Legislator
Legislator > Jim Kennedy
State Assemblymember
Jim Kennedy
(D) - New Jersey
New Jersey Assembly District 22
In Office - Started: 01/12/2016
contact info
Rahway Office
1445 Main St.
Rahway, NJ 07065
Rahway, NJ 07065
Phone: 732-943-2660
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1841 | Expands requirements for health insurance carriers concerning prostate cancer screening and requires coverage be provided without cost sharing. | Expands requirements for health insurance carriers concerning prostate cancer screening and requires coverage be provided without cost sharing. | In Committee |
| A5009 | "Packaging and Paper Product Stewardship Act." | "Packaging and Paper Product Stewardship Act." | In Committee |
| A4844 | Requires BPU to establish beneficial building electrification and decarbonization program and requires certain entities to submit plans to implement individual beneficial building electrification and decarbonization programs. | This bill would direct the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) to establish a beneficial building electrification program, and would require electric public utilities to prepare and implement beneficial building electrification plans. As used in the bill, "beneficial electrification" means a change in end-use equipment from a nonelectric type to an efficient electric type for any building end use, including water heating, space heating, industrial process, or transportation, provided that the change: reduces cost from a societal perspective; reduces greenhouse gas emission, or promotes the increased use of the electric grid in off-peak hours. The bill directs the BPU to adopt, no later than one year after the bill becomes law, rules and regulations establishing a beneficial building electrification program. As part of the program, the BPU would develop greenhouse gas emission reduction targets for beneficial building electrification programs implemented by each electric public utility in the State and require electric public utilities to prepare and implement beneficial building electrification plans. The BPU would: (1) establish beneficial electrification program targets expressed in the amount of on-site greenhouse gas emission reductions; (2) establish program design elements and minimum filing requirements to achieve the goals of the energy master plan; (3) establish a cost recovery and performance incentive mechanism for programs established under the bill; (4) determine whether the electric public utilities or the board would be responsible for the implementation of building electrification programs for new construction; and (5) develop and provide direct incentives for the installation of electric heat pumps. The bill would require each electric public utility to prepare a multi-year beneficial electrification plan to achieve the targets established by the BPU. To be approved by the BPU, an electricity public utility plan would be required to meet or exceed on-site greenhouse gas emission reduction targets set by the board and be cost effective from a societal perspective utilizing a cost-effectiveness test that includes consideration of the environmental benefits of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and methane emissions. Under the bill, a beneficial building electrification plan may meet the greenhouse gas emission reduction targets set pursuant to the bill through the following: (1) conversion of fossil fuel-based space and water heating systems, including natural gas and propane systems as well as other unregulated fuels, to systems that employ high-efficiency electric heat pumps; (2) replacement of fossil fuel based appliances with high-efficiency electric appliances such as induction cooking ranges and heat-pump clothes dryers; (3) conversion of fossil fuel-based industrial equipment or processes to energy-efficient electric-powered equipment or processes; or (4) market transformation programs aimed at educating and training contractors to use appliances, equipment, and systems that are high-efficiency. | In Committee |
| A5381 | Provides for filing extension and 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. | This bill provides a filing extension and establishes medical documentation requirements for certain members and retirees of the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS), the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS), and the State Police Retirement System (SPRS) to receive an accidental disability retirement allowance for participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations. Under current law, members and retirees of PFRS and SPRS, and certain members and retirees of 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 their respective 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. The bill also provides retirees who previously filed an eligibility registration form with their respective retirement system and who were denied because they filed outside the registration period the ability to petition the board of trustees of the respective retirement system for reconsideration or to resubmit the previously submitted eligibility registration form to the board for the presumption or recalculation granted under the bill. 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 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 all members and retirants in the retirement system of the enactment of this bill within 60 days of enactment by letter via certified mail. The notice must communicate, in an easily understood manner, the provisions of this bill, including the class of members and retirees impacted, the filing requirements, and the prescribed time limits. | In Committee |
| A4696 | "Climate Superfund Act"; imposes liability on certain fossil fuel companies for certain damages caused by climate change and establishes program in DEP to collect and distribute compensatory payments. | "Climate Superfund Act"; imposes liability on certain fossil fuel companies for certain damages caused by climate change and establishes program in DEP to collect and distribute compensatory payments. | In Committee |
| A4051 | Prohibits sale of cats, dogs, or rabbits by pet shops; repeals "Pet Purchase Protection Act." | Prohibits sale of cats, dogs, or rabbits by pet shops; repeals "Pet Purchase Protection Act." | In Committee |
| A5394 | Requires certain State-funded construction projects to utilize plastic construction materials that contain certain amounts of postconsumer recycled content. | This bill would require State-funded construction projects carried out by the State, a county, or a municipality to incorporate plastic construction materials that contain 10 percent postconsumer recycled content until two years after the bill's enactment, and 15 percent thereafter. The bill would apply to construction materials that contain greater than 50 percent plastic, calculated by cost. The bill defines "construction material" as an article, material, or supply that is brought to the site of a construction project for incorporation into the building or work, which meets applicable standards related to performance and is of a satisfactory quality. The bill would provide exemptions to the bill's postconsumer recycled content requirements if: (1) the use of plastic construction material that contains the necessary recycled content would increase the overall cost of the project by 25 percent, or (2) plastic construction materials that contain the necessary recycled content do not exist for the intended application, or are not available in sufficient quantities. | In Committee |
| ACR154 | Condemns President Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. from Paris Climate Accord. | This resolution condemns President Trump's decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Accord, and urges him to rejoin it. | In Committee |
| A5256 | Allocates $7.5 million annually of constitutionally dedicated CBT revenue for preservation of land in Highlands Region. | This bill would amend and supplement the "Preserve New Jersey Act," P.L.2016, c.12 (C.13:8C-43 et seq.), to allocate $7.5 million annually of constitutionally dedicated Corporation Business Tax (CBT) revenue to the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council (council) for the preservation of land in the Highlands Region. The funding in this bill is provided from constitutionally dedicated CBT revenues pursuant to Article VIII, Section II, paragraph 6 of the State Constitution, which dedicates six percent of the CBT for certain environmental purposes. Under the "Preserve New Jersey Act" (act), P.L.2016, c.12 (C.13:8C-43 et seq.), of the dedicated CBT revenues allocated for open space, farmland, and historic preservation, each year: 62 percent is allocated to the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for recreation and conservation purposes; 31 percent is allocated to the State Agriculture Development Committee (SADC) for farmland preservation; and the remaining seven percent is allocated to the New Jersey Historic Trust for historic preservation. Under this bill, $5 million of the amount allocated each year to the DEP and $2.5 million of the amount allocated to the SADC would be deposited into the "Preserve New Jersey Highlands Preservation Fund," a new fund created by the bill. These moneys, totaling $7.5 million each year would be used by the council to preserve lands located in the Highlands Region. | In Committee |
| A5302 | Requires electric public utilities to submit to BPU and implement electric infrastructure improvement plans. | This bill would require each electric public utility in the State to submit, within 120 days after the bill's enactment, an electric infrastructure improvement plan to the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) for approval. The purpose of the plan would be to reopen many of the State's electric distribution circuits that have been closed to any additional renewable energy installations, or restricted to 100 kilowatts or less of remaining circuit capacity. The bill would require each plan to contain certain provisions, as enumerated in subsection b. of section 1 of the bill, as well as any additional provisions included by the utility. The bill would require the BPU to approve, approve with modifications, or disapprove each plan within 300 days after the bill's enactment. Each utility would be required to schedule the work associated with each plan at the earliest date possible. | In Committee |
| A5175 | Reinstates automatic COLAs for retirement benefits of certain PFRS members. | This bill reinstates automatic cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) for annual pension, ordinary disability pension, or accidental disability pension retirement benefits for certain members of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS). Provisions contained in P.L.2011, c.78 (C.43:3C-16 et al.), signed into law on June 28, 2011, had suspended the automatic annual adjustment for current and future retirees and beneficiaries of PFRS and other State-administered retirement systems until those systems reach a target funded ratio. Decades of underfunding those systems by the State had placed the systems in precarious financial conditions. Although this bill does not reinstate COLAs for other retirees, it serves as the first step in reinstating COLAs for all retirees of the State-administered retirement systems. Through the prioritization of PFRS, the State will begin this process with retired first responders, police and firefighters, to provide them greater financial security and stability at a time when inflation has significantly eroded the value of their retirement benefit payments, which are already based on the lower salaries of years ago. To that end, the bill includes restrictions intended to limit costs and focus on segments among PFRS retirees expected to be most in need of an immediate benefit. Under the bill, members of PFRS will receive automatic COLAs for annual pension, ordinary disability pension, and accidental disability pension benefits if the member has been retired and receiving retirement benefits for a minimum of ten years. Longer-term retirees generally will have lower pension benefits and be less able to obtain employment to offset the erosion of their benefits. Members of PFRS who are hired more than 30 days following the effective date of this act will not be considered eligible to receive these automatic COLAs. Additionally, members who are enrolled in deferred retirement will not be considered eligible for these automatic COLAs, nor will members who retired with 20 or more years of service but less than 25 years of service. The COLAs will only apply to future pension benefit payments. The bill does not provide for retroactive COLAs. The adjustment in eligible members' pension benefits will be calculated based on an amount up to $75,000 of a retiree's benefit for the first year following the enactment of this bill. Eligible members receiving up to $75,000 of pension benefits will receive a COLA tied to the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers. This will ensure that greater initial benefits will be provided to those likely to be most in need. The adjustment in eligible member's pension benefits will be limited to one percent if the member receives more than $75,000 in benefits for the first year following the enactment of the bill. After the first calendar year following the enactment of the bill, the $75,000 threshold will be adjusted annually according to the CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, except that the adjustment will be calculated at a rate not to exceed three percent. The bill also grants the cost-of-living adjustment to the monthly pension or survivorship benefit of a surviving spouse, child, or beneficiary that is provided by PFRS. Under the bill, if the Board of Trustees of PFRS fails to comply with the provisions of this bill within six months following the effective date, then the State Treasurer will be responsible for implementing the cost-of-living adjustments. The bill requires the Legislature to appropriate monies from the General Fund as necessary to effectuate the cost-of-living adjustments established under the bill that are sufficient to cover both State and local expenses, and to reimburse each PFRS local employer for the full cost incurred. The bill further provides that this appropriation will take precedence over any additional funding added to the annual State budget by the Legislature through non-emergency supplemental appropriations, resolutions or other changes to the Governor's budget message. | In Committee |
