Legislator
Legislator > Holly Schepisi
State Senator
Holly Schepisi
(R) - New Jersey
New Jersey Senate District 39
In Office - Started: 03/25/2021
contact info
Montvale Office
28 West Grand Ave.
Suite 15
Montvale, NJ 07645
Suite 15
Montvale, NJ 07645
Phone: 201-666-0881
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| S3812 | Removes certain limitations on receipt of retirement or death benefits under PFRS under certain circumstances. | Removes certain limitations on receipt of retirement or death benefits under PFRS under certain circumstances. | In Committee |
| S1067 | Directs DHS to conduct landscape analysis of available mental health services. | Directs DHS to conduct landscape analysis of available mental health services. | Vetoed |
| S3818 | Requires third-party discounts and payments for individuals covered by health benefits plans to apply to copayments, coinsurance, deductibles, or other out-of-pocket costs for covered benefits. | Requires third-party discounts and payments for individuals covered by health benefits plans to apply to copayments, coinsurance, deductibles, or other out-of-pocket costs for covered benefits. | In Committee |
| S4614 | Allows certain motor vehicle franchisors to sell, lease, or assign vehicles to employees. | Allows certain motor vehicle franchisors to sell, lease, or assign vehicles to employees. | In Committee |
| S4407 | Establishes Next New Jersey Manufacturing Program to incentivize in-State manufacturing investments and job creation. | Establishes Next New Jersey Manufacturing Program to incentivize in-State manufacturing investments and job creation. | In Committee |
| 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. | Passed |
| A5049 | Removes certain limitations on receipt of retirement or death benefits under PFRS under certain circumstances. | Removes certain limitations on receipt of retirement or death benefits under PFRS under certain circumstances. | Passed |
| A5854 | Allows certain motor vehicle franchisors to sell, lease, or assign vehicles to employees. | Allows certain motor vehicle franchisors to sell, lease, or assign vehicles to employees. | Passed |
| A5687 | Establishes Next New Jersey Manufacturing Program to incentivize in-State manufacturing investments and job creation. | Establishes Next New Jersey Manufacturing Program to incentivize in-State manufacturing investments and job creation. | Passed |
| S4570 | Withdraws New Jersey's participation in Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative; repeals "Global Warming Response Act" and related sections of Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative implementing law. | This bill would withdraw New Jersey's involvement in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), repeal the "Global Warming Response Act," and amend various sections of statutory law related to its implementation. The bill would direct the Commissioner of Environmental Protection to issue a Notice of Withdrawal to the RGGI Memorandum of Understanding in order to formally revoke New Jersey's agreement to participate in the RGGI program. This bill would also repeal the "Global Warming Response Act," 26 P.L.2007, c.112 (C.26:2C-37 et al.), and related sections of 27 P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-45 et al.), which is commonly referred to as the RGGI implementing law. The bill would amend various sections of the statutory law in order to remove any references to the acts being repealed. The bill would retain section 13 of the RGGI implementing law, as well as subsections g. and h. of 33 P.L.1999, c.23 (C.48:3-87), which were added to that section of law by the Global Warming Response Act, since these provisions do not relate to the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions, and instead provide only for the discretionary investment, funding, and adoption of energy efficiency and renewable energy programs and standards. The bill would also transfer to the General Fund all of the unencumbered moneys in the "Global Warming Solutions Fund," which was established pursuant to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative implementing law. The funds are to be made available for ratepayer relief. Finally, the bill would amend the laws establishing the State's Forest Stewardship Incentive Fund, the State's Plug-in Electric Vehicle Incentive Fund, and the State's three-year "Electric School Bus Program" (which commenced in 2023), in order to remove the provisions of those laws that previously authorized the use of moneys in the Global Warming Solutions Fund. In addition, the bill would clarify that a developer operating under a redevelopment incentive grant agreement will not be eligible to receive payment, from the State Treasurer, for charges that were paid thereby, prior to this bill's effective date, in compliance with the "Global Warming Response Act." | In Committee |
| S4004 | Revises law on extended employment programs for persons with disabilities. | Revises law on extended employment programs for persons with disabilities. | In Committee |
| S4404 | 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 |
| S664 | Increases amount of cigarette and other tobacco products tax revenues provided to New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research to $10 million; establishes dedicated, non-lapsing Cancer Research Fund. | This bill increases the amount of cigarette and other tobacco products tax revenues provided to the New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research (NJCCR) to $10 million. The bill also establishes a dedicated, non-lapsing Cancer Research Fund within the Department of the Treasury. In doing so, the bill prioritizes funding: 1) to expand the NJCCR's capacity to fund research regarding the causes, prevention, treatment, and palliation of all cancers and to serve as a resource of information to providers and consumers of cancer care and treatment services; and 2) for cancer research grants that reduce and eliminate disparities among the various racial and ethnic populations within the State's minority and vulnerable communities by increasing access to clinical trials and high-quality cancer care and treatment. Pursuant to current statute, the NJCCR annually receives $1 million in cigarette and other tobacco products tax revenues. This money is deposited into an existing lapsing Cancer Research Fund and then appropriated to the commission. In recent years, pursuant to the annual appropriations act, this money has been transferred from the Cancer Research Fund to the General Fund. The appropriations act then provides the NJCCR funding via a budget line. Despite the statutory requirement, in FY 2022, the NJCCR was appropriated $4 million in funding. Under the bill, the existing lapsing Cancer Research Fund is replaced by a non-lapsing, revolving fund. This fund is to be the repository of the $10 million in cigarette and other tobacco products tax revenues deposited into the account under the bill and any other funds approved by the Department of Health or the NJCCR. Moneys deposited in the fund, and any interest earned thereon, are to be used exclusively for providing grants for cancer research projects authorized and approved by the commission, with at least $5 million to be used to fund general cancer research and at least $5 million to be used to fund pediatric cancer research. The State Treasurer will be the custodian of the fund and all disbursements from the fund are to be made by the State Treasurer upon vouchers signed by the chairperson of the NJCCR or the chairperson's designee. The monies in the fund are to be invested and reinvested by the Director of the Division of Investment in the Department of the Treasury in the same manner as other trust funds in the custody of the State Treasurer, in the manner provided by law. Interest received on the monies in the fund are to be credited to the fund. | In Committee |
| SR128 | Urges Congress to exempt unemployment insurance and certain leave benefits from federal taxation. | This Senate Resolution urges Congress to exempt from taxation unemployment insurance benefits, family temporary disability leave benefits, and temporary disability leave benefits. While the State of New Jersey does not tax these benefits, the federal government does tax them. Individuals who are on leave from work due to illness or injury or due to caring for a family member who is injured or ill are not in a position to pay taxes on limited incomes. Likewise, individuals who are out of work due to unemployment are already struggling to make ends meet, and should not be further burdened with the taxation of their unemployment benefits. | In Committee |
| S4331 | Prohibits local government from naming its property after foreign terrorist organization. | This bill prohibits a local government from naming property under its ownership or control, including, but not limited to, a road, bridge, school, building, neighborhood, community, or park, after a group, that has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the federal government, or after land controlled by a foreign terrorist organization, not including recognized, sovereign nations. The bill requires the Division of Local Government Services (division) in the Department of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness (office), to develop and publish a list of designated foreign terrorist organizations and lands controlled by foreign terrorist organizations, not including recognized, sovereign nations. The bill defines a "local government" as a municipality, county, school district, or other political subdivision of the State, or any public board, commission, committee, authority, or agency which is not a State board, commission, committee, authority, or agency. The bill requires a local government to remove or dismantle signs, street pole banners, plaques, or other forms of displays of support for, or the naming of property after, a foreign terrorist organization, under the control or ownership of the local government within 30 days following the bill's enactment. Within 90 days following the bill's effective date, the bill requires a local government that has named property under its control or ownership after a foreign terrorist organization to rename the property so that it does not identify the name of as a foreign terrorist organization. The bill requires the State to reimburse local governments for both of these costs, upon application. If a local government violates the provisions of the bill, the State Treasurer, for each day in which the local government is in violation of the bill, is directed to deduct a portion of the total amount of State aid allocated to the local government. The daily deduction is to be in an amount equal to the result of dividing the total amount of State aid allocated to the local government by the total number of days in the fiscal year in which the State aid is allocated. The bill provides that the division, in consultation with the office, is to adopt rules and regulations necessary to implement the provisions of the bill. | In Committee |
| S2818 | "Fentanyl and Xylazine Poisoning Awareness Act"; requires school districts to provide instruction on dangers of fentanyl and xylazine. | "Fentanyl and Xylazine Poisoning Awareness Act"; requires school districts to provide instruction on dangers of fentanyl and xylazine. | In Committee |
| S4378 | Authorizes local governments to provide voluntary contributions to certain nonprofit veterans' organizations. | Authorizes local governments to provide voluntary contributions to certain nonprofit veterans' organizations. | In Committee |
| S4337 | Permits individuals to establish voluntary nonopioid directives. | This bill permits individuals to establish voluntary nonopioid directives. Under the bill, an individual who is 18 years of age or older, an emancipated minor, or a patient's authorized representative, as this term is defined in the bill, may execute a voluntary nonopioid directive stating that an opioid may not be administered or prescribed to the individual. A voluntary nonopioid directive is to be made on a form that is to be developed by the Department of Health and published on the department's Internet website. Nothing in the bill is to prevent an opioid from being prescribed to a patient if deemed medically necessary. A health care professional, a health care facility, or an employee of a health care professional or health care facility is to be immune from disciplinary action by the Department of Health or a licensing agency or board for any act that was done to comply with the bill's provisions. Further, a health care professional, a health care facility, or an employee of a health care professional or health care facility is to be immune from any civil or criminal liability for failure to administer, prescribe, or dispense an opioid, and for inadvertent administration of an opioid, to an individual who has a voluntary nonopioid directive, if the act or the failure was reasonable and done in good faith. | In Committee |
| 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 |
| S4278 | Makes various revisions to law pertaining to electronic medical records and recording certain minor patients' demographic information. | This bill revises certain laws pertaining to electronic medical records and the recording of patients' demographic information. It is the sponsor's intent that this bill will prohibit general acute care hospitals and clinical laboratories from collecting, or requesting to collect, data concerning sexual orientation or gender identity from minor patients, unless the minor patient's parent or guardian voluntarily provides such information. If such information is voluntarily provided by a parent or guardian, the provisions of the bill should not be construed as prohibiting a health care provider from discussing and recording the information, as necessary for the provision of health care services. Specifically, this bill provides that a general acute care hospital or clinical laboratory will not collect, or request to collect, data concerning patient sexual orientation or gender identity for a patient who is a minor under the age of 18, unless the patient or patient's parent or guardian voluntarily provides the data. The bill also revises current law concerning electronic medical records or laboratory information management systems to provide that, in the case of a minor patient under the age of 18, certain electronic medical records or laboratory information management systems will be configured in a manner that does not require a selection for the patient's gender identity and sexual orientation in order to save or store the patient's demographic information. Under current law, a clinical laboratory is required to electronically record the race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity of each patient who presents with a non-electronic order for testing at a clinical laboratory patient service center. Current law also requires that certain electronic medical records or laboratory information management systems used by acute care hospitals and licensed clinical laboratories are to be configured in a manner that prevents an authorized user from saving or storing a patient's demographic information into the electronic medical records or laboratory information management systems unless a selection for a patient's gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic information is recorded. | In Committee |
| S908 | Requires portable anti-choking devices be placed in schools. | This bill would require public and nonpublic schools to ensure that at least one portable anti-choking device is made available in the cafeteria, school nurse's office, and any other similar location. The devices would be placed in an unlocked and easily accessible location during the school day and at any other time when a school-sponsored event is taking place. The locations of each portable anti-choking device shall have an appropriate identifying sign. A portable anti-choking device is a device that uses manually created suction to remove blockage from a person's airway during a choking emergency. These devices may only be used in schools provided they have been registered with the United States Food and Drug Administration. Each board of education and the governing board or chief administrator of a nonpublic school would be required to develop policies for the use of anti-choking devices by school nurses and school employees. The policies would include a requirement that all school nurses and school employees receive training in airway management and in the removal of any obstructions from the airway using a portable anti-choking device. The Commissioner of Education would ensure that annual educational opportunities are made available for school nurses and employees of both public and nonpublic schools regarding airway management and the use of portable anti-choking devices. The Department of Education would reimburse public and nonpublic schools for the costs incurred to implement the provisions of this bill. | In Committee |
| S2116 | Provides that organ donor designation on driver's license or identification card remains upon renewal of license or card under certain circumstances. | Provides that organ donor designation on driver's license or identification card remains upon renewal of license or card under certain circumstances. | In Committee |
| S165 | Expands definition of child under PFRS and SPRS. | This bill expands the definition of a child under the PFRS and SPRS to include the child of a deceased member that is under the age of 24 and that is enrolled in a degree program in an institution of higher education for at least 12 credit hours in each semester. Under current law, a person is considered a child under the PFRS and SPRS if the person is: (1) under the age of 18; (2) 18 years of age or older and enrolled in a secondary school; (3) under the age of 24 and enrolled in a degree program in an institution of higher education for at least 12 credit hours in each semester, provided that the member died in active service as a result of an accident met in the actual performance of duty at some definite time and place, and the death was not the result of the member's willful misconduct; or (4) any age who, at the time of the member's or retirant's death, is disabled because of an intellectual disability or physical incapacity, is unable to do any substantial, gainful work because of the impairment and the impairment has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months, as affirmed by the medical board. This bill would remove the requirement that if the child is under the age of 24 and enrolled in an institution of higher education, the child must be the survivor of a member who died in the line of duty to be considered a child under the PFRS or SPRS. This bill would permit any child of a deceased member that is under the age of 24 and that is enrolled in a degree program in an institution of higher education for at least 12 credit hours in each semester to be considered a child regardless if the member died in the line of duty or not. | In Committee |
| S3873 | Requires NJ FamilyCare payment for multiple medical encounters per day for enrollee at federally qualified health center. | This bill provides for NJ FamilyCare reimbursement for multiple medical encounters with federally qualified health center (FQHC) specialists on a single day for an enrollee, provided: 1. the referring provider documents the reason for referring the patient to each specialty provider; 2. each of the enrollee's medical encounters is with different specialty provider; and 3. NJ FamilyCare reimbursement for multiple medical encounters per day at a FQHC does not violate federal statute. The bill defines a "federally qualified health center" as a community-based health care provider that delivers integrated primary care services in medically underserved areas, and meets the criteria established under section 1905(l)(2)(B) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. s.1396(d)). The bill defines a "specialty provider" as a licensed physician who: (1) is a diplomate of a specialty board approved by the American Board of Medical Specialties or the Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists of the American Osteopathic Association (AOA); (2) is a fellow of the appropriate American specialty college or a member of an osteopathic specialty college; (3) is currently admissible to take the examination administered by a specialty board approved by the American Board of Medical Specialties or the Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists of the AOA, or has evidence of completion of an appropriate qualifying residency approved by the American Medical Association or the AOA; (4) holds an active staff appointment with specialty privileges in a hospital which is licensed pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.) and which is approved for training in the specialty in which the physician has privileges; or (5) is recognized in the community as a specialist by his or her peers. Nothing in this bill should be construed to authorize the Commissioner of Human Services to waive or limit any provisions of federal statute or any other State reimbursement methodologies governing NJ FamilyCare reimbursement to federally qualified health centers. State regulations, found at N.J.A.C.10:66-4.1, generally limit NJ FamilyCare coverage for medical encounters at a FQHC to one encounter per NJ FamilyCare beneficiary per day. Additional encounters in a given day are covered if: 1. the NJ FamilyCare enrollee is seen by more than one provider for the prevention, diagnosis, or treatment of different illnesses or injuries; or 2. the enrollee leaves the FQHC following an encounter with one practitioner, and subsequently returns to the FQHC and is seen by another practitioner on the same day. Under N.J.A.C.10:66-4.1, if an NJ FamilyCare enrollee has more than two medical encounters at a FQHC in a given week, the FQHC must document the medical necessity of the encounters in the enrollee's medical record. | In Committee |
| S4251 | Establishes procedure for removal of health care facility from provider network and certain circumstances to allow for special enrollment period. | This bill establishes certain procedures that are required to be followed if a carrier removes a health care facility network from its provider network or a health care facility network leaves a carrier's provider network. Prior to any removal or departure, a carrier or a health care facility network is to provide electronic notice of the potential removal or departure to the other party and electronic notice to the Department of Banking and Insurance, as prescribed by the department. The carrier is to require continued coverage of claims provided by the health care facility network for a period of no less than 15 business days after the notice of potential removal has been sent to the health care facility network and the department. During the 15-business day period of continued coverage, the carrier and the health care facility network are required to negotiate in good faith to come to an agreement. Notice to subscribers and patients residing in the county or counties where a health care facility network is located is to be issued on the first day of the 15 business day period to disclose that: (1) the negotiation is taking place; and (2) the potential impact if a negotiation fails. Conspicuous notice of the potential removal is to also be displayed on each party's Internet website and applications used by their respective subscribers and patients. Upon conclusion of the 15-business day period, if negotiations to reach an agreement between a carrier and health care facility network have failed, a special enrollment period of 30 days is to open to individuals who 1) belong to a small employer health benefits plan or an individual health benefits plan and 2) are residing in the county or counties where a health care facility network is located. The carrier is to provide coverage of claims provided by the health care facility network for the entirety of the special enrollment. The special enrollment period is to allow a policyholder of a small employer health benefits plan or an insured of an individual health benefits plan to select a new health benefits plan, including, but not limited to, through enrollment in the State-based exchange or in an employer-based plan of a spouse. Upon conclusion of the 15-day period of continued coverage, if the carrier and the health care facility network have not reached an agreement for the health care facility network to remain in the carrier network, the carrier is to provide coverage of claims provided by the health care facility network as an out-of-network charge with the insured party only responsible for payment of any portion of claims provided by the health care facility network in the same manner as provided for prior to the removal of the health care facility network from the carrier's network. The carrier network is responsible for the remaining charges until: (1) the next open enrollment period for that carrier; or (2) the carrier and the health care facility network reach a new agreement for the health care facility network to remain in the carrier network. | In Committee |
| S4236 | Establishes "Students with Communication Disabilities' Bill of Rights." | This bill creates the "Students with Communication Disabilities' Bill of Rights," which requires school districts to recognize the rights of students with communication disabilities. Title II of the "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990" requires schools to provide appropriate auxiliary aids and services to ensure effective communication for students who have a communication disability, which may include hearing, vision, or speech impairments. These aids and services are required to be tailored to the specific nature, length, complexity, and context of the communication, taking into account the student's preferred communication methods. For many students with communication disabilities, an assistant trained in a student's primary and preferred method of communication is vital for assistance in using alternative means of communication such as gestures; augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems, communication boards, speech-generating devices, symbol cards, bands, or devices; letter boards; American Sign Language; and typing or pointing to letters to communicate. Denial of a student's primary and preferred method of communication inhibits a student's access to a free and appropriate education a student's opportunity to fully participate in the State's public schools. Specifically, this bill requires school districts to provide students with communication disabilities or the students' parent or guardians with:· access to appropriate screening and assessment of communication and language needs at the earliest possible age and the continuation of screening and evaluation services throughout the educational experience; · individualized and appropriate early intervention to support effective communication at the earliest possible age;· direct instruction;· a trained assistant in the student's primary and preferred method of communication;· individual considerations for free, appropriate education across a continuum of options required by State and federal law;· a communication plan focusing on the student's primary and preferred method of communication in the student's Individualized Education Program and 504 plan;· full support services provided by trained assistants in their educational settings using the student's primary and preferred method of communication. The Department of Education through the coordinator for educational programs is to work with school districts to ensure technical assistance is available to support boards of education in meeting the needs of students with communication disabilities;· full access to all programs in their educational settings, including extracurricular activities, recess, lunch, media showings, driver education, and public announcements; and · information from trained assistants on the linguistic issues of individuals with communication disabilities. The bill should not be construed to give any greater rights or protections than found under State or federal law. | In Committee |
| S843 | Requires Adjutant General of DMVA create program for veterans to receive evaluation and treatment for PTSD, total brain injury, or traumatic brain injury. | This bill requires the Adjutant General of the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to develop, in coordination with appropriate departments and agencies, a program to assist veterans in accessing evaluation and treatment for a post-traumatic stress disorder, total brain injury, or traumatic brain injury diagnosis related to military service. The program may include offering support and guidance, transportation, assistance filing disability compensation claims, assistance updating discharge status, health care and other services or programs available at the local, State and federal level for obtaining and addressing a post-traumatic stress disorder, total brain injury, or traumatic brain injury diagnosis. Under the bill, "veteran" means a person who served in the Armed Forces of the United States or a Reserve component thereof, including the New Jersey National Guard. | In Committee |
| S4161 | Prohibits release of certain substances into atmosphere for purposes of geoengineering. | This bill would prohibit persons, including private and public entities, from releasing a hazardous chemical or other hazardous physical agent into the atmosphere for the purposes of geoengineering. A person who violates this prohibition would be liable to a civil administrative penalty of up to $10,000 for a first offense, under the bill. As defined in the bill: "geoengineering" means the intentional manipulation of the environment, through use of a chemical or other physical agent, which is effectuated with the intention of bringing about changes to Earth's atmospheric or surface conditions, including weather modification, aerosol injection, chaff dispersal, or cloud seeding activities; and "hazardous" means that a chemical or other physical agent is naturally harmful to living organisms, to property, or to another interest of value. The bill would also require the Commissioner of Environmental Protection to send a notice to an appropriate representative of the federal government, if a federal entity engages in the geoengineering activities prohibited by the bill in or over New Jersey. In addition, the bill would require the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to establish a program to encourage members of the public to monitor and report geoengineering activities that violate the bill's provisions. Finally, the bill would require the DEP to enforce the bill's provisions, and to adopt rules and regulations to implement the bill's provisions no later than 18 months after the bill's enactment. | In Committee |
| S4108 | Requires appointment of State Dementia Services Coordinator; appropriates $150,000. | This bill requires the Commissioner of Human Services to appoint a State Dementia Services Coordinator. The State coordinator is to be qualified by training and experience to perform the duties of the position. The duties of the State coordinator is to include: 1) developing and coordinating the implementation of a master plan to address the impact of Alzheimer's disease and related disorders or other forms of dementia; 2) coordinating with existing State programs, services, facilities, and agencies that provide services and other assistance to persons with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders or other forms of dementia; 3) developing procedures to facilitate communication, collaboration, coordination, and information sharing between, and prevent the duplication of dementia care services provided by, State departments, offices, divisions, agencies, and community-based organizations; 4) identifying service gaps in the provision of appropriate dementia care services and other assistance by State departments, offices, divisions, agencies, and community-based organizations; and 5) increasing awareness of, and facilitating access to quality, coordinated treatment and dementia care for persons with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders or other forms of dementia. The appointed State Dementia Services Coordinator: is authorized to call upon any department, office, division, or agency of the State to supply the coordinator with data and any other information necessary to discharge the coordinator's duties; and may consult with experts or other knowledgeable individuals in the public or private sector on any aspect of the coordinator's mission. The provisions of the bill also require each department, office, division, or agency to cooperate fully with, and provide assistance to, the coordinator to perform the coordinator's duties. The bill appropriates $150,000 from the General Fund to the Department of Human Services to effectuate the purposes of the bill. | In Committee |
| S4065 | Adjusts method of determining regional need for affordable housing; permits timeline extension for municipalities to determine and plan for adjusted fair share obligations based on revisions to regional need. | This bill adjusts the method, as established in P.L.2024, c.2 (C.52:27D-304.1 et al.), for determining the regional need for affordable housing, and permits timeline extensions for municipalities to determine and plan for adjusted fair share obligations based on the revisions to the regional need. The "prospective need" methodology that has been established for the fourth round and all future rounds of affordable housing obligations, through the enactment of P.L.2024, c.2 (C.52:27D-304.1 et al.), does not appear to result in realistic regional and municipal affordable housing obligations, but in excessive and unrealistic obligations. This bill changes the methodology for determining regional need to base the calculation on objective housing market data that can be clearly understood and easily quantified. The bill directs the Department of Community Affairs (department) to determine the prospective need for a region's 10-year round of low- and moderate-income housing obligations by ascertaining the number of certified residential housing units, as determined by the data assembled by the department, for new residential units in the region, excluding new residential units that replace demolished residential units, between the most recent federal decennial census and the second-most recent federal decennial census. The bill directs the department to divide that number by five, the quotient of which is to constitute the number of low- and moderate-income homes that can realistically be provided through inclusionary zoning in the region for the 10-year round. This figure is to represent the regional need for each of the six regions of the State. In addition to recalculating regional need, the bill directs the Commissioner of Community Affairs to revise the estimates of a municipality's prospective fair share obligation of the regional prospective need for the upcoming 10-year round, based on the changes to the regional need determinations. The bill directs that all municipalities that have already committed to a fair share obligation at the time of the enactment of the bill are to have their obligations adjusted to the fair share obligation established by the department, in accordance with the standards set forth in the bill, for determining the prospective regional need. A municipality is to be provided with 90 days from the receipt of revised fair share obligation estimates from the department, to file amended housing element and fair share plans addressing the adjusted obligation number. The bill authorizes the department to comply with the requirements of the bill as soon as possible, notwithstanding the provisions of the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.). The bill permits the department to revise the deadlines for municipal compliance with the fourth round requirements, as necessary, considering the bill's adjustments to the date of the publication of regional need. The bill also repeals and replaces the findings section of the "Fair Housing Act," (FHA) P.L.1985, c.222 (C.52:27D-301 et al.). The bill takes effect immediately. | In Committee |
