the containers are intended to hold. The bill also requires each solid waste management district, within two years after the bill is enacted into law, to update its recycling plan to require that new recycling bins and containers distributed in the district be labeled in accordance with the system developed by the DEP. | In Committee |
| AR57 | Urges immediate moratorium on sonar testing and wind turbine mapping due to recent unexplained deaths of marine life off the coast of New Jersey. | This resolution urges the State and federal governments to impose an immediate moratorium on sonar testing and wind turbine mapping due to recent unexplained deaths of whales and dolphins off the coast of New Jersey. Since December 2022, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has recorded at least twelve whale deaths off the coast of New Jersey, eight of which have been humpback whales. In addition, there were also five deaths of dolphins recorded in February 2023 alone. Most of these deaths remain unexplained, but have occurred in or near areas of offshore wind energy development. Given the unprecedented number of these recent deaths, their occurrence in or near areas of offshore wind energy development may be more than coincidental and warrants State and federal investigation. A possible cause of these deaths is the increased use of sonar and other underwater mapping technologies for the development of offshore wind energy projects, which may interfere with marine mammals' ability to hear, communicate, and navigate underwater. Therefore, an immediate moratorium on sonar testing and wind turbine mapping for these offshore wind energy projects is urged, so that further scientific study of these projects' impact on marine life can be conducted. | In Committee |
| A426 | Repeals law that prohibits certain establishments from providing or selling various single-use products to customers. | This bill repeals sections 1 through 9 of P.L.2020, c.117 (C.13:1E-99.126 through C.13:1E-99.134), which currently does the following: (1) prohibits certain establishments from providing or selling various single-use products, such as plastic carryout bags, paper carryout bags, polystyrene foam service products, and plastic straws, to customers; (2) establishes penalties for noncompliance; (3) establishes a Plastics Advisory Council within the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP); (4) requires the Department of State, in consultation with the DEP, to develop a program to assist businesses in complying with the law; (5) and requires the DEP to develop rules and regulations as necessary to implement the law. By repealing this law, certain establishments throughout the State would be permitted to provide and sell various single-use products to customers. Specifically, stores and food service business would be permitted to provide or sell single-use plastic carryout bags to customers; food banks and food pantries would be permitted to provide single-use plastic carryout bags to customers; grocery stores would be permitted to provide or sell single-use paper carryout bags to customers; food service businesses would be permitted to provide or sell food in a polystyrene foam food service product; the sale of polystyrene food service products would be permitted; and food service businesses would be permitted to provide single-use plastic straws to customers without requiring the customer to request a single-use plastic straw. This bill also amends section 5 of P.L.2002, c.128 (C.13:1E-217) to reflect the repeal of P.L.2020, c.117 by deleting language added to that section in P.L.2020, c.117. | In Committee |
| A1117 | Revises test for employment or independent contractor status under certain State labor laws. | This bill revises the test used to determine whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor under certain State labor laws. The "ABC" test is widely used under current State labor law for determining whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor. It is used to determine employee and employer obligations and entitlements under the following laws: the "unemployment compensation law," the "Temporary Disability Benefits Law," the New Jersey wage payment law, and the "New Jersey State Wage and Hour Law." It is also used under the "New Jersey Gross Income Tax Act," for purposes of determining whether an employer is required to deduct and withhold State income taxes. The "ABC" test provides that an individual who performs services for remuneration is presumed to be an employee unless the employer can show to the satisfaction of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development that: (A) Such individual has been and will continue to be free from control or direction over the performance of such service, both under his contract of service and in fact; and (B) Such service is either outside the usual course of the business for which such service is performed, or that such service is performed outside of all the places of business of the enterprise for which such service is performed; and (C) Such individual is customarily engaged in an independently established trade, occupation, profession or business. If an employer fails to prove any one of the three criteria for showing a worker is an independent contractor, the worker will be classified as an employee, and will be eligible for benefits pursuant to the labor laws listed above. Additionally, the employer and employee will be required to comply with the contribution and participation obligations of the respective labor laws. This bill eliminates the B and C factors of the employment status test, thereby limiting the test to factor A, whether the individual has been and will continue to be free from control of the employer. By limiting the factors used in the employment status test to the control test, it will be easier for employers to comply with regulations and categorize workers for purposes of State labor laws. | In Committee |
| AR36 | Urges Federal Transit Administration to strengthen safety oversight by improving its guidance to states. | This resolution urges the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to create a plan, with a timeline, for developing risk-based inspection guidance for state safety agencies and to develop and communicate a method for how the FTA will monitor whether state safety agencies' enforcement practices are effective. These recommendations are based on recommendations included in the United States Government Accountability Office's report on rail transit, GAO-18-310, which was published on March 20, 2018. | In Committee |
| A2624 | Prohibits terminal leave compensation for local government employees. | This bill would implement Recommendation 3 of the State Commission of Investigation's (SCI) report entitled, "The Beat Goes On...Waste and Abuse in Local Government Employee Compensation and Benefits" and would eliminate terminal leave. Terminal leave allows public employees to remain on the public payroll at full salary and benefits immediately prior to their retirement without coming to work by using up accumulated leave, usually in the form of many sick days banked over the course of a career. The bill bans the payment of terminal leave compensation for accumulated unused administrative, sick, and vacation leave or terminal benefits for longevity for employees of certain political subdivisions, including counties, municipalities, fire districts, and school districts. This bill would also prohibit the use of six or more accumulated sick days by an employee within the twelve month period after they are eligible for retirement, unless a physician verifies in writing the necessity of that medical leave. The local government employer may require the employee to submit to an examination conducted by a physician selected by the employer to verify the medical necessity. The bill requires the employer to deduct, for each day of sick leave used in violation, one day of accumulated unused sick leave. | In Committee |
| A1285 | Requires schools to be used as polling places only if other public, private, or commercial locations are not available. | This bill requires that school buildings be selected by the county boards of elections as polling places only when no public, private, or commercial building is available and accessible to individuals with disabilities and the elderly. In doing so, this bill promotes the safety and security of all staff and students who attend school in New Jersey, and limits disruptions to the learning environment that occur when schools are opened to large numbers of people for use as a polling place. | In Committee |
| A485 | Requires omnibus drivers to inspect bus at end of route for passengers with disabilities. | This bill requires an omnibus (bus) driver to visually inspect the bus at the end of his or her transportation route to determine that no person with a disability has been left on the bus. In the event that, after notice and an opportunity to be heard, a bus driver is found to have left a person with a disability on the bus at the end of the route, the driver's commercial motor vehicle driving privilege is to be: ? suspended for one month, for a first offense;? suspended for six months, for a second offense; or? permanently revoked, for a third offense. The bus driver's commercial motor vehicle driving privilege is to be permanently revoked if the driver is found to have acted with gross negligence and a person with a disability who was left on a bus at the end of the route was harmed as a result of foreseeable danger. Additionally, the bill requires the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) to include in its records for persons holding or required to hold a commercial driver license (CDL) any information related to a driver leaving a person with a disability on a bus. If a bus driver's commercial motor vehicle driving privilege is suspended or revoked pursuant to the provisions of the bill, information about the suspension or revocation is to be included on his or her driving record information filed by the MVC with the Commercial Driver License Information System (CDLIS). The federal CDLIS provides states an opportunity to exchange information about CDL drivers, convictions, and disqualifications, including information about license suspensions and revocations. | In Committee |
| A479 | Provides emergency State school aid to certain school districts located in historic communities. | This bill establishes a process for the allocation of emergency aid to school districts that have a single school building that has a significant historic legacy, and the reduction in State aid to that school district may result in the closure of the school building and consequently the loss of that legacy. Under the bill's provisions, upon the submission of an application, the Commissioner of Education will provide emergency aid for the 2021-2022 through 2026-2027 school years to a school district that meets the following criteria:· The school district is located in a municipality listed on the national and State registers of historic places;· The school district is comprised of only one school building that was originally built by the federal government and will revert to the federal government if the school building ceases to operate;· The students enrolled in the school district demonstrate a high level of academic achievement;· The school district demonstrates that without the emergency aid, the district is at risk of closing its school building, and the closure of the building will have a negative impact on the students, the residents of the community at large, and the historic legacy of the community;· The school district is subject to reductions in State aid under P.L.2018, c.67 (C.18A:7F-67 et al.), and those reductions have directly impacted the ability of the school district to continue to operate the school building. The commissioner will review the school district's application and may ask for any additional supporting information and documentation that he deems necessary. If the application and information adequately demonstrates that the school district meets the criteria, the commissioner will provide emergency aid in an amount equal to the school district's reduction in State aid for that budget year. The provision of emergency aid under this bill addresses the fact that some school districts face unique circumstances and that it is in the best interests of the State to recognize and address those circumstances. | In Committee |
| A972 | Prohibits imposition of builder's remedy in exclusionary zoning litigation. | This bill prohibits the imposition of a builder's remedy in exclusionary zoning litigation. The builder's remedy, as a method of achieving fair share housing, has been contrary to the public interest and public policy goals in that it resulted in the development of extraordinary amounts of market rate housing in densely populated regions while producing comparatively little affordable housing, to the overall detriment of specific communities and the State as a whole. Municipalities have attempted to navigate the rulings of the court for nearly four decades, but have been unable to adequately address the affordable housing needs of the State despite the threat of builder's remedy lawsuits. Under the bill, if a court determines that a municipality has failed to meet its obligation to provide a reasonable opportunity for the development of affordable housing, a court may impose a remedy other than a builder's remedy. For the purposes of the bill, "builder's remedy" means a court imposed remedy for a litigant who is an individual or a profit-making entity in which the court requires a municipality to utilize zoning techniques such as mandatory set-asides or density bonuses which provide for the economic viability of a residential development by including housing which is not for low and moderate income households. | In Committee |
| A1116 | Authorizes State Auditor to conduct cost-benefit analyses of certain programs and initiatives. | This bill authorizes the State Auditor to conduct cost benefit analyses of certain programs and initiatives as a means to provide State policymakers with data and information to make better informed policy and budget decisions. Under the bill, the State Auditor is authorized to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of any existing or proposed program or initiative of an accounting agency or an independent authority that is funded or is to be funded by State appropriation or that is established or is to be established for the purpose of awarding tax credits to businesses to stimulate economic development in New Jersey. The bill provides for the State Auditor to conduct a cost-benefit analysis at the direction of the Legislative Services Commission or the presiding officer of either House of the Legislature or at the State Auditor's own initiative, but specifies that for each five-year period following enactment of the bill the State Auditor is to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of at least one existing or proposed program or initiative of each accounting agency and each independent authority that is funded or is to be funded by State appropriation of $1,000,000 or more on an average annual basis or that is established or is to be established for the purpose of awarding tax credits in the aggregate principal sum of $1,000,000 or more on an average annual basis. The bill gives the State Auditor the discretion to determine the scope, define the objectives, and develop the methodology employed in conducting cost-benefit analyses authorized by the bill, but requires each cost benefit analysis to include: -- an analysis of the direct and indirect costs and the tangible and intangible benefits of the existing or proposed program or initiative; -- information identifying any other programs or initiatives that are feasible of accomplishing the goals and objectives of the existing or proposed program or initiative or are capable of being used to create a baseline measurement against which the existing or proposed program or initiative can be compared; -- an analysis of the direct and indirect costs and the tangible and intangible benefits of the other programs or initiatives that are identified as feasible alternatives or capable of being used for baseline measurements; -- a description of the key assumptions used to determine the direct and indirect costs and the tangible and intangible benefits of the existing or proposed program or initiative and the other programs or initiatives that are identified as feasible alternatives or capable of being used for baseline measurements; -- a sensitivity analysis to test how the direct and indirect costs and the tangible and intangible benefits of the existing or proposed program or initiative would differ if the key assumptions were modified; and -- any other information the State Auditor determines to be necessary and appropriate. The bill requires the State Auditor to submit a written report regarding each cost-benefit analysis conducted pursuant to the bill to the Governor and to the Legislature, and to make an electronic copy of the report available to the public through a link prominently displayed on the State Auditor's Internet website. The bill is scheduled to take effect on the first day of the seventh month next following the date of enactment. | In Committee |