| A4954 | Requires members of historic preservation commissions to complete historic preservation planning course. | This bill establishes a historic preservation planning course to be completed by members and prospective members of historic preservation commissions. The bill requires that all regular and alternate members of historic preservation commissions complete a historic preservation planning course to retain their membership on the commission. The course will be prepared and offered by the Department of Community Affairs. The course will be no more than five hours of instruction and will be structured so that a member is able to complete it within one day. The commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs will work in conjunction with the New Jersey Historic Trust and the New Jersey State Historic Preservation Office to establish standards for the curriculum and administration of the course. Under the bill, certain persons who are certified as professional planners or who have completed a more extensive course will be exempt from the course required in the bill. Historic preservation commissions established by law play a vital role in preserving the unique character of New Jersey's small towns and municipalities. New Jersey has over 300 years of history and the loss of the tangible remains of the past would diminish New Jersey's quality of life. This bill provides the tools to those who oversee the preservation of our built environment so that the vestiges of New Jersey's past will be carefully and thoughtfully woven into the future. | Crossed Over |
| A1468 | Requires DEP to consider potential impacts to natural resources when classifying dams according to hazard potential. | This bill would amend the "Safe Dam Act," P.L.1981, c.249 (C.58:4-8.1 et seq.) to require that any classification system for the hazard potential of dams adopted by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) take into potential loss of life, property damage, and impacts to natural resources. Under current law, the DEP has adopted a classification system, which classifies dams as either: (1) Class I - loss of life or extensive property damage is probable upon dam failure; (2) Class 2 - likely significant damage to property and project operation upon dam failure, but loss of human life is not envisioned; (3) Class 3 - dam failure would cause loss of the dam itself but little or no additional damage to other property; or (4) Class 4 - for small dams that pose a negligible hazard potential. The bill would require the DEP to consider potential damage to natural resources when classifying dams, in addition to potential loss of human life and destruction of property. | Crossed Over |
| A2104 | Requires DEP to prioritize funding for certain projects for acquisition of lands for recreation and conservation purposes and certain environmental infrastructure projects that include, or allow for, flood mitigation projects. | This bill would direct the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to provide additional priority points to certain applicants that seek funding, for Blue Acres projects and for wastewater and drinking water infrastructure projects. Specifically, under the bill, projects that include, or allow for, a flood mitigation project to occur onsite would receive additional priority points in the ranking for funding pursuant to the respective program. The DEP would factor these additional points into its calculations when establishing: (1) the list of projects eligible to receive "Blue Acres funding"; (2) the "clean water project priority list," pursuant to section 20 of P.L.1985, c.334 (C.58:11B-20); and (3) the "drinking water project priority list," pursuant to section 24 of P.L.1997, c.224 (C.58:11B-20.1). As used in the bill, "Blue Acres project" means any project of the State or a qualifying tax exempt nonprofit organization to acquire, for recreation and conservation purposes, lands that have been damaged by, or may be prone to incurring damage caused by, storms or storm-related flooding, or that may buffer or protect other lands from such damage. | Crossed Over |
| A2102 | Exempts community gardens operating on-site composting systems or other systems of managing organic waste from certain DEP permits under certain conditions. | This bill would exempt a community garden that operates an on-site composting system, or other on-site system of managing organic waste in accordance with the Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) standards for recycling, from any permits required by the DEP pursuant to the "Solid Waste Management Act," P.L.1970, c.39 (C.13:1E-1 et seq.), the "New Jersey Statewide Mandatory Source Separation and Recycling Act," P.L.1987, c.102 (C.13:1E-99.11 et al.), the "Air Pollution Control Act (1954)," P.L.1954, c.212 (C.26:2C-1 et seq.), or the "Water Pollution Control Act," P.L.1977, c.74 (C.58:10A-1 et seq.), or any rules or regulations adopted pursuant thereto. To be eligible for the exemption provided by the bill: (1) the system may not accept more than 200 gallons per week of source separated food waste, except that a community garden located on property that is 5,000 square feet or larger in size may accept source separated food waste in an amount equal to 200 gallons per week per 5,000 square feet of property; and (2) the compost generated from the system is to be used on-site for the community garden or be given away or offered for sale in accordance with the requirements of the DEP providing for the disposition of processed Class C recyclable materials. As defined in the bill, "community garden" means any publicly or privately owned piece of land maintained and cultivated as a garden by members of the surrounding community. | Crossed Over |
| A3853 | Extends certain pay parity regarding telemedicine and telehealth until July 1, 2026. | An Act regarding telemedicine and telehealth and amending P.L.2021, c.310. | Signed/Enacted/Adopted |
| A3875 | Requires testing of electrical systems of certain electric bicycles, powered mobility devices, and batteries prior to sale, rental, lease, or other distribution to consumers. | This bill would prohibit the sale, lease, rental, or other distribution, and the offering for sale, lease, rental, or other distribution, of a low-speed electric bicycle, powered mobility device, or storage battery used to power such an electric bicycle or mobility device, unless: (1) the bicycle, mobility device, or battery has been tested by a accredited testing laboratory for compliance with an appropriate Underwriters Laboratories standard or other appropriate standard established by the Department of Transportation; and (2) confirmation of the testing is displayed using a logo, wordmark, or name of the accredited testing laboratory, either on packaging or documentation that is provided to the consumer at the time of sale, rental, lease, or other distribution thereto, or directly affixed to the bicycle, mobility device, or battery. Persons who violate the bill's provisions would be subject to a written warning for a first offense and a penalty of up to $1,000 for each subsequent offense occurring no later than two years after the date of the first offense. The bill would take effect on the first day of the eighth month next following enactment. | In Committee |
| A5054 | Requires BPU to review and report on rates and revenues of electric public utilities that use smart meters. | This bill requires the Board of Public Utilities (board) to review the electric rates charged and the revenues collected by any electric public utility that uses smart meters. The board's review is to include a comparison of rates and revenue amounts, for each electric public utility, prior to and following the electric public utility's installation of smart meters. Within six months after the bill is enacted, the board is required to submit a written report that summarizes the board's findings to the Governor and the Legislature. | In Committee |
| A5078 | Prohibits aquaculture of any species of octopus for purpose of human consumption. | This bill prohibits the aquaculture of any species of octopus for the purpose of human consumption. In addition, this bill prohibits a business entity from selling, possessing, or transporting any species of octopus that is the result or product of aquaculture. Any violation of the bill's provisions would be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000, and each day during which the violation continues would constitute an additional, separate, and distinct offense. The practice of octopus aquaculture has raised ethical and environmental concerns due to the highly advanced cognitive abilities and complex behaviors exhibited by these animals. Octopus farming practices and conditions, including inadequate living environments and confinement, may subject octopus to significant stress and suffering, compromise their well-being, and lead to adverse behavioral changes. As carnivores, octopuses require a high-protein diet sourced from wild fish and shellfish which could substantially increase demand on marine resources, further depleting fish stocks and disrupting marine ecosystems. Additionally, octopus aquaculture poses further risks to the marine ecosystems due to the heightened potential for the spread of infectious pathogens, which may impact other marine species and ecosystems. | In Committee |
| A3033 | Designates Common Eastern Bumble Bee as New Jersey State Native Pollinator. | This bill designates the Common Eastern Bumble Bee (Bombus impatiens) as the New Jersey State Native Pollinator. The Common Eastern Bumble Bee, found across New Jersey in urban and rural areas, is native to the State. As generalist pollinators, they are an essential part of the State's pollinator communities by gathering pollen and nectar from a wide variety of flowering plants. Bumble bees are important to New Jersey's working farms as key pollinators of blueberries, cranberries, tomatoes and peppers. Pollinators are also vital to the health of diverse ecosystems, because the fruits and seeds derived from insect pollination are a major part of the diet of all birds and mammals, including over 30 percent of the foods and beverages that humans consume. The benefits that native pollinators provide to New Jersey have been documented through extensive research at Rutgers, the State University, and other institutions of higher learning. | Crossed Over |
| A4965 | Requires paint producers to implement or participate in paint stewardship program. | This bill requires every producer of architectural paint sold in the State to implement, or participate in, a Statewide architectural paint stewardship program. The bill requires every architectural paint producer, or a representative organization established on behalf of two or more such producers, to develop and implement a plan for an architectural paint stewardship program designed to minimize the involvement of, and eliminate costs to, the public sector in association with the collection, transportation and processing of post-consumer architectural paint by reducing its generation, promoting its reuse and recycling, and negotiating and executing agreements for its collection, transportation, reuse, recycling, burning for energy recovery, incineration, and disposal using environmentally sound management practices that are consistent with the United States Environmental Protection Agency's Waste Management Hierarchy (federal waste management hierarchy), a four-tiered hierarchy that guides waste management by promoting source reduction, recycling, energy recovery, and waste treatment and disposal, in that order. The bill requires any such plan to: (1) provide for convenient and available Statewide collection of post-consumer architectural paint from urban, suburban, and rural areas of the State in a manner that, at a minimum, ensures collection rates and a level of convenience equal to or greater than that provided by other collection programs available to consumers prior to the establishment of the architectural paint stewardship program; (2) provide collection site locations Statewide that will accept post-consumer architectural paint; (3) address, to the extent reasonably feasible and mutually agreeable, the coordination of the architectural paint stewardship program with the existing infrastructure of local governments and the existing household hazardous waste collection infrastructure in the State, to the extent that there are no additional costs to the local, county, or State government, for the collection, transportation, or processing of post-consumer architectural paint; (4) describe how the program will follow a hierarchy that is consistent, to the extent feasible, with the federal waste management hierarchy; (5) describe the educational materials and outreach efforts that would be used to inform consumers about the architectural paint stewardship program and the paint stewardship assessment including a notice provision stating that the costs of program operation will be included in the purchase price of all architectural paint sold in the State; (6) identify an appropriate amount for the paint stewardship assessment; (7) provide two lists respectively identifying each producer participating in the architectural paint stewardship program, and the brands of architectural paint included under the program; and (8) include a proposed budget that has been reviewed and certified by an independent financial auditor, and which confirms that the paint stewardship assessment included in the price of each unit of paint sold in the State will cover and sustain, but not exceed, the costs of the architectural paint stewardship program. No sooner than five years and no later than six years, after the effective date of this act, all architectural paint stewardship plans would be required to be amended to provide for the environmentally sound collection, transportation, reuse, recycling and disposal of aerosol paint. Under the bill, a producer or representative organization is also required to establish, as a funding mechanism for the program and the implementation of its plan, and to include in the program plan, a paint stewardship assessment amount that is uniformly included in the sale price of all brands of architectural paint covered under the architectural paint stewardship program. The bill prohibits the assessment amount from exceeding the costs of implementing and sustaining the architectural paint stewardship plan and the architectural paint stewardship program. Each producer is required to include the paint stewardship assessment in the cost of each container of architectural paint sold thereby to a retailer or distributor in the State, and each retailer or distributor is then required to include the paint stewardship assessment in the purchase price of the producer's architectural paint. If a producer is a member of a representative organization, the producer is required to remit to the representative organization the paint stewardship assessment received for each container of architectural paint sold by the producer in the State. The bill requires an architectural paint stewardship program plan to be submitted to the DEP for approval prior to its implementation by a paint producer or representative organization. The bill authorizes the DEP to approve or disapprove of a proposed plan. If the DEP disapproves of a plan, the bill provides a procedure for subsequent plan revision by the producer or representative organization, and DEP review of the revised plan. If the DEP is dissatisfied with a revised plan, the bill authorizes the DEP, in the interests of expediency, to propose any modifications or substitutions to the plan's provisions it deems necessary. The