| S720 | Requires DCPP to consult with Division of Developmental Disabilities following finding of child abuse or neglect to create services plan for person with developmental disability under certain circumstances. | An Act concerning the Division of Child Protection and Permanency and amending P.L.1974, c.119. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| S2099 | Authorizes establishment of regional economic development partnerships. | This bill authorizes local governmental entities to enter into regional economic development partnerships for the purpose of engaging in joint regional economic planning and formulating an economic development or redevelopment strategy. Under the bill, regional economic development partnerships could include any combination of county governments, municipal governments, agencies or instrumentalities thereof, and public or private economic development organization. A regional economic development partnership may also include businesses, business organizations, educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, and other entities located within the region. | In Committee |
| A5152 | Reschedules June 2025 primary election date; provides for adjustment of certain election related deadlines. | An Act concerning the date of the June 2025 primary election and adjustment of certain election related deadlines. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| S3965 | Reschedules June 2025 primary election date; provides for adjustment of certain election related deadlines. | Reschedules June 2025 primary election date; provides for adjustment of certain election related deadlines. | In Committee |
| S3947 | Provides for voluntary contributions for taxpayers on gross income tax returns to support nonprofit organizations providing pro-life information and services. | This bill establishes the "New Jersey Access to Pro-Life Information and Services Fund" through a designation on the State gross income tax return. This designation would permit taxpayers to make voluntary contributions to support nonprofit organizations providing pro-life information and services in this State. The State would be required to annually appropriate the amounts deposited into the "New Jersey Access to Pro-Life Information and Services Fund" to the Department of Health to be used exclusively for the awarding of grants, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services and the Commissioner of Children and Families, to nonprofit organizations whose mission and operations are dedicated to providing pro-life information and services in the State. The bill defines "pro-life information and services" to mean educational, counseling, or referral services relating to pregnancy, childbirth, and alternatives to abortion including, but not limited to, programs and services available in this State to support children and families, adoption, and foster care. | In Committee |
| S900 | Exempts poll workers wages from affecting unemployment compensation. | Exempts poll workers wages from affecting unemployment compensation. | In Committee |
| S3852 | 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 |
| A4447 | Allows certain health care practitioners referrals to pharmacies to be made in accordance with certain professional standards. | An Act concerning health care practitioner referrals and amending P.L.1989, c.19. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| S3841 | Increases threshold for imposition of certain fees and taxes on certain real property transfers from $1 million to $1.5 million, subject to annual adjustment based on Consumer Price Index. | This bill raises the imposition threshold from $1 million to $1.5 million for the one percent "Mansion Tax" on real property transfers, with future adjustments tied to inflation. Currently, an additional one percent fee is applied to various types of property transactions, including residential, commercial, certain farm properties, and cooperative units, if the sale price exceeds $1 million. There is also a tax on transfers of controlling interests in entities that own commercial property, with this tax applying when the property's value exceeds $1 million as well. This bill increases the threshold for both the additional fee and the controlling interest transfer tax from $1 million to $1.5 million, beginning 30 days after the date of enactment of the bill. Beginning on the July 1 of each subsequent year, the bill provides for the annual adjustment to this threshold amount based on the percent change in the Consumer Price Index over the 12-month period, beginning April 1 and ending March 31, immediately preceding the period in which the adjustment would apply. Under the bill, the Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury would be required to determine and publish the amount of the adjustment, together with the threshold amount for the imposition of tax, by no later than May 1 of each year the threshold will be adjusted annually based on inflation, using the Consumer Price Index to reflect the rising costs of living. The Director of the Division of Taxation will be responsible for determining and publishing the new threshold by May 1 each year. Specifically, the bill defines the "Consumer Price Index" as the average of the annual increase, expressed as a percentage, in the consumer price index for all urban consumers in the New York City and Philadelphia metropolitan statistical areas, as reported by the United States Department of Labor. | In Committee |
| S3257 | Allows law enforcement agencies to distribute epinephrine to officers; requires training. | Allows law enforcement agencies to distribute epinephrine to officers; requires training. | In Committee |
| SR115 | Commemorates anniversary of October 7th attack on Israel. | On October 7, 2023, just after the 50th anniversary of the start of the multi-front 1973 Yom Kippur War against Israel, the terrorist organization Hamas carried out a brutal attack against the Jewish people and the State of Israel. The attack began in the early morning when Hamas launched thousands of rockets from the Gaza Strip that reached as far as Tel Aviv and the outskirts of Jerusalem, and then infiltrated Israeli towns and army bases in the south, including a gathering of young people at a music festival. The armed terrorists launched a coordinated strike arriving in boats, paragliders, motorcycles, and other vehicles. News reports, survivor accounts, images, and videos from the scenes of this horrific attack show that Hamas terrorists slaughtered ordinary civilians and entire families, including babies and elderly people, set houses on fire, raped women, and took hostages. In the immediate aftermath of the attack, 1,200 people were confirmed dead in Israel, including American citizens, and another 3,400 were injured. The October 7th attack was one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in modern history, resulting in more Jews killed that day than on any single day since the Holocaust. On October 7th, Hamas took 251 men, women, and children hostage from Israel into Gaza, including American citizens, and kept them in inhumane and torturous conditions, including in cramped underground tunnels, since their kidnapping. One of the American hostages taken into captivity by Hamas, Edan Alexander, is a resident of Tenafly, New Jersey, and is still being held in captivity. Hamas has executed many of these hostages, including six individuals who were shot at close range on August 29, 2024 as Israeli Defense Forces approached their location. Israeli authorities believe that 101 of the hostages who were kidnapped on October 7th remain in captivity, and it is believed that only 64 individuals remain alive. The October 7th terror attack prompted a defensive war against Hamas by the Israeli Defense Forces. Many thousands of innocent Palestinian civilians have been wounded and killed by Israeli strikes targeting Hamas leaders, militants, and command and control positions. A large percentage of Palestinian civilians have been displaced and are now living in makeshift shelters with limited access to food, clean water, and medical care. The suffering and death which has occurred as a result of the October 7th attacks are tragic and horrific. It is therefore fitting and proper for New Jersey to commemorate the anniversary of the October 7th attack by Hamas against Israel, to mourn the lives that were lost as a result, condemn any and all acts of terrorism, stand in solidarity with the people of Israel and the Palestinian people, call for the release of all hostages, and support efforts seeking a peaceful resolution to the conflict. | In Committee |
| S3782 | Establishes affirmative defense to prosecution for any crime committed by victim of human trafficking under certain circumstances. | This bill establishes an affirmative defense to prosecution for crimes committed by a victim of human trafficking under certain circumstances. Under current law, it is a defense to a prosecution for the following crimes if the perpetrator of the offense is a victim of human trafficking: human trafficking; providing services, resources, or assistance with the knowledge that the services, resources, or assistance are intended to be used in furtherance of the commission of the crime of human trafficking; and prostitution and related offenses. This bill establishes an affirmative defense for human trafficking victims charged with any offense enumerated in Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes if: (1) during the time of the alleged commission of the offense, the defendant was a victim of human trafficking; and (2) the crime was committed as a direct result of the human trafficking offense that was committed against the defendant. The bill further provides that a defendant who was a victim of human trafficking, may assert an affirmative defense under the bill even if there is the lack of a conviction for the underlying human trafficking offense committed against the defendant as a victim. | In Committee |
| S3790 | Requires certain employees and candidates for public school employment or service and youth camp employees to undergo child abuse record information check. | This bill requires certain public school employees, employees of contracted service providers, school bus drivers, and candidates for those positions to undergo a child abuse record information check. Under the bill, candidates for employment with a school district and employees of a contracted service provider, including school bus drivers, who are required by current law to undergo a criminal history record check also will be required to undergo a child abuse record information check. The bill provides for the check to be conducted by the Department of Children and Families, which maintains the State's child abuse registry pursuant to section 4 of P.L.1971, c.437 (C.9:6-8.11). The bill requires the candidate for employment or service to provide prior written consent for the check and to pay for the cost of the check. In the case of a school bus driver, the check will be required prior to initial employment and upon application for renewal of a school bus driver's license. If the department determines upon a search of its child abuse registry that an allegation of child abuse or neglect has been substantiated against the candidate, the bill provides that the candidate will be permanently disqualified from employment or service with a school district. In the case of a school bus driver, the individual also will be ineligible to operate a school bus. In addition, the bill requires child abuse record information checks for employees of a school district or a contracted service provider who are already employed on the effective date of the bill in positions that require a criminal history record check as a condition of employment. The bill requires the department to establish a schedule for conducting the checks of current employees and to complete the checks within five years of the bill's effective date. If the department determines upon a search of its child abuse registry that an allegation of child abuse or neglect has been substantiated against a current employee, the bill provides that the employee will not be eligible for continued employment, and will be permanently disqualified from employment or service with a school district. The bill also requires youth camp employees and candidates for employment with a youth camp to undergo a child abuse record information check conducted by the Department of Children and Families. The youth camp employee or candidate is required to provide prior written consent for the check and pay for the cost of the check. If the department determines upon a search of its child abuse registry that an allegation of child abuse or neglect has been substantiated against the employee or candidate, the individual will be permanently disqualified from employment with a youth camp. The bill requires the Commissioner of Children and Families to adopt regulations necessary to implement the bill, and provides for the immediate filing of those regulations with the Office of Administrative Law, effective for a period not to exceed one year. The bill takes effect immediately upon enactment. | In Committee |
| S3718 | Permits Secretary of Higher Education to appoint antisemitism monitor to any institution of higher education; requires institution to implement recommendations of antisemitism monitor. | This bill authorizes the Secretary of Higher Education to appoint, at the secretary's discretion, an antisemitism monitor to any institution of higher education in the State. Under the bill, the responsibilities of the antisemitism monitor include: (1) reviewing institution policies related to combatting antisemitism and protecting Jewish students and staff, and how those policies are implemented and enforced; (2) reviewing the efforts of the institution in developing a safe academic environment for Jewish students and staff; and (3) establishing a procedure for members of the campus community to report an incident of antisemitism, including information, as applicable, on the institution's response to the incident. The monitor is to permit the submission of anonymous reports. The bill directs an antisemitism monitor to issue quarterly progress reports to the secretary and the governing board of the institution, or on a schedule determined by the secretary. The progress report shall detail the monitor's findings and include: (1) recommendations to the institution; and (2) recommendations to the Legislature. The bill also requires the institution to implement the recommendations of the antisemitism monitor. The bill directs the salary of an antisemitism monitor to be fixed by the secretary and paid by the institution. The bill requires an institution of higher education to provide the support and access to the monitor as may be necessary for the monitor to fulfill the responsibilities of the position. Under the bill, the failure of an institution to comply with the bill's provisions may, at the recommendation of the secretary, result in: (a) a reduction or total withdrawal of State support for operational and capital costs of the institution; or (b) the loss of eligibility for students enrolled at the institution in student assistance programs administered by the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority. | In Committee |
| S3712 | Requires DOH to conduct survey on status of antenatal and prenatal care clinics in New Jersey. | This bill requires the Commissioner of Health to conduct a survey and analysis of antenatal and prenatal care clinics for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of maternity, antenatal, and prenatal care services throughout the State. The survey includes data collected from all antenatal and prenatal care clinics in the State, including antenatal and prenatal care clinics that have closed or substantially ceased operation of any of their beds, facilities, or services, within a two-year period prior to the effective date of the bill. As used in the bill, "antenatal and prenatal care clinic" means an inpatient or ambulatory health care facility licensed by the Department of Health that provides maternity, antenatal, and prenatal care services. The purpose of the survey is to: inform policy on the certificate of need requirements as provided by P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.) concerning the closure or discontinuance of all, or a component of, antenatal and prenatal care clinics' services; assess the availability of antenatal and prenatal care clinics and their ability to provide maternity, antenatal, and prenatal care services; identify facilities where low and moderate income pregnant women receive maternity, antenatal, and prenatal care services; and collect cultural, demographic, and socioeconomic background data about the pregnant women served by antenatal and prenatal care clinics. The collected survey data are to be analyzed to: identify local and Statewide trends and developments in the provision of maternity, antenatal, and prenatal care services and disparities in the care received by pregnant women based on economic factors and the accessibility of antenatal and prenatal care clinics; and develop programs, resources, and strategies to improve access to, and the quality of, maternity, antenatal, and prenatal care services throughout the State. Survey data are to be made available through the Department of Health's website, and the commissioner is to submit a report to the Legislature concerning the results of the survey and any recommendations for legislation or other action. The bill specifies that published and reported data are not to include any personal identifying information or confidential patient information. The bill authorizes the commissioner to contract with a third party entity to administer the survey, review survey data, and produce the required report. This bill was pre-filed for introduction in the 2024-2025 session pending technical review. As reported, the bill includes the changes required by technical review, which has been performed. | In Committee |
| S2283 | "Psilocybin Behavioral Health Access and Services Act"; authorizes production and use of psilocybin to promote health and wellness. | "Psilocybin Behavioral Health Access and Services Act"; authorizes production and use of psilocybin to promote health and wellness. | In Committee |
| S3242 | Allows certain health care practitioners referrals to pharmacies to be made in accordance with certain professional standards. | Allows certain health care practitioners referrals to pharmacies to be made in accordance with certain professional standards. | In Committee |
| S3501 | Requires certain public awareness campaigns to include information about duty of motorist to take certain action when approaching pedestrian, bicycle, or personal conveyance. | This bill requires the Commissioner of Transportation (commissioner) and the Director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety (director) to update, on an annual basis, public awareness programs and a public awareness campaign that inform motorists of their duty to take certain actions when approaching certain vehicles and the importance of taking these actions. The bill also requires the commissioner to use variable message signs at least once per year to inform motorists of their duty to take certain actions when approaching certain vehicles and the importance of taking these actions. Additionally, this bill requires the commissioner to develop, and update annually, public awareness programs and use, at least once per year, variable message signs to inform motorists of their duty to take certain actions when approaching a pedestrian, bicycle, or personal conveyance. The bill further requires the director to establish and update annually a public awareness campaign that includes information about the importance of complying with a law that requires motorists to take certain actions when approaching a pedestrian, bicycle, or personal conveyance, the risks associated with failing to comply with the law, and the penalties and fines that will be imposed for violating the law. | In Committee |
| S3567 | Provides access to periodic cancer screening examinations for volunteer firefighters through SHBP physicians and other providers. | This bill requires access to periodic cancer screening examinations for volunteer firefighters serving in fire district of this State, or a fire department, unit, or company of or in this State or a political subdivision of this State, without cost-sharing. Under the bill, physicians who participate in the State Health Benefits Program network will be required to offer these periodic examinations to volunteer firefighters and then a physician or other provider may request payment from the State for the provision of services not to exceed $1,250 in the aggregate per three-year period for each firefighter. According to the bill, fire district of this State, or a fire department, unit or company of or in this State or a political subdivision of this State, which relies on services from volunteer firefighters must maintain adequate records to facilitate the payment. Current law entitles paid firefighters enrolled in the State Health Benefits Program and paid firefighters eligible for enrollment in the State Health Benefits Program to periodic cancer screening examinations every three years without cost-sharing. By law, the State will reimburse public employers in an amount not to exceed $1,250 per three-year period for each firefighter. This bill extends the reimbursement provisions available to paid firefighters under current law to unpaid firefighters serving in any fire district with a volunteer fire department or wherein there exists one or more incorporated volunteer fire companies affording fire protection to the fire district, or any fire department, unit, or company of or in the State or a political subdivision of this State. | In Committee |
| S3384 | Appropriates funds to DEP for environmental infrastructure projects for FY2025. | An Act appropriating moneys to the Department of Environmental Protection for the purpose of making zero-interest loans or principal-forgiveness loans to project sponsors to finance a portion of the costs of environmental infrastructure projects. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| S1292 | Establishes State definition of anti-Semitism; creates a public awareness campaign; appropriates $100,000. | Establishes State definition of anti-Semitism; creates a public awareness campaign; and appropriates $100,000. | In Committee |
| SCR81 | Proposes constitutional amendment to increase amount of veterans' property tax deduction from $250 to $2,500 over four years. | If approved by the voters of the State, this proposed constitutional amendment would increase the amount of the veterans' property tax deduction from the current $250 to $2,500. The increase would occur over four years. Veterans who are honorably discharged from active service in a branch of the United States Armed Forces qualify for the deduction. A qualified veteran's surviving spouse would receive the deduction after the qualified veteran dies. The amendment would increase the amount of the deduction to $1,000 in tax year 2025, $1,500 in tax year 2026, $2,000 in tax year 2027, and $2,500 in tax year 2028, and every tax year thereafter. The voters of the State last approved an increase in the amount of the deduction in 1999, from $50 to $250, over four years. The amount of the deduction has been $250 since 2003. | In Committee |
| S3035 | "New Jersey Student Support Act"; establishes program to Department of Treasury to provide tax credits to taxpayers contributing to organization which awards scholarships to certain nonpublic school students. | This bill directs the Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education, to establish a program to provide tax credits to taxpayers that make contributions to a selected student support organization that awards scholarships for eligible students to attend participating nonpublic schools. The program established by the director would allow a taxpayer to claim a tax credit against the corporate business tax or personal gross income tax equal to 75 percent of any contribution made to a student support organization; in the case of the gross income tax credit, a taxpayer is required to contribute a minimum of $100 to a student support organization in order to claim a tax credit. The value of a credit for an individual taxpayer in a given year or privilege period is not permitted to exceed the lesser of 50 percent of the taxpayer's total tax liability or $1,000,000 for a tax credit against the corporate business tax or $100,000 for a credit against the personal gross income tax. The maximum amount of tax credits allowable in each State fiscal year may not exceed $37.5 million. The Director of the Division of Taxation, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education, is responsible for the administration of the program. The Director of the Division of Taxation is to select one student support organization, draft regulations to implement the program, and submit an annual report to the Governor and Legislature on the implementation and results of the program. The regulations are to include a requirement that tax credits issued under the provision of the bill will be issued equitably among the counties. The Director of Taxation, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education, is also required to establish a five-person oversight committee to oversee the operation of the student support organization. The student support organization would receive contributions made to the program, spending no more than five percent of contributions on administrative costs, and distributing the remaining 95 percent as scholarships for eligible families. The student support organization is required to verify student eligibility prior to awarding a scholarship, not limit scholarships to students in a certain school or region, award scholarships equally to all eligible students who apply in a given school year, and provide a student with a scholarship that is not less than the amount the student received in the prior school year. The student support organization is to publicize the program, carry forward no more than 20 percent of funds each year, and submit an annual report to the State Treasurer and the Commissioner of Education. The student support organization is required to contract annually for an independent financial audit of the program and transmit a copy of the financial audit to the Division of Taxation, the State Treasurer, and the Commissioner of Education no later than December 1 of each year. To be eligible for a scholarship from the student support organization, a student is to reside in New Jersey and intend to enroll in grades kindergarten through 12 in the next school year. A student is required to have a household income that does not exceed the federal income guidelines for reduced price lunch under the National School Lunch Program multiplied by 2.6. To participate in the program, a school is to: be located in New Jersey; be a nonpublic school that is eligible to participate in the National School Lunch Program; comply with all federal and State anti-discrimination statutes; and comply with the "Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights Act," P.L.2002, c.83 (C.18:A37-13 et seq.). The bill also includes language requiring that the provisions of the bill not supersede, impact, or interfere with the full funding in each State fiscal year necessary to satisfy the requirement of the New Jersey Constitution that the Legislature provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of free public schools for the instruction of all children in the State between 5 and 18 years of age; the full funding of the veterans' $250 property tax deduction, required to be provided to eligible veterans pursuant to the State Constitution; the senior citizens' and disabled persons' $250 property tax deduction authorized by the State Constitution; the full payment of contributions required by law to be made to the State-administered retirement systems; and the full funding of the Stay NJ property tax credit program established in P.L.2023, c.75 (C.54:4-8.75a et seq.). No later than six months after the conclusion of the fourth school year in which scholarships are awarded under the program, the Department of the Treasury, in conjunction with the Department of Education, any relevant governmental organization, and stakeholders from the nonpublic school community, is required to submit a report to the Governor and Legislature that will include: information on the number of scholarships and the amount of tax credits awarded under the program; recommendations on improvements to the program; and the number of nonpublic school closures five years prior to awarding any scholarships under the program compared to closures after the implementation of the program. The Department of Education is required to establish a Student Support Grant Program to provide grants to school districts in which at least 50 percent of the student population is eligible for free or reduced price lunch under the National School Lunch Program. The grant funding is for student support services, including tutoring programs or opportunities, teacher retention bonuses, or the provision of mental health or counseling services. The department will establish an application process for the grants. As part of that process, the eligible school districts are required to demonstrate how the funding will assist the district in providing needed support to its students. The bill provides that the Legislature will annually appropriate from the General Fund to the Department of Education $37.5 million to fund the grant program. | Dead |
| S2010 | Requires minimum annual State appropriation of $10 million for Public Health Priority Funding. | This bill supplements the "Public Health Priority Funding Act of 1977" and requires a minimum annual State appropriation of $10 million for Public Health Priority Funding, thereby reinstating New Jersey's only State appropriated, unrestricted fund for local health departments. Such appropriation will be expended in accordance to the provisions of the "Public Health Priority Funding Act of 1977." From 1966 to 2010, under the "State Health Aid Act" and later amended as the "Public Health Priority Funding Act of 1977," the State provided local health departments with flexibility to address local needs, emerging threats, and other priorities via the appropriation of dedicated funds. The State eliminated Public Health Priority Funding in the FY 2011 Appropriations Act. For context, in FY 2010, Public Health Priority Funding amounted to approximately 15 percent of the total funding for local health departments. Currently, local health departments in New Jersey are funded via local property taxes and State and federal funding that is designated for specific purposes, such as vaccines or environmental health services. | In Committee |
| S2535 | Establishes minimum Medicaid reimbursement rate for structured day program services provided to beneficiary eligible for brain injury services. | This bill amends existing law, which established minimum Medicaid reimbursement rates for brain injury services, to include structured day program services. Current law is limited to community residential services. Under existing law, "brain injury service" means community-based services, residential services, day care services, and home care services provided to a Medicaid beneficiary requiring treatment for traumatic or non-traumatic brain injuries, regardless of whether such services are provided through the Medicaid fee-for-service delivery system or the managed care delivery system. Specifically, the bill requires the Medicaid per diem or encounter reimbursement rates for Structured Day Program Services provided to a Medicaid beneficiary requiring treatment for a brain injury, currently at $3.65 for every 15 minutes of services, when such services are provided by an approved brain injury service provider, to be equal to the average of the reimbursement rates for Day Habilitation Services - Tiers D and Tier E provided to a Medicaid beneficiary eligible for services provided by the Division of Developmental Disabilities in the Department of Human Services, currently at $9.09 for every 15 minutes of service. | In Committee |
| S3392 | Extends statute of limitations for campaign finance violations. | This bill extends the statute of limitations for campaign finance violations. Under current law, any enforcement action brought by the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) for any violations of campaign finance laws is subject to a statute of limitations of two years following the occurrence of the alleged violation. Under this bill, the statute of limitations would be four years following the date of the election for which the alleged violation occurred. The new four-year statute of limitations will apply to any violations that take place after the enactment of this bill. This bill would enact one of the recommendations made by ELEC in its 2023 annual report. | In Committee |