| ACR59 | Proposes constitutional amendment to allow veterans, senior citizens, and persons with disabilities who make payments in lieu of property taxes to receive certain property tax benefits. | If approved by the voters of the State, this proposed constitutional amendment would allow veterans, senior citizens, and persons with disabilities to receive property tax benefits authorized in the Constitution if they pay "in lieu of tax payments" instead of property taxes. In lieu of tax payments are payments negotiated by a developer and a town under a financial agreement related to a construction project under some State laws. The constitution allows certain exemptions on property taxation for the development or redevelopment of blighted areas. Owners who purchase property in these developments pay an in lieu of tax payment instead of property taxes. A homeowner who is an honorably discharged veteran would receive a $250 deduction from the payment in lieu of taxes. An honorably discharged veteran homeowner who is totally disabled due to military service would not have to pay any in lieu of tax payment. A senior citizen homeowner or a homeowner with a disability would receive a $250 deduction from the payment in lieu of taxes. | In Committee |
| AJR24 | Establishes unified smart card fare collection study commission. | This joint resolution establishes a five member study commission to study and make findings and recommendations concerning all potential opportunities for transit agencies that serve New Jersey residents to implement a unified smart card fare collection system. The study commission is to consist of: a person with expertise and experience in transit smart card technology who is to be appointed by the Governor; a person with expertise and experience in transit fare collection policy who is to be appointed by the Senate President; a person with expertise and experience in New Jersey transit system infrastructure and regional transit cooperation who is to be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly; and two people with expertise and experience in public rail passenger transportation, one who is to be appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate and one who is to be appointed by the Minority Leader of the General Assembly. The study commission is to prepare and submit a report containing its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature and is to expire upon submission of the report. | In Committee |
| A1047 | "Homestead School Property Tax Reimbursement Act"; provides State reimbursement for 50% of school property taxes paid by seniors, 65 years and older. | This bill, entitled the "Homestead School Property Tax Reimbursement Act," would reduce the school property tax burden on senior residents of the State who are 65 years or older by 50%. The bill provides a reimbursement for property taxes paid to eligible claimants from the Casino Revenue Fund. The bill phases in eligibility over a three-year period through income limits. For the first year, only seniors with incomes of $35,000 or less would be eligible for the reimbursement. The income limit rises to $75,000 for the second year and there is no income limit for the third year and thereafter. A surviving spouse who is at least 55 years of age also would qualify for the reimbursement. The Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury would be responsible for promulgating application forms for the reimbursement and issuing rules and regulations. | In Committee |
| A1274 | Permits Legislature to terminate certain declarations by Governor for state of emergency or public health emergency and limits duration of such declarations unless Legislature approves extension. | This bill provides for the termination of a state of emergency declaration issued by the Governor pursuant to P.L.1942, c.251 (C.App.A:9-33 et seq.) or a public health emergency declaration issued pursuant to P.L.2005, c.222 (C.26:13-1 et seq.) by the Legislature by concurrent resolution if the resolution receives a two-thirds affirmative vote of the authorized membership of each House of the Legislature. Also, the bill limits the duration of a state of emergency to 60 days after the date of issuance unless an extension is authorized by the Legislature, and limits a public health emergency declaration to a total of 60 days (the initial 30 day duration and one 30-day renewal by the Governor as provided by current law). The bill permits the Legislature to authorize, after a notice required in this bill is received, an extension of the state of emergency declaration or public health emergency declaration, with as many extensions of not less than 30 days, but not more than 90 days, by concurrent resolution that receives a majority vote of the authorized membership of each House of the Legislature. The bill prohibits the Governor from issuing for the same emergency a declaration to the same or substantially same effect as one terminated pursuant to this bill, except in accordance with a law that permits the issuance of another declaration specifically for that emergency. The bill permits the Legislature to conduct the vote on any concurrent resolution specified in the bill by any means it deems necessary and appropriate, including, but not limited to, in-person, teleconference, and remotely by electronic means. For the purpose of this bill, "same emergency" means the initial event or events that gave rise to the emergency declaration that has been terminated, and any event that occurs subsequent to the initial event or events as a direct result, continuation, or consequence of the initial event or events or the origin of which can be traced directly to the initial event or events. The bill requires the Governor to notify the Legislature in writing of the need for an extension of any state of emergency declaration or public health emergency declaration at least seven business days before an extension is authorized by the Legislature pursuant to this bill. The notice will provide information on the need for the extension of such declaration and the threat to the public health or safety that requires the extension. When notice cannot be given at least seven business days before an extension is authorized by the Legislature, the notice has to be given by the Governor as soon as possible, but not later than at least 24 hours before the extension is authorized, and the notice has to include an explanation of why the notice could not have been given at least seven days before the extension. Under the bill, the Governor will receive and publish in the New Jersey Register any comments from the chairs and ranking minority members of the relevant standing reference committees of the Legislature on any notice given in accordance with this bill. The publication is to include a response from the Executive Branch. If the Governor fails to provide the notice required by this bill for an extension, the state of emergency declaration or public health emergency declaration will be terminated unless an extension of the declaration is approved, after the notice required in the bill is received, by the Legislature by concurrent resolution that receives a majority vote of the authorized membership of each House of the Legislature. The provisions of the bill do not apply to any state of emergency declaration or public health emergency declaration: (1) rescinding an order, rule, or regulation issued pursuant to P.L.1942, c.251 (C.App.A:9-33 et seq.) or to P.L.2005, c.222 (C.26:13-1 et seq.); (2) applying exclusively to any or all of the executive and administrative offices, departments, and instrumentalities of the Executive Branch of State government; or (3) issued under the authority of the Governor as the Commander-in-Chief of all the military and naval forces of the State. The bill provides that any state of emergency declaration issued by the Governor and any public health emergency declaration issued by the Governor to address the COVID-19 pandemic or any other emergency that is in effect on the effective date of the bill, and (1) that has been in effect for more than 60 days as of that effective date, or (2) that has been in effect for 60 days or less but was issued for the same emergency as the term is defined in the bill and has the same or substantially the same effect as a declaration that was issued more than 60 days prior to the effective date, will terminate automatically on the effective date of this bill unless, on the day that this bill has passed both Houses of the Legislature, or has passed both Houses of the Legislature after amendments recommended by the Governor have been made to the act or after objections to the bill have been received from the Governor, whichever occurs later, a concurrent resolution to extend the state of emergency declaration or public health emergency declaration, or both, for not less than 30 days, but not more than 90 days, receives a majority vote of the authorized membership of each House of the Legislature. The termination and extension provisions of the bill will apply to any state of emergency declaration or public health emergency declaration issued pursuant to P.L.1942, c.251 (C.App.A:9-33 et seq.) or P.L.2005, c.222 (C.26:13-1 et seq.) after the effective date or within 60 days prior to the effective date of this bill. Any other emergency declaration issued pursuant to P.L.1942, c.251 (C.App.A:9-33 et seq.) or P.L.2005, c.222 (C.26:13-1 et seq.) that is in effect on the date of enactment will automatically terminate upon enactment unless the Legislature authorizes an extension by concurrent resolution. The bill provides that it is not to be construed as limiting the authority of the Governor to designate a state of emergency as may be authorized under the annual appropriations act, for the sole and limited purpose of establishing the eligibility of the State to receive federal funds. However, no such emergency declaration may under any circumstances serve as the basis for invoking any authority or powers set forth in P.L.1942, c.251 (C.App.A:9-33 et seq.) or P.L.2005, c.222 (C.26:13-1 et seq.). | In Committee |
| A1113 | Establishes Red Tape Review Commission. | This bill creates the Red Tape Review Commission to assess the effect that rules and regulations and Executive Orders have on the State's economy and to provide recommendations to the Governor to amend any rules and regulations or Executive Orders that unduly burden the State's businesses, workers, and local governments. Under the bill, the commission would be comprised of eight members, consisting of representatives from the Executive and Legislative branches of State government, who are devoted to the common goal of promptly addressing the State's economic viability and prosperity. The bill requires each department, office, division, or agency of the State to cooperate with the commission and furnish it with any information, personnel, and assistance it needs to accomplish its duties. The commission's finding would be advisory and cannot be used as a basis for any legal challenges based upon the action or inaction of any department, office, division, or agency of the State. The bill requires the commission to: (1) Review all proposed and adopted rules and regulations and operative Executive Orders issued by the Governor to: assess their potential or actual effects on the State's economy; determine whether their costs and other burdens on businesses, workers, and local governments outweigh their intended benefits; and establish a basis for providing recommendations to the Governor to amend any rules and regulations or Executive Orders that unduly burden the State's businesses, workers, and local governments; (2) Call upon any department, office, division, or agency of this State to supply the commission with data and other information, personnel, or assistance it deems necessary to discharge its duties; (3) Solicit both written and oral comments from the public, including professional, labor, community, and environmental organizations, businesses, workers, and other affected persons or entities as the commission deems appropriate, and to consider the views expressed by those parties in any report; and (4) Provide annually a written report to the Governor and the Legislature in which the commission must provide recommendations to repeal, rescind, or amend any rules and regulations or Executive Orders that unduly burden the State's businesses, workers, and local governments. | In Committee |
| A1357 | Requires NJT to provide Wi-Fi service on passenger trains. | This bill requires the New Jersey Transit Corporation (corporation) to provide Wi-Fi service on each passenger train owned or operated by the corporation. Currently, the corporation offers high-speed Wi-Fi hotspots at select rail stations, and the corporation's Wi-Fi service has been approved for expansion to the corporation's bus services. | In Committee |
| A2639 | Prohibits public institutions of higher education from increasing resident undergraduate and graduate tuition and fees by more than 4% over the prior academic year. | This bill prohibits a public institution of higher education from increasing the institution's resident undergraduate and graduate tuition and fees for any academic year by more than 4% over the institution's resident undergraduate and graduate tuition and fees for the prior academic year. Graduate tuition and fees will include tuition and fees for students enrolled in a graduate degree program or a professional studies program, such as law, medicine, business, dentistry, nursing, or pharmacy. | In Committee |
| A1546 | Prohibits use of fireworks on property adjacent to animal shelter, pound, or kennel. | This bill provides enhanced penalties for the use of fireworks near an animal shelter, pound, or kennel. Current law prohibits the sale, possession, or use of fireworks, excluding sparkling devices and novelties, other than by an authorized purchaser with a valid permit to purchase fireworks for public display as approved by a municipality. This bill makes it unlawful for any person to use fireworks on a property, public highway, street, road, or alley that is directly adjacent to a property on which is located an animal shelter, pound, or kennel. The bill provides that any person who violates its provisions is guilty of a disorderly persons offense, which is punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to six months or a fine of up to $1,000, or both. | In Committee |
| A478 | Provides supplemental appropriation from Property Tax Relief Fund to DOE to provide additional State aid to certain school districts. | The bill provides a supplemental appropriation from the Property Tax Relief Fund to the Department of Education to provide additional State school aid to: 1) Old Bridge Township School District; 2) Freehold Regional School District; 3) Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District; 4) Millstone Township School District; and 5) a school district in which the school district's equalized property valuation per pupil is less than the State average equalized property valuation per pupil or the school district's income per pupil is less than the State average income per pupil. There are over 100 school districts that are estimated to qualify for additional aid under subsection e. of the bill, including: the New Hanover Township School District, the Roosevelt Boro School District, the Upper Freehold Regional School District, the Jackson Township School District, and the Plumsted Township School District. The intent is to ensure that these school districts receive the same amount of total State aid in the 2021-2022 school year as they received in the 2017-2018 school year. | In Committee |
| AJR55 | Designates March 16 as "Paws Healing Heroes Day" in New Jersey. | This joint resolution designates March 16 as "Paws Healing Heroes Day" in New Jersey. Service dogs play an important role in assisting veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), military sexual trauma, and seizure disorder. It is estimated that 29 percent of veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom may experience PTSD, and 28 percent of veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom may experience TBI. New Jersey has a current veteran population of over 300,000. However, despite federal law to expand the availability of service dogs to veterans, the training and placement of service dogs falls primarily upon community non-profit organizations that depend on charitable donations, such as Paws Healing Heroes of Glassboro. The average cost to rescue, train, and present a service dog to a veteran can be $3,000 to $5,000, which is not covered by insurance or other veterans' benefits. Designating "Paws Healing Heroes Day" will promote greater awareness of the unique role of service dogs in assisting veterans. | In Committee |