bill requires notice to the DEP if there are any changes to the location or number of collection sites, the identity of the processors that manage the post-consumer architectural paint, or the transporters of the post-consumer architectural paint collected by the program. An amendment to the plan is required if there is any change to the amount of the paint stewardship assessment or the goals of the architectural paint stewardship program. The bill directs the DEP to charge and collect from each producer or representative organization that submits a plan pursuant to the bill an annual administrative fee, not to exceed the DEP's costs in administering the provisions of the bill. The bill requires a producer or representative organization to implement the program described in a proposed plan within 90 days after its approval or modification by the DEP. The producer or representative organization is further required to submit an annual report to the DEP, which describes or includes, among other things: the pounds of post-architectural paint collected in the State; the methods used to collect, transport, reduce, reuse, recycle, and process post-consumer architectural paint; a list of all producers participating in the program; the estimated volume collected at each collection site; a list of the processors of post-consumer architectural paint and the disposition method used by each processor; an evaluation of the effectiveness of the program and any steps necessary to improve the program; samples of the educational materials provided to consumers of architectural paint; and a certification to the validity of the information contained in the report. The bill prohibits a producer, distributor, or retailer of architectural paint from selling architectural paint, or offering it for sale, in the State unless the producer of the paint, or a representative organization of which the producer is a member, is engaged in the implementation of, or has fully implemented, an architectural paint stewardship program plan or revised plan approved by the DEP commissioner. A distributor or retailer is deemed to be in compliance with this sales prohibition if, on the date architectural paint is ordered thereby, the producer of the paint and the brand name of the paint are each identified on the DEP's Internet website as being included in an architectural paint stewardship program plan. The bill provides that any producer, distributor, or retailer who fails to comply with the bill's sales prohibition is subject to a written warning for a first offense, and a penalty of $500 for each subsequent offense. The bill authorizes the DEP to institute a civil action for injunctive relief to prevent a continuing violation of this sales prohibition. However, in order to allow time for the submission, approval, or modification of the plans required by the bill, the sales prohibition and penalty provision do not take effect until the first day of the 18th month following enactment of the bill into law. The bill also provides that when the DEP determines that any producer, distributor, or retailer is in violation of the bill's provisions, the DEP may assess a civil administrative penalty of not more than $500 for each violation, not to exceed a maximum penalty of $10,000 during a calendar year, and each day of violation would constitute an additional, separate, and distinct violation. A civil administrative penalty would not be levied until a violator has been notified by certified mail or personal service of the following: the statutory or regulatory basis of the violation; the specific act or omission that constituted the violation; the amount of the civil administrative penalty to be imposed; the right of the violator to contest, through a hearing, any matter contained in the notice; and the procedures for requesting a hearing on any contested matter. The bill also provides that the DEP may post on its Internet website a list of producers, distributors, and retailers that are in violation of this act. Finally, the bill specifies that a producer or the representative organization participating in a post-consumer paint stewardship program will not be liable for any claim of a violation of antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade practice, or other anticompetitive conduct arising from conduct undertaken in accordance with the program, including, without limitation, the types or quantities of paint being managed consistent with the federal waste management hierarchy. This protection against antitrust liability is, however, not applicable to: (1) any agreement establishing or affecting the price of architectural paint, except an agreement to establish a paint stewardship assessment, as authorized by the bill; or (2) any agreement restricting the output or production of architectural paint or the geographic area or customers to which paint will be sold. | In Committee |
| A2717 | Authorizes proportional property tax exemption for honorably discharged veterans having a service-connected permanent disability and proclaims that the State shall reimburse municipalities for costs of exemption. | The bill grants a property tax exemption to honorably discharged veterans having a service-connected disability in proportion to their disability percentage rating. The exemption is only granted to those with a disability percentage rating of at least 30 percent, and the exemption is capped at $10,000. Those with a 100 percent disability percentage rating would still be allowed a 100 percent property tax exemption without a cap, as is the case under current law. In addition, the bill grants those honorably discharged veterans having less than a 100 percent service-connected disability, but who are unemployable, a 100 percent property tax exemption, which matches the current 100 percent property tax exemption for honorably discharged veterans having a 100 percent disability percentage rating. As under current law, the bill allows the 100 percent property tax exemption to extend to the surviving spouse of a veteran. However, the newly allowed property tax exemption for a veteran with a less than 100 percent property tax exemption would not extend to the surviving spouse. The bill also eliminates all references to medical conditions so that any service-connected disability, as determined by the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs, will make a veteran eligible for the property tax exemption. Finally, the bill proclaims that the State shall annually reimburse taxing districts, including for administrative costs, for the property tax exemptions granted to disabled veterans and their surviving spouses. The bill includes reporting provisions so proper reimbursement can be made. | In Committee |
| A2100 | Provides workers' compensation benefits for certain public safety workers who developed illness or injury as result of responding to September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. | Provides workers' compensation benefits for certain public safety workers who developed illness or injury as result of responding to September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. | In Committee |
| A4770 | "Ruth Gilbert Alzheimer's Accessibility Act"; allows certain individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease or dementia to receive, and caregivers transporting those individuals to utilize, parking privileges reserved for persons with disability. | This bill permits a person to park a motor vehicle in parking spaces reserved for a person with a disability if the person has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease or another form of dementia and the person's ability to walk is limited, impaired, or creates a safety condition while walking as certified by a physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner. Under the bill, a person diagnosed Alzheimer's disease or another form of dementia and whose ability to walk is limited, impaired, or creates a safety condition while walking is eligible to receive from the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission a person with a disability identification card, a vehicle identification placard, and license plates that display the national wheelchair symbol. Under current law, vehicle identification placards are required to be displayed on the motor vehicle used to transport an individual with a disability and when the vehicle is parked overtime or in parking spaces reserved for individuals with a disability. A caregiver may utilize the placard while transporting an individual with a disability. Additionally, under current law, wheel chair symbol license plates may be issued to motor vehicles owned, operated, or leased by an individual with a disability or by any person furnishing transportation on the individual's behalf. | In Committee |
| A4718 | "New Jersey Motorcycle Awareness and Safety Act"; requires DOT to develop public awareness campaign for motorcycle day. | This bill requires the Commissioner of Transportation, in consultation with the Director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety to develop and annually update a motorcycle safety public awareness campaign for the purpose of promoting motorcycle safety, encouraging vigilant driving, and reducing the number of motorcycle-related accidents on New Jersey roads. The public awareness campaign is required to include, at a minimum: (1) educational materials on the importance of motorcycle safety; (2) information on the risks associated with distracted driving; and (3) variable message signs to promote best practices for sharing the road safely with motorcyclists. | In Committee |
| A4217 | Authorizes EDA to use moneys in "Global Warming Solutions Fund" to support projects to refurbish or upgrade existing electricity generation facilities. | This bill would authorize the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA) to use moneys in the "Global Warming Solutions Fund" to provide grants or other financial assistance to commercial, institutional, and industrial entities to support projects to refurbish or upgrade existing electric generation facilities in order to modernize, expand, or lengthen the lifespan of the facility. The bill would also clarify that projects may result in a measurable reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases (one of the conditions of receiving financial assistance from the "Global Warming Solutions Fund") through the use of fuel cells or carbon capture technology. The "Global Warming Solutions Fund," established pursuant to section 6 of P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-50), serves as the repository for moneys received from electric power generation facilities pursuant to New Jersey's participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). | In Committee |
| A4470 | Amends rent receivership statute to provide that court shall appoint receiver under certain conditions; establishes mandatory appointment requirement. | Amends rent receivership statute to provide that court shall appoint receiver under certain conditions; establishes mandatory appointment requirement. | In Committee |
| A4561 | Includes Sikhs as protected class in bias intimidation law; appropriates $100,000. | This bill amends N.J.S.A.2C:16-1, the crime of bias intimidation,to specifically include Sikhism in the protected classes set forth in the statute. Sikhism is the monotheistic religion founded in India in the 15th century by Guru Nanak. New Jersey is home to approximately 100,000 Sikhs, which is one of the largest Sikh populations in the United States. On October 16, 2023, the Federal Bureau of Investigation ("FBI") released its annual report of hate crime statistics, which recorded 198 anti-Sikh hate crime incidents. According to the FBI report, Sikhs remain the second-most targeted group in the nation for religiously-motivated hate crime incidents. Current law enumerates the protected classes of race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, and ethnicity in the bias intimidation statute. Under the provisions of the bill, a person is guilty of the crime of bias intimidation if he commits, attempts, conspires, or threatens the immediate commission of certain specified offenses with a purpose to intimidate an individual or group because of their membership within a protected class, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ethnicity, or Sikhism, or knowing that the conduct would cause an individual or group to be intimidated on that basis or under circumstances in which the victim believes he was targeted on that basis. Pursuant to this bill, all local, county, and State law enforcement entities in New Jersey are to report all violations under the statute to the State and federal law enforcement agencies responsible for preparing bias crime reports. Further, this bill sets forth that the Office of Attorney General, in consultation with the Department of Education, is to: (1) develop training, for the dissemination to county and local law enforcement agencies, on Sihkism, which shall include, but not limited to, visible Sikh identity features, including turbans, bracelets, moustaches, beard, and physical attire, and the classification of bias intimidation cases as anti-sikh, to prevent the misclassification of hate and bias incidents. (2) coordinate with other State agencies and departments in the creation of a public awareness campaign and educational initiatives on Sikhism; and (3) annually report to the Governor and the Legislature on the public awareness campaign,educational initiatives on Sikhism executed through the public awareness campaign across different public platforms, and on the steps taken to include Sikhism education across curriculum standards in different grades across township boards of education within this State. Pursuant to this bill, the New Jersey Office of Attorney General, in consultation with the New Jersey field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, shall develop a transnational repression recognition and response training program that is to include how to identify different tactics of transnational repression and best practices for appropriate county, local and state law enforcement prevention, reporting, and response tactics. Current law establishes within the Division of Purchase and Property in the State Department of the Treasury, the position of Chief Diversity Officer. This bill expands the Chief Diversity Officer's responsibilities to include: ensuring that each public entity of this State incorporate the definition for anti-Sikh hate into the bias intimidation policy of the public entity; and ensuring that the definition of anti-Sikh hate is incorporated into the diversity, equity, and inclusivity promotion policies in any program offered by the State or any political subdivision of the State. This bill appropriates $100,000, for three consecutive years following enactment, from the General Fund to the Office of the Attorney General to fund Sikh awareness educational initiatives and outreach efforts to the Sikh community. | In Committee |
| A1487 | Directs BPU to establish rebate program for purchase of electric bicycles. | Directs BPU to establish rebate program for purchase of electric bicycles. | In Committee |