| S3391 | Requires enhanced reporting of campaign contributions and expenditures by independent expenditure committees. | This bill requires independent expenditure committees, the so-called "dark money" groups, to promptly report campaign contributions and expenditures in the days before an election. This bill also requires such committees to file post-election quarterly reports until the closure of their campaign depository accounts. Under current law, independent expenditure committees are required to file with the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) a cumulative report on the 11th day preceding the primary election, and on the 20th day following the primary election, of all contributions received in excess of $7,500 in the form of moneys, loans, paid personal services, or other things of value made to it for the purpose of furthering the independent expenditure. They are also required to report all independent expenditures made, incurred, or authorized by it. In addition, each independent expenditure committee making an electioneering communication pertaining to a municipal, runoff, school board, special, or general election is required to file with ELEC a cumulative report on the 29th day preceding the election, a report on the 11th day preceding the election, and on the 20th day following the election, of all contributions received in excess of $7,500 in the form of moneys, loans, paid personal services, or other things of value made to it for the purpose of furthering the independent expenditure, and of all independent expenditures made, incurred, or authorized by it. The reporting period begins on the first day of the preceding calendar year and ends on the reporting date. However, under current law, independent expenditure committees are not required to report contributions received and expenditures made in the period between the filing of the 11th-day pre-election report and the day of the election, thereby creating a transparency loophole. Under this bill, when an independent expenditure committee receives a contribution from a single source of more than $7,500 after the final day of a cumulative reporting period and on or before a primary, municipal, runoff, school board, special, or general election which occurs after that final day but prior to the final day of the next reporting period it will be required, in writing or by electronic transmission, to report that contribution to ELEC within 72 hours of receiving it, if that contribution is received between the 15th day prior to that election and the day of the election. However, a contribution received between the seventh day prior to that election and the day of the election would be required to be reported within 24 hours of receiving it. The bill requires the committee to report the amount and date of the contribution; the name and mailing address of the contributor; and where the contributor is an individual, the individual's occupation and the name and mailing address of the individual's employer. In addition, when an independent expenditure committee makes or authorizes any independent expenditure of more than $200, or incurs any obligation therefor, between the 15th day prior to the day of a primary, municipal, runoff, school board, special, or general election and the day of that election, it will be required to report, in writing or by electronic transmission, that independent expenditure to the commission within 72 hours of making, authorizing, or incurring it. However, an independent expenditure made, authorized, or incurred between the seventh day prior to the election and the day of the election would be required to be reported within 24 hours of making, authorizing, or incurring it. Under current law, independent expenditure committees do not have to file post-election quarterly reports. This bill would require each independent expenditure committee required to file reports to also file with the Election Law Enforcement Commission, following each election but not later than April 15, July 15, October 15 and January 15 of each calendar year, a cumulative quarterly report of all moneys, loans, paid personal services or other things of value in excess of $7,500 contributed to it during the period ending on the 15th day preceding that date and commencing on January 1 of that calendar year or, in the case of the cumulative quarterly report to be filed not later than January 15, of the previous calendar year, and all expenditures made, incurred, or authorized by it during the period. The cumulative quarterly report would contain the name and mailing address of each person or group from whom moneys, loans, paid personal services or other things of value in excess of $7,500 have been contributed and the amount contributed by each person or group, and where an individual has made such contributions, the report would indicate the occupation of the individual and the name and mailing address of the individual's employer. In the case of any loan reported, the report would contain the name and address of each person who cosigns such loan, and where an individual has cosigned such loans, the report would indicate the occupation of the individual and the name and mailing address of the individual's employer. The report would also contain the name and address of each person, firm or organization to whom expenditures have been paid and the amount and purpose of each such expenditure. The treasurer of the independent expenditure committee reporting would certify to the correctness of each cumulative quarterly report. Each independent expenditure committee would continue to file the post-election quarterly reports until the closure of the committee's campaign depository account. This bill would enact one of the recommendations made by ELEC in its 2023 annual report. | In Committee |
| S3393 | Exempts certain personal information from redaction and nondisclosure requirements in fillings regarding election-related financing. | Under current law, certain public officials and employees, such as judges and law enforcement officers, are entitled to have their personal information redacted or subject to nondisclosure when such information is present on a public record. However, there are certain exceptions when an individual's personal information may still be disclosed, even if they are otherwise entitled to redaction or nondisclosure. This bill would add reports required to be filed with the Election Law Enforcement Commission regarding election-related financing to the list of current exceptions. This exception would apply to all reports filed by any individual, candidate, campaign, committee, or other entity under "The New Jersey Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Reporting Act." | In Committee |
| S1032 | Requires DHS and DCF to conduct study on service provider workforce, and to evaluate rates paid to, and assess cost of living adjustments for, service providers. | Requires DHS and DCF to conduct study on service provider workforce, and to evaluate rates paid to, and assess cost of living adjustments for, service providers. | In Committee |
| S3327 | Directs Commission on Human Trafficking to meet and compile report related to prevention of human trafficking during 2026 FIFA World Cup. | This bill requires the Commission on Human Trafficking to issue a report to the Governor and Legislature related to anti-trafficking efforts the State may undertake as a host of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The bill requires the commission to: (1) evaluate existing law concerning human trafficking, and make recommendations for legislation and attorney general guidelines and directives to address the potential increase in human trafficking related crimes prior to and during the 2026 FIFA World Cup; (2) review existing assistance programs and analyze whether the programs need to be expanded to respond to the increased risk of human trafficking crimes prior to and during the 2026 FIFA World Cup; (3) promote a coordinated response by public and private resources prior to and during the 2026 FIFA World Cup; and (4) develop mechanisms to promote public awareness of human trafficking, victim remedies and services, and trafficking prevention including the creation of a public awareness sign to inform the State that persons may be trafficked into the State and United States prior to and during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Under the bill, the report is required to include, but not be limited to, recommendations on: (1) best practices the State may take in order to raise awareness of trafficking and how to identify trafficking victims; (2) information campaigns that raise awareness of the risk of human trafficking at large events; (3) the State issuing public service announcements prior to and during the World Cup to inform soccer fans that persons may be trafficked into the State and United States during the event; (4) the State establishing additional human trafficking hotlines for a period of time leading up to and during the World Cup; (5) changes that may be made to State laws related to human trafficking; (6) guidelines and directives to be issued by the Attorney General concerning the identification of and response by law enforcement and prosecuting agencies to the potential increase in human trafficking related crimes prior to and during the 2026 FIFA World Cup; (7) engaging State and local organizations to aid with assessing risk and adopting necessary mitigation strategies; and (8) any other issues the Commission deems relevant for the prevention of human trafficking during the World Cup. The bill also requires the Commission to develop for distribution a public awareness sign related to the World Cup and requires any entity or business which is currently required to post human trafficking signs to also post the public awareness sign related to the World Cup. The commission is required to publish the report six months after the effective date of the bill. Finally, the bill requires the Attorney General to issue directives to any or all law enforcement and prosecuting agencies in the State related to the identification of and response to the increased risk of human trafficking crimes prior to and during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. | In Committee |
| S3331 | Makes supplemental appropriation of $12 million to Village of Ridgewood for drinking water infrastructure improvements related to per- and poly-fluoralkyl substance pollution. | This bill would appropriate $12 million from the General Fund to the Village of Ridgewood in Bergen County to offset the costs of infrastructure improvements that are needed to mitigate per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) pollution in the drinking water system. The Ridgewood Water Department, also known as Ridgewood Water, is a public community water system that serves over 60,000 residents in Ridgewood, Midland Park, Glen Rock, and Wyckoff. The sponsor's intent in introducing the legislation is to avoid the significant rate increases that Ridgewood Water would otherwise need to impose on its ratepayers in order to fund the PFAS-related infrastructure improvements. | In Committee |
| S3307 | Provides filing extension and medical documentation requirement for certain members or retirees of PFRS, SPRS, or PERS regarding accidental disability retirement allowance for participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations. | Under current law, members and retirees of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS) and the State Police Retirement System (SPRS), and certain members and retirees of the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) are 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. In order to be eligible, the member or retiree must have filed notice of service during certain dates and at certain locations within two years of enactment of the law in 2019. This bill extends the time period during which a member or retiree must file a written and sworn statement with the retirement system to be eligible for the benefit to two years after the effective date of this bill, and permits the board of trustees of the retirement system to approve additional extensions in two-year increments thereafter. Under current law, in order to be eligible for the benefit, the member or retiree must have successfully passed a physical examination for entry into public service, which failed to disclose evidence of the qualifying condition or impairment of health that formed the basis for the disability. This bill allows the member or retiree, as an alternative, to present sufficient evidence of one or more medical examinations or results, performed within a reasonable period of time before or after entry into public service, which failed to disclose evidence of the qualifying condition or impairment of health that formed the basis for the disability as an alternative for proof of eligibility. This bill also requires the board of trustees of each retirement system to notify members and retirants in the retirement system of the enactment of this bill within 30 days of enactment. | In Committee |
| S2083 | Allows certain volunteer firefighters, rescue and first aid squad members to claim $2,000 gross income tax exemption. | Allows certain volunteer firefighters, rescue and first aid squad members to claim $2,000 gross income tax exemption. | In Committee |
| S3065 | Excludes environmentally sensitive and flood-prone land from designation as vacant or available for purposes of affordable housing construction. | Excludes environmentally sensitive and flood-prone land from designation as vacant or available for purposes of affordable housing construction. | In Committee |
| S3216 | Expands NJT Access Link paratransit service area to include certain veterans health care facilities; appropriates $1 million. | This bill requires the New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJ Transit) to expand its Access Link paratransit service area to include every health care facility operated by the United States Veterans Health Administration in the State (i.e., veterans health care facility). Under the federal "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990," any public entity that operates a fixed route, public transportation system is required to provide complementary, origin-to-destination paratransit service for persons with a disability. In compliance with this requirement, NJ Transit currently makes available Access Link paratransit service. As required under federal law, Access Link service is generally made available for origins and destinations that are located within a three-quarter mile radius of NJ Transit's existing bus routes and light rail stations. Notably, this bill requires NJ Transit to make available Access Link paratransit service to and from every veterans health care facility, regardless of whether the facility is located within the minimum paratransit service area required under federal law. Specifically, the bill requires NJ Transit to expand the Access Link service area to include any origins and destinations within: (1) a radius of 1.5 miles around each veterans health care facility; and (2) a width of 1.5 miles on each side of the most direct route connecting each veterans health care facility to NJ Transit's closest existing fixed bus route or light rail station. However, this expanded service area would not include any origins or destinations in which NJ Transit does not have the legal authority to operate paratransit service. Under the bill, NJ Transit would also be prohibited from entering into any contract, or exercising any option to extend an existing contract, concerning the provision of Access Link service by a paratransit service provider unless the contract or option complies with the requirements of this bill. The bill also appropriates $1,000,000 from the General Fund to NJ Transit to defray any costs incurred in the implementation of this bill. | In Committee |
| S3236 | Makes supplemental appropriation of $1 million from Property Tax Relief Fund to DOE to support Pantoliano-DePass school based mentoring pilot program in certain Bergen County school districts. | This bill provides a supplemental appropriation of $1 million to Pantoliano-DePass School-Based Mentoring Pilot Program in Bergen County School Districts. Funding from this bill is to be distributed between the following 14 school districts: Ridgefield Boro School District, Bogota Boro School District, Englewood City School District, Fort Lee Boro School District, Franklin Lakes Boro School District, Norwood Boro School District, Northern Highlands Regional School District, Cliffside Park Boro School District, Hackensack City School District, Carlstadt-East Rutherford Regional School District, Fairview Boro School District, Dumont Boro School District, Bergenfield Boro School District, and Ridgefield Park Township School District. The appropriation may be used to cover, for each district: an administrator's salary; administrative costs of the pilot program; and stipends for staff and mentors participating in the pilot program. The amounts appropriated to each school district are to be determined by the Commissioner of Education, pursuant to a competitive application process. At the conclusion of the pilot program, the Commissioner of Education is to submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature. The sponsor notes that school-based mentoring programs have numerous positive outcomes on student confidence, behavior, and engagement. The sponsor also notes that these programs strengthen student relationships and enhance school safety. | In Committee |
| S3078 | Prohibits collecting of certain costs associated with offshore wind projects from ratepayers. | This bill amends the "Offshore Wind Economic Development Act" to provide that the Board of Public Utilities ("BPU") may not require ratepayers to pay or prepay any costs associated with the subsidies for qualified offshore wind projects approved by the BPU. Under current law, the BPU administers an offshore wind renewable energy certificate ("OREC") program that permits qualified offshore wind projects to sell ORECs to electric power suppliers and basic generation service providers at a price and for a time period determined by order of the BPU. An OREC is a portion of the mechanism in which subsidies are provided for offshore wind projects by allowing eligible projects to be credited with saleable ORECs for each megawatt-hour generated by the project and delivered to the transmission grid. However, pursuant to regulations adopted by the BPU, the State currently requires electric public utilities to impose an OREC surcharge on ratepayers to pre-collect the costs of the project subsidy. Ratepayers are later refunded based on the revenue generated from the sale of ORECs. This bill prohibits the BPU from requiring ratepayers to make any payments or prepayments for any part of the subsidy for a qualified offshore wind project, including, but not limited to, an OREC surcharge or any other similar fee or rate intended to recover the costs of the subsidy. | In Committee |
| S3076 | 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 |
| S3012 | Designates September 11 of each year "September 11 Remembrance Day." | This bill would designate September 11 of each year as "September 11 Remembrance Day" to honor the memory of those who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001 and in recognition of the police officers, firefighters, emergency services personnel, and other citizens of this State and country who risked their own lives, health, and safety to assist the victims of those attacks. The observance of one minute of silence in public schools on September 11 will serve as an annual reminder and lesson to students that freedom is not free, but can be preserved only at the cost of great personal sacrifice and adherence to duty. | In Committee |
| S3011 | Directs DOLWD to establish advertising campaign to attract candidates to health care professions; appropriates $1 million. | This bill directs the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, in consultation with the Department of Health and the Department of Human Services, to establish a multimedia advertising campaign to attract candidates to health care professions. The health care field experienced shortages due to working conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic. The campaign will promote health care professions as presenting engaging, dynamic, and rewarding career opportunities. The campaign shall use a combination of digital outlets, television, radio, print, and other media for its purposes. The department, in developing and administering the general advertising campaign, is also required to create targeted advertising to increase the recruitment of health care professionals: (1) from underrepresented racial groups; and (2) into high-demand fields, as identified by the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development in consultation with the Department of Health and Department of Human Services. The bill appropriates to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development the sum of $1 million from the funds received by the State under the federal "American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act," Pub.L.117-2 to effectuate the provisions of the bill. | In Committee |
| S3013 | Requires State Police to maintain 24-hour hotline for receiving anonymous tips regarding potential threats to school safety and security. | This bill requires the Division of State Police to maintain a 24-hour toll-free hotline for receiving anonymous tips, via telephone or text message, regarding potential threats to school safety and security. The purpose of the hotline is to allow students, parents, school staff members, and the public to anonymously report information about unsafe, suspicious, potentially harmful, dangerous, or criminal activities in schools, or the threat of those activities, including, but not limited to, incidents of violence, assaults, suicide threats, and bullying. Under the bill, the identity of the person who reports information to the hotline will remain unknown, except when the reporting individual voluntarily discloses his identity and verifies that his identity may be shared with law enforcement officers and school officials. The bill requires the State Police to share information received through the hotline with the applicable local law enforcement agencies and the superintendent of schools or the chief school administrator of a nonpublic school in order to facilitate prompt investigation and intervention. Under the bill, information about the hotline will be distributed to all public and nonpublic schools in the State for dissemination to students and their families. | In Committee |
| S2900 | Prohibits disclosure of body worn camera recordings under certain circumstances. | This bill prohibits the disclosure of body worn camera recordings obtained pursuant to the State's open public records law under certain circumstances. It has come to the sponsor's attention that bad actors have been taking advantage of the State's open public records law in order to exploit on social media young women who have been recorded on body worn cameras during law enforcement encounters. It is the sponsor's intent to prevent such exploitation without limiting legitimate access to public records by the press or others. Under the provisions of this bill, a person who has obtained a body worn camera recording pursuant to the open public records act and who is not a subject of the body worn camera recording is prohibited from disclosing the recording without the prior written consent of each subject of the body worn camera recording, unless the disclosure is for a legitimate public health or safety purpose or a compelling public interest. A person who knowingly violates this provision is guilty of a disorderly persons offense. In addition to any other right of action or recovery available under the laws of this State, a person who knowingly violates this provision is also liable to a subject of the body worn camera recording, who may bring an action in Superior Court. The court may award: 1) actual damages, but not less than liquidated damages computed at the rate of $1,000 for each violation; 2) punitive damages upon proof of willful or reckless disregard of the law; 3) reasonable attorney's fees and other litigation costs reasonably incurred; and 4) any other preliminary and equitable relief as the court determines to be appropriate. Under the bill, "body worn camera" is defined as a mobile audio and video recording system worn by a law enforcement officer. The bill defines "subject of the body worn camera recording" as a suspect, victim, detainee, conversant, injured party, or other similarly situated person who appears on the body worn camera recording and does not include a person who only incidentally appears on the recording. | In Committee |
| S2839 | "Energy Security and Affordability Act"; requires BPU to consider energy security, diversity, and affordability when preparing Energy Master Plan and perform economic and ratepayer impact analysis of energy generation projects and Energy Master Plan. | This bill would amend P.L.1977, c.146 (C.52:27F-14), which establishes the State's Energy Master Plan Committee, to require the Board of Public Utilities (BPU), when preparing the Energy Master Plan or any portion thereof or amendment thereto, to consider the following: (1) the energy needs, supplies, and reliability in all geographic areas of the State; (2) the use and development of diverse energy generation sources including, but not limited to, solar, wind, nuclear, hydrogen, natural gas, and renewable natural gas to assure a reliable and sufficient energy supply; (3) the affordability of energy generation, transmission, and distribution to ratepayers; (4) the prioritization of in-State energy generation, to the extent practicable and feasible to minimize subsidies for out-of-State energy generation; and (5) the use of incentives, rather than mandates, when feasible, to increase consumer transparency and choice. The bill would also require the Energy Master Plan to provide that intermittent energy sources are not to exceed 50 percent of the State's energy generation portfolio. The bill updates membership of the Energy Master Plan Committee in accordance with Governor Murphy's Executive Order No. 28. The bill also adds the heads of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Division of the Rate Counsel, and New Jersey Infrastructure Bank, or their designees, as members of the Energy Master Plan Committee. In addition, the bill would require the BPU to perform an analysis of any energy generation facility project prior to issuing final approval, and of the State's Energy Master Plan no later than six months after publishing an update thereto. Specifically, the analysis would: (1) detail the cost, financial impact to the State and any applicable local government unit, effect on ratepayers, and economic impact of the energy policy or project, as applicable; (2) provide a breakdown of all associated costs including, but not limited to, the capital cost of energy generation, transmission, and distribution as well as the capital cost of any infrastructure upgrades needed; (3) use only open source modeling software, and provide details about the software used and all parameters entered into the model; (4) provide an opportunity for public comment at least 30 days prior to the publication of the analysis, and include all pertinent written comments received as part of the analysis; and (5) be published and maintained for at least 10 years on the board's Internet website. The bill would also require the BPU, upon invitation, to present testimony each year to the Senate Environment and Energy Committee and the Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee on the analyses it performed during the previous year. | In Committee |
| S2817 | Authorizes licensing of certain sporting event brackets and boxes under raffle law. | This bill permits raffle licensees to conduct games similar to, and including, those known as Super Bowl "boxes" and March Madness "brackets". As defined by the bill, boxes are games in which the participants select a box within a grid of all possible outcomes of a selected event, and the winner is based on the selection of the box reflecting the actual outcome of the selected event, when the values of such boxes are assigned at random and without prior knowledge by the participants. Brackets are defined as games in which participants select a series of outcomes for a selected series of events, and the winner of which is the participant who selects the most outcomes correctly. In both games, the winner or winners may receive no more than 50 percent of the prize, with the remainder being retained by the licensee as proceeds. The Legalized Games of Chance Control Commission will establish rules and regulations governing the conduct of these games. | In Committee |
| S1210 | Requires automatic external defibrillators on-site at certain places of public assembly and youth athletic events. | Requires automatic external defibrillators on-site at certain places of public assembly and youth athletic events. | In Committee |
| S1252 | Requires local recreation departments and youth serving organizations to have defibrillators for youth athletic events. | This bill requires municipal or county recreation departments and nonprofit youth serving organizations, which organize, sponsor, or are otherwise affiliated with youth athletic events that are played on municipal, county, school, or other publicly-owned fields, to ensure that there is available on site an automated external defibrillator (AED) at each youth athletic event and practice held on the department's or organization's home field. A recreation department or youth serving organization will be deemed to be in compliance with the AED requirement if a State-certified emergency services provider, licensed athletic trainer, or other certified first responder is on site at the athletic event or practice and has an AED available for use on site. A recreation department or youth serving organization and its employees, umpires, coaches, and licensed athletic trainers will be immune from civil liability in the acquisition and use of an AED. | In Committee |
| S2771 | Requires DHS to establish Alzheimer's disease public awareness campaign. | This bill requires the Department of Human Services (DHS) to establish Alzheimer's disease public awareness campaign. Under the bill, the Commissioner of Human Services, subject to available funds, is required to establish an Alzheimer's disease public awareness and education program. The purpose of the program is to promote public awareness of Alzheimer's disease and the value of early detection and possible treatments, including the benefits and risks of those treatments. The DHS may accept for that purpose any grant of monies, services, or property from the federal government, an organization, or a medical school. The program is to include the following: (1) development of a public campaign to promote Alzheimer's disease awareness and education, including, but not limited to, the subjects outlined in the bill; (2) development of educational materials to be made available through local boards of health, physicians, hospitals, and clinics; and (3) development of educational programs for judicial staff, police officers, fire fighters, and social services and emergency medical service providers, to assist them in recognizing the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and understanding how to respond to the needs of persons with the disease in the course of performing their duties. The bill provides that the DHS, in consultation with the Greater New Jersey Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, is to prepare and make available on the DHS's Internet website, in English and Spanish, and in a manner that is easily understandable by the general public, information about the symptoms and treatment of Alzheimer's disease and any other information that the commissioner deems necessary. | In Committee |
| S2651 | Regulates smoking in casinos and casino simulcasting facilities. | This bill amends the "New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act" (act) with respect to smoking in casinos and casino simulcasting facilities. Under the bill, the act's prohibition on smoking is not to apply to the area within the perimeter of any casino simulcasting facility approved by the Casino Control Commission pursuant to section 4 of P.L.1992, c.19 (C.5:12-194) and any casino approved by the Casino Control Commission pursuant to section 6 of P.L.1977, c.110 (C.5:12-6), provided that: (1) smoking is to be permitted in not more than 25 percent of the area of any casino floor and casino simulcasting facility; (2) smoking is to only be permitted in areas of the casino floor and casino simulcasting facility designated by signage by the operators for smoking; (3) smoking is to only be permitted under the following circumstances: in unenclosed interior designated smoking areas which contain slot machines or other electronic games, but is not to include areas of the casino floor and casino simulcasting facility that are fifteen feet or less from any casino pits offering table games with live dealers; and in enclosed interior designated smoking areas equipped with a ventilation system that is separately exhausted from other interior areas of the casino, casino simulcasting facility, and hotel facility, as applicable, so that air from the smoking area is not recirculated or backstreamed into interior areas that are not interior designated smoking areas; (4) all enclosed interior designated smoking areas are to be separated from other interior areas of the casino, casino simulcasting facility, and hotel facility, as applicable, by solid walls or windows, a ceiling, and a solid door; and (5) no stationary employee is to be assigned to work in an enclosed interior designated smoking area unless the employee voluntarily chooses to work in the designated enclosed interior smoking area. | In Committee |