| A3216 | Establishes loan redemption program and gross income tax credit for mental health professionals who serve children and adolescents. | This bill provides financial incentives, including student loan redemption payments and gross income tax credits, for licensed mental health professionals who provide mental health counseling services to children and adolescents. Specifically, the bill establishes the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Loan Redemption Program ("program") within the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority ("authority"). The program would provide loan redemption payments to licensed mental health professionals who are employed in a full-time position that is wholly or primarily dedicated to providing mental health counseling services to children and adolescents ("qualifying occupation"). Under the bill, a program participant may receive a loan redemption payment, in an amount not to exceed $1,000, for each full year of mental health counseling services. However, a person may not participate in the program for longer than four years. Any loan redemption payment provided through the program is required to support the outstanding balance of the participant's eligible student loan expenses. To qualify for participation in the program, an applicant would be required to: (1) be a resident of the State; (2) be a licensed mental health professional who is employed in a qualifying occupation; (3) have an outstanding balance of eligible student loan expenses and not be in default on any eligible student loan expenses; and (4) satisfy any additional criteria that the authority may deem necessary. When a person is selected for participation in the program, the person would be required to enter into a written contract with the authority. At a minimum, this contract would specify the dates that the program participant is required to remain employed in a qualifying occupation. The bill permits a program participant to withdraw from the program by providing written notice to the authority. Under the bill, the authority may not provide a loan redemption payment without first receiving the following documents from the program participant: (1) proof of residency in the State during the previous 12-month period; (2) such certification as the authority deems appropriate to demonstrate that the program participant was employed in a qualifying occupation during the previous 12-month period; (3) certification of the outstanding balance of eligible student loan expenses; and (4) any other materials that the authority may deem necessary. Any person who knowingly or willfully furnishes false or misleading information for the purpose of receiving a loan redemption payment under the program is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree, which is punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to 18 months, a fine of up to $10,000, or both. Additionally, the bill provides that a licensed mental health professional would be eligible for a gross income tax credit of not more than $1,000 for each taxable year in which the person is employed in a full-time position that is wholly or primarily dedicated to providing mental health counseling services to children and adolescents. | In Committee |
| A490 | Disqualifies person with certain number of motor vehicle points from operating school bus for certain period of time. | This bill disqualifies a person from obtaining or maintaining a school bus endorsement to drive a school bus in the State for one year, following the date of the last conviction, if the person has accumulated four or more current motor vehicle points as a result of a conviction of one or more violations of the motor vehicle laws of this State or any other jurisdiction for which motor vehicle points are assessed by the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (chief administrator). Currently, under the New Jersey Administrative Code, the chief administrator may not issue a passenger endorsement or may suspend or revoke a passenger endorsement, which is required to obtain a school bus endorsement, if the person has 12 or more current motor vehicle points under the point system. The chief administrator is required to immediately notify the Commissioner of Education that a school bus driver's school bus endorsement has been suspended. The Commissioner of Education is then required to immediately notify the employing board of education or contractor of the suspension. The bill requires a person who has had a school bus endorsement suspended pursuant to the provisions of the bill to pass a school bus endorsement knowledge test and school bus endorsement skills test prior to being reissued a school bus endorsement following the person's period of suspension. | In Committee |
| A1247 | Amends Fiscal Year 2024 annual appropriations act to extend ANCHOR benefits to certain individuals who make payments in lieu of property taxes. | This bill amends the Fiscal Year 2024 annual appropriations act to extend ANCHOR Property Tax Relief Program eligibility to residences on which a homestead owner or tenant made one or more payments in lieu of property taxes to the municipality in which the residence is located. With respect to State Fiscal Year 2024, the ANCHOR Property Tax Relief Program provides property tax relief to New Jersey residents who owned or rented their principal residence on October 1, 2020 and met certain income limits. Currently, homestead owners and tenants who made payments in lieu of taxes on their residences are ineligible for the property tax benefit under the program. | In Committee |
| A492 | Requires school bus drivers to pass physical performance test to operate school bus. | This bill requires that, in addition to any other exam required by law, every driver of a school bus or other vehicle used or operated under contract awarded by a board of education or a private school for the transportation of pupils to and from school to submit to a physical performance test (test). The test is to assess a driver's ability to operate a school bus or other vehicle used to transport pupils. Under the bill, the test is to assess a driver's ability to quickly and efficiently: exit a school bus from the front and back of a school bus; operate a school bus door; operate the clutch and break pedals of a school bus; perform alternate operation between the break and accelerator pedals of a school bus; identify and perform alternate operation between the right side and left side hand controls; drag a weight of at least 125 pounds for at least 30 feet to simulate the evacuation of pupils; and any other physical activity that the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (commission) deems appropriate for the safe operation of a school bus. The bill requires the test to be administered upon each initial issuance, and renewal thereof, of a school bus endorsement in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the Chief Administrator of the commission and subject to oversight by the commission. It is the sponsor's intent that the test is to be similar to tests administered to school bus drivers in other states, which include Arizona, New York, North Carolina, and South Carolina. | In Committee |
| A945 | Prohibits payment to public employees at retirement for certain unused sick leave, provides for forfeiture of payment for unused sick leave for certain criminal convictions, and requires documentation for use of sick leave. | This bill prohibits the payment by the State, local governments, and boards of education of supplemental compensation to any current or future public officer or employee for accumulated unused sick leave earned after the bill's effective date. Supplemental compensation for any time earned prior to that date will be payable as under current law. In addition, the bill provides that the payment of supplemental compensation for unused sick leave will be suspended if an officer or employee is indicted for any of the crimes which under current law are grounds for pension forfeiture and that supplemental compensation will be forfeited upon conviction. The bill also requires all public officers and employees to provide medical documentation for absences of six or more consecutive days and imposes penalties for the failure to do so. The bill requires the Attorney General to develop guidelines or establish procedures to ensure that public employers are notified when a public officer or employee is indicted for, or convicted of, any crime or offense that triggers the suspension or forfeiture of payment for supplemental compensation. It also provides that the suspension or forfeiture of payment for supplemental compensation will apply only in the case of crimes or offenses committed after the bill's effective date. The bill will take effect on the first day of the second month following enactment. | In Committee |
| A2456 | Establishes Animal Advocate Program in AOC. | This bill establishes a two-year Statewide Animal Advocate Program in the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). The bill authorizes a court to appoint an advocate in certain criminal cases that affect the welfare or care of an animal. The program would expire after two years notwithstanding a recommendation of continuing the program. In certain criminal court proceedings pursuant to R.S.4:22-17 et seq. (animal cruelty) or section 1 of P.L.2015, c.85 (C.2C:33-31 et al.) (dog fighting), or in any other criminal proceeding regarding the welfare or custody of an animal, the court may order, upon its own initiative or upon request of the State or a party or counsel for a party, that a separate advocate be appointed to represent the best interests of, and justice for, the animal. The bill directs the court to select an advocate from a list provided to the court by the AOC. The bill requires the AOC maintain two lists: one containing names of attorneys with knowledge of animal issues and the legal system; and the other containing law schools that have students with an interest in animal issues and the legal system. These attorneys and law students would serve as advocates on a voluntary basis. The advocate is to exercise the following duties: (a) monitor the case; (b) attend hearings; (c) share with attorneys for the State and defendant any information new to the case or prepared by the advocate; (d) have access to and review all relevant records concerning the condition of the animal and the defendant's actions, including, but not limited to, records from certified animal control officers, veterinarians and police officers; and (e) present information or recommendations to the court that relate to the best interests of, and justice for, the animal, including placement of the animal. The bill requires the director to submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature containing information on the implementation of the program, which would include recommendations on the advisability of continuing the program two years following the establishment of the program. The bill is to take effect on the first day of the sixth month next following the date of enactment. The AOC may take administrative action prior to the effective date as necessary for the implementation of the program. This bill is modeled on Conn. Gen. Stat. Ann. 54-86n, commonly referred to as "Desmond's Law" and named after a dog which was abused and strangled to death by its owner in 2012. | In Committee |
| A480 | Requires use of direct deposit and Internet for State, local government, and school district employee compensation and certain retirement payments and information. | This bill requires that the State Treasurer directly deposit net pay for all public employees of the State into an account in a banking institution designated by the employee, commencing January 1st following the bill's enactment. This requirement will also apply to State entities that do not use the centralized payroll system, including public institutions of higher education. The bill makes the same requirement for all county and municipal government employees. Currently, public employees have the option to designate in writing a specific banking institution and a checking account, savings account, or share account for receipt of the direct deposit. Commencing on January 1st following enactment of the bill, this option will be eliminated and direct deposit will be mandatory. In addition, all information concerning net pay and any accompanying information will be available to the employee only on the Internet with restricted access to protect the integrity and confidentiality of the information. The bill also mandates that the boards of education for every school district have net pay for all employees directly deposited, in the manner described above, and accompanying information made available to the employee only on the Internet in a similar manner as required for State and local employees. Finally, the bill mandates that all recurring payments from State and locally administered retirement systems for public employees who retire on or after January 1st following the enactment of the bill be directly deposited for all recipients into a specific banking institution in a checking account, savings account, or share account designated in writing by the recipient, and that all information concerning net retirement payments be made available to the recipient only on the Internet in the same manner as for public employees. | In Committee |
| ACR102 | Urges Department of Education to impose moratorium on new Student Learning Standards. | This resolution respectfully urges the Department of Education to impose a moratorium on the development and implementation of new Student Learning Standards for a period of two years. The most recent Student Learning Standards were adopted by the State Board of Education in June 2020, however there has been considerable discontent among parents and guardians with regards to the standards. As a result, there are numerous bills pending before the Legislature that may affect the Student Learning Standards. Additionally, the United States has been falling in the global education rankings, reaching its lowest level ever in overall competitiveness in the most recent administration of the Program for International Student Assessment. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant learning loss for students around the State, exacerbating the United States' decline compared to other countries. It would be appropriate to impose a moratorium while the Legislature considers bills that may impact the Student Learning Standards and that would focus on addressing learning loss. | In Committee |
| A3346 | Requires State Planning Commission to adopt model ordinance for siting certain warehouses and permits conforming updates to municipal master plans and zoning ordinances and establishes fund in DCA; appropriates $5 million. | This bill requires the State Planning Commission to prepare and adopt model ordinances detailing different regulatory options for the siting of warehouses and permits municipal master plans and zoning ordinances to be consistent and compatible with one or more of those model ordinance's provisions. Innovation within the warehousing sector of the economy has led to the development of very large warehousing facilities on sites that were zoned for smaller, traditional types of warehouses. While these types of developments are of Statewide economic importance, the unanticipated development of large-scale regional warehousing facilities has, at times, resulted in significant negative regional impacts. In order to better inform municipal governments and local planning officials of this problem and possible solutions, the State Planning Commission prepared a warehouse guidance document in September 2022. The State Planning Commission should be commended for preparing and circulating the warehouse guidance document. The guidance notes that municipalities in New Jersey are finding that their communities are particularly vulnerable to poorly sited and scaled warehousing projects after having previously zoned large areas of their communities for "light industrial" land uses, especially with respect to farmland in rural areas. The guidance also notes that public outcry over approved warehouse projects has occurred in instances where the projects largely conform to existing zoning standards. The guidance proposes that in order to systematically address warehouse development, communities should proactively plan for warehouse projects to prevent land-use conflicts that harm residents, other communities, and the environment before they materialize. Proactive planning, as described in the guidance, could allow municipalities to locate large warehouses away from residential neighborhoods, downtown commercial areas and main streets, schools, daycare centers, places of worship, hospitals, overburdened communities, scenic corridors, historic districts, important public and civic outdoor spaces, and recreational facilities. However, in order for a local government to benefit from the State Planning Commission warehouse guidance, the local government should reconsider and revise its master plan and zoning ordinances before it receives a complete application to develop a warehouse. Preparation, adoption, and dissemination of model ordinances will better enable a local government to select the model ordinance, or aspects of several ordinances, most appropriate for the individual community, and enable a local government to quickly update its land use documents to be prepared for receipt of an application to develop a warehouse. This bill requires the Commissioner of Community Affairs (commissioner) to establish within the Office of Local Planning Services a fund for the purpose of reimbursing a municipality for reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in updating the municipality's zoning ordinances pursuant to the bill. A municipality may submit to the commissioner an application, in a form and manner to be determined by the commissioner, for a grant of up to $50,000 for reimbursement. This bill appropriates from the General Fund to the Department of Community Affairs the sum of $5 million for the purposes of administering this fund. | In Committee |