| A3876 | Revises provisions of "Dry Cell Battery Management Act." | This bill would revise the provisions of the "Dry Cell Battery Management Act," P.L.1991, c.521 (C.13:1E-99.59 et seq.) to expand the types of batteries and consumer products that are covered under this law. The bill would amend most of the provisions of the "Dry Cell Battery Management Act" to provide that the law would apply to "covered batteries," rather than to mercuric oxide batteries, nickel-cadmium rechargeable batteries and sealed lead rechargeable batteries, as in current law. The bill would define a "covered battery" as a rechargeable or non-rechargeable battery that weighs up to 25 pounds or a rechargeable battery that stores up to 2000 watt-hours of energy, whether embedded in a product or sold separately. This would entail, among other things, that persons would be prohibited from selling a covered battery or a battery-embedded product unless the manufacturer of the battery or product, as applicable, has developed a battery management plan, which has been approved by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The bill would require each manufacturer of a covered battery to submit a battery management plan to the DEP no later than nine months after the bill's enactment. The bill would also modify the provisions of the "Dry Cell Battery Management Act" to prohibit the use of curbside recycling for the collection of covered batteries, and to require additional items be included in a battery management plan, including a requirement that each manufacturer provide for at least one permanent collection site for used, portable, covered batteries within a 15-mile radius of no less than 95 percent of the residents of the State, and within a 25-mile radius of each resident of the State. The bill would delete a provision of current law that requires retailers to accept used nickel-cadmium and sealed lead rechargeable batteries from customers. The bill would also delete a provision in current law that requires retailers to post certain signage regarding nickel-cadmium and sealed lead rechargeable batteries in their retail establishments. In addition, the bill would repeal section 6 of P.L.1991, c.521 (C.13:1E-99.64), which prohibits persons from selling certain rechargeable consumer products, unless certain conditions are met, including that the rechargeable battery is readily removable from the product. | In Committee |
| A2090 | Requires each solid waste management district to develop strategy in solid waste management plan to reduce food waste. | This bill would require each solid waste management district in the State (i.e., each county and the Hackensack Meadowlands District) to develop, as part of its district solid waste management plan, a strategy to reduce food waste in the district. Specifically, this bill would require each solid waste management district to develop and implement a strategy for reducing, by the year 2030, the amount of food waste generated annually in the district by at least 50 percent of the amount which is generated in the year this bill is enacted into law. The strategy would be adopted as an amendment to each district's solid waste management plan and subject to the approval of the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The bill would require the DEP to develop, and publish on its Internet website, a list of measures solid waste management districts can take in order to achieve the food waste reduction requirement established in the bill. These measures would include actions to prevent food waste and increase the donation of surplus edible food, the source separation and recycling of food waste, the composting and anaerobic digestion of food waste and other food waste diversion methods that also reduce methane emissions, and public awareness campaigns. | In Committee |
| A3584 | 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," Pub.L. 117-2. | In Committee |
| A3558 | Establishes State definition of anti-Semitism; creates a public awareness campaign; appropriates $100,000. | This bill establishes a State definition of anti-Semitism. Under the bill, the term "definition of anti-Semitism" refers to the definition adopted by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance on May 26, 2016, including the "contemporary examples of antisemitism". The bill provides that in reviewing, investigating, or deciding whether there has been a violation of any policy, law, or regulation prohibiting discriminatory acts, the State must take into consideration this definition of anti-Semitism adopted by the IHRA for purposes of determining whether the alleged act was motivated by anti-Semitic intent. Nothing contained in the bill would be construed to diminish or infringe upon any right protected under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, or paragraph 6 of Article I of the New Jersey State Constitution. Nothing in the bill would be construed to conflict with local, State, or federal anti-discrimination laws or regulations. This bill also appropriates $100,000 to the Office of the Attorney General for the creation of a public awareness campaign to promote bias crime reporting. Through extensive community outreach, the citizens of New Jersey will be empowered to identify and report bias crimes using the existing bias crime reporting hotline within the New Jersey Bias Crimes Reporting Unit. This appropriation represents an investment in safety and collective action against bias crimes, including acts considered anti-Semitic. | In Committee |
| A1685 | Requires school districts to offer halal lunch options. | This bill requires each public school district at which at least five percent of the students are federally eligible for free or reduced price meals to offer halal school lunch options. As defined in the bill, "halal" means food prepared pursuant to and maintained in strict compliance with the laws and customs of the Islamic religion. Under the bill, a school district's halal option is required to comply with the National School Lunch Program and all applicable State and federal nutritional mandates and food safety requirements. Additionally, the bill stipulates that the price of a halal lunch option is not to exceed the price of a comparable, non-halal school lunch option. | In Committee |
| A1804 | Enhances notice requirements and occupancy restrictions for hotels and multiple dwellings following determination of potentially hazardous condition. | This bill would enhance notice requirements and occupancy restrictions for hotels and multiple dwellings following a determination of a potentially hazardous condition through an inspection conducted pursuant to the "Hotel and Multiple Dwelling Law," P.L.1967, c.76 (C.55:13A-1 et seq.) (HMDL). As used in the bill, potentially hazardous conditions would consist of imminent hazards to health, safety or welfare, or a deteriorating structural, sanitary, or other condition that, if unaddressed, may result in an imminent hazard prior to the next scheduled inspection conducted pursuant to the HMDL. The bill provides that, if the Commissioner of Community Affairs (commissioner) determines that a violation of the HMDL is a potentially hazardous violation, then the commissioner would be required to immediately send, by certified or ordinary mail, and by electronic mail, a written notice, stating the manner in which the hotel or multiple dwelling is out of compliance, to:· The mayor of the municipality;· The administrator, business administrator, city manager, township manager, municipal manager, or other municipal official with executive authority not vested in the mayor of the municipality;· All members of the governing body of the municipality in which the hotel or multiple dwelling is located;· The clerk, public information officer, or other municipal official responsible for the distribution of communications to the residents of the municipality; and· The owner and operator of the hotel or multiple dwelling, including, if applicable, to the property owner's last known address. Concerning a potentially hazardous violation, the bill requires the commissioner to include the notice in a mailing with large, easily readable text, presented on paper that is easily distinguishable from other notices or communications. The bill requires the owner or operator of the hotel or multiple dwelling to provide a hard copy of the notice to each existing resident or guest of the hotel or multiple dwelling. The bill also requires the owner or operator of the hotel or multiple dwelling to additionally post a copy of the notice in a conspicuous location in the lobby or common area of the hotel or multiple dwelling, in which the information is most likely to be viewed by residents or guests, and within ten feet of the elevator on each floor of the hotel or multiple dwelling, or, if the hotel or multiple dwelling does not have an elevator, within ten feet of, or in, the main stairwell of each floor. The bill permits a notice posted in a common area pursuant to this bill to be removed only after the commissioner issues the owner and operator a certificate of inspection. For a hotel room or dwelling unit impacted by a potentially hazardous violation, the bill restricts the owner or operator of any hotel or multiple dwelling from entering a new lease for non-owner occupancy, or make available for a new lease, for such time as the hotel or multiple dwelling is made to comply with the HMDL. The bill would take effect on the first day of the third month next following enactment to provide time for the Commissioner of Community Affairs to adopt rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this bill. | Dead |
| A2103 | Establishes "Resiliency and Environmental System Investment Charge Program." | This bill establishes the "Resiliency and Environmental System Investment Charge Program" (RESIC), which creates a regulatory mechanism that enables water and wastewater utilities (utilities) to recover the costs of investment in certain non-revenue producing utility system components that enhance water and wastewater system resiliency, environmental compliance, safety, and public health. The bill authorizes a utility to petition the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) concerning RESIC activities by submitting a foundational filing. A utility that offers more than one regulated service may file a joint foundational filing for a RESIC that includes infrastructure investments for multiple regulated services or separate foundational filings to establish a separate RESIC for each regulated service offered by the utility. If a utility files separate foundational filings, each RESIC approved by the BPU would be subject to a separate revenue recovery cap. Under the RESIC program, after approval of the foundational filing, a utility may charge customers for the costs of installing, rehabilitating, improving, or replacing utility system infrastructure in accordance with the bill. However, the bill provides that the total revenues recovered through the RESIC rate may not exceed the RESIC-cap, which equals five percent of the utility's total annual revenues, as adjusted for certain approved charges. Under the bill, the utility would also be required to identify the amounts owed by each customer, based on the RESIC rate, separately on the customer's utility bill. | Dead |
| A2088 | Requires electric public utilities operating or providing service to certain LED street lights to charge customers only for actual costs. | This bill requires an electric public utility (utility) to include in any tariff for street lighting service to a (light emitting diode) LED street light owned by the utility for use along a public street, road, highway, or property of a State, county, or municipal government entity or a public school district, a charge for the installation and operation that reflects solely the actual costs of installing and operating the LED street light for those public entities. Within 60 days of the effective date of the bill, the utility is to submit to the Board of Public Utilities (board) a revised tariff that reflects the actual costs of installing and operating those utility-owned LED street lights within the utility's service territory. The board is to approve the revised tariff within 60 days of receiving it. For a LED street light owned by a State, county, or municipal government entity, or a public school district, the charge is to reflect solely the actual costs of providing electric service to those LED street lights. If a utility petitions the board to increase its rates or charges, the utility's rate base may include costs for LED street lights owned by the utility that reflect solely the cost of installing and operating those LED street lights. | In Committee |
| A2084 | Requires public utility performing road excavation to repave part of road that was excavated if that road had been repaved in previous five years. | This bill requires a public utility, upon completing a project that requires the excavation of a portion of a road that was repaved within the previous five calendar years, to repave or to provide that a contractor repave the road from the portion of the road that was excavated to the bordering curbs and street corners of the road. If the bordering street corners are farther than 150 feet from the portion of road that was excavated, then the public utility is to repave or to provide that a contractor repave 150 feet of road in the direction of each bordering street corner from the excavation site. | In Committee |
| A2087 | Prohibits use of receipt paper containing bisphenol A. | This bill would prohibit a person from using or providing, as a business or banking record, a piece of paper to which bisphenol A (BPA) was added or used in the manufacturing process in order to provide a specific characteristic, appearance, or quality to the paper. A person who violates the provisions of the bill would be subject to a penalty of between $250 and $500. The bill would take effect 18 months after the date of enactment. | In Committee |