| S1429 | Allows municipalities to transfer inactive alcoholic beverage retail licenses for use in certain redevelopment and revitalization areas; establishes procedure to transfer inactive retail licenses. | This bill establishes several procedures by which a plenary retail consumption license, generally issued to bars and restaurants, may be transferred for use as part of an economic redevelopment plan or in connection with premises located in a redevelopment, improvement, or revitalization area located in another municipality. The bill defines "redevelopment, improvement, or revitalization area" as an urban enterprise zone; a downtown business improvement zone; a pedestrian mall or pedestrian mall improvement or special improvement district; a transit oriented development; an area determined to be in need of redevelopment; an area determined to be in need of rehabilitation; or any improvement which is 100 percent new construction, which is an entirely new improvement not previously occupied or used for any purpose. Under current law, a municipality may issue plenary retail consumption licenses until the combined total number in the municipality is fewer than one license for each 3,000 municipal residents. This bill allows a municipality that is entitled to issue an additional plenary retail consumption license to offer the license at public sale to the highest bidding governing body of any other municipality in this State. A license transferred to a receiving municipality only is to be used in connection with a premises as part of an economic redevelopment plan or located within a redevelopment, improvement, or revitalization area. The bill requires the host municipality to provide notice of the public sale to the Director of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control and other municipalities at least 90 days prior to the sale. The notice to the municipalities is to specify the minimum acceptable bid and general conditions of sale including a statement that the transferring municipality reserves the right to reject all bids where the highest bid is not accepted. The funds derived from the sale are to be remitted to the municipal treasurer for the general use of the host municipality. A receiving municipality that acquires the license would be entitled to offer the license at public sale. A license issued by the receiving municipality to a qualified bidder that is not actively used in connection with the operation of a premises within two years of the issuance date is to expire and not be reissued by the receiving municipality. The receiving municipality would be prohibited from acquiring more than one license through this bidding process in each calendar year. In addition, this bill establishes two procedures for transferring an inactive plenary retail consumption license to a different municipality. Under current law, an inactive plenary retail consumption license is a license to sell alcoholic beverages for on premises consumption that is not being used at an open and operating licensed premises. A licensee is required to place the license on "inactive status" when the licensed business ceases operation and the license continues to be held by the licensee of record. Under this bill, a license that remains inactive for two license terms is to expire. Prior to the expiration of the license, an inactive license is to be actively used by the license holder or transferred to another person who intends to use the license in a private transaction for fair market value. The bill also allows the holder of the inactive license to apply to the governing body of a sending municipality that issued the license and a receiving municipality located within the same county to use the license in connection with a premises located in the receiving municipality. An inactive plenary retail consumption license used in the receiving municipality only would be used as part of an economic redevelopment plan or in connection with a premises located within a redevelopment, improvement, or revitalization area. The bill requires the transferred license to remain in the receiving municipality and prohibits the transfer of license to any other municipality. Under the bill, the sending and receiving municipalities are to submit to the director notice of the intent to transfer a license at least 90 days prior to the transfer. The bill requires the sending and receiving municipalities to adopt by majority vote identical resolutions authorizing the transfer of the license. The identical resolutions are to establish the license transfer fee agreed upon by both municipal governing bodies. A receiving municipality that acquires a license would be entitled to offer the license at public sale in accordance with current law. A license issued by a receiving municipality that is not actively used in connection with the operation of a premises within two years of the transfer date would expire and not be reissued by the receiving municipality. In addition, the bill provides that these licenses would be subject to certain restrictions. The receiving municipality would be required to issue the license to an applicant who certifies to the sending and receiving municipality that the license will be used in connection with the operation of a restaurant at which the retail sale of food is the primary and principal business. The license holder would then be required to annually submit to the issuing authority a report supported by receipts demonstrating that the sale of food constituted at least 60 percent of the store's total annual sales in the last full calendar year preceding the renewal date. A license holder who fails to demonstrate that the sale of food constituted at least 60 percent of the store's total annual sales in the last full calendar year may be subject to revocation of the plenary retail consumption license. The bill also requires the license holder to cease the sale of alcoholic beverages each day at the time that food service has ended or 11:00 p.m., whichever occurs earlier. A license holder would be entitled to transfer the license to another person in a private transaction, but the bill prohibits the license from being relocated to another premises. This bill also allows a receiving municipality that has reached the license population limitation established under current law to issue a request for proposal (RFP) to acquire an inactive plenary retail consumption license from any license holder in this State. The bill requires the receiving municipality to issue the license for use in connection with a premises as part of economic redevelopment plan or a redevelopment, improvement, or revitalization area. The RFP would specify a time and date after which no further applications from license holders will be accepted. The municipality is to publish the RFP in a newspaper circulating generally throughout the State by not less than two insertions, one week apart, the second of which is to be made not less than 30 days prior to the time and date specified in the notice as the time and date after which no further applications will be accepted. In addition, the request for proposal is to be published by the governing body on the official Internet website of the receiving municipality. The RFP is to require that all bids be sealed and remain confidential to other bidders. The holder of an inactive plenary retail consumption license is to apply for permission to transfer the inactive plenary retail consumption license from the sending municipality prior to submitting a bid in response to the RFP. The sending municipality may approve the application by resolution. The sending municipality would be prohibited from requiring the applicant to disclose the location of the proposed licensed premises. After the receiving municipality accepts a successful bid, the sending and receiving municipality are to submit to the director notice of the intent to transfer a license at least 90 days prior to the transfer. The bill requires the sending and receiving municipalities to adopt by majority vote identical resolutions authorizing the transfer of the license. The identical resolutions are to establish the license transfer fee agreed upon by both municipal governing bodies. The bill requires a license that is not actively used within two years of issuance date to expire. A receiving municipality that issued the RFP would be prohibited from acquiring more than one license through this process in each calendar year. Finally, the bill requires the director to establish a four-year timeline for the reissuance of inactive licenses based on the length of time that the license has been inactive. The plenary retail consumption licenses transferred to or acquired by a receiving municipality under the bill's provisions would not be included in the population formula used to issue new licenses. | Dead |
| S789 | Extends affordable housing preference to certain allied South Korean veterans. | This bill extends the existing affordable housing preference for United States veterans to South Korean veterans who, as determined by the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs, served in the Vietnam conflict as allies to the United States; and are a citizens and residents of this State. The bill also extends certain existing affordable housing preferences to surviving spouses and caretakers of South Korean veterans who served in the Vietnam conflict as allies to the United States. The bill's provisions apply to affordable housing in housing projects that are financed by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, public housing authorities, county improvement authorities, redevelopment agencies, and the Department of Community Affairs, when acting as a public housing authority. This bill would take effect on the first day of the third month next following enactment, except that the Commissioner of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Adjutant General of Military and Veterans' Affairs, would be permitted to take anticipatory action necessary to effectuate the provisions of the bill. | In Committee |
| S2555 | Regulates residential mental health treatment facilities. | This bill regulates residential mental health treatment facilities. Under the bill, residential mental health treatment facilities, as defined in the bill, are to: (1) provide mental health services or treatment in a manner that is consistent with the Level 3.5 level of care according to the American Society of Addiction Medicine in a 24 hours per day and seven days per week, structured living environment for patients who require such support, and in instances where inpatient hospitalization treatment is unnecessary; (2) provide health services or treatment for limited periods of time with the goal of preparing patients to move into the community at lower levels of care; and (3) provide health services or treatment without any retrospective review or concurrent review of medical necessity. The bill provides that no residential mental health treatment facility is to operate within this State except pursuant to a license obtained from the Commissioner of Health (commissioner), upon an application made therefor. The applicant is to be required to furnish evidence of the facility's ability to comply with the minimum standards for licensure established by the commissioner and of the good moral character of the facility's owners. Under the bill, the commissioner is to issue a license to a residential mental health treatment facility if the applicant is of good moral character and the facility is in compliance with the bill's provisions. There is to be a presumption in favor of an applicant's good moral character if the applicant is currently licensed and in good standing in this State as a mental health program pursuant to N.J.A.C.8:121 et seq. A residential mental health treatment facility is not to be licensed to operate at the same location as a residential substance use disorders treatment facility or program. The bill amends section 19 of P.L.1992, c.160 (C.26:2H-7a) to exempt residential mental health treatment facilities from the certificate of need requirement. The certificate of need program is a regulatory process that is administered by the Office of Certificate of Need and Healthcare Facility Licensure with the New Jersey Department of Health (DOH). Under the certificate of need program, certain health care facilities are required to obtain the DOH's approval prior to constructing, relocating, or renovating their facilities. Finally, the bill provides that the commissioner is to adopt rules and regulations establishing minimum standards for the licensure of residential health treatment facilities and the treatment of patients therein, and if feasible, structure the rules and regulations similarly to the regulations which are applicable to residential substance use disorders treatment facilities or programs, as set forth in N.J.A.C.8:111 et seq. | In Committee |
| S2484 | Adds Bergen County as pilot county for purposes of "Common Sense Shared Services Pilot Program Act." | This bill revises the "Common Sense Shared Services Pilot Program Act" to permit municipalities in Bergen County to participate in the program. The "Common Sense Shared Services Pilot Program Act" authorizes the sharing of services for a municipal clerk, a chief financial officer, an assessor, a tax collector, a municipal treasurer, or a municipal superintendent of public works without regard to the tenure rights that persons who hold those positions may have. Under the pilot program, municipalities located in pilot counties may enter into shared services agreements, pursuant to the provisions of the "Uniform Shared Services and Consolidation Act," for the services of tenured local employees, and provide for the dismissal of any tenured local employees who are not selected to be service providers under the shared services agreement. This bill amends the definition of "pilot county" in the "Common Sense Shared Services Pilot Program Act" to add Bergen County to the list of counties permitted to participate in the pilot program. Currently, Atlantic, Camden, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Sussex, and Warren Counties are the seven counties whose municipalities may enter into such shared services agreements. | In Committee |
| S725 | 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 |
| S1986 | Establishes School Funding Formula Evaluation Task Force. | This bill establishes the School Funding Formula Evaluation Task Force. The purpose of the task force is to study, evaluate, and assess the provision of State school aid pursuant to the "School Funding Reform Act of 2008" (SFRA). The task force will consist of seven members, including: the Commissioner of Education or a designee; and six public members, each of whom shall have educational experience and expertise in education and municipal finance and school budgeting. Two of the members will be appointed by the Senate President, two members will be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, and the Minority Leaders of the Senate and General Assembly will each appoint one member. Under the bill, the duty of the task force is to study the effectiveness of, and provide recommendations on potentially improving, various aspects of the SFRA including, but not limited to:? the manner in which school district adequacy budgets and local shares are calculated;? the current methodology of measuring and weighting at-risk students and students with limited English proficiency and the impact on the educational outcomes of those students; ? the weights applied to students in different grade levels, as well as those applied to students enrolled in county vocational school districts; ? the current methodology used to calculate the geographic cost adjustment;? the formula's use of the census-based funding methodology for determining the amount of State aid a school district receives to educate its special education population and the effects of potentially employing different methodologies; ? the provision of extraordinary special education aid and the cost thresholds used as the bases for reimbursement of extraordinary special education costs; ? the methodologies used to calculate security categorical aid and transportation aid; and ? the impact that the reallocation of State school aid pursuant to P.L.2018, c.67, commonly referred to as "S-2," had on school districts' finances. The bill requires that the task force will issue a final report detailing its findings and recommendations to the Governor, and to the Legislature, no later than one year after the organization of the task force. The report will be posted in a prominent location on the Internet website of the Department of Education. | In Committee |
| S758 | Re-establishes Arthritis Quality of Life Initiative and Advisory Council on Arthritis in DHS. | This bill would re-establish the Arthritis Quality of Life Initiative and the Advisory Council on Arthritis in the Department of Human Services (DHS). The initiative and the advisory council were initially established in the Department of Health, through the enactment of the "Arthritis Quality of Life Initiative Act," at P.L.1999, c.72 (C.26:2V-1 et seq.). In 2012, the Legislature transferred the initiative and the advisory council to the DHS; but only a year later, in 2013, the Legislature repealed the "Arthritis Quality of Life Initiative Act," on the basis that the advisory council was inactive. This bill would permanently reinstitute the initiative and the council in the DHS, in order to ensure that arthritis continues to be sufficiently addressed in the State. Specifically, the bill would require the Commissioner of Human Services to re-establish the Arthritis Quality of Life Initiative within 180 days after the bill's effective date. The purpose of the initiative is to: 1) increase public awareness about arthritis, its symptoms, and available treatment options; 2) publicize options for arthritis prevention; 3) highlight the value of early diagnosis and treatment; and 4) encourage and facilitate the delivery of programs and services that are aimed at preventing arthritis-related complications and improving the quality of life of people with arthritis. In establishing the initiative, the bill would require the commissioner, at a minimum, to: 1) develop, and publicize on the department's Internet website, a list of health care providers who offer specialized services for persons with arthritis; 2) establish, or, if appropriate, authorize and facilitate the re-establishment and ongoing maintenance, of two regionally-based arthritis centers, one in the northern and one in the southern part of the State; 3) implement a public information and outreach campaign that includes, but need not be limited to, appropriate educational materials that promote the early diagnosis and treatment of arthritis and other rheumatic diseases; 4) implement a professional education program for health care practitioners, which is to promote and endeavor to increase professional levels of expertise in association with the diagnosis of arthritis, and the treatment and care of persons with the disease; 5) identify, and publicize on the department's Internet website, programs and services that are designed to prevent arthritis, reduce complications associated with arthritis, and improve the quality of life of those living with the disease; 6) establish a phone-based referral and support network to help arthritic persons identify appropriate health care providers, legal advocates, and available programs and services; and 7) engage in, or promote and facilitate, the use of outcome-based research designed to improve arthritis care and treatment, and appropriately publicize the findings of such research. The bill would also re-establish the Advisory Council on Arthritis in the DHS. The purpose of the council would be to advise the commissioner on the development and ongoing implementation and operations of the Arthritis Qualify of Life Initiative. The council would include 19 members, as follows: the Director of the Division of Aging Services in the Department of Human Services, the Principal Deputy Commissioner of Public Health in the Department of Health, the Director of Population Health in the Department of Health, the Director of the Division on Women in the Department of Children and Families, and the Chair of the New Jersey Interagency Council on Osteoporosis in the Department of Human Services, or their designees, who would each serve ex officio; and 14 public members who have expertise or experience in arthritis or related subject matters, to be appointed by the commissioner. Each public member of the council would serve for a term of three years, except that, of the members first appointed, four would serve for terms of three years, five would serve for terms of two years, and five would serve for terms of one year. Each member is to hold office for the term of appointment, and until their successor is appointed and qualified. Members are eligible for reappointment to the council. The council would be required to organize as soon as practicable after the appointment of a majority of its members. The members would serve without compensation, but could be reimbursed for travel and other necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties, within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to the council for its purposes. Not later than 18 months after the bill's effective date, and annually thereafter, the commissioner will be required to submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature describing the activities and accomplishments of the initiative. | In Committee |
| S2100 | Establishes Volunteer Emergency Responder Loan Redemption Program in Higher Education Student Assistance Authority. | This bill establishes the Volunteer Emergency Responder Loan Redemption Program in the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority. To be eligible to participate in the program, an applicant must:· be a resident of the State;· be an active volunteer emergency responder; · have completed an undergraduate degree or certificate program at an in-State institution of higher education; and· provide the authority with a sworn or official statement from the chief or other presiding officer with the volunteer fire company, the volunteer first aid, rescue or ambulance squad, or the county or municipal volunteer Office of Emergency Management, as appropriate, attesting that the applicant is an active member in good standing. The redemption of loans under the program would amount to $16,000 or the outstanding balance of eligible student loan expenses, whichever is less, in the following manner:· first year of active service following graduation from the degree or certificate program, an amount up to $4,000, but not to exceed 25 percent of the original qualifying loan;· second year of active service following graduation from the degree or certificate program, an amount up to $4,000, but not to exceed 25 percent of the original qualifying loan; and· third year of active service following graduation from the degree or certificate program, an amount up to $8,000, but not to exceed 50 percent of the original qualifying loan. | In Committee |
| S951 | Prohibits DOH from issuing recommendations or regulations that are more stringent than recommendations or regulations issued by federal government. | This bill prohibits the Department of Health (department) from issuing recommendations or regulations that are more stringent than recommendations or regulations issued by the federal government. Under the bill, the department is not to issue any guideline, recommendation, directive, rule, regulation, or take any other administrative action that is more stringent than any comparable: 1) guideline, mandate, or recommendation that is issued by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or any other or federal agency, department, or entity; or 2) guideline, mandate, or recommendation that is prescribed by any federal law, rule, regulation, or order. The bill is to be retroactive to any guideline, recommendation, directive, rule, regulation, or any other administrative action issued or taken by the department on or before the bill's effective date. | In Committee |
| S766 | Authorizes certain boards of education to issue bonds to repair damages caused by natural disasters in certain circumstances. | This bill authorizes school districts and certain municipalities to issue bonds to finance costs relating to repairs to school facilities and other furnishings and equipment that were damaged due to a natural disaster for which a state of emergency is declared. Under the bill, the bonds may be issued without the approval of the voters of the district in the case of a Type II school district without a board of school estimate and without the approval of the board of school estimate or the adoption of a municipal ordinance as applicable in the case of a Type I or Type II school district with a board of school estimate. The bill requires that a district may only issue bonds if the repairs are deemed to be necessary in order to provide a thorough and efficient system of education and that the costs, or any portion of the costs, stemming from such repairs are eligible for reimbursement by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The issuance of bonds under the bill would be required to be approved by the board of education of the school district. The approval would be evidenced by the adoption of a resolution by the board of education in a public meeting upon an affirmative vote of two-thirds of its full membership certifying the support of the board for the issuance of the bonds, the total estimated cost of the damage caused by a natural disaster for which a state of emergency is declared, and the amount of money to be raised through the issuance of bonds. In the event that the repairs for which bonds are to be issued are deemed to be a school facilities project that is eligible for State debt service aid pursuant to the "Educational Facilities and Construction Financing Act," the board of education is required to apply to the Commissioner of Education prior to the adoption of a resolution certifying the support for the issuance of bonds. The application will be reviewed by the commissioner on an expedited basis pursuant to a process to be established by the commissioner. The bill provides that the approval or disapproval of an application for a school facilities project would not be contingent upon the school facilities project being consistent or inconsistent with the school district's long-range facilities plan or upon the fact that the long-range facilities plan has not been amended to incorporate the school facilities project. Upon approval of an application submitted for a district seeking State debt service aid, the board of education would adopt a resolution approving the issuance of bonds. Upon the adoption of a resolution, a board of education would apply to the Commissioner of Education for approval of the issuance of bonds. An application would be submitted in a manner and in accordance with procedures prescribed by the commissioner. The application would, at a minimum: demonstrate the need to borrow and that borrowing is necessary to meet an emergency caused by a natural disaster; include the resolution adopted by the board of education under the bill; demonstrate that the repairs for which bonds would be issued are eligible for reimbursement by the Federal Emergency Management Agency; and demonstrate that reasonable efforts have been made to employ other methods provided by law to finance repairs to damaged school facilities and other furnishings and equipment. A decision by the commissioner concerning the approval or disapproval of an application is required to be rendered within 15 business days of receipt of the application. Lastly, the bill provides that, in the event that the commissioner approves an application for the issuance of bonds under the bill, the principal of and interest on the bonds would be repaid with funds of the school district. In addition to the amount of taxes determined by the legal voters of the district at the annual school election, the secretary of the board of education would certify the amount required for the repayment of the interest and principal of the bonds required to fund the local share amount. This certified amount would be included in the taxes assessed, levied, and collected in the municipality or municipalities comprising the school district for those purposes. The bill also includes provisions specifying the steps that a school district would take if it is under full State intervention or under partial State intervention and the governance component of school district effectiveness has not been returned to the district. | Dead |
| S952 | Requires health insurance coverage for annual mental health screening. | This bill requires health insurers (health, hospital, and medical service corporations, commercial individual and group health insurers, health maintenance organizations, health benefits plans issued pursuant to the New Jersey Individual Health Coverage and Small Employer Health Benefits Programs, and the State Health Benefits Program) to provide coverage for an annual mental health screening. The provisions of the bill will take effect 90 days after the date of enactment and will apply to all health benefits plans issued or renewed on or after that date. | In Committee |
| S2125 | Repeals law providing that violation of rear seat belt law be treated as secondary offense; establishes certain reporting requirements; requires AG to issue report. | This bill makes it a primary offense to violate the law requiring a rear seat motor vehicle passenger to wear a seat belt. Under current law, failure to wear a seatbelt in the rear seat of a motor vehicle constitutes a secondary offense, which means a law enforcement officer cannot stop and issue a ticket to a person solely for a violation of the rear seat belt law, but only when the motor vehicle has been stopped for some other suspected violation of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes or other law. This bill repeals the current law requiring that enforcement of the rear seat safety belt law be accomplished by treating a violation as a secondary offense. In addition, one year after the effective date of this bill, all State and local law enforcement agencies are required to submit a report to the Attorney General containing information from the preceding year on any traffic stop where a passenger received a citation for a violation of subsection c. of section 2 of P.L.1984, c.179 (C.39:3-76.2f). The information is to include the alleged traffic violation that led to the motor vehicle stop, any citation or warning issued as a result of the motor vehicle stop, whether a search was instituted as a result of the motor vehicle stop, and whether the motor vehicle stop led to an arrest of a driver or any passenger of the vehicle. The Attorney General is to compare the data contained in this report with any traffic stop data available from two years prior to the effective date of this bill, in order to determine the effect of the implementation of this bill on law enforcement practices. Within six months of receiving a report by State and local law enforcement agencies, the Attorney General is to issue a report to the Governor and the Legislature which details the Attorney General's conclusions regarding the impact of this act on law enforcement practices. Finally, the bill provides that information pertaining to the implementation of this bill is to be included in the State of New Jersey Highway Safety Plan sent to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Federal Highway Administration. The information is to include, but not be limited to, the effect of the implementation of this act on the number of injuries and fatalities resulting from motor vehicle accidents in this State. | In Committee |
| S881 | 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 |
| S579 | Establishes independent State Office of Consumer. | This bill establishes the independent State Office of the Consumer in the Legislative Branch of State Government. The head of the office will be a director who will serve a term of six years. The director will be appointed the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the General Assembly, the Senate Minority Leader and the Assembly Minority Leader by consensus and be a person qualified by education, training, and prior work experience to direct the work of the office and to perform the duties and functions and fulfill the responsibilities of the position. The Office of the Consumer will be responsible for conducting routine, periodic, and random phone call assessments of local government, school district, and State offices and the offices of regulated health insurance companies by calling those offices to determine the responsiveness and accessibility of the office. The office will also be responsible for periodic assessments of the websites of local government, school district, and State offices and the offices of regulated health insurance companies and by assessing the user-friendliness of the websites. The director will make monthly reports to the Legislature and the Governor that include the frequency and ease of reaching a live person to speak to when calling offices and the ease of finding information and user-friendliness of the websites visited during the reporting period. | In Committee |
| SR49 | 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 |
| S2131 | Provides Supplemental Transportation Growth Aid for school districts in 2023-2024 school year; appropriates $31.6 million. | This bill requires the Commissioner of Education to provide Supplemental Transportation Growth Aid to a school district, in addition to the amount of State school aid the district is receiving in the 2023-2024 school year. The amount of aid allocated to a school district would be the sum of:· $40 multiplied by the number of students who are transported without any special services; and · $275 multiplied by the number of special education students who have special transportation requirements. The bill appropriates the sum of $31.6 million to provide for the Supplemental Transportation Growth Aid. | In Committee |
| S2105 | 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 |
| S2130 | Extends membership in TPAF to four years after discontinuance of service and to 20 years for those who were laid off or had 10 or more years of continuous service upon voluntary termination. | This bill extends the length of time a member of the Teachers' Pension and Annuity Fund (TPAF) can discontinue their service and still maintain their membership in the TPAF. Under current law, membership in the TPAF ceases if an individual discontinues service for more than two years. This bill extends the period of discontinuance to four years. This bill also extends the length of time a member who left service for certain qualifying reasons may return to service and includes among the qualifying reasons those who voluntarily left service with 10 or more years of service credit. Under current law, membership in the TPAF may continue if the member returns to service within a period of 10 years from the date of discontinuance from service. This bill extends the period of discontinuance to 20 years. This bill directs the Division of Pension and Benefits to enroll a member of TPAF, who terminated their employment before the effective date of this bill, in the membership tier they were enrolled in prior to termination of employment if the member returned to employment within 20 years, as permitted under the law, and had not withdrawn their accumulated deductions. No additional contributions will be imposed on either the member or the member's employer. | In Committee |
| S2113 | Extends eligibility for short-term financial assistance under Transitional Aid to Localities program to municipalities that lose a major commercial ratable. | This bill would alleviate the property tax impact of the departure of a major business ratable from a municipality. It is intended to protect property taxpayers from property tax increases or significant service disruptions, or both, likely to result from the sudden loss of a major ratable that pays a significant portion of the local property tax levy. This bill would codify into permanent State law a language provision in the State FY 2015 appropriations act that addresses a municipality's loss of a large property tax ratable. Under this bill, a portion of any aid provided through the Transitional Aid to Localities program may be allocated by the Director of the Division of Local Government Services to provide short-term financial assistance to a local government unit that is determined by the director to be experiencing financial distress caused by the destruction or loss of a major local business ratable. "Major local business ratable" is defined in the bill as one or more related parcels of property owned by a single business entity, classified as commercial or industrial, which comprised the largest assessed valuation of any one or more line items of taxable property in a municipality; which generated an annual payment in lieu of property tax in excess of 10% of the total municipal levy; or which is otherwise determined by the director to be of such significance to a municipality that its destruction or loss has resulted in financial distress. The bill provides that the director may direct that part of any allocation of aid under the Transitional Aid to Localities program shall be paid to an affected school district or county, or to both, in the same manner as if the award of this aid was raised as revenue from the municipal tax levy. A local government unit determined to be experiencing financial distress because of the loss or destruction of a major local business ratable would not be required to be subject to any additional conditions, requirements, orders, or other operational efficiency or oversight measures, except as the director deems to be appropriate. The provisions of this bill are intended to provide assistance to municipalities such as Montvale, in Bergen County, where a large property, most recently the headquarters of Barr Laboratories, Inc., is anticipated to be sold in the near future to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and used as a regional cancer center. This new use of the property will likely render a large portion of it exempt from property taxes, and consequently, there will be a negative impact on Montvale's municipal property tax levy, which is the amount of money raised by property taxation to fund municipal purposes. Under this bill, any affected local unit of government would be able to apply to the Director of the Division of Local Government Services in the Department of Community Affairs for financial assistance under the Transitional Aid to Localities program in order to mitigate the effect of the loss of a major property tax ratable on the local unit's remaining taxpayers. | In Committee |
| S2101 | Allows municipalities to establish affordable housing preference for their residents. | This bill would allow a municipality to enter into agreements with developers to provide affordable housing occupancy preferences for low and moderate income current residents of the municipality of up to 50 percent of the affordable units in a particular project. Current law does not provide any preference for residents of a municipality for affordable housing located in the municipality. This bill would help residents of a municipality in need of affordable housing to be able to stay in their hometowns. | In Committee |