| A1114 | Increases gross income tax deduction for contributions to the New Jersey Better Educational Savings Trust (NJBEST) Program. | This bill increases the gross income tax deduction, initially up to $15,000 per taxable year, for contributions made by the taxpayer to the New Jersey Better Educational Savings Trust (NJBEST) Program, (N.J.S.18A:71B-35 et seq.). Under current law, a taxpayer with gross income of less than $200,000 can deduct up to $10,000 for contributions to the NJBEST program. The bill increases the deduction amount to up to $15,000 for the first taxable year following enactment. The bill also provides for annual cost-of-living adjustments to the maximum deduction and to the income limits ("COLA adjustment") for future taxable years; the COLA adjustment amount is the national consumer price index for all urban consumers as prepared by the United States Department of Labor. This bill affords New Jersey taxpayers with tax relief while promoting personal investment in, and broader access to, higher education. | In Committee |
| ACR31 | Applies to Congress for an Article V Convention of States to limit certain powers of the federal government and terms of office. | This Assembly concurrent resolution applies to Congress for the calling of an Article V Convention of the States limited to proposing amendments to the United States Constitution that impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government and limit the terms of office for its officials. | In Committee |
| A967 | Requires COAH to administer affordable housing obligations of municipalities based on statewide obligation. | This bill would require that affordable housing obligations be calculated and administered at the State level. Affordable housing is an issue of Statewide concern and importance. It is also a highly complex issue that requires technical expertise, often ends up in litigation, and is expensive to administer. This bill would eliminate the current municipality-to-municipality patchwork approach to affordable housing. The bill would centralize administration of this issue in the State agency with the necessary Statewide policy perspective and technical expertise, and which can serve as a cost-effective, fair forum to address this issue - the Council on Affordable Housing (the "council"). Currently, affordable housing need is calculated at the regional level and fair share plans are created by municipalities. Under the bill, the council would calculate the affordable housing need of the entire State. The council would then select which municipalities will have a role to play in fulfilling this Statewide need and will assign them a fair share of this obligation. Such municipality would then submit a housing element that provides basic information on the current housing stock and properties suited for affordable housing development that could satisfy the municipal fair share. After receipt of the housing element, the bill requires the council to grant the municipality a substantive certification that shields it from exclusionary zoning suits. The council would next draft a fair share plan for the municipality that directs the municipality on how to satisfy its fair share obligation. The municipality would be required to adopt a fair share ordinance effectuating that fair share plan. The council would be required to engage in a mediation process if an objection is made to its fair share plan for a municipality. Any exclusionary zoning suit to a fair share plan for a municipality would have to be brought against the council, with the municipality having the option to be a party in the litigation. | In Committee |
| A483 | Authorizes Division of Travel and Tourism to accept gifts and grants to promote NJ tourism. | This bill would authorize the Director of the Division of Travel and Tourism to accept and expend any gift or grant for any of the purposes of promoting New Jersey as a visitor destination, including the promotion of arts, cultural, entertainment, historical, and tourist and visitor attractions, events, and venues in the State. A number of State departments and authorities are statutorily authorized to receive gifts and grants. This concept is also referenced in the report "Elements of a Plan for the Creation of a Structure to Better Promote Tourism in the State of New Jersey," issued March 13, 2012 by the New Jersey Gaming, Sports and Entertainment Advisory Commission, and providing the statutory authority to receive gifts and grants is recommended by the commission as a mechanism to increase contributions for such purposes. | In Committee |
| A1246 | Extends eligibility for property tax benefits to veterans, 100 percent service-disabled veterans, and senior citizens and persons with disabilities who pay payments in lieu of property taxes. | This bill would extend eligibility for the property tax exemption provided to veterans who have suffered a 100 percent service-connected disability, the $250 veterans property tax deduction, and the $250 property tax deduction for senior citizens and persons with disabilities to those persons who pay payments in lieu of property taxes, as required pursuant to a contract between a municipality and an urban renewal entity pursuant to the "Long Term Tax Exemption Law," P.L.1991, c.431 (C.40A:20-1 et al.), instead of property taxes, on their homes. | In Committee |
| AR34 | Urges NJT to provide locations for telecommuting during repairs to New York Pennsylvania Station and construction of new trans-Hudson rail tunnel. | This resolution urges the New Jersey Transit Corporation (New Jersey Transit) to provide locations for telecommuting during the repairs to New York Pennsylvania Station (Penn Station) and the construction of the new trans-Hudson rail tunnel. The Hudson River rail tunnel and Penn Station have become critical in the connection of New Jersey Transit to the central business districts that impact the nation's economy. Therefore, it is critical during this period of repair and reconstruction to some of the region's most important pieces of rail infrastructure that New Jersey Transit provide an alternative, which should consist of a telecommuting location or locations that are equipped with internet access to be used as work space, for New Jersey Transit rail passengers who may be unable to reach their places of work due to the severe delays in rail service caused by the repairs and reconstruction. | In Committee |
| A491 | Requires school buses be equipped with certain technology to avoid crashes. | This bill requires each school bus purchased by an agency, school district, nonpublic school, or school bus contractor on or after July 1, 2020 to be equipped with a collision avoidance system. The collision avoidance system is required to include technology for automatic emergency braking, forward collision warnings, blind spot warnings, rear cross-traffic warnings, lane departure warnings, back-up cameras or sensors, electronic stability control, and any other technology that the Commissioner of Education (commissioner), in consultation with the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, deems necessary for the provision of safe and efficient school transportation. If the technology required by the bill is not readily available for utilization on school buses, the commissioner may delay the requirements. If the commissioner delays the requirements of the bill, the commission is required to establish a schedule for compliance with the provisions of the bill. | In Committee |
| A2707 | Requires law enforcement officers and recruits to undergo self-defense training; appropriates $250,000 to Police Training Commission. | This bill requires the Police Training Commission in the Department of Law and Public Safety to establish a self-defense training course for law enforcement officer recruits and an in-service self-defense course for law enforcement officers. Under the bill, the basic course for law enforcement officer recruits would include one and one-half hours of instruction conducted three times per week while the law enforcement officer recruit is enrolled in basic training and a final, 40 hour self-defense course at the end of basic training. In addition, a law enforcement officer for a State, county, or municipal law enforcement department is required to annually undergo 48 hours of in-service self-defense training. The instructor providing in-service training are required to meet the same training requirements established for law enforcement officer recruits under the bill. The time expended on in-service training would not be included in a law enforcement officer's overtime compensation. The bill appropriates $250,000 to the Police Training Commission for the purpose of establishing the self-defense basic course and in-service training course. | In Committee |
| AR35 | Urges Congress to examine operations of Amtrak at New York Pennsylvania Station. | This resolution respectfully urges the United States Congress to examine the operations of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, commonly known as Amtrak, at New York Pennsylvania Station (Penn Station), including determining the advisability of requiring that the commuter rail systems that use Penn Station be involved in the decision-making processes concerning the station. | In Committee |
| A496 | Prohibits modification of mufflers and exhaust systems to produce audible sounds; increases penalties for violations. | This bill prohibits the installation or modification of the muffler or exhaust system of a motor vehicle in a manner which amplifies or increases the noise emitted by the muffler or exhaust system of the motor vehicle above that emitted by the muffler or exhaust system originally installed on the vehicle. Under current law, the penalty for the unauthorized installation of a device that causes the exhaust system to emit an audible sound and the failure to have muffler good working to prevent excessive or usual sound is $25. The penalty for violating the provisions of the bill is a fine not exceeding $500, or imprisonment not exceeding 30 days, or both. | In Committee |
| A495 | Requires State to purchase certain vehicles when purchasing new vehicles. | This bill would require that each new vehicle purchased by the State be a hybrid electric vehicle or electric vehicle, or a vehicle powered by fuel other than conventional fuel such as compressed natural gas, fuel cells, biodiesel, ultra low sulfur fuel, or any other motor vehicle fuel approved by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, unless no such mass produced or commonly available vehicle exists in the vehicle class being purchased. The bill notes that the vehicle purchase requirements will not apply to trains purchased by the State. The bill defines "hybrid electric vehicle" as a motor vehicle propelled by both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor or energy storage device, and "electric vehicle" as a motor vehicle propelled solely by an electric motor or energy storage device. | In Committee |
| A968 | Authorizes municipal challenge to non-redevelopment housing projects ordered by COAH unless order is based on exclusionary zoning; excludes flood-prone land from affordable housing vacant land analysis; provides housing obligation cap. | This bill allows a municipality to challenge an order by the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) to construct, or allow to be constructed, a non-redevelopment housing project on undeveloped land. The municipal challenge would be successful, unless the order by COAH is based on exclusionary zoning practices occurring in the municipality at the time the order is made. Additionally, this bill caps the number of units a municipality may have allocated as its fair share affordable housing obligation with regard to the size of the municipal population. Current law provides that no municipality shall be required to address a fair share of affordable housing units beyond 1,000 low and moderate income units within 10 years from the grant of substantive certification; except that a municipality may be allocated more than 1,000 units if, based upon an evidentiary hearing, it is found likely that the municipality, through its zoning powers, could create a realistic opportunity for more than 1,000 low and moderate income units within that 10-year period. For some municipalities in the State, this many additional units may increase the overall municipal population dramatically. In order to prevent the disparate impact this can create for municipalities with small populations, this bill provides that an allocation of units to a municipality as its fair share shall not exceed an amount that would result in an increase of the municipal population by more than five percent. Finally, this bill requires the exclusion of flood-prone land when computing a municipal adjustment of available land resources as part of the determination of a municipality's fair share affordable housing obligation. Currently, land may not be considered in determining a municipality's available land resources for affordable housing purposes if it contains any one of various special features, consisting of: (a) land owned by a government entity, and intended for a public purpose, (b) certain park land, open space and other land dedicated for conservation, (c) certain very small land parcels held in private ownership, (d) historic and architecturally important sites, (e) agricultural land with restricted development rights, (f) sites designated for active recreation, and (g) environmentally sensitive land where development is prohibited by law. This bill would also exclude from determinations of available land resources for affordable housing purposes any land that is (1) lower than the most recent "flood elevation determination," measured under federal standards, (2) lower than the applicable flood elevation standard required under regulations adopted pursuant to the "Flood Hazard Area Control Act," P.L.1962, c.19 (C.58:16A-50 et seq.), or (3) within 100 feet of category one waters, as designated by the Department of Environmental Protection. As defined under 44 C.F.R.59.1, a "flood elevation determination" refers to a determination by the Federal Insurance Administrator of the water surface elevations of a "base flood," also understood as a flood level that has a one percent or greater chance of occurrence in any given year. This bill directs the Department of Environmental Protection to adopt rules and regulations to guide determinations of flood-prone lands by the first day of the seventh month next following enactment. This bill remains inoperative until the first day of the seventh month next following enactment. | In Committee |
| A494 | Requires additional credit against fair share obligation for abandoned property converted to affordable housing. | This bill requires additional credit against a fair share obligation for abandoned property converted to affordable housing. This bill seeks to incentivize the rehabilitation of abandoned property, and facilitate the establishment of affordable housing in locations that benefit surrounding neighborhoods. Under this bill, a municipality may receive two units of credit towards its fair share obligation for each unit of housing that is restricted for use by low and moderate income households. The additional credit would apply so long as the housing unit is established on a property that has been on an abandoned property list, established by the municipality pursuant to section 36 of P.L.1996, c.62 (C.55:19-55), and the property has subsequently been removed from the abandoned property list following its rehabilitation. | In Committee |