| A2093 | Requires permit and compensatory reforestation plan for development projects that result in deforestation; establishes grant program for reforestation activities by private landowners; establishes "State Compensatory Reforestation Fund." | This bill would require development projects larger than five acres in size that would result in deforestation to include the implementation of a compensatory reforestation plan, in the form of tree plantings or moneys deposited into the "State Compensatory Reforestation Fund," (fund), a special, nonlapsing fund in the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) that would be established by the bill. The bill would also direct the DEP to create a program that would subsidize the costs of tree plantings for private landowners, using moneys from the fund. Specifically, under the bill, the DEP would be required to create a new permitting program to review compensatory reforestation plans submitted by persons seeking to carry out development projects larger than five acres in size that would result in deforestation. The bill defines "deforestation" as the removal of all trees from a contiguous area greater than one-half acre in size with a tree density greater than 204 mature trees per acre. The new permit would be required beginning three months after the DEP adopts rules and regulations to implement the bill. The bill would establish various requirements for a compensatory reforestation plan, as enumerated in subsection b. of section 1 of the bill, including that the plan establish a goal of no net loss of State forested area resulting from the development. The bill would also establish various requirements for the compensatory replanting, as enumerated in subsection c. of section 1 of the bill, including that the replanting be carried out on the same property as the deforestation, whenever practicable, and in the same municipality, whenever practicable. A person would be authorized to meet the compensatory reforestation requirements of the bill by implementing the reforestation plan, contracting with a third party to implement the reforestation plan, or by depositing an amount sufficient to cover the costs of the reforestation, as determined by the department, into the fund. The bill would also direct the DEP to develop and administer a grant program to subsidize the costs of private landowners who plant trees on their property. The DEP would use moneys in the fund to issue the grants. The bill would specify that grants could not be awarded or used to fund the implementation of a compensatory reforestation plan. | In Committee |
| A601 | Establishes Division of Advocacy for Developmentally Disabled within Office of Public Defender; designates public defender for developmentally disabled clients in criminal cases. | This bill would provide legal representation and other advocacy services to protect and advocate for the rights of developmentally disabled persons by establishing the Division of Advocacy for Developmentally Disabled within the Office of the Public Defender. This bill also provides that the Public Defender would designate at least one public defender in every office with knowledge of the needs of developmentally disabled persons to represent those clients with developmental disabilities in criminal cases. This bill would establish the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled in the Office of the Public Defender to be under the supervision of the Director of the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled. The division would be designated as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmental disabilities. The division would have all of the powers necessary to carry out its responsibilities as required to qualify for federal funding as the State protection and advocacy agency. The Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled would promote, advocate, and ensure the adequacy of the care received by persons with developmental disabilities, including persons within facilities and programs operated, funded, or licensed by the State. The division would be authorized to receive and investigate complaints and provide legal representation and other advocacy services on an individual or class basis. Eligibility for services for the developmentally disabled would be determined on the basis of the need of the client and in a manner consistent with the conditions of any grant obtained by the Public Defender to assist in implementing this bill. The Director of the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled may employ, with the approval of the Public Defender, such assistants on a full time basis as are necessary to protect the rights of developmentally disabled persons. These assistants would have knowledge of the needs of developmental disabled persons. When exceptional circumstances arise, the director may retain, with the approval of the Public Defender, on a temporary basis such other expert assistants as are necessary pursuant to a reasonable fee schedule established in advance by the Public Defender. Cases would be assigned to staff attorneys, or attorneys hired by case, on a basis calculated to provide competent representation in light of the nature of the case, the services to be performed, the experience of the particular attorney and other relevant factors. The bill also supplements Title 2A and provides that the Public Defender would designate at least one deputy public defender or assistant public defender in every office with knowledge of the needs of developmentally disabled persons to represent those clients with developmental disabilities in criminal cases. This bill defines a developmentally disabled person by cross-referencing to the definition in section 3 of the "Developmentally Disabled Rights Act," P.L.1977, c.82 (C.30:6D-3). Pursuant to that section, a developmental disability means a severe, chronic disability of a person which: is attributable to either a mental or physical impairment, or a combination of mental or physical impairments; manifests before age 22; is likely to continue indefinitely; results in substantial functional limitations in at least three areas of major life activity, such as self-care and receptive and expressive language; and reflects the need for a combination and sequence of special inter-disciplinary or generic care, treatment or other services which are lifelong or extended duration and are individually planned and coordinated. | In Committee |
| AJR57 | Designates March 30th of each year "Menstrual Toxic Shock Syndrome Awareness Day." | This joint resolution designates March 30th of each year as "Menstrual Toxic Shock Syndrome Awareness Day" in New Jersey. Menstrual Toxic Shock Syndrome (MTSS) is a preventable illness commonly caused by Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, and Clostridium bacterial infection. MTSS still affects over 17 in 100,000 women between the ages of 13 and 25 every year, which marks little progress since the 1980s in reducing the number of MTSS cases. Risk factors for MTSS include the use of highly absorbent tampons, diaphragms, or contraceptive sponges, the presence of surgical wounds or untreated infections, or a history of recent childbirth, miscarriage, or abortion. Symptoms of MTSS include headache, muscle ache, sore throat, cough, weakness, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, chills, fever, lightheadedness, dizziness, faint upon standing, confusion, disorientation, low blood pressure, increased heart rate, seizures, rash, redness of eyes, lips, and tongue, dysfunction of the digestive and circulatory systems, and the shedding of skin around the hands and feet. In extreme cases, MTSS can result in organ damage, the loss of limbs, or death. Increased awareness of MTSS can help the citizens of the State of New Jersey identify and avoid suffering from this easily preventable illness. | In Committee |
| A1778 | Establishes "New Jersey STEM Scholars Grant Pilot Program" in Department of Education. | This bill would establish the four-year "New Jersey STEM Scholars Grant Pilot Program," to provide grants to assist school districts, renaissance schools, and charter schools in enhancing STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education programs for students and to increase access to STEM education programs. Applications for grant awards under the pilot program would be submitted to the Commissioner of Education, who would allocate the awards on a competitive basis. The grant awards would be distributed so that school districts, renaissance schools, and charter schools can build upon existing STEM education programs or create new education programs along three distinct areas of concentration: project-based learning, afterschool STEM, and out-of-school STEM. This bill also establishes within the Department of Education a fund to be known as the "STEM Scholars Grant Fund," for the provision of grants to school districts, renaissance schools, and charter schools under the pilot program. The fund is to be annually credited with money appropriated by the Legislature and any moneys received by the State from corporate donors or other private sector support. No State funds may be used to support a grant under the pilot program unless there is an appropriation for the pilot program in the annual appropriations act for the respective fiscal year. | In Committee |
| A2083 | Requires door to operator's cabin be locked on NJT trains. | This bill requires the New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJ Transit) to ensure that any interior door that provides access to the operator's cabin of an NJ Transit train or to any compartment wherein controls to the train are located be locked and secured at all times. The requirement does not apply in cases of emergency or where the interests of health, safety, or security require the door to be unlocked. | In Committee |
| A2094 | Requires producers of packaging products sold in New Jersey to adopt and implement packaging product stewardship plans. | This bill requires every producer of packaging products sold in the State, either individually or as a part of a group of producers, to develop and implement a packaging product stewardship plan, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection (department). The bill defines "producer" to mean: the manufacturer of a packaging product who sells, offers for sale, or distributes the product in the State under the person's own name or brand; the owner or licensee of a trademark under which a packaging product is sold, offered for sale, or distributed in this State, whether or not the trademark is registered in this State; any person who sells, offers for sale, or distributes a packaging product in the State; and any person who imports a packaging product for use by a commercial enterprise that sells, offers for sale, or distributes packaging products in this State. The term would not include a municipality or other local government unit. The bill further defines "packaging product" to mean any product or material that is designed and used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery, or presentation of another product, including, but not limited to, a food or beverage item, that is sold, offered for sale, imported, or distributed in the State. The term expressly includes: primary, secondary, and tertiary packaging; service packaging, including carry-out bags, bulk goods bags, take-out bags, home delivery food service packaging, and prescription bottles, which are designed and intended to be filled at the point of sale; beverage containers; ancillary elements that are attached to another product and that serve a packaging function; and any other product, whether constituted of paper, plastic, glass, metal, a mixture thereof, or any other material, which serves a packaging function. The purpose of a stewardship plan is to: 1) ensure that participating producers remain responsible for managing and facilitating the collection, transportation, reuse, and recycling or disposal of all discarded packaging products in the State, in accordance with environmentally sound management practices; 2) encourage participating producers to increase the post-consumer content in packaging products and reduce the amount of waste generated from discarded packaging products; 3) prioritize and promote the reuse and recycling of discarded packaging products; and 4) otherwise minimize public sector involvement in the life-cycle management of packaging waste. To the extent practicable, a packaging product stewardship plan is to provide for the use of existing solid waste collection and recycling infrastructure in the State. The stewardship plan is also to provide for all of the costs associated with the collection, transportation, reuse, and recycling or disposal of discarded packaging products to be borne by participating producers. The bill requires the department and participating producers to jointly develop a method to ensure the provision of prompt payment to counties and municipalities, recycling and other solid waste collection and disposal facilities, and other appropriate entities that provide services pursuant to the plan. Each packaging product stewardship plan that is adopted pursuant to the bill is to identify, and provide contact information for, each producer participating in the plan, and is to also include a comprehensive list of the packaging products that are covered by the plan. Each plan is additionally required to: 1) identify the means, methods, processes, procedures, systems, and strategies that will be used by participating producers to: a) reduce, through product design modifications and program innovation, the amount of material used for each packaging product and the amount of waste resulting from use of each packaging product; b) facilitate and promote the prompt and efficient collection of discarded packaging products throughout the State in a manner that is as, or more, convenient for consumers than the other collection programs available prior to the implementation of the packaging product stewardship plan; c) transport discarded packaging products to authorized storage and recycling facilities; and d) facilitate the reuse of discarded packaging products for alternate second-life purposes, the processing and recycling of used packaging products that cannot be reused for alternate second-life purposes, and the proper end-of-life disposal, in accordance with environmentally sound management practices, of discarded packaging products that cannot be reused or recycled; 2) identify performance goals for a minimum post-consumer recycled material content rate and a minimum recycling rate for packaging products, and describe how such goals will be met or exceeded; 3) describe the ways in which existing municipal solid waste collection and recycling infrastructure will be used to implement the stewardship plan or, if existing infrastructure will not be used, provide an explanation as to why it is necessary to establish a separate infrastructure, as well as a description of how the separate infrastructure system will function, and an indication of the date by which the separate infrastructure system is expected to be placed into operation; 4) describe the ways in which the producer or stewardship organization will work with existing waste haulers, recyclers, and counties and municipalities throughout the State to effectuate the collection, transportation, reuse, recycling, and other disposal of packaging products, in accordance with environmentally sound management practices, and identify the name and location of all authorized recyclers that will be directly utilized pursuant to the plan; 5) certify that the participating producers will use open, competitive, and fair procurement practices when directly entering into contractual agreements with municipalities and other service providers, pursuant to the stewardship plan; 6) describe the means and methods that will be used by participating producers to finance the collection, transportation, reuse, and recycling or other environmentally sound disposal of discarded packaging products under the stewardship plan; 7) identify the process that was used, during the development of the stewardship plan, to receive, consider, and implement