| S1703 | Credits $2.35 billion to "New Jersey Debt Defeasance and Prevention Fund"; appropriates $4.32 billion to Department of Treasury to provide funds to municipalities and counties for debt retirement and avoidance. | This bill adds $2.35 billion from the General Fund to the "New Jersey Debt Defeasance and Prevention Fund," and appropriates a total of $4.32 billion from the fund to the Department of the Treasury for the purpose of providing funds to each municipality and county in the State to be used by the municipality or county to retire and defease local debt or to fund capital projects on a pay-as-you-go basis rather than issuing additional local debt. The total amount of funds appropriated by the bill includes $1.97 billion in currently unallocated balances in the New Jersey Debt Defeasance and Prevention Fund. Under the bill, $3.0 billion would be allocated to each municipality on an equal per capita basis wherein each municipality receives the same dollar amount per resident. The remaining $1.32 billion appropriated by the bill would be allocated to each county on an equal per capita basis. The bill requires that all funds appropriated by the bill be distributed to each municipality and each county within 30 days of enactment. The State budget has recently benefited from debt reduction and avoidance from prior appropriations to the New Jersey Debt Defeasance and Prevention account, though typically only after funds have remained in the account for inordinately long periods of time while inflation destroys its value. Local governments can frequently have significant debt which can be equally or more expensive for taxpayers than State debt. Local governments have compelling infrastructure and capital needs that include, but are not limited to: water, sewer, parks, flooding, storm water, public safety, emergency medical services, community development, and traffic improvements. The State's budgeting process has frequently provided only small and symbolic amounts of assistance towards local infrastructure and capital improvements and only after burdensome, inefficient, and politicized processes that chose winners and losers based on favoritism. The sponsor believes it is sound public policy to quickly and efficiently direct remaining balances in the New Jersey Debt Defeasance and Prevention Fund towards debt reduction and avoidance that benefits property taxpayers and all residents of the State through a fair and reasonable allocation process. | In Committee |
| SCR79 | 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 |
| S2161 | "New Jersey Ticket Consumer Choice Act." | This bill, the "New Jersey Ticket Consumer Choice Act," guarantees the right of New Jersey ticket purchasers to opt-out of ticket restrictions that limit their ability to use, sell, or give away the tickets they have purchased. Specifically, this bill allows ticket issuers to sell tickets through a ticketing system that restricts the rights of consumers to resell their tickets only if, at the time of the initial sale, the consumer is offered the option to purchase the same ticket in a form not subject to restrictions by the issuer. Issuers would be permitted, however, to sell or give away tickets in a non-transferable form in the context of targeted promotions or private events. The bill prohibits any penalty or discrimination against a ticket holder solely because the ticket was resold or because of the specific ticket platform on which the ticket was resold. The bill provides for the recognition of the rights of issuers and venue owners and operators to institute policies governing overall operation of entertainment events and ticket sales. The bill exempts from the provisions of the bill issuers of tickets for an entertainment event held in a venue owned or operated by an entity which is subject to a hotel and motel occupancy fee pursuant to section 1 of P.L.2003, c.114 (C.54:32D-1) and located in a city the governing body of which has levied a retail sales tax pursuant to the provisions of section 1 of P.L.1947, c.71 (C.40:48-8.15). The consumer choice provisions of this bill protecting the right of ticket purchasers to resell their tickets have been in effect in New York State for six years. | In Committee |
| S285 | 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 |
| S596 | Requires public utilities to mail customers detailed explanation of rate settlement agreements prior to final BPU vote. | This bill requires a public utility to, upon arriving at a rate settlement agreement, the approval of which would increase individual rates, tolls, charges, or schedules of a public utility, notify customers in the service area affected by the settlement by direct mail prior to the final settlement decision before the Board of Public Utilities. The notification shall provide an explanation of the proposed settlement, including a detailed justification of the basis for the proposed settlement. | In Committee |
| S1893 | Eliminates the New Jersey Transfer Inheritance Tax and repeals parts of chapters 33 through 37 of Title 54 of the Revised Statutes. | This bill repeals the Transfer Inheritance Tax for transfers of estate for decedents dying on or after July 1, 2021. Currently, New Jersey imposes a Transfer Inheritance Tax on beneficiaries for the receipt of assets from a New Jersey resident decedent and certain New Jersey assets of nonresident decedents, as determined by the value of the assets transferred and the beneficiary's relationship to the decedent. The Transfer Inheritance Tax is one of the State's oldest taxes, originating in 1892. The tax is imposed on the transfer of all personal and real property in the estates of New Jersey resident decedents and of all tangible and real property located in New Jersey in the estates of nonresident decedents. The tax was extensively revised in 1985 to exempt from taxation transfers to spouses, ancestors, and descendants of the decedent. But "lateral" transfers, bequests to brothers and sisters of the decedent or their children, and to nonrelatives are taxed at rates of up to 16 percent. This bill eliminates all remaining taxable "classes" of beneficiaries and eliminates New Jersey's distinction as being one of only six states to impose an inheritance tax. | In Committee |
| S1345 | Creates "New Jersey Anti-Semitism Task Force". | This bill establishes the New Jersey Anti-Semitism Task Force to conduct research, develop recommendations to address the harms caused by anti-Semitism, and annually issue a report to the Governor and Legislature regarding the state of anti-Semitism in New Jersey. The task force will be permanent and consist of 18 persons, at least five of whom will be members of the public. The bill requires the task force to conduct research, develop recommendations to address the harms caused by anti-Semitism, and annually issue a report to the Governor and Legislature regarding the state of anti-Semitism in New Jersey. In performing this duty, the task force will: (1) Identify, compile, and synthesize the relevant corpus of evidentiary documentation relative to the history and current status of anti-Semitism at college campuses and state universities and the world, with a focus on New Jersey-specific information. The task force's documentation and examination will include, but not be limited to, facts related to: (a) The definition and ideology of anti-Semitism; (b) Misconceptions and stereotyping relative to the Jewish people; and (c) Discrimination and systemic failings relative to the fair treatment of the Jewish people; (2) Recommend appropriate ways to educate the New Jersey public of the task force's findings; and (3) Recommend appropriate remedies in consideration of the task force's findings. The task force will hold at least four public meetings each year, with at least one of those meetings being held in-person. The other meetings may be conducted virtually, via videoconferencing. Meetings via conference call will not be permitted. The task force will issue a report each year to the Governor and the Legislature and will provide its first annual report no later than 12 months following its initial meeting. | In Committee |
| S2102 | Prohibits certain property from receiving property tax exemption or abatement. | This bill would prohibit a property which was developed using benefits from the "Grow New Jersey Assistance Act" or the "New Jersey Economic Stimulus Act of 2009" from receiving a property tax exemption under the "Five-Year Exemption and Abatement Law," or the "Long Term Tax Exemption Law." These types of properties and their owners have already benefitted from public dollars to increase the value of their investment, and there is no need for municipalities to provide additional benefits available through the law. | In Committee |
| S1678 | Permits taxpayers to deduct the total amount of State property taxes paid on principal residence from gross income tax obligation. | This bill permits taxpayers to deduct the total amount of State property taxes, due and paid in a calendar year on the taxpayer's principal residence, from the taxpayer's gross income tax obligation. Under current law, a taxpayer may deduct up to $15,000 of property taxes due and paid in the calendar year on the taxpayer's primary residence from the taxpayer's gross income tax obligation. If the taxpayer is a renter, the taxpayer may deduct up to $15,000 of the amount of "rent constituting property tax," which is defined in P.L.1996, c.60, s.2 (C.54A:3A-16) to mean 18 percent of rent, due and paid in the calendar year from the taxpayer's gross income tax obligation. This bill eliminates these $15,000 maximum allowable deductions, thereby permitting a taxpayer to deduct the full amount of property taxes, or rent constituting property taxes, due and paid by the taxpayer in the calendar year on the taxpayer's primary residence. | In Committee |
| S2088 | 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 |
| S2121 | Creates offense of tracking for unlawful purpose; imposes enhanced penalties. | This bill creates the offense of tracking a vehicle with purpose to commit an unlawful act using a location tracking device, and imposes enhanced penalties for the offense. Under the bill, tracking a vehicle with purpose to commit an unlawful act using a location tracking device is a crime of the fourth degree, ordinarily punishable by up to 18 months imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000 or both. Under the bill however, the offense shall be sentenced under N.J.S.A.2C:43-7 to an extended term of imprisonment. Under N.J.S.A.2C:43-7, a person who has been convicted of a fourth degree crime included under paragraph (5) of subsection a. shall be sentenced, to an extended term of imprisonment of five years. It is the sponsor's view that the increased use of electronic device technology such as Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) or GPS-enabled devices to track an individual's whereabouts has contributed to domestic violence abuse, sexual assault, and vehicle theft, and, when misused in this manner, can have widespread damaging and even lethal effect warranting enhanced penalties. | In Committee |
| S1334 | Requires MVC to provide certain vehicle and licensing services in each county in State. | This bill requires the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission to operate a vehicle agency and a licensing agency in each county in the State, or to operate a commission agency in each county in the State that provides both vehicle and licensing services. | In Committee |
| S2120 | Prohibits use of schools as polling places. | Under current law, a county board of elections may select schools, other public buildings, and commercial or private buildings under certain circumstances, to be used as polling places for any election in this State. This bill prohibits the selection and use of schools as a polling places for any election. | In Committee |
| S2109 | Permits patient visitation in licensed health care facilities if consistent with federal or State law. | This bill permits patient visitation in licensed health care facilities if such visitation is consistent with federal or State law. Under the bill, a health care facility licensed by the Department of Health pursuant to P.L.1971, c.136 (C.26:2H-1 et seq.) is to permit a patient or resident to receive visitors to the fullest extent permitted under any applicable federal or State law. | In Committee |
| S2126 | Requires State Board of Education to provide five days' notice of public meeting and permit public comment on agenda items of public meeting. | This bill requires the State Board of Education to provide a minimum of five days' notice of a public meeting of the board. The bill also requires that members of the public be permitted to provide public comment on all agenda items of a public meeting that are not addressed in executive session. Under current law, adequate notice of 48 hours is required before a public meeting of the State Board of Education. This bill extends that required notice to a minimum of five days. | In Committee |
| S877 | Exempts municipal electric utilities from regulation by BPU. | This bill exempts municipal electric utilities from regulation by the Board of Public Utilities (BPU). Under current law, municipal utilities generally are not regulated by the BPU. However, if a municipality provides any product, including electricity, beyond its boundaries, the municipality is considered to be a public utility and is regulated by the BPU. In this event, the BPU is responsible for regulating the rates imposed by the municipality for the provision of these regulated services. Under the bill, if a municipality provides electricity to customers beyond its boundaries, the municipality would not be considered a public utility and would not be subject to regulation by the BPU. As a result, the bill provides that municipal electric utilities would no longer be subject to rate regulation by the BPU. However, the bill provides that the BPU would retain jurisdiction to determine disputes concerning the service territory of any municipal electric utility, consistent with current law governing rural electric cooperatives. | In Committee |
| S2086 | 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 |
| S2112 | Prohibits teaching staff members from inputting information and conversations regarding individually identifiable health information into third party software applications managed by entities engaging in partisan political activity. | This bill prohibits a teaching staff member employed by a board of education from inputting the individually identifiable health information of a student or members of a student's family, or conversations concerning such information, into a third party software application managed by an entity that engages in partisan political activity. The bill defines "individually identifiable health information" as any information, including genetic or vaccination information, relating to the past, present, or future physical or mental health or condition of an individual that either identifies the individual or could reasonably be used to identify the individual. The bill also defines "partisan political activity" as campaigning, fundraising, and electioneering on behalf of candidates or political parties. | In Committee |
| S1666 | 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 |
| S2085 | 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 |
| S2087 | Requires DCA to collect information about State residents seeking affordable housing in State and provide that information to COAH. | This bill would require the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) to collect information about State residents seeking affordable housing in the State and provide that information to the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH). The bill requires DCA to establish a program to collect information about where these State residents currently live and work, and where they would want to live if provided an affordable housing option. On an annual basis, DCA would prepare a report compiling all the information collected under this program from the prior year and would provide a copy of the report to COAH or its successor. This would help the agency in charge of assigning affordable housing obligations across the State ensure that affordable housing is developed in locations where there is a demand for it, and in sufficient amounts, based on actual expressed interest from those in need of affordable housing. | In Committee |
| SR61 | Urges federal government to repeal state and local tax deduction caps. | This resolution urges the federal government to repeal the state and local tax (SALT) deduction caps. The federal "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act," Pub.L. 115-97, which was enacted in December 2017, capped the SALT deduction at $10,000 for single filers, head of household filers, and married taxpayers filing jointly, and capped the SALT deduction at $5,000 for married taxpayers filing separately Since 1913, American taxpayers, including many New Jersey residents, have had the option of using the SALT deduction when they file their federal income tax returns. Under the SALT deduction, American taxpayers who itemize on their returns, rather than claim the standard deduction, may deduct state and local real estate and personal property taxes as well as either state and local income or sales taxes. Historically, 41 percent of New Jersey tax filers have claimed the SALT deduction on their returns. New Jersey's high property taxes have only increased since the SALT deduction caps were enacted, with the average property tax bill in 2020 hitting $9,112, an increase of 105 percent since 2000. Since the enactment of the SALT deduction caps, many New Jersey residents, including those in the middle class, have moved out of the State to lower-tax states. Repealing the caps would kick-start the development of suburban markets in the State and would provide significant relief to New Jersey residents. Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is caused by a novel coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2, has caused a global pandemic leading to unprecedented and overwhelming health and economic crises throughout the United States. New Jersey residents, who already pay some of the highest tax rates and cost of living expenses in the country, are financially struggling in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. New Jersey is a "donor state," meaning that the State pays more in federal taxes than it receives in federal funding. Because many New Jersey residents are facing unprecedented economic hardships, which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, and given the disparity in the amount that New Jersey residents pay in federal taxes in comparison to the amount that they receive in federal funding, the federal government should immediately repeal the SALT deduction caps. | In Committee |
| S2092 | Upgrades simple assault to aggravated assault when committed against registered security officer. | This bill upgrades the crime of simple assault to aggravated assault if the assault is committed against a security officer. Specifically under the bill, a person is guilty of aggravated assault for committing simple assault against a security officer registered pursuant to the provisions of the "Security Officer Registration Act" while the officer is clearly identifiable as being engaged in the performance of the duties of a security officer or because of his or her status as a security officer. Aggravated assault under the bill is a crime of the third degree if the victim suffers bodily injury; otherwise it is a crime of the fourth degree. Third degree crimes are punishable by a term of imprisonment of three-to-five years, a fine of up to $15,000, or both. Fourth degree crimes are punishable by imprisonment of up to 18 months, a fine of up to $10,000, or both. Current law similarly upgrades simple assault to aggravated assault if committed against the following persons while engaged in the performance of the position or due to the status of the position: law enforcement officers, firefighters, EMS personnel, school employees, employees of the Division of Child Protection and Permanency, judges, bus drivers, employees of a rail passenger service, corrections officers, utility company employees, licensed health care workers, and direct care workers in psychiatric hospitals. | In Committee |
| S948 | Creates second degree crime for operation of stolen vehicle in manner that creates risk of injury to person or property. | This bill creates the second degree crime for theft of a motor vehicle when the vehicle is operated in a manner that creates a risk of injury to any person or damage to property. A second degree crime is punishable by five to 10 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $150,000, or both. | In Committee |
| S902 | Establishes Office of Inspector General for Veterans' Facilities. | This bill would create the Office of Inspector General for Veterans' Facilities. The inspector general will be appointed to a five-year term by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. The inspector general must have experience as either a prosecutor or investigator, or in the operation of veterans' facilities, nursing homes, or long-term care facilities. The inspector general will be independent of supervision or control by any other State officer or employee. The role of the Inspector General for Veterans' Facilities will be to receive and investigate complaints concerning policies and procedures at State veterans' facilities. In exercising investigatory powers, the inspector general would also be empowered to conduct evaluations, inspections, and other such reviews as deemed necessary to ensure the safety and quality of care provided at State veterans' facilities. The inspector general would also be empowered to initiate investigations independent of any complaints received. Upon the appointment of the inspector general, the inspector general will immediately begin an investigation into the policies and practices that may have caused or contributed to the high number of deaths in the veterans' facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The inspector general may refer possible criminal conduct or activity to the appropriate prosecutorial authority. In light of the uncontrolled outbreak of COVID-19 at veterans' facilities in Paramus and Menlo Park, there is need for additional State oversight of the policies and procedures at all State veterans' facilities. By establishing the position of Inspector General for Veterans' Facilities, the State can ensure that the health and well-being of New Jersey's veterans are protected and that tragedies like those that occurred in Paramus and Menlo Park never happen again. | In Committee |
| SCR13 | Proposes constitutional amendment to limit effective period of certain emergency orders, rules, or regulations issued by Governor to 14 days. | This constitutional amendment provides that certain emergency orders, rules, or regulations issued by the Governor during a period of a state of emergency will terminate on the 15th day following the date of issuance, unless the Legislature approves a greater period of time by way of a concurrent resolution. The constitutional amendment prohibits the Governor from issuing an order, rule, or regulation to the same or substantially the same effect as the one terminated pursuant to the amendment for the same emergency. The constitutional amendment 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," or a successor State statute; (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," or a successor State statute. | In Committee |
| S2132 | Prohibits hospital from billing patient for inter-hospital medical transport services under certain circumstances. | This bill prohibits hospitals from billing patients for inter-hospital medical transport services if the patient is afforded no other transport options. Specifically, if a hospital provides medical transport services to a patient to or from another hospital using the hospital's own first aid, ambulance, or rescue squad or a first aid, ambulance, or rescue squad under contract with the hospital, and the hospital reasonably determines that no alternative transport options, including transport using a private vehicle, are clinically appropriate for the patient, the hospital will be prohibited from billing the patient for the inter-hospital medical transport services. Nothing in the bill will prohibit a hospital from billing a patient's health benefits plan for any medical transport services provided. Additionally, nothing in the bill will prohibit a nonvolunteer first aid, ambulance, or rescue squad, including a first aid, ambulance, or rescue squad operated by or under contact with a hospital, from billing a patient or the patient's health benefits plan for medical transport directly to the nearest appropriate hospital following dispatch of the squad in response to a 9-1-1 emergency dispatch call. | In Committee |
| S2097 | 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 |
| S2014 | Prohibits adoption of any State rule or regulation mandating electric heating or water heating systems in buildings prior to issuance of DCA report. | This bill would prohibit the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), the Board of Public Utilities (BPU), or any other State agency from adopting rules and regulations that mandate the use of electric heating systems or electric water heating systems as the sole or primary means of heating buildings or providing hot water to buildings, including, but not limited to, residences or commercial buildings. The prohibition would remain in effect until the DCA issues a report on the costs and benefits of electric heating, as required by the bill. The bill would not prohibit a State agency from offering incentives for the voluntary installation or use of an electric heating or electric water heating system. In addition, the bill would not prohibit a person from installing or using an electric heating system as the sole or primary means of heating a building or an electric water heating system as the sole or primary means of providing hot water to a building. The bill would require the DCA, in cooperation with the DEP and the BPU, to hold at least six public hearings throughout the State, within 18 months after the bill's enactment, to solicit information on topics related to the costs and benefits of electric heating systems and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from residential and commercial buildings in the State. The bill would then require the DCA, in consultation with the DEP and the BPU, to publish, within 24 months after the bill's enactment, a report that summarizes the information submitted at the public hearings held pursuant to the bill, and recommends legislative and regulatory actions. After the report is published, the bill's prohibition on regulatory actions to mandate the installation of electric heating systems or electric water heating systems would expire. | In Committee |
| S2122 | Establishes "COVID-19 Learning Loss Study Commission." | This bill establishes the COVID-19 Learning Loss Study Commission. The commission will consist of the following 13 members: two members of the Senate, of whom one will be appointed by the President of the Senate and one will be appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate; two members of the General Assembly, of whom one will be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and one will be appointed by the Minority Leader of the General Assembly; the Commissioner of Education, ex officio, or a designee; and eight members to be appointed by the Governor including one each from the New Jersey Education Association, the New Jersey School Boards Association, the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association, the New Jersey Association of School Business Officials, the New Jersey Association of School Administrators, and the New Jersey Parent Teacher Association, and two public members. It will be the duty of the commission to study the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency on student academic outcomes. The commission will: (1) compile and analyze data on the impact of the COVID-19 public health emergency on overall student academic outcomes, and will include an analysis disaggregated by district size, grade level, and academic subject, where practicable; and (2) compile and analyze data on the impact of the COVID-19 public health emergency on student achievement disparities that existed prior to the public health emergency. In conducting its study, the commission will examine available data and information for the time period beginning on the date of a school district's closure in March of 2020 and ending on the effective date of this act. The commission will issue a final report of its findings and recommendations, including any recommended legislation, to the Governor and the Legislature no later than six months after its organizational meeting. The commission will expire 30 days after the submission of the report. | In Committee |
| S1387 | 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 |
| S2016 | Appropriates $70 million in federal funds to EDA to support arts and culture organizations negatively impacted by COVID-19 pandemic. | This bill appropriates $70 million in federal funds to the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA) to support arts and culture organizations, including for-profit businesses and non-profit organizations, that were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the bill, the EDA, in consultation with the New Jersey State Council on the Arts (council), would be required to award $50 million in grants to support the financial recovery, resiliency, and growth of qualifying arts and culture organizations. However, of this total, $10 million in grants would be dedicated to arts education organizations that provide programs and services for public schools or afterschool programs. Specifically, these grants may be used to offset any revenue losses that occurred as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic or provide the cash reserves necessary to ensure continued operations in the event of future pandemic-related shutdowns. Additionally, the bill requires the EDA, in consultation with the council, to award $20 million in grants to qualifying arts and culture organizations to support the completion of placemaking projects in public spaces. Under the bill, placemaking projects would include any creative or artistic project intended to beautify or enrich public spaces, such as artistic paintings on roadways or sidewalks, landscape plantings in public areas, educational signage, and other artistic, cultural, or educational installations. The monies appropriated under the bill would be provided from the State's allocation of funds from the federal "Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund," established pursuant to the federal "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021". | In Committee |
| S945 | Requires school psychologists and school counselors to complete mental health first aid training. | This bill requires school psychologists and school counselors to complete a mental health first aid training course established or approved by the Department of Education. Under the bill, every school psychologist and school counselor would be required to complete a mental health first aid training course established or approved by the Department of Education during the person's first year of employment. If a person is employed as a school psychologist or school counselor on the effective date of the bill, then the person would be required to complete the mental health first aid training course during the first year following the bill's effective date. The bill also requires every school psychologist and school counselor to complete the mental health first aid training course at least once every three years as a part of the professional development requirements established by the State Board of Education. Additionally, the bill requires the Department of Education, in consultation with the Department of Human Services, to establish or approve, as necessary, a mental health first aid training course to instruct school personnel on how to recognize and address the signs of mental illness in children and adolescents. This training course would be required to consist of no less than eight hours and, at a minimum, include information on the following topics: (1) the methods of identifying, understanding, and responding to signs of mental health illnesses and substance use disorders; (2) the risk factors and warning signs for mental health illnesses and substance use disorders; (3) the interventions and strategies that may be used to assist an individual in both crisis and non-crisis situations; and (4) an overview of mental health illnesses that may present in children and adolescents, including depression and mood disorders, anxiety disorders, trauma, psychosis, and substance use disorders The bill also requires the training course to be reviewed and updated, as necessary, not less than once every three years, to ensure that the contents of the course reflect the current understanding of mental health issues, and continues to comply with the requirements of the bill. | In Committee |
| S2133 | Establishes legislative internship program; makes appropriation. | This bill establishes a legislative internship program to allow members of the Legislature to employ interns, with the approval of the presiding officer of the member's House. The bill requires the legislative internship program to be open to any full-time or part-time student currently attending any accredited institution of higher education in undergraduate level and graduate level programs, with the exception of juris doctorate and PhD programs. The bill also requires students who are residents of New Jersey, or who are attending institutions of higher education located within New Jersey, to be granted priority over other applicants to the program. Additionally, the bill requires participants to complete one work period with a district office of a legislator. The work period will be established by each legislator prior to employing an intern. This bill also allows the legislator to elect to retain the participant for an additional work period if the participant agrees to continue their internship after completion of the program requirement. Additionally, this bill allows not more than $10,000 annually to be provided to each member of the Legislature for employing interns. Students selected to participate in the legislative internship will receive a stipend of $1,000 for every work period completed in the program. The stipend is prorated and paid bi-weekly or monthly, as determined by the legislator. This bill also appropriates $1,200,000 from the State General Fund to the New Jersey Legislature for the purposes of the legislative internship program. | In Committee |
| S2108 | Requires exterior exit doors in school buildings to remain unlocked from egress side and locked from access side at all times. | This bill requires exterior doors in school buildings to remain locked from the access side at all times. The bill provides that exterior doors will remain unlocked from the egress side to allow for safe exit at all times. In the event that a fire alarm or any other security alarm is triggered, the bill provides that a school employee will ensure that the access side of all exterior doors is unlocked, or an access-controlled locking system may be used to unlock the doors automatically. | In Committee |