| A1542 | Removes criminal liability for law enforcement officers who have investigative encounter with underage person for possession of alcohol or cannabis unless civil rights are violated. | This bill provides that a law enforcement officer is not criminally liable for deprivation of civil rights for certain interactions with an underage person who possesses or consumes alcohol, marijuana, or certain cannabis items unless the officer acted with the purpose to intimidate or discriminate against a person or group of persons because of race, color, religion, gender, handicap, sexual orientation or ethnicity. Under current law, a law enforcement officer, when responding to a call for service or upon the initiation of any other law enforcement or investigative encounter related to a violation concerning the unlawful possession or consumption of alcoholic beverages, marijuana, hashish, or any cannabis item by a person under the legal age to purchase alcoholic beverages or cannabis items, may be guilty of a crime of official deprivation of civil rights under certain circumstances. Current law imposes criminal liability regardless of whether the officer's act was done with the purpose to intimidate or discriminate against a person or group of persons because of race, color, religion, gender, handicap, sexual orientation or ethnicity, which motivation is required to be proven for other acts of criminal deprivation of civil rights under section 2 of P.L.2003, c.31 (C.2C:30-6). Under this bill, a law enforcement officer who purposely intimidates or discriminates against an underage person because of the person's race, color, religion, gender, handicap, sexual orientation or ethnicity by engaging in a law enforcement or investigative encounter related to a violation concerning the underage possession or consumption of alcoholic beverages, marijuana, hashish, or any cannabis would be guilty of deprivation of civil rights. | In Committee |
| A406 | Makes it a crime of the first degree to coerce a patient to request medication pursuant to the "Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act" or to forge a patient's request for such medication. | This bill would upgrade the crimes of coercing a patient to request medication under N.J.S.A.26:16-1 et al., the "Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act," or forging a patient's request for such medication with the intent or effect of causing the patient's death. Enacted as P.L.2019, c.59, the "Medical Aid in Dying for the Terminally Ill Act" permits terminally ill persons to self-administer medication to end their lives under certain circumstances. Under the enactment, it is a crime of the second degree to willfully alter or forge a request for medication pursuant to the act or to conceal or destroy a rescission of that request with the intent or effect of causing the patient's death. It is a crime of the third degree under the enactment to coerce or exert undue influence on a patient to request such medication. This bill would upgrade both offenses to crimes of the first degree. A crime of the first degree is generally punishable by a term of imprisonment of 10-20 years, a fine of up to $200,000, or both. Under the bill, both crimes of the first degree would be punishable by a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 25 years without eligibility for parole. | In Committee |
| A1115 | Excludes under gross income tax certain contributions to qualified pension plans, deferred compensation plans and provides deduction for certain individual retirement savings. | This bill excludes from gross income taxation the employee and employer contributions that public and private sector employees make to federally qualified tax exempt pension plans under section 401(a) of the federal Internal Revenue Code. The bill also excludes from gross income taxation elective contributions that employees of the public and non-profit sectors may make toward their retirement savings, and allows a deduction for federally qualifying IRA contributions. The New Jersey gross income tax currently allows the employees of private, for profit, businesses to make tax-deferred contributions to the retirement savings plans authorized under section 401(k) of the federal Internal Revenue Code. Contributions mandated under most qualified retirement plans are not accorded tax deferral under the New Jersey gross income tax. Also employees of public and nonprofit sectors are not afforded the same access to 401(k) plans as private sector employees that includes the gross income tax contributions tax deferral. This bill incorporates New Jersey gross income tax deferrals for private and public sector employee contributions and for contribution designated as "employer contributions" for federal income tax purposes under qualified retirement plans established under section 401(a) of the federal Internal Revenue Code. This bill also incorporates tax deferrals for the elective deferred compensation systems allowed to employees of governments and nonprofits. Charitable, educational and religious organization employees and public school employees are authorized by federal law to contribute toward their retirement savings under plans established under subsection (b) of section 403 of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986. State and local government and authority employers are authorized by federal law to make contributions under plans established under section 457 of the federal Internal Revenue Code, and federal employees are authorized by the federal Internal Revenue Code to make contributions to the federal Thrift Savings Plan. This bill gives the employees of federally tax-exempt charitable, educational or religious organizations; the employees of public school systems; the employees of state and local government and federal employees similar tax incentives for retirement savings that are provided under the New Jersey gross income tax to private sector employees. This bill also allows a gross income tax deduction for contributions to individual retirement accounts, or premiums paid to individual retirement annuities, that qualify for federal income tax deductions. IRA's are a significant retirement savings vehicle for employees whose employers do not offer a pension plan. | In Committee |
| A3093 | Creates temporary grant program for electric vehicle fire suppression technology. | This bill creates a Statewide pilot program to test new technology for fighting fires emanating from electric vehicles. The National Transportation Safety Board issued a report in 2020 of its investigations into the difficulties experienced by fire departments attempting to extinguish electric vehicle fires. Specifically, the board cited increased risk to first responders of stored energy reigniting after all signs of fire and smoke have been put out. The National Fire Protection Association emergency field guide recommends large, sustained volumes of water to extinguish high-voltage battery fires and highlights the difficulty of applying extinguishing agents directly onto the burning cells of an electric vehicle. Emergent technology exists and should be examined as a resource in the repository of methods available to New Jersey's firefighters. This bill attempts to address current challenges by equipping select fire departments throughout the State with the newest technology for one year and requiring them to report their findings and recommendations to the Division of Fire Safety. | In Committee |
| A970 | Establishes additional factors for municipal adjustment used in calculating fair share affordable housing obligations; provides population-based cap for these obligations. | This bill would establish additional specific factors to be used in calculating the municipal adjustment for a municipality's fair share affordable housing obligation. The bill also caps the number of units a municipality may have allocated as its affordable housing obligation with regard to the size of the municipal population. The additional factors to be used in calculating the municipal adjustment are as follows: (a) population of the municipality; (b) water supply and sewerage capacity in the municipality; (c) school class sizes and school services in the municipality; (d) public safety services in the municipality; and (e) public transportation and traffic in the municipality. The bill requires a municipal adjustment if maintaining approximately the same school class sizes would be a significant cost or if adequate school, public safety, and public transportation resources are not available or would be a significant cost to provide. A municipal adjustment would also have to be made if present traffic conditions would be substantially disrupted. The additional municipal adjustment factors required by the bill would require a more holistic examination of the actual state of affairs in a municipality, as well as of the potential impacts of additional development, in calculating its fair share affordable housing obligation. This will help ensure that reasonable numbers are arrived at that will not be disruptive to the quality of life and provision of local government services in a municipality. The bill's population cap would protect those municipalities that may face dramatic municipal population increases if mandated to add a large amount of additional affordable housing. Current law provides that no municipality shall be required to address a fair share of affordable housing units beyond 1,000 low and moderate income units within 10 years from the grant of substantive certification; except that a municipality may be allocated more than 1,000 units, if based upon an evidentiary hearing, it is found likely that the municipality through its zoning powers could create a realistic opportunity for more than 1,000 low and moderate income units within that 10-year period. In order to prevent the disparate impact such a potentially large affordable housing mandate can create for municipalities with small populations, this bill provides that an allocation of units to a municipality as its fair share shall not exceed an amount that would result in an increase of the municipal population by more than five percent. | In Committee |
| A498 | Requires court to consider additional factors in awarding custody of child. | This bill expands the factors a court may consider when making an award for custody of a child. Under the bill, the court would consider the history of abuse, abandonment, or neglect, if any; and any evidence that either parent has engaged or is engaging in a pattern of abusive, threatening, intimidating, or controlling behavior composed of a series of acts over a period of time, however short. | In Committee |
| A1221 | Revises method for appraisals of farmland to be acquired for farmland preservation purposes. | This bill would establish a new process for the determination of the value of farmland, and development easements on farmland, to be acquired for farmland preservation purposes by the State Agriculture Development Committee (SADC), a local government unit, or a qualifying tax exempt nonprofit organization using, in whole or in part, constitutionally dedicated Corporation Business Tax monies deposited into the Preserve New Jersey Farmland Preservation Fund, the Garden State Farmland Preservation Trust Fund, or any other State monies provided for farmland preservation purposes. This process would be used in addition to the appraisal processes in current law. Under this bill, the committee would adopt a formula, to be known as the "Statewide Farmland Preservation Formula," that includes: (1) conducting or analyzing a sufficient number of fair market value appraisals of agricultural lands within the municipality in which the land is located, or the surrounding market area, or both; (2) considering farmland and development easement values in counties and municipalities reasonably contiguous to, but outside of, the municipality in which the land to be acquired is located; (3) considering the importance of preserving agricultural lands in the municipality and county in which the land is located; (4) considering the status and value of natural resources in the municipality and county in which the land is located, and in counties and municipalities that are reasonably contiguous to, but outside of, the municipality and county in which the land is located; (5) considering such other relevant factors as may be necessary to increase participation in the farmland preservation program by owners of agricultural lands located in the municipality and county in which the land is located, including, but not limited to, the rate of inflation, the quality of the agricultural soils, the size of the agricultural lands to be acquired, and the risk of conversion of the land from productive agriculture to nonagricultural use; and (6) providing additional value for the proximity of agricultural lands located adjacent to preserved agricultural lands, lands preserved for recreation and conservation purposes, aquifer recharge areas, lands subject to development or conservation easements, and lands whose conversion to nonagricultural use would lead to conflicting land uses, including, but not limited to, utility and roadway rights-of-way, military bases, and airports and associated airspace. The SADC would adopt rules and regulations to establish the "Statewide Farmland Preservation Formula," notwithstanding the provisions of the "Administrative Procedure Act." These rules and regulations would remain in effect for a period not to exceed three years after the date of the filing and thereafter be adopted, amended, or readopted in accordance with the requirements of the "Administrative Procedure Act." In addition, the bill would amend current law concerning how value is to be calculated when the value of the farmland to be acquired is determined based upon the value of any pinelands development credits allocated to the parcel pursuant to P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.) and the pinelands comprehensive management plan adopted pursuant thereto. Under this bill, that value would include consideration of the rate of inflation. A landowner would be provided with the values determined pursuant to these different methods and the higher of the values would be used as the basis for negotiation with the landowner with respect to the acquisition price. | Dead |
| A497 | Prohibits use of fireworks under certain circumstances. | This bill provides enhanced penalties for the use of fireworks under certain circumstances. Current law prohibits the sale, possession, or use of fireworks, excluding sparkling devices and novelties, other than by an authorized purchaser with a valid permit to purchase fireworks for public display as approved by a municipality. This bill makes it unlawful for any person to use fireworks on a public highway, street, road, or alley or on any property directly adjacent to a property on which horses are housed or boarded. The bill provides that any person who violates its provisions is guilty of a disorderly persons offense, which is punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to six months or a fine of up to $1,000, or both. | In Committee |
| A971 | Prohibits affordable housing obligation exemptions for urban aid municipalities. | This bill would revise the "Fair Housing Act," P.L.1985, c.222 (C.52:27D-301 et al.), to prohibit any categorical affordable housing obligation exemption for municipalities that are eligible for the Municipal (Urban) Aid Program. Prior rules of the Council on Affordable Housing excluded these municipalities from providing any contribution toward a region's affordable housing need. Those exemptions, however, can lead to undue development burdens on the other municipalities in the region. Additionally, directing more affordable housing development to urban municipalities would help minimize urban sprawl and would direct development to areas that already have extensive infrastructure in place, allowing for more cost-effective accommodation of new development. | In Committee |
| A481 | Permits counties to charge a fee to fund infrastructure through voter approval. | This bill would create the "County Self-Help Infrastructure Act," permitting the governing body of any county to impose a county-wide fee for the purpose of funding infrastructure construction within the county after first obtaining voter approval. Like many states, New Jersey's infrastructure needs are growing increasingly critical. Various other states have created a self-help fee at the local level to address these needs. Because local aid for these projects from the New Jersey Department of Transportation and other State agencies is woefully inadequate, New Jersey's counties could benefit tremendously from following other states' examples. The infrastructure construction fee created through this bill could take any reasonable form so long as it is presented to the voters through a public question that clearly states the maximum fee to be established. | In Committee |