the comments of various stakeholders, as well as the nature of stakeholder comments received during the plan development period, and describe the extent to which the stakeholders' comments were incorporated into the stewardship plan; 8) describe the means and methods that will be used by participating producers to facilitate public outreach, education, and communication with respect to the stewardship plan, in accordance with the bill's provisions; 9) describe how the stewardship plan will be administered, and identify the staff members who will be responsible for ensuring proper administration of the plan; and 10) include any other information the commissioner deems appropriate. The performance goals established in a stewardship plan are to provide, at a minimum, for all single-use packaging products to be composed of at least 75 percent post-consumer content by January 1, 2027; all single-use packaging products to be readily recyclable or compostable by January 1, 2030; and all single-use plastic packaging to be reduced to the maximum extent practicable, or by at least 25 percent, by January 1, 2030. A stewardship plan adopted pursuant to the bill may not be implemented without the prior approval of the Commissioner of Environmental Protection (commissioner). Not more than 120 days after the commissioner receives a completed packaging product stewardship plan, the commissioner will be required to approve, conditionally approve, or disapprove the plan and provide written notice of the determination to the participating manufacturers. If the commissioner does not provide written notice of such determination within this 120-day timeframe, the plan will be deemed to have been approved. If the plan is approved, participating producers will be required to implement the plan within 90 days after receipt of the commissioner's notice or the expiration of the 120-day timeframe set for the determination, as the case may be, or within another timeframe agreed to by the commissioner. If the plan is conditionally approved, the commissioner's written notice is to specify the conditions that are to be satisfied in order for the plan to be deemed approved and implemented under the bill, and the participating producers will be required to implement the conditionally approved plan, in accordance with the conditions stated in the notice, either within 90 days after receipt of the commissioner's notice or within another timeframe agreed to by the commissioner. If the plan is disapproved, the commissioner's written notice is to be accompanied by a detailed statement describing the reasons for disapproval. Not more than 30 days after receipt of the notice of disapproval, the participating producers will be required to submit a revised plan to the commissioner, who will be required to approve, conditionally approve, or disapprove of the revised plan in accordance with the bill's provisions. Within 90 days after approving a packaging product stewardship plan, or any revisions thereto, the department will be required to post the plan on the department's Internet website, together with a list identifying the producers participating in the plan and the packaging products covered thereunder. The bill requires a packaging product stewardship plan to be reviewed and updated by the participating manufacturers, and resubmitted to the department, at least once every five years. However, the bill also authorizes the commissioner, at any time, to review a previously approved stewardship plan and order modifications to the plan in order to ensure that it is being implemented in accordance with the bill's provisions. Producers implementing a packaging product stewardship plan will be required to engage in public outreach, to address public questions and concerns, and to provide consumers with educational and informational materials related to the stewardship plan and the services that are available thereunder. Participating producers will also be authorized to provide educational and informational materials to retailers regarding the implementation of the stewardship plan. Eighteen months after the bill's effective date, a producer will be prohibited from selling, offering for sale, importing, or distributing any packaging product in the State unless the producer is engaged in the implementation of, or has fully implemented, a packaging product stewardship plan in accordance with the bill. The bill further provides that, if a producer violates the terms and conditions of an approved packaging product stewardship plan in which the producer is participating, the commissioner may order the producer to stop selling, offering for sale, distributing, or importing for sale or distribution, any packaging products in the State. The bill also establishes various civil and administrative penalties for persons who violate the provisions of the bill, any rules or regulations adopted pursuant thereto, any stewardship plan approved thereunder, or any order issued by the commissioner in enforcing the bill. Producers participating in an approved stewardship plan will be required to submit an annual report to the department describing the actions being undertaken by participating producers pursuant to the plan, and evaluating the plan's costs and effectiveness. The commissioner will be required to post each annual report on the department's Internet website, and will be further required to prepare, and post on the department's Internet website, a summary report describing the progress that is being made under each stewardship plan, as well as any corrective action that has been ordered by the commissioner under the bill. The bill specifies that any actions undertaken by producers under the bill will not be deemed to constitute a violation of any State law relating to antitrust, restraint of trade, unfair trade practices, or the regulation of trade or commerce, so long as the action is necessary to plan for or implement the organized collection or recycling of packaging products pursuant to the bill's provisions. However, this exemption from liability will not apply to any agreement that establishes or affects the price of a product or that restricts the output or production of a product or the geographic area or customers to which a product will be sold. | In Committee |
| A616 | Transfers jurisdiction over school meals programs from Department of Agriculture to DOE. | This bill would transfer authority over all school meals programs in the State from the Department of Agriculture (DOA) to the Department of Education (DOE). A "school meals program" is defined to mean and include: the National School Lunch Program; the federal School Breakfast Program, including a school breakfast after the bell program; the Summer Food Service Program or Seamless Summer Option; the Child and Adult Care Food Program; any emergency meals distribution program; and any other similar State or federal nutrition assistance program that is designed to ensure that children enrolled in school, or that children or adults attending a day care center or other, similar temporary care facility, have regular and affordable access to nutritious meals. The transfer of authority under the bill would not affect any civil or criminal actions or proceedings that have been brought by or against the DOA in association with its administration and enforcement of a school meals program, and which are pending as of the bill's effective date. Nor would the transfer affect any order or recommendation that has been made by, or any other matters or administrative proceedings that are pending before, the DOA as of the bill's effective date. The existing orders, rules, and regulations of the DOA that have been issued in relation to the State's school meals programs would also remain in effect until they are either repealed or superseded by rules, regulations, and orders adopted by the DOE pursuant to the bill, whichever occurs first. Although the DOA currently has authority to administer and enforce all school meals programs operating in the State, this authority is superfluous to, and takes the department's attention away from, its main purposes and functions, which are to promote and protect the State's agriculture and agribusiness industries and lands, and to conserve soil and water resources for agricultural purposes. The primary purpose and function of the DOE, by contrast, is to support schools, students, educators, and school districts in order to ensure that students are capable of achieving academic excellence. Because access to nutritional meals is a proven means by which students enhance their capacity for academic success, and because the DOE's mission already requires it to focus on programs geared toward schools and students, the DOE is better positioned, and is the more appropriate department, to administer the school meals programs and to provide assistance to schools, students, parents, and guardians, in association with the operation of those programs. | In Committee |
| A2232 | Concerns procedures with respect to repair of certain public utility facilities and related street repaving. | This bill adds gas and sewer public utilities and cable television companies to the types of public utilities required to notify a municipality prior to the placement, replacement, or removal of the public utility's poles and underground facilities and includes the repair of these poles or underground facilities to the notification requirement. The bill removes the provision of law that requires a municipality to first adopt an ordinance requiring a public utility to notify the municipality prior to a public utility undertaking this work. The bill requires a public utility to repave a portion of a street, road, or highway that was excavated to undertake the work to restore the property to its previous condition as much as possible and require a public utility to pay workers no less than the prevailing wage rate for restoring the property where the work was undertaken to its previous condition as much as possible. The bill increases the amount of a fine a municipality may assess against a public utility in the event a public utility does not meet the law's requirements concerning the removal of debris and the restoration of property within a right of way to its previous condition from up to $100 per day to up to $1,000 per day. The bill prohibits a public utility from recovering from its ratepayers the costs of a fine assessed against a public utility as provided in the bill. | In Committee |
| A1684 | Permits public high school students to opt out of physical education and sports programs during Ramadan. | This bill permits any public high school student who observes Ramadan to opt out of physical education class. Under the bill, a student can substitute the required physical education course with an instructional course or study hall for the duration of the marking period in which Ramadan falls. The bill requires the student to submit a written notice to the principal of the school prior to the school district creating schedules for the marking period. The instructional course or study hall is required to provide the student with graduation credits equal to the number received for completion of the physical education course. This bill does not exempt students from the statutory requirement that they attend at least two and one-half hours per school week of health and safety education courses, when these courses are scheduled. Additionally, this bill permits a student-athlete to be excused from participation in an interscholastic sports program, intramural sports program, or cheerleading program during Ramadan. In order to be excused, a student-athlete is required to submit a written notice to the coach of the athletic program. The bill stipulates that a coach cannot penalize a student-athlete for not participating during Ramadan. During the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims are required to abstain from food and drink from dawn to dusk. As one of the five pillars of Islam, fasting during the month of Ramadan is mandatory for all healthy adult Muslims. Children are not expected to fast until they reach puberty, usually around the age of 14. It is the intent of this bill to acknowledge Muslim students who observe Ramadan by providing less intense alternatives to physical activity while these students practice their religious beliefs by fasting. | In Committee |
| A2081 | Prohibits sale of certain cleaning products containing triclosan. | This bill would, beginning one year after its enactment into law, prohibit the sale of any cleaning product that contains triclosan and is used by consumers for sanitizing or hand and body cleansing. The bill would not apply to individual products for which specific United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for consumer use has been secured. A person who violates this bill would be liable to a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each offense, and each day during which the violation continues would constitute a separate offense. In September 2016, the FDA banned the use of triclosan in over-the-counter consumer antiseptic wash products. According to the FDA, manufacturers of these products did not demonstrate that the ingredient is both safe for long-term daily use and more effective than plain soap and water in preventing illness and the spread of disease. Specifically, triclosan has been associated with hormone disruption in animals and possibly contributes to making bacteria resistant to antibiotics. The federal ban will take effect in September 2017, and some manufacturers have already started removing triclosan from their products. However, the federal ban only applies to products intended to be used with water and rinsed off after use, and does not apply to consumer hand-sanitizers or wipes. Following the lead of Minnesota, this bill would prohibit the use of triclosan in all products used by consumers for sanitizing or hand and body cleansing, except those that receive specific approval for consumer use from the FDA. | In Committee |
| A2085 | Prohibits use of chlorpyrifos insecticide. | This bill would prohibit the sale, purchase, use, and application of the insecticide chlorpyrifos. This prohibition would take effect on the first day of the seventh month after the bill is enacted into law. Exposure to chlorpyrifos has been linked to many negative health effects in humans, including neurological defects,developmental disorders, and autoimmune disorders. Exposure also poses special risk to pregnant women, even in small doses, as the chemical may retard the mental development of a fetus. In New Jersey, chlorpyrifos is currently regulated as a "restricted use" insecticide, which means that it "can be purchased and/or used only by certified and licensed responsible pesticide applicators or used only by persons working under their direct supervision." N.J.A.C.7:30-2.10. Despite these restrictions and the negative implications for public health that are associated with chlorpyrifos exposure, the chemical is still widely used. This bill would promote the health and safety of the people of the State by protecting them from this harmful chemical. | In Committee |