| S2147 | Permits issuance of special license in certain municipalities with shopping malls. | This bill authorizes the issuance of special licenses in certain municipalities with shopping malls. Under the bill, the Director of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, upon approval of an eligible municipality, may issue one special license for each plenary retail consumption license that is sited in a premises within a shopping mall located in the municipality. The license may be issued to one or more individual corporations or other types of legal entities operating a premises not located in a shopping mall, where alcoholic beverages are intended to be served. The license authorizes the sale of alcoholic beverages for immediate consumption on the operator's premises. The bill defines an "eligible municipality" as one in which at least one shopping mall is located and the number of plenary retail consumption licenses issued has reached the population limitation. A "shopping mall" is defined in the bill as an enclosed walkway or hall area under common ownership or control, that is open to the public and connects with or provides access to separate retail establishments, including at least one restaurant or other establishment that serves alcoholic beverages pursuant to a plenary retail consumption license. Current law provides that one plenary retail consumption license may be issued per 3,000 residents of a municipality. It has become increasingly common that plenary retail consumption licenses in municipalities with shopping malls are obtained, upon becoming available, by businesses located within the shopping malls, making it difficult for local businesses in downtowns and other areas of the municipalities to compete. This bill is intended to provide an alternate method for a business, such as a bar or restaurant, not located within a shopping mall to obtain a license to sell alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises. | In Committee |
| S2093 | Enhances "Crime Victim's Bill of Rights"; prohibits defendant from entering crime victim's home throughout criminal justice process, including in relation to any investigation or discovery. | This bill would specify that certain privacy rights are encompassed by the "Crime Victim's Bill of Rights," P.L.1985, c.249 (C.52:4B-34 et seq.) and would prohibit a defendant from entering the home of a crime victim during the criminal justice process under any circumstances. The Victim's Rights Amendment to the New Jersey Constitution, enacted by the voters in 1991 as paragraph 22 of Article I, makes crime victims' rights a constitutional mandate and specifically provides that victims "shall be entitled to those rights and remedies as may be provided by the Legislature." Pursuant to subsection c. of the Crime Victim's Bill of Rights, enumerated in section 3 of P.L.1985, c.249 (C.52:4B-36), crime victims are to be free from intimidation, harassment, or abuse by any person including the defendant or any other person acting in support of or on behalf of the defendant, due to the involvement of the victim or witness in the criminal justice process. Subsection d. provides that inconveniences to victims associated with participation in the criminal justice process are to be minimized to the fullest extent possible. In this State, a criminal defendant is entitled to comprehensive discovery, which is defined broadly. Rule 3:13-3(b) of the New Jersey Rules of Court directs, in relevant part, that the prosecutor's discovery for a defendant named in an indictment is to be provided or made available within seven days of the return or unsealing of the indictment. Under Rule 3:13-3(b)(1)(E), discovery includes buildings or places which are within the possession, custody or control of the prosecutor. When discovery is sought which is not within the possession, custody, or control of the prosecutor and does not fall within the categories permitted by the Rules of Court, such as discovery related to a crime scene that is the victim's home, the court will determine whether the discovery request should be granted. In making its determination, the court will exercise judicial discretion to balance the beneficial effects of the discovery against its disadvantages. Under current law, when faced with a defendant's request to inspect a crime scene that is an alleged victim's home, and the court has found that the request is legitimate and that the defendant has articulated a reasonable basis to believe the inspection will lead to relevant evidence on a material issue, the New Jersey Supreme Court has held that subject to appropriate time, place, and manner restrictions intended to protect the privacy interests of the alleged victim and her family, the defendant, along with his attorney, may be permitted to inspect the victim's home. See State ex rel. A.B., 219 N.J. 542 (2014). In the sponsor's view, the entry of an order permitting a defendant to enter into the home of a crime victim for any purpose would serve to intimidate, harass or abuse a crime victim in violation of the Crime Victim's Bill of Rights, and does not satisfactorily minimize the inconveniences to the crime victim, as required by the Crime Victim's Bill of Rights. Under the bill, a defendant's attorney or court-appointed representative may be permitted to inspect a victim's home that is the scene of a crime if the court find's the defendant has demonstrated there is a reasonable basis to believe that a home inspection of limited duration will yield relevant evidence. However the defendant will not be permitted to enter or inspect the victim's home under any circumstances. The bill would further provide that the New Jersey Supreme Court may adopt such court rules and procedures as it deems necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act, and the State Attorney General may adopt, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations necessary for the implementation and administration of this act. The bill would take effect on the 60th day after the date of enactment. | In Committee |
| S916 | Requires Director of Division of Developmental Disabilities to align rates for self-directed employees with maximum service provider rates. | This bill requires the Director of the Division of Developmental Disabilities (division) in the Department of Human Services to ensure that there is parity between service provider and self-directed employee rates, regarding approved services funded by the division and provided to eligible individuals. Under the bill: "self-directed employee" means a person who is recruited and offered employment directly by an individual who is eligible to receive services funded by the division, or the individual's authorized representative, to perform approved services, for which the self-directed employee is qualified; and "service provider" means an entity or individual who enters into a contract with the division to provide approved services to individuals who are eligible to receive services funded by the division. The director's efforts are to include, at a minimum, setting the rates contracted between the division and a service provider as the maximum self-directed employee rates, provided that the rates are for the same service, duration of time, and level of care. Currently, under the self-direction service model, the individual, or the individual's authorized representative, offering employment to the self-directed employee determines the employee's hourly rate, within a "reasonable and customary" framework. The individual's service budget must be able to support this rate. The comparable service provider rates are specific by amount and are generally much higher. For example, the hourly base rate for high acuity community based supports provided by a service provider is approximately $51.00, while the hourly rate for the same service provided by a self-directed employee is "reasonable and customary." The current threshold for "reasonable and customary" is between approximately $20 and $25 per hour. Under this bill, the maximum hourly rate for a self-directed employee providing community based supports would be equal to the hourly service provider rate of approximately $51.00, provided that the level of care is identical for both services. | In Committee |
| S1338 | Revises factors for determining employment or independent contractor status under certain State labor laws. | This bill revises the factors that are 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 revises the factors for showing a worker is an independent contract. Under the bill, to determine whether an individual is an employee or an independent contractor, all information that provides evidence of the degree of control and the degree of independence is to be considered. Facts that provide evidence of the degree of control and independence fall into three categories: (A) behavioral control; (B) financial control; and (C) the type of relationship of the parties. In making an employment determination any guidance on determining a worker's employment status provided by the federal Internal Revenue Service in the United States Department of the Treasury is to be considered. This bill aligns the test for employment status under State law with the test in use by the Internal Revenue Service in the Department of the Treasury. | In Committee |
| S1201 | Reduces alcoholic beverage tax rate on cider and low-percentage alcohol by volume liquors. | This bill reduces the alcoholic beverage tax rate on cider and low-percentage alcohol by volume (ABV) liquors so that they match the tax rate for beer. Under current law governing the excise tax on alcoholic beverages, cider is taxed at $0.15 a gallon and beer is taxed at $0.12 a gallon. This bill reduces the rate on cider to $0.12 a gallon to match the tax rate for beer. Low-percentage ABV liquors, such as canned cocktails, are currently taxed at the rate for liquor, which is $5.50 a gallon. Under the bill, liquors with lower than 9.9 percent ABV are to be taxed at $0.12 a gallon to match the tax rate for beer. | In Committee |
| S1673 | The "School Safety and Security Act"; establishes penalties for certain criminal acts committed on school property. | This bill, the "School Safety and Security Act," would establish penalties for certain criminal activity related to school safety and security. Under current law, certain criminal acts committed on school property, or committed against a school official or employee are penalized and in some cases are subject to enhanced penalties. However, there is presently no provision in Title 2C, the Criminal Code, which establishes penalties solely for criminal activity related to school safety and security. The bill would establish certain acts related to school safety and security as crimes of the fourth degree. Under subsection a. of section 3 of the bill, an actor would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree if he purposely or knowingly enters or remains on school property after having been advised by written or verbal communication, a posting, or other reasonable efforts have been made by the school district or non-public school or any other authorized person to notify the actor that he is not licensed or privileged to do so; or having entered school property, provides false information, name, or identification to any authorized person requesting such information; or assists another to enter school property by ignoring, circumventing, or bypassing any direction, policy, or device specifically designed to identify, authorize or otherwise screen visitors entering the school property after having been advised by written or verbal communication, posting, or other reasonable efforts to advise the actor of such direction, policy, or device; or assists another to enter school property by defeating any security measure or device specifically designed to prevent unauthorized access. A person would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree under subsection b. of section 3 of the bill if he purposely or knowingly activates, uses, or tampers with any device utilized, designed, or intended to announce or communicate a crime or emergency, or to initiate a school safety and security plan, non-fire evacuation, lockdown, lock-in, or other security-related response knowing that there is no such crime or emergency and that it is likely to initiate a school safety and security plan, a lockdown, lock-in, or other security-related plan or emergency response. Under subsection c. of section 3 of the bill, a person would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree if he purposely or knowingly damages or tampers with any device, instrument, sign, or system used to monitor or manage the security of a school. Under subsection d. of section 3 of the bill, a person would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree if he purposely or knowingly interferes with, obstructs, or impedes implementation of an activated school safety and security plan or any security protocol, function or drill, intended to provide an emergency response from the school district or non-public school, employee, administrator, or any other authorized person, or to notify and elicit a response from security personnel or law enforcement. A person would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree under subsection e. of section 3 of the bill if, with purpose to cause inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, or recklessly creating a risk thereof, he engages in criminal, alarming or threatening behavior; and causes any school district or non-public school, employee, administrator, law enforcement officer, or any other authorized person to initiate, activate, communicate, or otherwise begin protocol pursuant to a school safety and security plan, non-fire evacuation, drill, lockdown, lock-in, or other security-related plan or emergency response, or to notify and elicit a response from security personnel or law enforcement. Pursuant to section 4 of the bill, all information related to plans, locations, diagrams, procedures, drills, or other activity that is part of an established school safety and security plan or other security- related plan or emergency response intended to be used to ensure the safety and security of a school would not be made available to any individual or institution except law enforcement officials; school board members; employees of the school district or non-public school; and any other person or entity otherwise provided by law. A person would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree if he purposely or knowingly, without the express written permission of the superintendent of schools of the school district or the chief school administrator of the non-public school, or the chief law enforcement officer of the municipality in which the school is located or, if the municipality does not have a local police force, the Superintendent of State Police, films, records, or otherwise documents procedures, drills, or activity that is part of an established school safety and security plan, or other security-related plan or emergency response; or posts any information, video, or procedures on the Internet, social media, or makes public any plans, locations, diagrams, or procedures pursuant to an established school safety and security plan, or other security-related plan or emergency response, intended to be used to ensure the safety and security of the school. The chief law enforcement officer or Superintendent of State Police would be required to notify the appropriate superintendent of schools of the school district or the chief school administrator of the non-public school if written permission is granted. This subsection would not apply to law enforcement activities associated with the operation of, or planning or training for, school safety and security or emergency responsiveness, or to news coverage of an emergency. Under subsection a. of section 5 of the bill, a person would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree if he purposely or knowingly stops, impedes, redirects, or otherwise interferes with an established route, operation, or function of a school bus, van, or transportation vehicle engaged in the transportation of children to or from school or a school-sponsored event. Pursuant to subsection b. of section 5 of the bill, a person who, knowing he is not licensed or privileged to do so, enters an occupied school bus without the consent of the school bus driver or authorized school representative would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree. This section would not apply to the actions of law enforcement or other established emergency road or utility repair crews in response to emergency traffic conditions. The bill provides that nothing in the bill would preclude an indictment and conviction for any other offense defined by the laws of this State. For the purposes of the bill "school district" would mean any local or regional school district established pursuant to chapter 8 or chapter 13 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes. "School safety and security plan" would mean the comprehensive plans, procedures, and mechanisms developed by each school district that provide for safety and security in the school district's public elementary and secondary schools and which provide for, at a minimum, the protection of the health, safety, security and welfare of the school population; the prevention of, intervention in, response to and recovery from emergency and crisis situations. The bill would take effect immediately. | In Committee |
| S2103 | 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 |
| S2118 | Requires child care center vehicles to be equipped with alarm system prompting driver to inspect vehicle for children left unattended in vehicle. | This bill requires each vehicle used to transport enrolled children to and from a licensed child care center to be equipped with an alarm system that prompts the driver to inspect the vehicle for children before exiting the vehicle. The bill requires the Department of Children and Families (department), in consultation with the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, to adopt rules and regulations concerning the alarm system, including minimum safety standards. The department is to approve alarm systems that meet the minimum safety standards. | In Committee |
| S797 | Requires suicide prevention training for mental health practitioners. | This bill requires suicide prevention training both as a condition of initial mental health licensure and as an ongoing requirement for mental health practitioners in the State. The bill requires that new applicants for licensure as a mental health practitioner complete a minimum of four hours of suicide prevention training and submit proof of completion to the appropriate State Board of Examiners or Committee. Following their licensure, mental health practitioners are to complete a minimum of four hours of suicide prevention training every six years. Mental health practitioners who are already licensed to practice on the bill's effective date will be required to complete a minimum of four hours of suicide prevention training within one year following the bill's effective date, and every six years thereafter, and provide proof of completion to the appropriate State Board of Examiners or Committee. The bill defines "mental health practitioner" as a clinical social worker, marriage and family therapist, alcohol and drug counselor, professional counselor, associate counselor, rehabilitation counselor, clinical mental health counselor, psychologist, or psychoanalyst who is licensed or otherwise authorized to practice pursuant to Title 45 of the Revised Statutes. The bill defines "suicide prevention training" as a training program, provided online, in person, or through telephonic means, concerning the prevention, assessment, screening, treatment, and management of suicide in the clinical context that has been approved by the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety. The bill requires the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs to establish a list of approved suicide prevention training programs and a protocol by which providers of suicide prevention training may seek approval of their training programs by the division. | In Committee |
| S1671 | 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 |
| S2134 | Establishes penalty for certain undeclared possession of hypodermic needle or syringe. | This bill makes possession of an undeclared hypodermic needle or syringe during contact with law enforcement a disorderly persons offense in certain circumstances. Under the bill, a person commits a disorderly persons offense if while in possession of a hypodermic needle or syringe during the course of a lawful search or investigatory stop, the person does not declare such possession to a law enforcement officer conducting the search or stop prior to physical contact between the person and the law enforcement officer. 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. | In Committee |
| S2111 | Requires Legislature to approve concurrent resolution settlements of over $10 million or more of claims for damages against the State. | This bill requires the Legislature approve settlements of claims for damages against the State of $10 million or more through the adoption of a concurrent resolution by majority vote of both Houses of the Legislature. The bill applies to settlement agreements between the State and a claimant or claimants at any time after the claimant or claimants have filed a notice of a claim for damages with the appropriate entity pursuant to the New Jersey Tort Claims Act. The amount of $10 million applies in both individual and aggregate situations when the claims are based on damages arising from the same event or occurrence or substantially the same event or occurrence. The proposed settlement must be submitted to the Legislature in writing at least 30 days before the proposed date of execution of the final monetary settlement agreement by the State and claimant or claimants or at least 30 days before the proposed date of approval of the final monetary settlement agreement by the judge presiding over the suit, whichever date is sooner. The bill will take effect on the first day of the third month following enactment and applies to settlements not yet executed or approved by a judge. | In Committee |
| S2110 | Limits amount of real property that may be exempt from property taxation under "Long Term Tax Exemption Law." | This bill would limit the amount of real property that can be property tax exempt under the "Long Term Tax Exemption Law." The bill would require that the governing body of a municipality in which the long term tax exemption threshold is greater than five percent of the sum of the municipality's net valuation taxable and the value of properties already exempted under the "Long Term Tax Exemption Law," shall not enter into any further financial agreements while that threshold remains above five percent. The long term tax exemption threshold is calculated by dividing the value of property already subject to a financial agreement, by the sum of the value of property already subject to a financial agreement plus the net valuation taxable, and that quotient multiplied by 100. If a tax exemption under the "Long Term Tax Exemption is denied because the municipality's long term tax exemption threshold is greater than five percent, but in a later year, the municipality's long term tax exemption threshold becomes lower than five percent, the municipality may at its sole discretion permit the tax exemption upon reapplication to the extent that the tax exemption does not increase the municipality's long term tax exemption threshold past the five percent limit. | In Committee |
| S995 | Establishes "Household Water Assistance Program"; appropriates $75 million. | This bill would require the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs, in consultation with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU), to establish the "Household Water Assistance Program" (program). The purpose of the program would be to provide affordability assistance for water, sewer, and stormwater utility services, to eligible households throughout New Jersey. Under the bill, "eligible households" means a household regardless of the federal immigration status of the members of the household that: (1) has an income at or below an adjusted gross income to be determined by the department, which shall be equal to or greater than 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines; (2) has individuals residing in the eligible household who are receiving the following: (a) Temporary Assistance for Needy Families; (b) Supplemental Security Income payments under title XVI of the Social Security Act; (c) food stamps; (d) payments under section 415, 521, 541, or 542 of the title 38, United States Code, or under section 306 of the "Veterans' and Survivors' Pension Improvement Act of 1978;" or (e) payments under the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program; (f) benefits under the Universal Service Fund; (g) benefits under the Lifeline Credit Program; (h) benefits under the Tenants' Lifeline Assistance Program; (i) benefits under the Winter Termination Program; (j) benefits under the Pharmaceutical Assistance to the Aged and Disabled program; or (k) benefits as defined under P.L.1997, c.14; or (3) can demonstrate either temporary or ongoing financial hardship according to the department. Additionally, the bill defines "water system" to include all of the following: (1) a public community water system, as that term is defined by section 3 of P.L.1977, c.224 (C.58:12A-3); (2) a stormwater utility established pursuant to P.L.2019, c.42 (C.40A:26B-1 et seq.); and (3) an authority, as defined in P.L.1983, c. 313 (C.40A:5A-3), municipal public utility, as defined in P.L.1960, c.169 (C.40A:1-1), or public utility, as defined pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1983, c.78 (C.48:2-13.1), that provides sewer service. The bill provides that the program would provide the following types of financial assistance: (1) direct assistance; (2) assistance to renters and other households who do not receive a bill from a water system but pay other amounts, fees, or charges related to residential water system service; (3) water crisis intervention assistance; (4) water efficiency, leak detection, and plumbing repair measures for eligible households; and (5) debt relief for arrears, including arrears accrued prior to implementation of the program. The commissioner is required to coordinate the program with any existing assistance programs and in developing the program, the commissioner would consider adapting elements of one or more existing low-income energy assistance programs, including the Universal Service Fund and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. The bill provides that in administering the program, the commissioner is required to consult and coordinate with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities and the Household Water Assistance Advisory Group to develop and publish performance metrics that are disaggregated by utility name, type of water service provided, municipality, and zip code, which include enrollment levels water shutoffs for inability to pay, and on-time payment levels. The bill would establish a "Household Water Assistance Advisory Group" to advise the commissioner in the development of the program. The advisory group would include representatives of each of the following entities, to be appointed by the Governor: a public community water system that is not a public utility; a public community water system that is a public utility; a stormwater utility once created; an authority or municipal public utility that provides sewer services; three representatives of non-governmental organizations; a member from the public that comes from an eligible household; at least one technical assistance provider, such as organizations that support the federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program or other low income utility assistance programs; at least one local agency or non-profit organization that manages multifamily housing serving low-income residents; at least one person with technical expertise in measuring the affordability of water services; at least one municipal official appointed by the Governor, upon the recommendation of the New Jersey State League of Municipalities; and at least one county official appointed by the Governor upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Association of Counties The bill provides that the commissioner would be required to consult, coordinate, and collaborate with the advisory group on certain matters. The bill would also require the commissioner to annually adopt an expenditure plan for assistance to be provided under the program through the "Water Rate Assistance Fund" (fund) created pursuant to the bill. The fund would be a non-lapsing fund to contain monies appropriated annually by the Legislature, federal and other grants received by the State, and any other monies made available to fund the water affordability assistance required to be provided in the bill. The bill provides that no later than one year after the enactment of this bill, BPU would be required to establish a mechanism for public utilities that provide electric or natural gas services to regularly share data with the department regarding customers currently enrolled in low-income energy assistance programs. Additionally, the commissioner would be allowed to enter into agreements with municipal public utilities that provide electric or natural gas service, for the purposes of regularly sharing data with the department regarding utility customers enrolled in, or eligible to be enrolled in, affordability programs benefiting low-income households. The board and the commissioner would be required to ensure that the data shared and collected under the bill would be subject to existing confidentiality protections provided under State law. The bill would appropriate $75 million to the fund within the department for the purpose of administering the program from the funds provided to the State by the United States government under the "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021," Pub.L. 117-2. | In Committee |
| SCR61 | Constitutes special committee of Senate and General Assembly entitled "New Jersey Public Employee Health Care Program Costs Investigation Committee." | This concurrent resolution constitutes a special committee of the Legislature entitled the "New Jersey Public Employee Health Care Program Costs Investigation Committee." The creation of this committee is in response to several news articles highlighting the recommended increase in premiums and periodic charges for the State health care programs and allegations the Governor's Office may have intervened during contract disputes with the State's contractor, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield. The committee will review and investigate the recommended increases in the premiums of the State Health Benefits Program and School Employees' Health Benefits Program. The committee will also investigate allegations that the Governor's Office may have pressured staff at the Department of the Treasury to halt the contract dispute with Horizon and the effort by the department to recoup the $34 million from the contract. Additionally, the committee will review the implementation, if any, of P.L.2019, c.143, which created subaccounts in the State Health Benefits Program Fund and the School Employees' Health Benefits Program Fund and also required the State to procure a professional services contract for a third-party medical claims reviewer for the State Health Benefits Program and School Employees' Health Benefits Program. The committee will make recommendations that address this subject. | In Committee |
| S943 | Permits county clerk to remove voters from vote-by-mail lists under certain circumstances. | The bill permits the clerk of each county to remove a voter from lists of qualified voters receiving mail-in ballots if the following circumstances apply: (1) the United States Postal Service returned mail of a ballot, sample ballot, or any other official county election mail sent directly to the named voter; (2) the voter has not used a mail-in ballot for any election in a two-year period; or (3) the United States Postal Service National Change of Address System indicates the voter's recipient address has changed or is undeliverable. Prior to removing a voter from the list the county clerk is required to notify the voter in writing and indicate the reasons for the removal and instruct the voter on the necessary steps to continue to vote by mail. If the voter does not respond to the notice within 30 days of mailing, the county clerk would remove that voter from the list of voters receiving mail-in ballots and send that voter a notice of removal along with an application to re-apply to vote by mail. | In Committee |
| SCR80 | 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 |
| S2114 | Concerns vaccine mandates and eligibility for unemployment benefits for certain health care workers. | This bill concerns vaccine mandates and the eligibility for unemployment benefits for certain health care workers. Specifically, the bill provides that, notwithstanding any law to the contrary, an unemployed individual who is otherwise eligible may not be deemed ineligible to receive unemployment benefits because the individual was terminated or voluntarily left employment as a result of non-compliance with Executive Order 283 of 2022. Executive Order 283 of 2022 requires healthcare facilities and high-risk congregate settings to adopt and implement policies requiring covered workers at covered settings to receive and be up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations. | In Committee |
| S2104 | 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 |
| S2296 | Requires parents and guardians be provided access to medical records of minor patients; provides immunity to health care facilities and professionals that provide access to records. | This bill provides that, in general, health care facilities and health care professionals will be required provide the parent or guardian of an unemancipated patient who is younger than 18 years of age access to the patient's medical records without the need for the patient to authorize the parent or guardian to access the records. Under current law, the federal health privacy rule established under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) requires that covered entities keep a patient's medical records confidential unless the patient allows the entity to disclose the records. A minor child's parent is typically considered to be the child's "personal representative" and is therefore generally authorized to access or receive the child's medical records and other protected health information. However, HIPAA provides that, under certain circumstances, a parent will not be considered the minor child's personal representative and will not be afforded access to the child's medical information, including when state law only requires the child's consent to care and treatment. This bill specifies that, except where State law expressly restricts parental access to a minor's treatment records, which include certain care for behavioral health issues and certain cases involving the apparent sexual assault of a minor, parents should be provided access to the patient's medical records, notwithstanding the federal health privacy rule. The bill also expressly provides that nothing in P.L.2022, c.51 (C.2A:84A-22.18 et al.), which provides that medical records pertaining to reproductive health care do not have to be produced in response to certain judicial, legislative, and administrative proceedings, is not to be construed to restrict access to a minor child's medical records as provided under the bill. Except in the case of gross negligence or willful misconduct, a facility or professional providing a parent or guardian with access to a minor child's medical records under the bill will be immune from civil and criminal liability and adverse administrative, licensure, and professional disciplinary actions in connection with providing a parent access to a minor patient's medical records pursuant to the bill. | In Committee |