| A484 | Authorizes NJ Historical Commission to establish program to promote developing historic projects on website and collect donations for projects on behalf of historic site or organization. | This bill would authorize the New Jersey Historical Commission ("commission") to establish a program to support New Jersey historic sites and organizations and collect donations for projects on their behalf. Specifically, the commission would establish a program to help historic sites and organizations by announcing and promoting an historic project on the commission's website. "Historic sites and organizations" include historic sites, historical societies, historical libraries, history museums, historical agencies of local or county government, and related not-for-profit agencies and organizations. This program would be a creative platform to enable historic sites and organizations to gain exposure, generate funding, and leverage donations for their historic projects, through the commission, while retaining independence and ownership of the project. No offer of financial returns or equity, or solicitation of loans, would be made in connection with any historic project. The program website would provide the means for any visitor to the website to donate to a specific historic site or organization, or specific historic project. A gift or grant donated for these purposes would only be accepted by the commission on behalf of an historic site or organization. Any donation to an historic site or organization would be used at the discretion of the historic site or organization accepting it and any donation to a specific historic project would be used by the historic site or organization for the designated historic project. The commission would be authorized to accept and administer gifts or grants to be used only in accordance with the purposes set forth in this bill, or they would be returned to the donor or refused. The Department of the Treasury would provide the means by which donations may be made to the commission. Under the bill, the commission may request to monitor or oversee the progress of an historic project, as appropriate, and may require an historic site or organization to report progress on occasion; however, the commission would not be responsible for ensuring the completion of a project, nor would it investigate an historic site or organizations' ability to complete a project. An historic site or organization would be required to notify the commission, in writing, upon completion of a project. Additionally, this bill would allow the commission to collaborate, consult, or partner with an organization, including an Internet-based organization (for example, a crowdsourcing or advocacy organization such as Kickstarter, Inc.), whose mission is to support creative projects by fundraising and engaging the public at-large. The commission may also partner with or contract for such an organization to specifically announce or promote New Jersey historic sites or organizations and accept gifts or grants towards a developing project on behalf of an historic site or organization in furtherance of the goals of this bill. | In Committee |
| ACR33 | Proposes constitutional amendment authorizing municipalities, by ordinance, to provide partial property tax exemption on primary residence of certain volunteer first responders. | If approved by the voters of the State, this proposed constitutional amendment would authorize a municipality, by ordinance, to provide a partial property tax exemption on the primary residence of volunteer first responders serving in the municipality. The exemption would mean the volunteer first responder would not pay property taxes on part of the home's assessed value. An eligible first responder would be an active member of a volunteer fire department or a volunteer first aid or ambulance squad who owns a home in the municipality in which the volunteer serves, and the home must be the volunteer's primary residence. The municipality would decide the percentage amount of the exemption, which cannot exceed 10 percent of the assessed value. The State would not be required to reimburse municipalities for the cost of the exemption. | In Committee |
| A1277 | Delays fourth round of affordable housing obligations, including present and prospective need and related litigation, until July 1, 2028. | This bill would delay the start of the fourth round of affordable housing obligations, including present and prospective need and related litigation, set to commence in 2025, to July 1, 2028. For decades, New Jersey municipalities have expended significant taxpayer money to comply with affordable housing obligations. The State Supreme Court has recognized affordable housing policy is best left to the Legislature. Compounding the burden of litigation expenses, the COVID-19 pandemic led the Governor and Legislature to take drastic action, which shut down the State economy, causing severe economic difficulties for municipalities. These difficulties, and others, have presented and continue to present severe hardship for municipalities seeking to satisfy their affordable housing obligations. Reliance on data from the third round, therefore, will be even more critical in establishing fourth round present and prospective regional needs and affordable housing obligations. It is therefore necessary to delay the start of the fourth round of affordable housing obligations, including present and prospective need and related litigation, to July 1, 2028. This bill would not impair or affect any settlement or judgment concerning the obligation of a municipality that was issued or executed prior to the end of the third round of affordable housing obligations on July 1, 2025. The bill would expire on June 30, 2028. | In Committee |
| A499 | Requires detailed disclosure of information concerning required payments in lieu of property taxes to be provided to purchaser of real property constructed pursuant to financial agreement containing long term tax exemption. | This bill would require that each new vehicle purchased by the State be a hybrid electric vehicle or electric vehicle, or a vehicle powered by fuel other than conventional fuel such as compressed natural gas, fuel cells, biodiesel, ultra low sulfur fuel, or any other motor vehicle fuel approved by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, unless no such mass produced or commonly available vehicle exists in the vehicle class being purchased. The bill notes that the vehicle purchase requirements will not apply to trains purchased by the State. The bill defines "hybrid electric vehicle" as a motor vehicle propelled by both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor or energy storage device, and "electric vehicle" as a motor vehicle propelled solely by an electric motor or energy storage device. | In Committee |
| ACR46 | Proposes amendment to New Jersey Constitution to prohibit exclusionary zoning and clarify municipal obligations regarding affordable housing construction. | This concurrent resolution proposes a constitutional amendment to clarify municipal obligations regarding affordable housing. The amendment would place language in the State Constitution to specifically prohibit the practice of exclusionary zoning. Exclusionary zoning can prevent the development of low income housing units and has been declared illegal by federal and State courts. Pursuant to the amendment, towns would not have an obligation to actually construct, or cause to be constructed, affordable housing units. This would eliminate litigation that results in the forced construction of specific residential projects. It has been more than 40 years since the first court case was initiated in New Jersey concerning the opportunities for poor and minority families to obtain affordable housing. The opinion of the New Jersey Supreme Court in this case and subsequent decisions have become known as the Mount Laurel doctrine. Since that time, the demographics of the State have changed markedly, including increased population growth and density, wider disparity of income levels among residents, and perhaps most importantly, tremendous increases in the average cost of housing. The early judicial decisions concerning this issue identified certain local government zoning practices as a bar to increasing the opportunities for housing for low and moderate income households. A somewhat melded judicial and statutory scheme was created to impel municipalities to eliminate these practices voluntarily. Certain regulatory measures were implemented requiring municipal financial expenditures if certain zoning mechanisms were not embraced. Competing financial concerns for resources, such as new infrastructure and schools, have played a role in the complicated interpretation of the Mount Laurel mandate. This amendment is intended to overturn the Mount Laurel mandate regarding the actual construction of affordable housing units and eliminate the so-called "builder's remedy" lawsuit, while reaffirming the State's commitment to elimination discriminatory zoning practices. The courts could remedy constitutional violations of the prohibition on discriminatory zoning by striking down zoning ordinances, rather than forcing the specific construction of any particular project. | In Committee |
| A2991 | Increases distribution to municipalities from Energy Tax Receipts Property Tax Relief Fund over two years; prohibits anticipation of certain revenue in municipal budget; requires additional aid be subtracted from municipal property tax levy. | This bill requires the distribution of additional State aid to municipalities under the "Energy Tax Receipts Property Tax Relief Act." Budget constraints required reductions in the amount of Consolidated Municipal Property Tax Relief Aid (CMPTRA) distributed to all municipalities in Fiscal Years 2009, 2010, and 2011. Some municipalities also experienced reductions in their Energy Tax Receipts Property Tax Relief Aid (ETR Aid) distribution during that period. This supplemental funding would restore, over a two-year period, approximately $331 million in reductions to CMPTRA and ETR Aid. In Fiscal Year 2023, municipalities would receive an aid increase equal to 50 percent of the difference between the distribution of CMPTRA and ETR Aid they received in Fiscal Year 2008 and Fiscal Year 2012. The fully restored amount would be distributed beginning in Fiscal Year 2024 and in each fiscal year thereafter. The total amount of aid to be restored to each municipality would be in addition to the total amount of CMPTRA and ETR Aid distributed to each municipality in Fiscal Year 2012. This legislation also extends the existing ETR Aid "poison pill" protection to ensure that each municipality received an aid amount not less than the combined payment of CMPTRA and ETR Aid to municipalities in Fiscal Year 2012 and the additional aid distributed under the bill. This bill also amends current law to require a municipality to subtract any additional amount of ETR aid it receives, pursuant to the bill, from its adjusted tax levy when computing that amount for its next fiscal year. By deducting the additional amount of ETR Aid from the previous year's levy, municipalities would be permitted to raise a lower amount of taxes through the levy for municipal purposes. The bill prohibits a municipality from anticipating, for purposes of preparing its annual budget, the receipt of any State aid payment from the ETR aid under the provisions in the bill. The bill also requires a municipality to amend its local budget to properly reflect the total amount distributed to the municipality from the ETR aid. | In Committee |
| A2143 | Eliminates smoking ban exemption for casinos and simulcasting facilities. | This bill amends the "New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act," P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-55 et seq.), to prohibit smoking in casinos and casino simulcasting facilities. Current law prohibits smoking in most indoor public places and workplaces, with certain exceptions, including indoor public places and workplaces which are within the perimeter of casinos and casino simulcasting facilities and accessible to the public for wagering. This bill would eliminate these exceptions from the smoking ban. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health found that casino workers are at greater risk for lung and heart disease because of secondhand smoke, and a study in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine found that the air in casinos can have up to 50 times more cancer-causing particles than the air on rush-hour highways. This bill would protect all workers in New Jersey from the hazards of second hand smoke by requiring that casinos and casino simulcasting facilities be smoke-free workplaces. | In Committee |
| A2488 | The "Liberty State Park Protection Act"; establishes Liberty State Park Advisory Committee and requirements concerning DEP actions related to Liberty State Park. | This bill, to be known as the "Liberty State Park Protection Act," would preserve Liberty State Park as a public urban green open space with authority for limited privatization by establishing certain requirements concerning actions by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) related to Liberty State Park and establishing a Liberty State Park Advisory Committee (committee). The bill would prohibit the DEP from considering any proposal to commercialize, develop, or privatize Liberty State Park, except as provided in the bill. The bill would restrict the DEP from conveying, leasing, or otherwise transferring any property rights within the 235-acre natural restoration area in the interior of Liberty State Park, and at Caven Point Peninsula. The bill would require the DEP, within five years after the bill is enacted into law, and after consultation with the committee, to develop a management plan for Liberty State Park. The DEP would be required to consult the committee for review and recommendations: (1) prior to entering into any agreement for a concession, conveyance, or lease or any other transfer of property rights; and (2) prior to the extension or renewal for a term of one year or longer any lease in effect on the date the bill is enacted into law. In addition, the bill directs the DEP to develop and implement, in conjunction with the committee, a public participation process to allow public citizens and civic organizations to provide public input on any proposed changes in land use at Liberty State Park or to the management plan developed pursuant the bill, and to also, at least once each year, hold a public forum to receive input from the public concerning plans, improvements, preservation, conservation, and management of the park, in addition to any public hearings that may be required pursuant to law. The bill also directs the DEP to develop a map depicting Liberty State Park. Under the bill, the DEP would only approve an agreement for a concession, conveyance, lease, or other agreement with a private entity to provide small-scale commercial activities if the agreement enhances the experience of a visitor to Liberty State Park, such as a bicycle or kayak rental concession, food concession, temporary winter skating rink, commercial boat tour operating from an existing boat slip, and use of the Central Railroad of New Jersey Terminal ("CRRNJ Terminal"), and other uses identified in the management plan developed pursuant to the bill. In addition, whenever the DEP proposes to enter into a concession, lease, or other agreement for a duration of one year or longer, the DEP would be required to present the proposal to the committee for review and recommendations and provide an opportunity for public comment on the proposal, including holding two public hearings at Liberty State Park, with one hearing being held on a weekday evening and one on the weekend, and providing a 30-day public comment period. In addition, the DEP would be required to take these same actions when it intends to convey lands acquired or developed by the State with Green Acres funds, or acquired or developed by the State in any other manner and administered by the department, located within or adjacent to Liberty State Park. The Liberty State Park Advisory Committee established by the bill would be charged with assisting the DEP in conserving, preserving, protecting, and improving Liberty State Park. In carrying out its responsibilities, the committee would give due consideration to the natural, historic, cultural, recreational, and scenic resources and the local, State, and national significance of Liberty State Park. The committee's responsibilities would include: assisting the DEP in developing the management plan required by the bill, and advising the DEP on the ecological restoration of the 235-acre interior portion of the park and means to increase public access and public enjoyment of the natural, historic, cultural, recreational, and scenic resources of the park; reviewing and making recommendations concerning concessions, leases, or other transfer of property rights with a duration of one year or longer; and submitting to the DEP Commissioner any recommendations the committee deems necessary to improve, protect the park. In addition, this bill would amend the "State Park and Forestry Resources Act," P.L.1983, c. 324 (C.13:1L-1 et seq.), which, in part, allows the DEP to enter agreements with private entities for the construction, operation, and maintenance for private profit of any facility, utility, or device in State parks and forests as the DEP finds proper for the use and enjoyment of the lands by the public. This bill would amend the law to reflect the provisions of this bill concerning agreements related to Liberty State Park. Lastly, the bill would amend the "Hackensack Meadowlands Agency Consolidation Act" to delete the provision that provided the commission, i.e., the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, which under current law is also referred to as the "Meadowlands Regional Commission," with certain authority concerning Liberty State Park. | In Committee |