| A2991 | Increases distribution to municipalities from Energy Tax Receipts Property Tax Relief Fund over two years; prohibits anticipation of certain revenue in municipal budget; requires additional aid be subtracted from municipal property tax levy. | This bill requires the distribution of additional State aid to municipalities under the "Energy Tax Receipts Property Tax Relief Act." Budget constraints required reductions in the amount of Consolidated Municipal Property Tax Relief Aid (CMPTRA) distributed to all municipalities in Fiscal Years 2009, 2010, and 2011. Some municipalities also experienced reductions in their Energy Tax Receipts Property Tax Relief Aid (ETR Aid) distribution during that period. This supplemental funding would restore, over a two-year period, approximately $331 million in reductions to CMPTRA and ETR Aid. In Fiscal Year 2023, municipalities would receive an aid increase equal to 50 percent of the difference between the distribution of CMPTRA and ETR Aid they received in Fiscal Year 2008 and Fiscal Year 2012. The fully restored amount would be distributed beginning in Fiscal Year 2024 and in each fiscal year thereafter. The total amount of aid to be restored to each municipality would be in addition to the total amount of CMPTRA and ETR Aid distributed to each municipality in Fiscal Year 2012. This legislation also extends the existing ETR Aid "poison pill" protection to ensure that each municipality received an aid amount not less than the combined payment of CMPTRA and ETR Aid to municipalities in Fiscal Year 2012 and the additional aid distributed under the bill. This bill also amends current law to require a municipality to subtract any additional amount of ETR aid it receives, pursuant to the bill, from its adjusted tax levy when computing that amount for its next fiscal year. By deducting the additional amount of ETR Aid from the previous year's levy, municipalities would be permitted to raise a lower amount of taxes through the levy for municipal purposes. The bill prohibits a municipality from anticipating, for purposes of preparing its annual budget, the receipt of any State aid payment from the ETR aid under the provisions in the bill. The bill also requires a municipality to amend its local budget to properly reflect the total amount distributed to the municipality from the ETR aid. | In Committee |
| A2099 | Requires owners and operators of certain landfills to control and monitor landfill gas emissions. | This bill would impose methane emissions control and monitoring requirements on the owners or operators of certain sanitary landfill facilities. The requirements would go into effect 24 months after the bill's enactment into law. Specifically, the bill would require any owner or operator of an authorized to accept solid waste for final disposal sanitary landfill facility or a sanitary landfill facility that closes after effective date of the bill, to: (1) obtain from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) a permit pursuant to the "Air Pollution Control Act (1954)," P.L.1954, c.212 (C.26:2C-1 et seq.); (2) install and operate a landfill gas collection and control system; (3) conduct quarterly surface monitoring of the facility's surface for methane levels; (4) ensure that methane emissions from the facility do not exceed certain limits described in subsection a. of section 1 of the bill; (5) submit to the DEP each year an estimate of the amount of methane generated by the facility each year; and (6) keep records and make reports to the DEP as necessary to comply with the bill's provisions. A landfill gas collection and control system collects landfill gas (which is composed primarily of methane and carbon dioxide) through pipes or wells buried in the landfill, processes the gas to remove impurities, and either converts the gas into usable fuel or combusts the gas using a flare. The bill contains certain minimum standards for landfill gas collection and control systems that are installed or modified after the bill's effective date, as enumerated in subsection b. of section 1 of the bill. Any violation of the bill's provisions would be a considered a violation of the "Solid Waste Management Act," P.L.1970, c.39 (C.13:1E-1 et seq.). A person who violates the "Solid Waste Management Act" could be liable for civil penalties and civil administrative penalties up to $50,000 per day of the offense. | In Committee |
| A2082 | Requires certain restaurant chains to provide sodium information for items offered for sale. | This bill requires certain restaurant chains to provide sodium information for a food item or beverage item, including combination meals, offered for sale. While nutrition labeling is currently required on processed and packaged foods, this requirement does not apply in the same manner to retail food establishments in New Jersey. This bill defines "retail food establishment" as a restaurant that is part of a chain with 20 or more locations nationally doing business under a parent business or as part of a franchised outlet such as a fast food or chain restaurant. Currently, retail food establishments are only required to provide nutrition information when a health claim is made for a food or beverage option on the menu. For example, fast food restaurants typically make nutrition information available to consumers only upon request through brochures or on corporate Internet sites, while some other restaurants may disclose the nutrition information of their menus only via the Internet, if at all. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, about 75 percent of dietary sodium comes from eating packaged and restaurant foods, whereas only a small portion, 11 percent, comes from salt added to food when cooking or eating. Despite myriad efforts and initiatives to curb sodium consumption by public health and other organizations, the sodium content of fast food, in particular, appears to be on the rise. | In Committee |
| A2098 | "New Jersey Transit Villages Act." | This bill establishes the "New Jersey Transit Villages Act" for the purpose of encouraging municipalities to promote intensive mixed-use development within close proximity to mass transit. The bill encourages municipalities to use transit-oriented development techniques by directing transportation investments into the redevelopment of our older urban and suburban areas around transit hubs. The bill also seeks to increase transportation options and transit availability, which will have the effect of reducing automobile traffic, stabilizing property taxes, and providing affordable housing. Several years ago the New Jersey Department of Transportation and the New Jersey Transit Corporation administratively established the "Transit Village Initiative" to encourage appropriate intensive development within a half-mile radius of mass transit facilities. This bill would codify the Transit Village Initiative and permit State funding to be used to further the goals of the program. | In Committee |
| A2079 | Requires certain notifications and free credit reports for customers following breach of security of personal information within business or public entity. | This bill requires businesses and public entities to provide customers with certain notifications following a breach of security that compromises the personal information of customers. Under current law, following a breach of security, a business or public entity is required to disclose the breach of security of those computerized records following discovery or notification of the breach to any customer who is a resident of New Jersey whose personal information was, or is reasonably believed to have been, accessed by an unauthorized person. The bill requires that customers receive this notification through either written or electronic notice. Under the bill, businesses and public entities may no longer provide notification through substitute notice, which is permitted under current law for certain breaches of security. The bill requires the notice to contain contact information, including a toll free telephone number, of a customer representative of the business or public entity who is available to give the customer information on: (1) what information has been compromised and potential consequences of the breach of security; (2) how the company or public entity is addressing the breach; (3) what steps the customer may take to safeguard the customer's information; and (4) notification that the customer has access to free credit reports. The bill, provides that whenever a business or public entity that compiles or maintains computerized records that include personal information on behalf of another business or public entity experiences a security breach, the third party entity is responsible for reimbursing the business or public entity the cost of notifying its New Jersey customers of the security breach, as required under current law, and the cost incurred for providing customer access to independent credit reports, as required by the bill. Additionally, for a period of six months following notification of a breach of security, the business or public entity is required to provide a customer with access to independent credit reports from a consumer reporting agency (CRA). When the business or public entity notifies a customer of a security breach, it would also provide notice of the customer's access to free credit reports. The business or public entity is to supply the appropriate contact information of the CRA. The business or public entity, or the third party entity that compiles or maintains computerized records on its behalf, would pay any fees to the CRA for supplying the customer with a credit report once per month for a period of 12 months following the customer's initial request for a credit report. | In Committee |
| A788 | Permits any member of PERS to receive accidental disability retirement allowance for disability resulting from participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup options. | A law recently enacted, P.L.2019, 157, provided that a member or retiree of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System (PFRS), the State Police Retirement System (SPRS), and the Public Employees' Retirement System (PERS) is eligible to receive an accidental disability retirement allowance for a permanent and total disability resulting from participation in 9/11 World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations. The law provides that permanent and total disability resulting from a qualifying condition or impairment of health will be presumed to have occurred during and as a result of the performance of a member's regular or assigned duties if the member participated in World Trade Center rescue, recovery, or cleanup operations for a minimum of eight hours. The law permits a member who did not participate in those operations for a minimum of eight hours to be eligible for the presumption under certain circumstances. The law also provides for a reclassification of a retiree's retirement from a service retirement or an ordinary disability retirement to an accidental disability retirement under certain circumstances. The law applies regardless of whether the PERS member or retiree was enrolled in the PERS at the time of the participation in the rescue, recovery and cleanup operations. Currently, the PERS portion of the bill applies only to: any member or retiree who is or was enrolled in the PERS because the member or retiree did not meet the age or medical requirements for enrollment in the Police and Firemen's Retirement System on the basis of the position held; and to any emergency medical technician who is a member or retiree of the Public Employees' Retirement System. The bill amends the relevant provisions of the PERS to provide this benefit to any member of the PERS. | In Committee |
| A2101 | Requires school districts to include environmental sustainability plan in long-range facilities plan. | This bill requires school districts to include environmental sustainability plans in the long-range facilities plans submitted to the Commissioner of Education. Every five years, each school district submits a long-range facilities plan to the Commissioner which discusses projected enrollment, building capacities, health and safety conditions, and any anticipated facilities projects in the district. Under this bill, the district would also be required to submit an environmental sustainability plan which would consider the environmental impact of district facilities and operations, and set goals for improving sustainability. The environmental sustainability plan would be required to contain information about improvements to facility energy efficiency, including efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase use of renewable energy, and transition to high-performance sustainable buildings. The sustainability plan would also include a commitment to the acquisition of more sustainable school supplies, electronics, and other materials, and to prioritize contracts with vendors focused on sustainability. The district would also be required to include a plan to optimize transportation to reduce carbon emissions and transition the district's school bus fleet to electric vehicles. This bill would require school districts to publish the environmental sustainability plan or a summary of the goals and initiatives in the plan. The district would be required to establish performance measures to monitor progress toward each goal, and each year the district would be required to publish a summary of the progress toward the district's sustainability goals. School districts would be required to amend existing long-range facilities plans to include the environmental sustainability plan no later than the end of the first full year after this bill is enacted. | In Committee |
| A1717 | Permits legislative agents and organizations to receive funds assessed on tuition bills as waivable fees. | This bill would permit the governing body of a public institution of higher education to allow funds generated from student tuition bills to be distributed to legislative agents or organizations which attempt to influence legislation as waivable fees. Under current law, the governing body of a public institution of higher education is prohibited from allowing funds for legislative agents or organizations which attempt to influence legislation to be assessed on student tuition bills. However, optional fees may be assessed for nonpartisan organizations that employ legislative agents or attempt to influence legislation provided that such a fee has been authorized by a majority vote in a student referendum. An optional fee is an amount payable on a student tuition bill, appearing as a separately assessed item, but not a mandatory charge or a waivable fee. Optional fees that appear on student tuition bills are currently required to be accompanied by a statement as to the nature of the item along with an explanation that the item is not a charge required to be paid by the student, the student may add the charge to the total amount due, and that the item has appeared on the bill at the request of the student body and does not necessarily reflect the endorsement of the governing body of the public institution of higher education. This bill would amend current law to eliminate the optional fee authorizations process and allow funds for legislative agents and organizations that attempt to influence legislation to be assessed on tuition bills as waivable fees. These fees would appear on student tuition bills without prior student referendum but students would have the option to have the fee waived. For purposes of this bill, a waivable fee means any amount payable on a student tuition bill, appearing as a separately assessed item, but not a mandatory charge. The bill requires a waivable fee to be accompanied by a statement as to the nature of the item, that the item is not a charge required to be paid by the student, the process for waiving the fee, and that the presence of the fee does not necessarily reflect the endorsement of the governing body of the public institution of higher education. | In Committee |