| S716 | Establishes Employer-Based Child Care Assistance Partnership Program in DCF. | This bill establishes the Employer-Based Child Care Assistance Partnership Program in the Department of Children and Families (DCF). The purpose of the program is to incentivize employers to contribute to employee child care costs by providing State funds that match employer contributions in order to ensure that the working parents of this State and their children have access to affordable, high-quality child care services. Participation in the program will be voluntary, and the DCF is to regulate and oversee the activities associated with the program. Under the bill, an employer who wishes to provide child care assistance to an employee under the program and a child care provider seeking to participate in the program will submit a one-time application to the DCF, which will enroll the employer or child care provider in the program. Upon enrollment, the employer may enroll employees by submitting a standardized certification form to the DCF that includes, among other things, the amount of the employer's contribution to the employee's child care provider. The amount of State matching funds will be based on the employee's household income. If the total amount of the employer contribution and State matching funds do not cover the employee's total child care costs, the employee will be responsible for the remaining balance of the costs. The bill sets forth certain circumstances under which participation in the program will be terminated, including the failure by the employer to make a contribution payment, the failure of the employee to pay the balance of child care costs not covered under the program, a child care provider ceasing to qualify for the program, or voluntary termination by the employer or employee. The bill creates in the Department of the Treasury a dedicated, non-lapsing fund, to be known as the Employer-Based Child Care Assistance Partnership Fund. The fund will be the repository for monies made available to implement the provisions of the bill. All monies expended for the purpose of providing State matching funds against contributions made by employers to employee child care costs are to be paid from the fund. The bill also requires the DCF to issue a report about the program's efficacy within one year after the program is established, and annually thereafter, to the Governor and Legislature. The report is to be posted on the DCF's website and made available to the public upon request. | In Committee |
| S2124 | Concerns the taxation of certain business personal property. | This bill clarifies the application of the business personal property tax on local exchange telephone companies that were subject to the tax as of April 1, 1997. This bill clarifies the changes made in 1997 to the business personal property tax that defined local exchange telephone companies that were subject to that tax as of April 1, 1997. The Tax Court in Verizon New Jersey Inc. v. Hopewell Borough, which was decided on June 26, 2012, has incorrectly construed the plain meaning of the language of the statutory change made in 1997. That statutory change was intended to grandfather into the local property tax base the business personal property of all incumbent local exchange companies that were then subject to that tax and were a telecommunications carrier then meeting the one time definition, not an annual redefinition, of providing dial tone and access to 51% of a local telephone exchange. Local exchange telephone companies have taken advantage of the incorrect interpretation of the statute and has informed 65 municipalities that it will no longer pay tax on its business personal property, such as equipment, utility poles, cables and more in any given municipality where it claims on an annual basis that it does not provide 51% or more of landline service to its residents. This unintended erosion of the local property tax base will impact all other local property taxpayers in these and possibly more municipalities. This bill will restore the intended local property tax status quo intended to be determined in 1997. This bill also imposes the business personal property tax on the business personal property of wireless telephone companies. That business personal property would include small cell network nodes, which are low -powered radio access nodes that generally consist of small radios and antennas that are two or three feet long and placed on existing and new utility poles, street lights, signs, and signal light poles with the purpose of increasing the capacity of wireless network service. | In Committee |
| S2117 | Directs State Board of Education to rescind New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education and directs boards of education to establish Parental Advisory Committees and adopt standards for health instruction. | This bill directs the State Board of Education to rescind the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education, which were most recently adopted by the board on June 3, 2020. Under the bill, the board will be prohibited from adopting any future Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education or from mandating any similar curriculum requirements or standards in the subjects of health and physical education. The bill directs each local board of education to establish a Parental Advisory Committee to work with the board and school district personnel in the development of curriculum standards for the instruction of students in the subjects of health and physical education. Under the bill, committee membership is required to be reflective of the parents and guardians of students enrolled in the district. The bill requires any meeting of the committee to be open to members of the public and requires that the committee's recommendations are posted on the school district's website for public inspection. The bill directs local boards of education to, within 180 days of the bill's enactment, adopt curriculum standards for the instruction of students in the subjects of health and physical education. The bill amends numerous sections of law that pertain to the development of, or requirements within, the New Jersey Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education. The bill maintains these instruction requirements, but provides that the instruction will be given as part of a local school district's implementation of the curriculum standards in health and physical education adopted by the local board pursuant to the bill's provisions. These sections of law require public school instruction on the topics of: suicide prevention; organ donation; sexual abuse and assault; dating violence; gang violence; cardiopulmonary resuscitation; sexting; consent for physical contact and sexual activity; mental health; the "New Jersey Safe Haven Infant Protection Act"; breast self-examination; and substance abuse. The bill removes any provisions within these sections of law that require the Department of Education to provide sample learning activities, resources, or materials to local school districts on these topics. | In Committee |
| S2127 | Lowers age at which certain insurers are required to provide coverage for mammograms. | This bill requires health insurers (health, hospital and medical service corporations, commercial individual and group health insurers, health maintenance organizations, health benefits plans issued pursuant to the New Jersey Individual Health Coverage and Small Employer Health Benefits Programs, the State Health Benefits Program, and the School Employees' Health Benefits Program) to provide coverage for mammograms for women 35 years of age or older. Existing law requires insurers to provide the coverage for women 40 years of age or older. Under the bill, insurers are required to provide coverage for one baseline mammogram examination for women who are 35 years of age; a mammogram examination every year for women age 35 and over; and, in the case of a woman who is under 35 years of age and has a family history of breast cancer or other breast cancer risk factors, a mammogram examination at such age and intervals as deemed medically necessary by the woman's health care provider. | In Committee |
| S2128 | Exempts local utilities from certain reporting requirements. | This bill excludes local utilities and local utility authorities from certain reporting requirements. Under N.J.S.A.48:2-29.57 et seq., both public utilities and local utilities are required to report information on the effects of the coronavirus 2019 pandemic on utilities and certain other information, including utility supply, demand, revenues, and expenses, the average amount billed to customers' accounts, infrastructure projects the utilities' planned to undertake that were canceled or for which the start date was delayed for certain reasons, and other additional information. Under this bill, only public utilities would be required to submit this information. Because these reporting requirements would no longer apply to local utilities and local utility authorities, the bill also provides that the BPU would no longer be required to consult with the Department of Community Affairs when implementing the provisions of N.J.S.A.48:2-29.57 et seq. | In Committee |
| S2115 | 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 |
| S2123 | Requires parental consent for student to participate in health, family life education, or sex education program and provides parents with access to certain public school curricula. | This bill requires parental consent for a public school student to participate in health, family life education, or sex education program and provides parents and guardians with access to the health, family life education, and sex education curricula in public schools. Under current law, any child whose parent or guardian presents to the school principal a signed statement that any part of the instructions in health, family life education or sex education is in conflict with his conscience, or sincerely held moral or religious beliefs will be excused from that portion of the course where such instruction is being given and no penalties as to credit or graduation will result therefrom. This bill provides that any child whose parent or guardian does not provide written consent to participate in any health, family life education, or sex education program will be excused from that portion of the course where such instruction is being given and no penalties as to credit or graduation will result. The bill also provides that any parent or guardian may review the complete health, family life education, or sex education program curricula, including all supplemental materials, to be used in the education program in a class or course in which the parent's or guardian's child is enrolled. A complete copy of all printed materials not subject to copyright protection and a description of all audio-visual materials is required to be made available through any available parent or guardian online portal and kept in the school library or office and made available for review to any parent or guardian during school office hours before and during the school year. The audio-visual materials are required to be made available to parents and guardians for in-person review, upon request, on the same basis as printed materials are made available. Under the bill, each board of education is required to develop and distribute to the parents or guardians of a student enrolled in a class or course in which a health, family life education, or sex education program is included in the curricula and post for public viewing on the school district's website a summary designed to assist parents and guardians in understanding the program as such program progresses and to encourage parental guidance and involvement in the instruction of the students. The summary will reflect the curricula of the program as taught in the classroom and will include contact information for the individual or office responsible for maintaining printed and audio-visual materials. | In Committee |
| S855 | Permits police officers to travel to and from and remain within police station located within 100 feet of polling place; permits Class Three special law enforcement officers to be assigned to certain polling places. | Under current law, the presence of police officers at polling places during the conduct of an election and at ballot drop box locations in use during the conduct of an election is limited. This bill provides that nothing in the current law is to prevent a police officer or law enforcement officer from traveling to and from, or remaining within, a police station in their official capacity for employment related activities if that police station is within 100 feet of a polling place or ballot drop box. This bill also amends current law to permit a district board, superintendent of elections, or a county clerk to request the assignment of a Class Three special law enforcement officer to a polling place located at a public school to maintain order and provide security at the school during the conduct of the election. | In Committee |
| S1039 | Establishes and codifies certain privileges for limited and restricted brewery license holders. | This bill grants certain privileges to the holders of limited and restricted brewery licenses. In addition, privileges currently held by limited brewery licensees are clarified and codified by the provisions of the bill. Under current law, the holder of a limited brewery license is entitled to brew and distribute beer to retailers and manufacturers, but is limited in the amount of beer that he or she may brew in one year. The holder of a restricted brewery license is entitled to brew beer and operate a restaurant provided the licensee also holds a Class C consumption license generally issued to bars and restaurants. Under the bill, the holder of a limited brewery license would be entitled to serve customers tableside utilizing servers or wait staff employed by the holder of this license. The limited brewery license holder also would be entitled to serve malt alcoholic beverages for on-premise consumption in outdoor spaces that are a part of an approved outdoor space utilizing a permanent or portable tap system located in the approved outdoor space. Pourers and servers employed by the restricted brewery are to be certified by an industry-recognized server training program. The bill also removes from current law the requirement that limited breweries provide a tour. Under current law, limited breweries are authorized to sell their product at retail to consumers on the licensed premises for on-site consumption, but only in connection with a tour of the brewery or distillery. Under this bill, consumers would not be required to take a tour of the brewery to purchase beverages for on-site consumption. The bill also allows the limited brewery license holder to offer for sale or make the gratuitous offering of de minimis food items such as, but not limited to, packaged crackers, chips, nuts, and similar snacks to consumers. The license holder would be entitled to sell non-alcoholic beverages regardless of whether the non-alcoholic beverages are manufactured on the license premises. Under the bill, the license holder would be entitled to coordinate with a food vendor for the provision of food on the licensed premises and provide menus to consumers for the sale of food. The bill also clarifies that limited breweries are entitled to offer for sale suitable gift items and novelty wearing apparel identified with the name of the licensed limited brewery. This bill also allows limited breweries to hold an unlimited number of on-premises special events for which the license holder may advertise and charge a cover fee. A license holder would not be required to obtain a permit or provide electronic notification to the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) prior to holding on-premises special events or private parties. In addition, the bill allows limited breweries to hold an unlimited number of off-premises special events by obtaining a permit from the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control. An off-premises special event permit may be issued for an event that is held for up to three consecutive days. The licensee would be entitled to coordinate with food vendors for the provision of food at off-premises events. If an off-premises special event is held on a publicly-owned or controlled property, the holder of the limited brewery license would be required to obtain the consent of 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 limited brewery also would be entitled to hold an unlimited number of private parties per year to occur on the licensed premise including, but not limited to, birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, civic and political functions, professional and trade association events, or class reunions and alumni events. The host of a private party, subject to the brewery's consent, may provide wine or malt alcoholic beverages purchased off the licensed premises to be served at the private party. A private party host may hire the employee of a limited brewery to pour the alcoholic beverages served at the party. The limited brewery would not be required to obtain a permit or provide electronic notification to the division of a private event. The bill also allows organizations operating for civic, religious, educational, charitable, fraternal, social, or recreational purposes, and not for private gain, to obtain a social affair permit to hold an event on the licensed premises of a limited brewery. Under the bill, the holder of a limited brewery license would be entitled to host not more than 25 social affair events on a limited brewery premises. The social affair permit holder may, at the brewery's consent, sell and serve wine and malt alcoholic beverages manufactured off the licensed premises for on-premises consumption only, provided the wine and malt alcoholic beverages. A host of a social affair permitted event may hire the employees or agents of a limited brewery licensee to pour the alcoholic beverages served at the event. The bill allows limited breweries to sell their products for consumption off the licensed premises during a social affair permitted event. Finally, the bill increases annual production limits placed on restricted breweries from 10,000 barrels to 300,000 barrels of 31 gallons capacity per year. In addition, restricted breweries would be entitled to sell their products directly to a retailer, rather than through a wholesaler. The bill further allows restricted breweries to maintain a warehouse. This bill is in response, in part, to a recent special ruling issued by the Director of ABC to limit the number of special events and private parties held by limited breweries. It is the sponsor's intent to foster and encourage New Jersey's flourishing craft beer industry and its contribution to the local economy by granting additional privileges and codifying existing privileges for both limited and restricted breweries. | In Committee |
| S962 | Prohibits mandatory vaccination against COVID-19 as condition of attending public K-12 schools. | This bill prohibits the Commissioner of Health and other State governmental entities from requiring immunization against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), as a condition of attendance at a public primary or secondary school. | In Committee |
| S2106 | Increases maximum municipal percentage of affordable fair share housing satisfied by age-restricted units to 50 percent. | This bill would establish the maximum percentage of a municipality's affordable fair share housing obligation which may be met by age-restricted units in a municipality at 50 percent. The Council on Affordable Housing adopted its third-round regulations, since partially invalidated by the courts, that reduced the percentage from 50 percent to 25 percent. | In Committee |
| S2094 | "Personal Injury Trust Fund Transparency Act;" requires plaintiff to file personal injury trust claims under certain circumstances; addresses allocation of trust claims; establishes scheduling and discovery requirements for certain tort actions. | This bill requires the filing of a claim against a personal injury trust in certain circumstances, addresses the allocation of trust claims, and establishes discovery and scheduling requirements for certain personal injury actions. A personal injury trust is a trust or compensation fund that is established pursuant to a bankruptcy or other legal action in order to compensate plaintiffs who file claims as a result of harm potentially compensable in a personal injury action, for which the entity that established the personal injury trust is to be responsible. The personal injury trust compensation system operates independently of personal injury civil actions. It is the sponsor's belief that a lack of transparency and oversight in the personal injury trust compensation system has resulted in suppression of evidence in personal injury or tort actions; statements made in personal injury or tort actions by plaintiffs that are inconsistent with information provided to personal injury trusts, and may reflect inaccurate or untruthful information in support of personal injury or tort litigation by plaintiffs; and unfair compensation for certain personal injury plaintiffs. It is the sponsor's intent, through this legislation, to provide access to documentation that will enable claims to be evaluated based on accurate and reliable information. Under the bill, a plaintiff who files a personal injury claim or other tort claim must, within 30 days, provide the court with a sworn statement indicating that an investigation of all personal injury trust claims has been conducted and that any personal injury trust claims that can be made on the plaintiff's behalf have been filed. The plaintiff shall provide the parties with copies of all trust claims materials. The bill also allows a defendant to move the court to stay proceedings if the defendant identifies additional personal injury trust claims the defendant believes the plaintiff can file. In response, the plaintiff may file the claims, explain to the court why there is an insufficient basis to file the claims identified by the defendant, or request a determination from the court that the cost of submitting the personal injury trust claims would exceed the plaintiff's reasonably anticipated recovery. If the court determines that there is sufficient basis for the plaintiff to file the personal injury trust claims, the court shall stay the proceedings until the plaintiff files the personal injury trust claims and provides copies of the trust claims materials to the parties. If the court determines that the cost of filing the personal injury trust claims identified by the defendant exceeds the plaintiff's reasonably anticipated recovery from those trusts, the court shall stay the proceedings until the plaintiff provides the parties with a sworn statement of the plaintiff's history of exposure, usage, or other connection to personal injury or a tort covered by that personal injury trust. The bill requires the court to enter into the record before trial a list identifying each personal injury claim the plaintiff has made against a personal injury trust. Personal injury trust claims and trust claims materials are non-privileged under the bill. If a defendant is found liable for the plaintiff's injury, the defendant is entitled to a setoff in the amount of any money the plaintiff received from a personal injury trust and the value of any pending trust claims. Sanctions are available against a plaintiff that fails to comply with the act, including the potential for any judgment to be reopened and adjusted by the amount of any post-judgment personal injury trust payments received by the plaintiff. | In Committee |
| S2090 | Revises emergency care services referral standards for providers of telemedicine and telehealth. | This bill expands the requirements of current law as they pertain to emergency care referrals made during a telemedicine or telehealth encounter. Under current law, there is a provision under which a health care provider engaging in telemedicine or telehealth is to make appropriate referrals for emergency care, if needed. The bill revises this provision to require a health care provider engaged in telemedicine or telehealth to make a good faith effort to directly activate and coordinate with emergency care services in accordance with the standard of care upon determining the patient is in need of emergency services. The bill provides that an emergency care plan is to pertain to areas where patients are located during a telemedicine or telehealth visit. A health care provider engaging in telemedicine or telehealth is to make a good faith effort to: provide the name and location of the patient to emergency services in oral and written form; determine the location of a patient if a patient is unaware of the patient's location; and provide the provider's and the patient's contact information to emergency services. A health care provider engaging in telemedicine or telehealth is to report suicide threats and suicide attempts made by a patient during a telemedicine or telehealth encounter to the Department of Health in a manner that is consistent with federal and State privacy laws, and will be required to document emergencies which occur during a telehealth or telemedicine visit. The bill requires professional licensing boards to include in their rules and regulations implementing the telemedicine and telehealth law requirements for emergency care plans that include standards and protocols for activating and coordinating with emergency care service providers serving the area in which the patient is located at the time of the telemedicine or telehealth encounter. | In Committee |
| S2119 | Revises requirements for infertility coverage under certain health insurance plans. | This bill revises the requirements for infertility coverage under certain health insurance plans. Current law requires health insurance plans issued by hospital, medical and health service corporations, commercial group insurers, health maintenance organizations, the State Health Benefits Program, and the School Employees Health Benefits Plan to provide coverage for medically necessary expenses incurred in the diagnosis and treatment of infertility, including expenses incurred in in vitro fertilization. Health insurance plans may limit coverage of in vitro fertilization to a covered person who: has used all reasonable, less expensive and medically appropriate treatments and is still unable to become pregnant or carry a pregnancy; has not reached the limit of four completed egg retrievals; and is 45 years of age or younger. Under the bill, health insurance plans could no longer limit the coverage of in vitro fertilization, but would be required to cover in vitro fertilization to the extent and under the same conditions as coverage is required for other infertility treatments. | In Committee |
| S2129 | Establishes annual cost of living adjustment, based on Consumer Price Index, to base Medicaid per diem rates for assisted living programs; makes appropriation. | This bill establishes an annual cost of living adjustment, based on Consumer Price Index, to the base per diem reimbursement rates paid to assisted living facilities, comprehensive personal care homes, and assisted living programs for each Medicaid beneficiary under their care. The cost of living adjustment is to be implemented on July 1 of each year and to be based on the Consumer Price Index data published by the United States Department of Labor in the previous January regarding any increase in the all items index over the immediately preceding 12-month period. The Consumer Price Index is a measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services. For reference, the base FY 2023 per diem rates for assisted living facilities, comprehensive personal care homes, and assisted living programs are $89.50, $79.50, and $69.50, respectively. Moreover, Consumer price index data released in January of 2023 showed that prices for a range of goods and services rose by 6.4 percent over the previous 12-month period. Applying this increase to the existing per diem rates results in those rates being increased by the following: $5.73, $5.09, and $4.45, respectively. The bill requires the Commissioner of Human Services to apply for such State plan amendments or waivers as may be necessary to implement the provisions of the bill and to secure federal financial participation for State Medicaid expenditures under the federal Medicaid program. The bill also appropriates from the General Fund to the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services such sums as are necessary to effectuate the provisions of the bill. | In Committee |
| S2037 | Mandates access to periodic cancer screening examinations for volunteer firefighters. | This bill mandates access to periodic cancer screening examinations for volunteer firefighters. The bill specifies that there should be no out-of-pocket cost to the volunteer firefighter. The bill also specifies that the State is to reimburse a volunteer firefighter for the full examination up to $1,250 per three-year period, which is to be annually adjusted according to inflation. The bill establishes an occupational existing condition that makes being a volunteer firefighter a condition for reimbursement of costs associated with cancer screening examinations. | In Committee |
| S2098 | Directs DCA to establish online database of affordable housing settlement agreements and other declaratory judgment actions. | This bill would direct the Department of Community Affairs to produce a database that details each affordable housing declaratory judgment action, including each settlement agreement entered by a municipality in order to comply with the "Fair Housing Act," ("FHA") P.L.1985, c.222 (C.52:27D-301 et al.) since the beginning of 2015. The database would be based on information submitted by the parties to each action, the courts, and other sources. Upon request by the department, the bill requires the courts, each municipality, and each other party to the action, to provide the information necessary. The database would be accessible to the public on the department's website. The database would contain: (1) a list of the municipalities that have completed a declaratory judgment action; (2) the number of affordable housing units that, under the completed action, represent the municipality's fair share of the regional need for affordable housing, commonly referred to as its fair share obligation; (3) the ratio of rental units to ownership units amongst affordable housing in the municipality, and, as applicable, among the units within the municipality's fair share obligation that have not yet been constructed; (4) the ratio of affordable units to market-rate units and total number of affordable units and market-rate units mandated pursuant to any declaratory judgment action amongst housing in the municipality, and among the developments that may be constructed under the completed declaratory judgment action in furtherance of the municipality's fair share obligation; and (5) a list of the payments made by each municipality to each other party to a declaratory judgment action, including but not limited to the Fair Share Housing Center, for expenses associated with a settlement agreement. In 2015, having concluded that Council on Affordable Housing was not capable of functioning as intended by the FHA, the New Jersey Supreme Court, through a decision in 2015, designated "Mount Laurel judges" in the Superior Court vicinages to both establish affordable housing obligations for New Jersey's municipalities and certify municipal plans to meet those obligations through declaratory judgment actions. These actions were primarily resolved through settlement agreements between the municipalities and the Fair Share Housing Center, an affordable housing advocacy organization based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. This bill is meant to enhance the transparency of these actions. | In Committee |
| S947 | Increases degree of crime for unlawful taking of motor vehicle. | This bill increases the penalties for joyriding. Specifically, the bill increases the degree of crime for unlawful taking of a motor vehicle without the consent of the owner or other person authorized to give consent. Currently, the unlawful taking, operation, or exercise of control over a motor vehicle without the consent of the owner or other authorized person is a fourth degree crime. This bill makes it a third degree crime for any person to commit such an act. A third degree crime is punishable by three to five years imprisonment, a fine of up to $15,000, or both. Finally, this bill increases the degree of crime for any person to take, operate, or exercise control over a motor vehicle without the consent of the owner or other person authorized to give consent in a manner that creates a risk of injury to any person or a risk of damage to property. Currently, this is a third degree crime. This bill makes it a second degree crime to commit such an act. A second degree crime is punishable by five to 10 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $150,000, or both. | In Committee |
| S2096 | Exempts personal identifying information of minor from disclosure in public record; requires information to be redacted. | This bill requires a records custodian to redact any personal identifying information of a person under the age of 18 years prior to allowing access to any government record, subject to certain exceptions in statutory law. The bill excludes that information from the definition of a "government record," and excludes the name of persons under the age of 18 years from disclosure in certain personnel and pension records. The information would still be subject to disclosure when used by a government agency, court, or law enforcement agency in carrying out its functions; when used by a private person or entity seeking to enforce payment of court-ordered child support; when circumstances involve the disclosure of driver information by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission under N.J.S.A.39:2-3.4; and when the information involves a social security number contained in a record required by law to be made, maintained or kept on file, if disclosure is not otherwise prohibited by law. | In Committee |
| S2091 | Provides electric public utility customers' right to decline installation of smart meter under certain circumstances. | This bill prohibits an electric public utility (utility) from installing a "smart meter," as that term is defined in the bill, at a customer's premises prior to the utility providing written notice to the customer, in a manner determined by the Board of Public Utilities, no less than 90 days prior to the scheduled installation of a smart meter. The bill allows a utility customer to decline the utility's request to install a smart meter at the customer's premises for the duration of the customer's account with the utility. If a utility customer elects to decline having a smart meter installed at the customer's premises within 30 days of receiving written notice from the utility, the utility is not to assess the customer a fee, penalty, or service charge for that decision for the duration of the customer's account. If a utility customer elects to decline having a smart meter installed at the customer's premises after 30 days but within 90 days of receiving written notice from the utility, the utility is not to assess the customer a fee, penalty, or service charge of more than $100 for that decision for the duration of the customer's account. | In Committee |