| A874 | Reinstates automatic COLA for retirement benefits of members of the State-administered retirement systems. | This bill reinstates automatic cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) for retirement benefits under the "Pension Adjustment Act," P.L.1958, c.143 (C.43:3B-1 et seq.), for members of the Teachers' Pension and Annuity Fund, the Judicial Retirement System, the Public Employees' Retirement System, the Police and Firemen's Retirement System, and the State Police Retirement System. Provisions contained in P.L.2011, c.78 (C.43:3C-16 et al), signed into law on June 28, 2011, cancelled the automatic, annual adjustment for current and future retirees and beneficiaries of these State-administered retirement systems. COLAs protect retirement benefits against erosion by inflation, the ills of which were addressed by the Legislature, both for the individual and the State, with the enactment of the "Pension Adjustment Act" in 1958. Without the annual adjustment, retirees and beneficiaries will gradually see significant reductions in their purchasing power. The loss of COLAs will impact their everyday lives, and, over time, make it harder to afford more necessary elements of living, such as out-of-pocket medical costs, groceries, and utility bills. Retirees and beneficiaries will find it more prudent, or perhaps necessary, to leave this State for other states with a comparably lower cost of living. For the State, such outbound migration will result in the loss of the economic activity of those retirees and beneficiaries, and any tax revenues concomitant with such activity. In addition, New Jersey's fiscal outlook may be further strained by the retirees and beneficiaries who remain. These persons will continue to slip further downward on the socioeconomic scale. In some cases, they will require, or at the least become eligible and utilize, greater levels of public assistance under the many taxpayer funded social programs administered by the State, counties, and municipalities, requiring more revenues to meet this increased demand. In the interests of the retirees and beneficiaries of the State-administered retirement systems, and the State, this bill reinstates the automatic COLAs for retirement benefits under the "Pension Adjustment Act." | In Committee |
| A1142 | Prohibits harassing or taking of certain wildlife at competitive event; establishes penalties. | This bill prohibits the harassing or taking of certain wildlife (defined as "covered wildlife" in the bill) at a competitive event, except in conjunction with a field trial or field day authorized by a license issued pursuant to R.S.23:4-26. The bill also prohibits any person from organizing, sponsoring, promoting, conducting, or participating in a competitive event at which the participants harass or take covered wildlife except in conjunction with such an authorized field trial or field day. "Covered wildlife" is defined as a bobcat, coyote, crow, fox, mink, opossum, rabbit, raccoon, skunk, squirrel, weasel, woodchuck, or the dead body or parts thereof. The bill provides that a person who violates the prohibitions in the bill would be guilty of a disorderly persons offense and, in addition to the applicable penalties pursuant to Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes, would also have suspended for five years: 1) any license or permit issued to the person by the Division of Fish and Wildlife; and 2) all privileges to take or possess wildlife. A disorderly persons offense is subject to a penalty of up to six months of imprisonment, a fine up to $1,000, or both. This bill requires any covered wildlife injured as a result of a competitive event to be transported to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator or State licensed veterinarian for proper treatment or to be euthanized if necessary. The bill authorizes the Division of Fish and Wildlife to forfeit the remains of any covered wildlife killed at a competitive event held in violation of this bill or euthanized as a result of the competitive event. Forfeited remains would become property of the Division of Fish and Wildlife. The bill directs municipal police officers, the State Police, and law enforcement officers in the Division of Fish and Wildlife and the Division of Parks and Forestry in the Department of Environmental Protection to enforce the bill's provisions. | In Committee |
| A642 | Permits application for PERS accidental disability benefit for injury sustained after January 2003 while employed at State psychiatric institution or correctional facility immediately prior to PERS membership. | This bill allows a member of the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) to apply for accidental disability benefits based upon an injury sustained while employed temporarily at Trenton Psychiatric Hospital, any other State psychiatric institution or any State correctional facility, which injury continues to be disabling after the person becomes a PERS member. Temporary public employees are not eligible for PERS membership until the employment becomes permanent or the passage of one year, whichever occurs first. Currently, persons employed temporarily at any State psychiatric institution or any State correctional facility who are injured while ineligible for PERS membership are eligible for workers compensation benefits only. They are not eligible for PERS accidental disability benefits even after attaining PERS member status because the injury occurred when not a PERS member. The bill provides that, for purposes of application for a PERS accidental disability benefit, a traumatic event (1) occurring during and as a result of the performance of a State employee's regular or assigned duties as, but not limited to, a doctor, nurse, healthcare worker, social worker, or correction officer caring for or guarding individuals who are permanently or temporarily incarcerated for any reason at Trenton Psychiatric Hospital, any other State psychiatric institution or any State correctional facility and (2) occurring when the employee is employed temporarily and not yet eligible for membership in the retirement system will be deemed as occurring during membership, if the employee becomes a member of the retirement system without interruption in that employment. The bill's provisions would apply retroactively to January 1, 2003. In addition, the bill also adds to the duties of the Civil Service Commission a personnel orientation program that informs new employees of State psychiatric institutions and State correctional facilities of the risk of injury occurring during and as a result of the performance of their regular or assigned duties. | In Committee |
| A1118 | Revises gross income tax rates for joint filers and similar taxpayers and designated as Marriage Penalty Elimination Act. | The bill revises the gross income tax rates for joint filers and similar taxpayers and is designated as the Marriage Penalty Elimination Act. As is common with progressive income tax structures, a marriage penalty occurs when married taxpayers, who would have otherwise faced a lower income tax liability by remaining single and filing individual tax returns, face a higher tax liability due to their marital status and filing their taxes jointly. For the sake of tax equity, the bill would amend the tax brackets for those filing jointly to align the tax brackets with those imposed on taxpayers filing individual tax returns. These changes would lower the gross income tax liability of most joint filers. The bill accomplishes eliminating the so-called marriage penalty by making the following changes to the tax brackets of joint filers:· Taxable income up to $40,000 would be taxed at a rate of 1.40 percent. · Taxable income over $40,000 but not over $70,000 would be taxed at a rate of 1.75 percent. The bill would take effect immediately and apply to taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2020. | In Committee |
| A398 | Creates offense of making false child abuse report; permits assessment of penalty. | This bill makes it a crime of the third degree to knowingly or willfully make a false report of child abuse. A crime of the third degree is ordinarily punishable by a term of imprisonment of three to five years, a fine of up to $15,000, or both. Also, the bill permits the assessment of an additional civil penalty of up to $10,000, payable to the State Treasurer for use by the Department of Children and Families. | In Committee |
| A715 | Provides research and development tax credit under gross income tax. | This bill allows taxpayers subject to the New Jersey gross income tax to claim a credit for research and development (R&D) expenses and payments in the same way that taxpayers subject to the corporation business tax may claim the credit. The credit is based on the federal R&D tax credit, and is intended to incentivize R&D spending, which will stimulate technological and economic growth in New Jersey. | In Committee |
| A427 | Requires DEP and owners of certain reservoirs to implement certain flood control measures; authorizes Office of Emergency Management to order lowering of reservoirs levels in response to severe weather events. | This bill would direct the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to identify those reservoirs in the State with a documented record of flooding, as determined by the DEP. For each identified reservoir, the DEP would be directed to study and assess (1) the downstream river or stream capacity and water storage capacity of the reservoir, and (2) the water usage needs of the residents and businesses served by the reservoir. The bill would also require the DEP to adopt rules and regulations necessary for implementation of the bill, including rules and regulations that establish a maximum level for each reservoir based on the results of the studies. Furthermore, the DEP would be required to set the maximum level for each reservoir at a level that best protects the areas surrounding the reservoir against flooding while ensuring an adequate water supply. The bill would also direct the DEP to notify each owner of a reservoir of the adoption of these rules and regulations and require compliance within 90 days after their adoption. The bill would require every owner of a reservoir in the State that has a documented record of downstream flooding, as determined by the DEP, to prepare, submit, and implement a flood action plan approved by the DEP, which would include, but need not be limited to, the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of flood gates sited at the reservoir. The bill would also authorize the Office of Emergency Management in the Division of State Police to order the water level of any reservoir in the State to be lowered in a manner prescribed by the office prior to, or during, a severe weather event if the office has made a determination, after consultation with the DEP, that lowering the reservoir level is in the general public interest and reasonably necessary to prevent or reduce the severity of flooding. The bill would indemnify any owner of a reservoir against any act or omission with respect to any claims or any cause of action arising out of the proper implementation of a flood action plan approved by the DEP under this bill, provided, however, the owner is in full compliance with any order of the Office of Emergency Management to lower reservoir levels, as may be issued pursuant to this bill. | In Committee |
| AR51 | Adopts articles of impeachment concerning Robert Asaro-Angelo, Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development. | This Assembly Resolution adopts articles of impeachment in the matter of Robert Asaro-Angelo, Commissioner of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, and provides for the presentation of articles to the Senate, and impeaches Robert Asaro-Angelo. In light of his record of failing to address the ongoing unemployment crisis in New Jersey, failure to take reasonable measures to expeditiously process and pay unemployment claims and address unemployment, including the failure to open the One-Stop Career Centers to the public for in-person services, violation of the public trust, and his overall failure to perform the duties of his office, it is altogether fitting and proper and within the public interest for the General Assembly to adopt articles of impeachment against Robert Asaro-Angelo, and present the articles to the New Jersey Senate in accordance with New Jersey Constitution, Article VII, Section III, paragraph 2. | In Committee |
| A731 | Criminalizes unlawful occupancy of dwellings. | This bill would criminalize unlawful occupancy of a dwelling, also known as "squatting." Currently, squatting is not a criminal act. In order to lawfully evict a squatter, the owner of the property must apply to the court for a writ of possession. This bill would create three criminal offenses: housebreaking, unlawful occupancy, and unlawful reentry. They would be crimes of the fourth degree. Housebreaking. Under the bill, a person who forcibly enters an uninhabited or vacant dwelling knowing or having reason to believe that such entry is without permission of the owner of the dwelling or an authorized representative of the owner, with the intent to take up residence or provide a residency to another therein, would be guilty of housebreaking. The bill provides that a person is presumed to know that an entry is without the permission of the owner of the dwelling or an authorized representative of the owner unless the person provides a written rental agreement that is notarized or signed by an authorized agent of the owner and includes the current address and telephone number of the owner or the owner's authorized representative. Unlawful Occupancy. The bill provides that a person who takes up residence in an uninhabited or vacant dwelling and knows or has reason to believe that such residency is without permission of the owner of the dwelling or an authorized representative of the owner is guilty of unlawful occupancy. A person is presumed to know that the residency is without the permission of the owner or an authorized representative unless the person provides a written rental agreement that is notarized or signed by an authorized agent of the owner, and includes the current address and telephone number of the owner or the owner's authorized representative. Unlawful Reentry. The bill provides that a person commits unlawful reentry if an owner of real property has recovered possession of the property from the person pursuant to a court order and, without the authority of the court or permission of the owner, the person reenters the property. A crime of the fourth degree is punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to 18 months, a fine of up to $10,000, or both. | In Committee |