| S2089 | Regulates the authority of the court to make provision for the educational expenses of an unemancipated child in certain instances involving child support. | This bill enumerates specific factors for the court to consider in evaluating whether to make such order for the educational expenses of an unemancipated child, whether of minor or majority age. The authority granted under the bill extends to undergraduate college education or professional or other training after graduation from high school. The types of educational expenses for which a court may make provision include tuition, room, board, dues, transportation to and from school during scheduled school recesses, books, supplies, nondiscretionary fees, registration and application costs, lab costs, computer costs, medical expenses including medical insurance and living expenses during the school year, which sums may be ordered payable to the child, to either parent, or to the educational institution directly or through a special account or trust created for such purpose, at the discretion of the court. Nothing shall preclude the court from requiring the child to contribute to his or her educational expenses in the form of scholarships, grants, work-study programs, use of assets held in the child's name, student loans or financial aid. The court shall have the authority to allocate the child's contribution between the parents and child, if warranted by the enumerated factors. The factors, many of which are currently used in decisional law, include: (1) Whether the parents, if still living with the child, would have contributed toward the child's educational expenses; (2) The effect of the background, values, and goals of the parents on the reasonableness of the expectation of the child for contribution to his or her educational expenses; (3) Any socioeconomic benefits that the child may gain from obtaining a post-high school education, including, but not limited to any benefits the child may obtain from being the first child in his or her family to obtain a post-high school education; (4) The amount of the contribution sought for the child's educational expenses; (5) The ability of the parents to pay the child's educational expenses, with the court having the discretion to impute an income to a parent who is underemployed without just cause for purposes of determining that parent's ability to pay; (6) The relationship of the requested contribution to the kind of educational institution into which the child seeks entry or course of study sought by the child; (7) The type of institution into which the child seeks to advance his or her education and the institution's graduation rate, employment placement rate, student debt rate, as well as all other relevant information regarding the institution; (8) The availability of the course of study sought by the child at a New Jersey public institution; (9) The financial resources of both parents; (10) The commitment to and aptitude of the child for the requested education; (11) The length of the course of study necessary to obtain the degree or certification sought by the child and the anticipated ability of the child to complete the course of study within that time period, with the court having the authority to limit the parent's contribution toward a child's undergraduate college expenses to four tuition years; (12) The financial resources of the child as compared with the financial resources of both parents; (13) The existence of custodial or trust funds for the benefit of the child, subject to the terms of the custodial account or trust, with the court having the authority to allocate the custodial or trust funds established by the parents during the marriage, or, in circumstances where the parties were unmarried, established during periods of cohabitation equally between the parents or otherwise, if warranted; (14) The ability of the child to earn income during the school year or during school recesses; (15) The availability of scholarships, grants, work-study programs, and or student loans, financial aid to the child, as well as the terms of repayment of any loans; (16) The child's relationship to each parent, at the time the contribution is sought, as well as in the years preceding the time the contribution is sought, including mutual affection and shared goals, responsiveness to parental advice and guidance; (17) The date on which the contribution was first requested and the date on which the parent was notified that contribution would be sought; (18) Whether the parents have children that have obtained post-high school education and the amount the parents contributed toward those post-high school education costs; (19) Whether the parent from whom contribution is sought has other children, their ages relative to the age of the child for whom contribution is sought. and, if known, the likelihood that the child or children will seek to obtain a post-high school education; (20) Whether the parent is obligated by court order or agreement to contribute to the support and maintenance of a children other than the child for whom contribution is sought; (21) The relationship of the education requested to any prior training and to the overall long-range goals of the child; and (22) Any other factors which the court may deem relevant. The bill provides that all the factors are relevant and no factor should be elevated in importance over any other factor unless the court finds otherwise. In that case the court is required to make specific written findings of fact and conclusions of law in that regard. Under the bill, when parents are in agreement on the issue of their responsibility, if any, regarding the payment of post-high school education expenses and child support on behalf of a child over the age of 18, the court shall not intervene on these issues unless the court determines that the parties' agreement would result in harm to the child. Grounds for modification. The bill provides that upon an application by either parent, the court may modify a prior order directing that a parent contribute to the educational expenses of the child. The following reasons may serve as a basis for the modification or of a parent's obligation to contribute to an unemancipated child's educational expenses: (1) The child's failure to enroll in a post-high school educational program within 120 days after the child has graduated from high school or completed a graduation equivalence degree program, barring illness or disability; (2) The child's failure to maintain full-time status as determined by the institution at the post-high school education program, barring illness or disability; (3) The child's failure to maintain grades sufficient to reenroll at such institution, barring illness or disability; (4) The child's failure to provide the contributing parent with a transcript or similar official document provided by the post-high school institution that includes: (a) the courses in which the child is enrolled, (b) the courses that the child completed for each term, (c) the grades and credits received for each such course, and (d) an official document from the institution listing the courses in which the child is enrolled for the upcoming term and the number of credits for each such course, unless the court finds that providing this information would cause harm to the child; (5) The child's estrangement from a contributing parent, not due to documented abuse; or (6) Any other reason that makes the modification of the prior order fit, reasonable, and just, given the parties' and child's circumstances. Under the bill, if the court terminates the parent's obligation to contribute to the child's educational expenses, the termination shall be final with the parent's obligation not eligible for reinstatement. A parent's obligation to pay child support and contribute to the educational expenses of a child who has been diagnosed with a developmental disability, or whose physical disability or diagnosed health problem limits the child's ability to maintain full-time enrollment in a post-high school institution shall remain open to review so long as such child is enrolled in and attending an institution for post-high school education and the child continues to meet the other requirements of this section. As used in the bill, "post-high school education" means any postsecondary training or schooling for which the student is assessed a fee and attends classes regularly including but not limited to a community college, vocational school, technical school, undergraduate college, or undergraduate university. | In Committee |
| S58 | Authorizes proportional property tax exemption for honorably discharged veterans having a service-connected disability and proclaims that the State shall reimburse municipalities for cost of exemptions. | 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 |
| S2084 | Establishes "Affordable Housing Obligation Study Commission." | This bill establishes the Affordable Housing Obligation Study Commission. The commission would consist of seven members as follows: the Executive Director of the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage and Finance Agency, ex officio, and six public members. Of the six public members, one would be appointed by the President of the Senate, one appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, one appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate, one appointed by the Minority Leader of the Assembly, and two appointed by the Governor, one from a list submitted by the League of Municipalities, and one from a list submitted by the Fair Share Housing Center. The commission would be required to: (1) examine and study the history of affordable housing in New Jersey and how past practices at the State and local level have resulted in the State's current legal framework. (2) analyze past guidance from State agencies and advocacy groups to municipalities with respect to methods of satisfying existing and future affordable housing obligations to determine whether such guidance has been effective. (3) Analyze the actual and projected population increases in the State, the number of affordable housing units actually needed to serve the needs of residents. (4) hold such public hearings and other activities as may be desirable, at the discretion of the commission, to ensure adequate public input into the preparation of a report. (5) gather and disseminate such information on housing needs and strategies as may be useful for the work of the commission and informative to the public. (6) prepare, adopt, and publish a report, not later than the 365th day next following the organization of the commission, that provides recommendations to municipalities regarding strategies which could be utilized to meet affordable housing obligations, and to State agencies on how best to assist municipalities in meeting affordable housing obligations. Under the bill, the publication of the report by the commission would trigger the immediate expiration of the commission. | In Committee |
| S2107 | 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 |
| S2095 | Provides gross income tax deduction for certain moving expenses for taxpayer moving to New Jersey to commence work in State. | This bill provides a gross income tax deduction for certain moving expenses for a taxpayer who is moving to New Jersey to commence work in this State. The bill allows the deduction of moving expenses, including the reasonable expense of moving the household goods and personal effects of the members of the household from the former residence to the new residence, the travel of the members of the household, and the storage of household effects incidental to the move. The bill defines the "members of the household" as all of the individuals who lived at the former residence and who will be living at the new residence, other than employees or tenants of the taxpayer. The bill requires that the move be in connection with the commencement of work in this State. The bill requires that during the 12-month period immediately following the move, the taxpayer be employed full time for at least 39 weeks. The bill requires that a self-employed taxpayer be employed for performing services full time for at least 78 weeks of the 24 month period following the move. The bill waives the full time work requirement for death, disability, involuntary separation other than for willful misconduct, or transfer to another location for the benefit of the employer. | In Committee |
| SCR36 | Proposes constitutional amendment to provide registered voters with right to cast ballot in person at polling place on election day; requires mail-in ballot request before voter receives mail-in ballot. | This constitutional amendment would ensure that registered voters in this State, who are qualified to vote, have the right to cast a ballot in person on the day of any election in this State, and would permit mail-in ballots to be distributed only to voters who submit a written request for a mail-in ballot. This amendment would bar the Legislature from passing laws, and the Governor from issuing executive orders, that would: (1) limit or deny in-person voting for a registered voter who wishes to vote in person, or (2) automatically distribute mail-in ballots to all voters. | In Committee |
| S615 | Provides a gross income tax deduction for veterinarian expenses. | This bill provides a gross income deduction for veterinarian expenses. Specifically, the bill allows a taxpayer to deduct up to $2,500 in nonreimbursed veterinarian expenses incurred by the taxpayer for the examination and care of their pet during the taxable year. | In Committee |
| S635 | Requires State Board of Education meetings to be accessible virtually and in person. | This bill requires all public meetings of the State Board of Education to be accessible to the public both in person and virtually. The bill also requires that a link providing virtual access to meetings be publicly available on the State Board of Education's website. Finally, for any meeting in which the State Board of Education accepts public comment, the bill stipulates that members of the public will be able to provide comments by means of remote communication. | In Committee |
| S634 | Enters New Jersey into Counseling Compact. | This bill enters New Jersey into the Counseling Compact. The Counseling Compact (compact) is an interstate compact, or a contract among states, allowing professional counselors licensed and residing in a compact member state to practice in other compact member states without need for multiple licenses. The purpose of this compact is to facilitate interstate practice of licensed professional counselors with the goal of improving public access to professional counseling services. The practice of professional counseling occurs in the state where the client is located at the time of the counseling services. The compact preserves the regulatory authority of states to protect public health and safety through the current system of state licensure. In addition, the compact is designed to achieve the following objectives: 1) increase public access to professional counseling services by providing for the mutual recognition of other member state licenses; 2) enhance the states' ability to protect the public's health and safety; 3) encourage the cooperation of member states in regulating multistate practice for licensed professional counselors; 4) support spouses of relocating active duty military personnel; 5) enhance the exchange of licensure, investigative, and disciplinary information among member states; 6) allow for the use of telehealth technology to facilitate increased access to professional counseling services; 7) support the uniformity of professional counseling licensure requirements throughout the states to promote public safety and public health benefits; 8) invest all member states with the authority to hold a licensed professional counselor accountable for meeting all state practice laws in the state in which the client is located at the time care is rendered through the mutual recognition of member state licenses; 9) eliminate the necessity for licenses in multiple states; and 10) provide opportunities for interstate practice by licensed professional counselors who meet uniform licensure requirements. The compact is administered by a commission comprising representatives of each of the member states. The commission has certain powers to promulgate rules and bylaws, create a budget, conduct investigations, assess member fees, and to generally enforce the provisions of the compact. The compact sets forth procedures for investigating and disciplining professional counselors for misconduct, as well as for communicating to member states information concerning a professional counselor who is under investigation, has lost the right to practice under the compact, or who has regained the right to practice under the compact. The compact provides that it takes effect when it has been adopted in 10 states. Currently, 16 states have joined the compact: Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia. | Dead |
| S1826 | Requires Medicaid coverage of social day care services for senior citizens. | This bill requires the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services in the Department of Human Services to provide social adult day care services for Medicaid beneficiaries, regardless of whether the beneficiaries are enrolled in the State's Medicaid Managed Long Term Services and Supports (MLTSS) program. This benefit, however, would be limited to those Medicaid beneficiaries who are aged 60 years or older and who also meet the clinical, income, and asset requirements established for the MLTSS program by the Commissioner of Human Services. The bill defines social adult day care services as a community-based group program designed to meet the non-medical needs of senior citizens with functional impairments through an individualized plan of care. Social adult day care services are provided in a protective setting when participants' caregivers are at work or are otherwise unavailable. Pursuant to the bill, the Commissioner of Human Services is to apply for any federal Medicaid waivers or State plan amendments necessary to secure federal financial participation for State Medicaid expenditures under the federal Medicaid program. The bill additionally stipulates that the provisions therein are to remain inoperable until the Commissioner of Human Services receives federal approval of the requisite federal Medicaid waivers or State plan amendments. Under current law, only Medicaid beneficiaries enrolled in the MLTSS program are eligible for social adult day care or medical day care services. Beneficiaries enrolled in a medical day care program receive preventive, diagnostic, therapeutic and rehabilitative services under medical and nursing supervision in order to support their ability to live in the community. To qualify for the MLTSS program, individuals must be enrolled in the State Medicaid program, reside in the community, require a nursing home level of care, and meet the program's income and asset limits. | In Committee |
| S927 | Allows certain volunteer firefighters, rescue and first aid squad members to claim $5,000 income tax deduction. | This bill permits volunteer firefighters and first aid or rescue squad members to claim an additional exemption of $5,000 to be taken as a deduction from their gross income if they meet certain qualifications. Under the bill, firefighters may claim the $5,000 deduction if they: 1) volunteered during the entire tax year; 2) performed 60% of fire duty; and 3) had, by January 1st of the tax year, attained the rank of Firefighter I Certified according to approved standards. To satisfy the "60% of fire duty" requirement, volunteer firefighters without duty hours must have responded to 60% of the regular alarms and drills in which the department or force participated and volunteer firefighters with duty hours must have at least 400 duty hours during a calendar year of which not more than 50% was for drills. First aid or rescue squad members may claim the deduction if they: 1) volunteered during the entire tax year; 2) performed 10% of rescue duty; and 3) had, by January 1st of the tax year, either passed an approved training program or qualified as an emergency medical technician. To satisfy the "10% of rescue duty" requirement, first aid or rescue squad members who volunteer with duty hours must complete at least 400 hours of duty during the year, of which not more than 50% is for drills. If they volunteer without duty hours, the squad members must attend and render first aid at not less than 10% of the regular alarms and participate in 60% of the drills. The bill defines duty hours as those during which volunteers committed themselves to respond to alarms. The bill requires eligible volunteers to submit proof with their tax claim that they are entitled to the deduction. The Director of the Division of Taxation is responsible for establishing the manner of this proof. An official of each fire department or force is responsible for providing a list of firefighters who are eligible for the deduction for the previous tax year to the Department of Community Affairs by March 31st. Similarly, an official of the rescue or first aid squad is responsible for providing a list of squad members who are eligible for the deduction for the previous tax year to the Department of Health and Senior Services by March 31st. The lists are to be made available to the Director of the Division of Taxation for verification purposes. An official who files a false list is subject to prosecution under section 29 of P.L.1987, c.76 (C.54:52-19), which makes it a crime of the fourth degree to knowingly certify a false statement with the intent to evade a tax. Fourth-degree crimes are 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1636 | Changes MVC voter registration procedures. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S2167 | Requires public and certain nonpublic schools to comply with breakfast and lunch standards adopted by USDA. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S317 | Revises "Athletic Training Licensure Act." | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2019 | Authorizes pharmacists to dispense HIV prophylaxis without individual prescription under certain circumstances; mandates prescription benefits coverage. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S862 | Requires DOT to provide additional information in annual report on pavement condition; makes report available to public. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2051 | Requires law enforcement officer to conduct risk assessment of and provide assistance to domestic violence victims. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S1320 | Requires certain information be included in certain contracts with licensed public adjusters. | Senate Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S1067 | Directs DHS to conduct landscape analysis of available mental health services. | Senate Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3323 | Requires pay for extracurricular activities to be included in compensation for TPAF purposes. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A3361 | Establishes limit on rent increase for certain dwelling sites for modular or industrialized buildings or manufactured homes. | Senate Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A3128 | Authorizes HMFA to use certain tax credits; directs HMFA to conduct tax credit auctions to provide financial assistance for certain housing purposes. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A1948 | Requires VCCO to issue annual report to Governor and Legislature. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| S2346 | Creates Code Red alert pilot program to shelter at-risk individuals during certain hot weather and air quality events; appropriates $5 million. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2373 | Provides employment protections for paid first responders diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder under certain conditions. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3424 | Establishes certain program requirements for school counselor certification; outlines role and duties of school counselor; requires professional development for school counselors; establishes position of School Counselor Liaison in DOE. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3518 | Requires MVC to create digital driver's licenses and digital non-driver identification cards. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S2783 | "Travel Insurance Act." | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A3802 | Differentiates certain legal services from traditional insurance products. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| SJR96 | Permanently designates August 17th as "Nonprofit Day" in NJ. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2951 | Authorizes provision of monetary awards to whistleblowers who report State tax law violations committed by employers in construction industry. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2961 | Establishes minimum qualifications for persons employed on public works contract. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S2961 | Establishes minimum qualifications for persons employed on public works contract. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| SJR100 | Designates July of each year as "Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness and Prevention Month" in NJ. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4085 | Allows for natural organic reduction and controlled supervised decomposition of human remains. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4178 | Authorizes State Treasurer to grant temporary deed of easement in Borough of Sea Girt in Monmouth County. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3132 | Imposes certain requirements on secondhand dealers of cellular telephones and wireless communication devices. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 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." | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4331 | Establishes licensure for cosmetic retail services. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S3287 | Provides gross income tax deduction for amounts paid to taxpayers for sale of certain real property interests for conservation purposes. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3309 | Establishes "Motor Vehicle Open Recall Notice and Fair Compensation Act"; revises motor vehicle franchise agreements. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3309 | Establishes "Motor Vehicle Open Recall Notice and Fair Compensation Act"; revises motor vehicle franchise agreements. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 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. | Senate Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4603 | Allows commercial farmer to be awarded reasonable costs and attorney fees for defending against bad faith complaints under "Right to Farm Act". | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4712 | Establishes Office of Veteran Advocate and ombudsman for DMVA; appropriates funds. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3618 | Directs DEP and DOT to establish "Wildlife Corridor Action Plan." | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4897 | Revises law requiring certain student identification cards to contain telephone number for suicide prevention hotline. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3711 | Makes annual allocation of $500,000 from Clean Communities Program Fund for public outreach concerning single-use plastics reduction program permanent. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3776 | Establishes Chronic Absenteeism Task Force. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4937 | Concerns satellite cannabis dispensaries, Cannabis Regulatory Commission membership, and post-employment restrictions on State employees. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Amend | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4954 | Requires members of historic preservation commissions to complete historic preservation planning course. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A4971 | Requires EDA to provide grants to certain small businesses affected by State infrastructure and construction projects. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A4969 | Ensures boards of elections have discretion to make initial determination of validity of cast ballots; requires Secretary of State to establish uniform guidelines for assessing validity of ballots. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3858 | Requires school bus personnel members to call 911 emergency line in potential life-threatening emergencies; requires certain school buses transportating students with disabilities to be equipped with certain safety features; makes appropriation. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3887 | Requires DEP to provide public access for boats to certain State-and county-owned lakes and reservoirs. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S3917 | Makes various changes to school funding law and Educational Adequacy Report; establishes Special Education Funding Review Task Force. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3931 | Updates requirements for licensure in occupational therapy. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S3933 | Establishes School Supervisor Mentorship Pilot Program; appropriates $500,000. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5100 | Re-appropriates unexpended balance of FY2024 appropriation for Town of West New York to support recreation center; appropriates $3 million for Town of West New York - Recreation Center to restore lapsed FY2024 funding. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5130 | Requires enforcing agency to conduct inspection of construction in specified time window. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5170 | Requires State to purchase certain unused tax credits issued under New Jersey Economic Recovery Act of 2020. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S4028 | Limits amount of payment that State agency as property owner may withhold from certain contractors on State construction contracts to two percent of amount due. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| A5267 | Requires BPU to procure and incentivize transmission-scale energy storage. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5267 | Requires BPU to procure and incentivize transmission-scale energy storage. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5267 | Requires BPU to procure and incentivize transmission-scale energy storage. | Senate Floor: Reconsidered Vote | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5267 | Requires BPU to procure and incentivize transmission-scale energy storage. | Senate Floor: Amend | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5264 | Requires establishment of automated platform to expedite construction code approval of applications to install residential solar energy systems. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4122 | Revises apportionment of State lottery contributions. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4135 | Provides allowance for certain redevelopment projects undertaken by institutions of higher education under New Jersey Aspire program. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5378 | Modifies provisions of Cultural Arts Incentives Program, New Jersey Aspire Program, and Grow New Jersey Program; eliminates Community-Anchored Development Program. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| 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. | Senate 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. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 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. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5463 | Requires electric public utilities to submit annual report on voting to BPU. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S4293 | Requires owner or operator of data center to submit water and energy usage report to BPU. | Senate Floor: Reconsidered Vote | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S4293 | Requires owner or operator of data center to submit water and energy usage report to BPU. | Senate Floor: Concur in House Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Abstain |
| S4293 | Requires owner or operator of data center to submit water and energy usage report to BPU. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5563 | Establishes "Summer Termination Program" for certain utility customers. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5563 | Establishes "Summer Termination Program" for certain utility customers. | Senate Floor: Amend | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| A5546 | Concerns financial powers and responsibilities of Capital City Redevelopment Corporation. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S4376 | Establishes Department of Veterans Affairs. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5687 | Establishes Next New Jersey Manufacturing Program to incentivize in-State manufacturing investments and job creation. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| A5688 | Imposes surcharge on hotel occupancies in certain municipalities to fund fire services; provides for appropriation. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S4426 | Appropriates funds to DEP for environmental infrastructure projects in FY2026. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4426 | Appropriates funds to DEP for environmental infrastructure projects in FY2026. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4467 | Authorizes NJ Infrastructure Bank to expend certain sums to make loans for environmental infrastructure projects for FY2026. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4467 | Authorizes NJ Infrastructure Bank to expend certain sums to make loans for environmental infrastructure projects for FY2026. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4451 | Clarifies requirements for land use plan element and housing plan element of municipal master plan. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| SCR131 | Approves FY2026 Financial Plan of NJ Infrastructure Bank. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4400 | Extends hours that minor employed by national sports association, league, or team may work under certain circumstances. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4387 | Requires establishment of tracking system in Division of Consumer Affairs to determine compliance with continuing education requirements. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4423 | Authorizes BPU to provide site approval for small modular reactors; authorizes operators of small modular reactors to store spent nuclear fuel on-site. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4476 | Permits awarding of contracts for certain preschool education services by resolution of board of education; extends maximum length of preschool education services contracts to three years. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4472 | Eliminates five percent down payment requirement for local bond ordinances involving hazard mitigation and resilience projects. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4506 | Exempts minor league baseball players from certain State wage laws under certain circumstances. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Yea |
| S4530 | Requires BPU to revise community solar program targets. | Senate Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| S4530 | Requires BPU to revise community solar program targets. | Senate Floor: Concur in Assembly Amendments | 06/30/2025 | Nay |
| Committee | Position | Rank | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detail | New Jersey Joint Economic Justice and Equal Employment Opportunity Committee | 3 | |
| Detail | New Jersey Joint Housing Affordability Committee | 4 | |
| Detail | New Jersey Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee | 4 | |
| Detail | New Jersey Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee | 6 |
| State | District | Chamber | Party | Status | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NJ | New Jersey Senate District 39 | Senate | Republican | In Office | 03/25/2021 | |
| NJ | District 39 | House | Republican | Out of Office | 01/10/2012 | 01/21/2024 |