| Bill | Bill Name | Motion | Vote Date | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S2167 | Requires public and certain nonpublic schools to comply with breakfast and lunch standards adopted by USDA. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S317 | Revises "Athletic Training Licensure Act." | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S1403 | Requires employer or contractor engaged in work for public body to submit payroll records to DOLWD. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S1320 | Requires certain information be included in certain contracts with licensed public adjusters. | Assembly Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| A775 | "Fairness in Women's Sport Act." | Assembly Floor: Table Motion | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A2929 | Requires disclosure of lead drinking water hazards to tenants of residential units; prohibits landlords from obstructing replacement of lead service lines; concerns testing of certain property for lead drinking water hazards. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A2090 | Requires solid waste management district to develop strategy to reduce food waste; requires DEP to adopt certain rules and regulations regarding composting facilities. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A3099 | Establishes option for students nearing completion of program in chiropractic medicine to participate in preceptorship provided by State-licensed chiropractor. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3361 | Establishes limit on rent increase for certain dwelling sites for modular or industrialized buildings or manufactured homes. | Assembly Floor: Suspend Rule 22:5b | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3361 | Establishes limit on rent increase for certain dwelling sites for modular or industrialized buildings or manufactured homes. | Assembly Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3007 | Increases maximum age for pediatric long-term care facility residents to 26. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3128 | Authorizes HMFA to use certain tax credits; directs HMFA to conduct tax credit auctions to provide financial assistance for certain housing purposes. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3035 | Prohibits certain vehicles from parking in electric vehicle charging spaces under certain circumstances. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A1682 | Requires State Board of Education to adopt New Jersey Student Learning Standards pertaining to labor movement; requires school districts to provide instruction on labor movement. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A1675 | Extends membership in TPAF to 10 years after discontinuance of service and to 15 years for those who were laid off or had 10 or more years of continuous service upon voluntary termination. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A2998 | Permits court to order counseling for children in households with domestic violence in appropriate cases; establishes presumption of award of custody to domestic violence victim in appropriate cases. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A2390 | Requires municipalities in compliance with affordable housing obligations be provided priority consideration for certain State grants and assistance. | Assembly Floor: Table Motion | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A2390 | Requires municipalities in compliance with affordable housing obligations be provided priority consideration for certain State grants and assistance. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| A551 | Permits certain consumers up to five business days to cancel home improvement contracts and up to three days to cancel certain consumer goods contracts. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2335 | Requires school districts to provide instruction on history of Latinos and Hispanics as part of implementation of New Jersey Student Learning Standards. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3518 | Requires MVC to create digital driver's licenses and digital non-driver identification cards. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| AJR128 | Designates August of each year as "American Artist Appreciation Month" in New Jersey. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3742 | Requires Secretary of Agriculture to establish Farm to School Local Food Procurement Reimbursement Grant Program to reimburse school districts for costs expended in sourcing and procuring local foods for students; appropriates $4,500,000. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2783 | "Travel Insurance Act." | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2788 | Appropriates $128.241 million from constitutionally dedicated CBT revenues to State Agriculture Development Committee for farmland preservation purposes. | Assembly Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3802 | Differentiates certain legal services from traditional insurance products. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3974 | Prohibits use of deceptive marketing practices by substance use disorder treatment providers. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3979 | Requires certain providers of substance or alcohol use disorder treatment, services, or supports to be assessed for conflicts of interest prior to receiving State funds, licensure, or certification. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3973 | Revises law concerning patient referrals to substance use disorder treatment facilities, recovery residences, and clinical laboratories. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2961 | Establishes minimum qualifications for persons employed on public works contract. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4085 | Allows for natural organic reduction and controlled supervised decomposition of human remains. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3052 | Concerns grade options at public institutions of higher education for service member and dependents unable to complete course due to military obligation. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3041 | Prohibits cooperative from receiving public works contract when cooperative-approved vendor fails to pay prevailing wage; concerns cooperative purchasing agreements with other states; and permits contracting units to award certain indefinite contracts. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4182 | Concerns conditions of employment of certain cannabis workers. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S3132 | Imposes certain requirements on secondhand dealers of cellular telephones and wireless communication devices. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4215 | Directs BPU to adopt rules and regulations concerning small modular nuclear reactors; authorizes EDA to incentivize construction and operation of such reactors. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4248 | Requires certain documentation as proof of voter identity to vote; updates procedures for challenging voters regarding proof of identity. | Assembly Floor: Table Motion | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A4295 | Establishes New Jersey-India Commission. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4302 | Amends current child labor laws to protect minor working as vlogger in certain circumstances. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3189 | Makes various changes to "New Jersey Angel Investor Tax Credit Act" and Technology Business Tax Certificate Transfer Program; repeals "New Jersey Ignite Act." | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4429 | Expands prohibitions on employers concerning requirements for employees to attend or listen to communications related to political matters. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3309 | Establishes "Motor Vehicle Open Recall Notice and Fair Compensation Act"; revises motor vehicle franchise agreements. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4455 | Allows exemption from New Jersey gross income of certain capital gains from sale or exchange of qualified small business stock. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4479 | Requires social media platforms to cooperate with nonprofit organization initiatives to remove nonconsensual intimate images or videos. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4521 | Concerns provision of services to defendants on pretrial release. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A4544 | Expands eligibility requirements of State's child care assistance program to include full-time graduate and post-graduate students. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3418 | Authorizes certain types of permanent structures, recently constructed or erected on preserved farmland, to be used, in certain cases, for purposes of holding special occasion events thereon. | Assembly Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4577 | Requires State departments and Office of Technology to provide reports on proposed technology upgrades. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4636 | Requires that notice concerning gift card fraud be posted by retail mercantile establishments that sell gift cards to consumers. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A4643 | Creates penalty for child endangerment via use of social media. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4651 | Establishes penalties for certain conduct related to public brawl and disorderly conduct. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4712 | Establishes Office of Veteran Advocate and ombudsman for DMVA; appropriates funds. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4714 | Broadens riot; enhances penalties for certain crimes committed during riot; creates new crimes of mob intimidation and cyber-intimidation by publication; establishes duty in municipality to permit law enforcement to respond appropriately. | Assembly Floor: Table Motion | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A4765 | Requires driver education and testing on responsibilities when approaching and passing pedestrians and persons operating bicycles and personal conveyances; requires driver's manual to include information on sharing roadway with motorists for certain road users. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4818 | Reduces and clarifies requirements for municipal tourist development commission disbursements for advertising. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3618 | Directs DEP and DOT to establish "Wildlife Corridor Action Plan." | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3663 | Establishes reproductive health travel advisory. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S3711 | Makes annual allocation of $500,000 from Clean Communities Program Fund for public outreach concerning single-use plastics reduction program permanent. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3776 | Establishes Chronic Absenteeism Task Force. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3773 | Concerns requirements to report separations from employment under employee leasing agreements. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4937 | Concerns satellite cannabis dispensaries, Cannabis Regulatory Commission membership, and post-employment restrictions on State employees. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| A4937 | Concerns satellite cannabis dispensaries, Cannabis Regulatory Commission membership, and post-employment restrictions on State employees. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| A4971 | Requires EDA to provide grants to certain small businesses affected by State infrastructure and construction projects. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5000 | Requires Medicaid coverage for fertility preservation services in cases of iatrogenic infertility caused by medically necessary treatments. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5004 | Creates separate crime for items depicting sexual exploitation or abuse of children; concerns computer generated or manipulated sexually explicit images. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5049 | Removes certain limitations on receipt of retirement or death benefits under PFRS under certain circumstances. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5077 | Extends statutory pause on collection of student growth objective data. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3910 | Makes various changes to provision of preschool aid and facilities requirements; establishes Universal Preschool Implementation Steering Committee; requires full-day kindergarten in all school districts. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S3933 | Establishes School Supervisor Mentorship Pilot Program; appropriates $500,000. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3944 | Provides that certain non-profit corporation alcoholic beverage theater licensees include disregarded entities of such corporations; allows certain community theaters to sell alcoholic beverages. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5146 | Removes exception to civil service working test period for political subdivision employees. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3982 | Requires certain information be provided to parent at least two business days prior to annual Individualized Education Program (IEP) team meeting; establishes IEP Improvement Working Group in DOE. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3992 | Modifies capital reserve funding requirements for certain planned real estate developments. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5213 | Establishes "New Economy Opportunity Skills System Pilot Program" to strengthen alignment and collaboration between local workforce development boards, community colleges, and county vocational school districts; makes appropriation. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5199 | Requires resident and fellow physicians employed by Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, who are eligible for coverage in SHBP, to be eligible to enroll and receive health insurance on first day of employment. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5195 | Requires producer of certain firefighting equipment containing perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances to provide written notice to purchaser; prohibits sale, manufacture, and distribution of certain firefighting equipment containing intentionally added perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5267 | Requires BPU to procure and incentivize transmission-scale energy storage. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| A5267 | Requires BPU to procure and incentivize transmission-scale energy storage. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5260 | Prohibits sale, manufacture, and distribution of certain apparel containing intentionally added perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| S4122 | Revises apportionment of State lottery contributions. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5277 | Establishes public awareness campaign and call center for certain property tax relief programs; requires submission of annual report by Stay NJ Task Force. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5278 | Establishes "New Jersey Menopause Coverage Act"; requires health insurance coverage of medically necessary perimenopause and menopause treatments. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5309 | Permits up to three credits of continuing medical education on menopause to be used by advanced practice nurses and physicians for license renewal. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| SJR154 | Directs BPU to investigate PJM Interconnection, L.L.C.'s Reliability Pricing Model; directs State to promote affordable energy practices and to urge PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. to implement certain reforms. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5362 | Prohibits casino licensees from using non-wagering casino games to solicit future gaming. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5378 | Modifies provisions of Cultural Arts Incentives Program, New Jersey Aspire Program, and Grow New Jersey Program; eliminates Community-Anchored Development Program. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5383 | Requires unrestricted Medicaid coverage for ovulation enhancing drugs and medical services related to administering such drugs for certain beneficiaries experiencing infertility. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5381 | Provides medical documentation requirement for certain members of PERS, PFRS, and SPRS to receive accidental disability retirement allowance for participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations; removes filing deadline. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5420 | Permits 30-calendar day extension to cure period for certain businesses to address and resolve certain violations. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5421 | Requires development of online tax training for small and micro-businesses. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5422 | Allows businesses to receive information via email concerning new regulations and economic incentives that affect business. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4263 | Revises certain provisions concerning, and establishes certain education and data reporting requirements related to, involuntary commitment. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| AR180 | Urges DEP, Pinelands Commission, and Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council to engage in alternative forest management practices during periods of drought when prescribed burning is unsafe. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5447 | Prohibits sweepstakes model of wagering; establishes new penalties for unlawful gambling operations and practices; directs Division of Consumer Affairs and Division of Gaming Enforcement to enforce penalties. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5462 | Requires electric public utilities to develop and apply special rules for certain data centers to protect non-data center customers from increased costs. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5463 | Requires electric public utilities to submit annual report on voting to BPU. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4293 | Requires owner or operator of data center to submit water and energy usage report to BPU. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5517 | Directs BPU to study feasibility of developing advanced reactors Statewide. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5533 | Establishes requirements for receipt and purchase of scrap metals containing lithium-ion or propulsion batteries. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5563 | Establishes "Summer Termination Program" for certain utility customers. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| State | District | Chamber | Party | Status | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NJ | District 12 | House | Republican | In Office | 01/10/2012 |