| A2089 | Requires certain recycling centers to report information about recycling markets and contamination to DEP. | This bill would require recycling centers that process glass, plastic, cardboard, or paper to report certain information about recycling markets and contamination to the Department of Environmental Protection. This information would include, but would not be limited to: (1) the availability, location, and cost of markets for recycled materials; and (2) the nature and extent of contamination in the recycling stream. The department would be required to keep confidential any information that would divulge competitive business information, methods, or processes entitled to protection as trade secrets of the recycling center. | In Committee |
| A2080 | Requires institution of higher education to have automatic external defibrillator on premises of each athletic facility and student center. | This bill requires an institution of higher education to place an automated external defibrillator in an unlocked location in each athletic facility and student center with an appropriate identifying sign. The defibrillator will be accessible during the normal operating hours of the athletic facility or student center and within reasonable proximity of the institution's athletic fields. Under the bill, the institution is required to ensure that: (1) at least two staff members who are trained in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of the defibrillator are in the athletic facility or student center during the normal operating hours; and (2) each defibrillator is tested and maintained according to the manufacturer's operational guidelines, and notification is provided to the appropriate first aid, ambulance, or rescue squad, or other appropriate emergency medical services provider regarding the defibrillator, the type acquired, and its location. An institution of higher education and its staff are granted immunity from civil liability in the acquisition and use of a defibrillator. | In Committee |
| A3012 | Prohibits treatment, discharge, disposal, application to roadway, or storage of wastewater, wastewater solids, sludge, drill cuttings or other byproducts from natural gas exploration or production using hydraulic fracturing. | This bill prohibits, in New Jersey, the treatment, discharge, disposal, application to a roadway or other release into the environment, or storage of any wastewater, wastewater solids, sludge, drill cuttings or other byproducts resulting from hydraulic fracturing for the purpose of natural gas exploration or production in any state. | In Committee |
| ACR66 | Memorializes Congress and President to enact legislation establishing certain gun control measures. | This resolution memorializes Congress and the President of the United States to enact legislation establishing certain gun control measures. In recent years, the United States has been witness to numerous horrific and preventable firearms-related mass tragedies which have heightened awareness of the danger that exists when adequate protections are not utilized to ensure that only responsible gun owners have access to firearms. This resolution memorializes Congress and the President of the United States to enact legislation to require criminal background checks for all gun sales, including gun show sales; reinstate and strengthen the assault weapons ban; appropriate funding to research smart gun technology and establish a federal gun buy-back program focused on reducing the number of assault firearms in circulation across the country; and repeal the Dickey Amendment and fully fund the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention research to study firearm violence. | In Committee |
| A2095 | Requires NJT rail stations and bus and rail terminals to display historical information about area in or around stations and terminals. | This bill requires all New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJT) rail stations and bus and rail terminals to display historical information about the area in or around the stations and terminals. The NJT is required to identify a series of New Jersey historic sites and memorials, as that term is defined in the bill, located within or around its rail stations and bus and rail terminals. The NJT is then to design, purchase, erect, and maintain a historic marker describing the persons, places, and events commemorated and having other suitable inscription as the NJT may deem necessary. The New Jersey historic sites and memorials are to be inclusive of all eras and diverse cultural aspects of New Jersey's history, as well as be geographically representative of the entire State. Finally, the NJT may seek the assistance and cooperation of local government officials and entities, owners or operators of historic sites and memorials in the State, or entities that identify and compile data on historical sites and memorials to facilitate the goal of this bill. | In Committee |
| A2105 | Makes FY2023 supplemental appropriation of $17 million to DEP for grants for certain lake management activities. | This bill makes a one-time supplemental appropriation of $17 million for Fiscal Year 2023 to the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) from the General Fund. The bill directs the DEP to establish a program to use these funds for grants to assist qualified entities to pay certain costs associated with the management and maintenance of lakes for recreation and conservation purposes. The bill requires the DEP to develop criteria for the evaluation and ranking of applications to provide priority to projects submitted by qualified entities responsible for a lake with public access; and projects to improve water quality and increase recreational access and use of lakes, including projects to control nutrient levels in lakes in order to prevent future harmful algal blooms. The bill provides that a grant issued pursuant to the bill may be used for stormwater and nonpoint source pollution management activities, if the DEP determines that those activities would directly enhance, improve, or protect the use of a lake for recreation and conservation purposes. The bill defines "qualified entity" to mean: the Greenwood Lake Commission; the Lake Hopatcong Commission; a local government unit; an entity established pursuant to law or an entity established pursuant to ordinance by the municipalities surrounding a publicly-accessible lake for the management of the lake, including, but not limited to, the Deal Lake Commission or the Lake Topanemus Park Commission; or a nonprofit organization that is exempt from federal taxation pursuant to 26 U.S.C. s.501 (c)(3) and whose mission is the management or maintenance of a publicly-accessible lake. | In Committee |
| A602 | Establishes "New Jersey Reparations Task Force." | This bill establishes the "New Jersey Reparations Task Force" to study and develop reparations proposals for African-Americans in this State. The task force would consist of 11 members, comprised of four legislators and seven public members. Three members would be appointed by the Governor and eight members would be appointed by the Legislative leadership. At a minimum, four of the public members would be appointed from persons recommended by organizations concerned with the issues of civil rights, human rights, racial, social and economic justice and equality, reparations and other issues concerning the African-American community. The members of the task force will appoint a chair and a vice chair of the task force. The members of the task force would not be compensated but may be reimbursed for expenses actually incurred in the performance of their duties. This bill, among other things, requires the task force to: (1) examine the institution of slavery within the State of New Jersey; (2) examine the extent to which the State of New Jersey and the federal government prevented, opposed, or restricted efforts of former enslaved persons and their descendants who are considered United States' citizens to economically thrive upon the ending of slavery; (3) examine the lingering negative effects of slavery on living African-Americans and on society in New Jersey and the United States; (4) research methods and materials for facilitating education, community dialogue, symbolic acknowledgement, and other formal actions leading toward transformation, reparations remedies, a sense of justice, and economic justice among the descendants of enslaved African people in this State; (5) make recommendations for what remedies should be awarded, through what instrumentalities, and to whom those remedies should be awarded; and (6) address how said recommendations comport with national and international standards of remedy for wrongs and injuries caused by the State. The task force will hold at least six public meetings in different parts of the State, including Camden, Paterson, Newark, New Brunswick, Atlantic City, and Trenton. The Governor will call the first meeting of the task force to occur on or before the first day of the third month after enactment. The task force will issue an interim report of its progress to the Governor and the Legislature no later than 12 months following the initial meeting. The task force will submit its final report and recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature no later than 24 months following the initial meeting. The task force will expire upon issuance of its final report. | In Committee |
| A2096 | Provides CBT tax credit for retrofit of existing warehouses with solar-ready zone once solar panels are installed. | The bill would incentivize the retrofitting of existing warehouses with solar-ready zones by providing a tax credit against the corporation business tax to compensate a taxpayer who retrofits an existing warehouse with a solar-ready zone. The tax credit would be available once the taxpayer installs solar panels on the warehouse. The bill defines "warehouse" as a building, room, structure, or facility of at least 100,000 square feet used primarily for the storage of goods intended for sale. The bill defines "solar-ready zone" as a section of a roof or building overhang designated and reserved for the future installation of a solar photovoltaic or solar thermal system, which is at least 40 percent of the roof area calculated as the horizontally projected areas minus the area covered by skylights, occupied roof decks, vegetative roof areas, and mandatory access or set back areas required by the State Uniform Construction Code, or as otherwise provided in the 2018 International Energy Conservation Code, Appendix CA, and any successor model code, concerning solar-ready zones. The amount of the tax credit provided by the bill may not exceed the lesser of: (1) fifty percent of the cost incurred to retrofit an existing warehouse with a solar-ready zone, or (2) $250,000. A taxpayer may claim the credit authorized under the bill for the cost of retrofitting an existing warehouse with a solar-ready zone for up to eight existing warehouses owned or operated by the same taxpayer in a single privilege period. The bill would require a taxpayer that retrofits an existing warehouse with a solar-ready zone to demonstrate to the Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury (director) that solar panels have been installed on the warehouse prior to receiving the tax credit provided in the bill. Requiring the installation of solar panels on the solar-ready zones of warehouses, prior to receiving the tax credit, would ensure an environmental benefit attributable to the credit. The bill would also limit the cumulative total of tax credits awarded pursuant to the bill to $25 million. The director would be required to certify taxpayers as eligible to receive the tax credit provided in the bill. A taxpayer that retrofits an existing warehouse with a solar-ready zone would be eligible to receive the tax credit provided in this section if: (1) the warehouse meets the size criteria required pursuant to the bill; (2) the warehouse has been retrofitted with a solar-ready zone; and (3) solar panels have been installed on the warehouse's solar-ready zone. The director may require the submission of any information the director deems necessary to award a tax credit pursuant to the bill. Finally, the bill would require the director, in consultation with the Department of Community Affairs, to adopt rules and regulations as are necessary to implement the bill's provisions. | In Committee |
| A1840 | Prohibits use of paper receipts containing bisphenol-A or bisphenol-S; provides for phased-in prohibition on use of all paper receipts; authorizes continued use of electronic receipts. | This bill would immediately prohibit the use, in the State, of potentially toxic paper receipts, and it would additionally phase-in a blanket prohibition on the use of all paper receipts in the State. Specifically, the bill would provide that: (1) as of the bill's effective date, a retailer or service provider will be prohibited from providing a consumer in the State with a business or banking record, including a receipt or other proof of purchase, a credit, deposit, or withdrawal slip, or a record of a debit or credit card transaction, or with any associated coupon or advertisement, that is printed on paper to which bisphenol-A (BPA) or bisphenol-S (BPS) has been added during the manufacturing process; and (2) commencing on the first day of the thirteenth month next following the bill's effective date, a retailer or service provider will be prohibited from providing a consumer in the State with a business or banking record, including a receipt or other proof of purchase, a credit, deposit, or withdrawal slip, or a record of a debit or credit card transaction, or with any associated coupon or advertisement, that is printed on paper. The bill would specify that nothing in its provisions may be deemed to prohibit a retailer or service provider from providing a consumer with an electronic receipt through email, text message, or other digital means. A retailer or service provider that violates the bill's provisions would be subject to a civil penalty of $250 to $500, to be recovered in a summary proceeding. In the case of a continuing violation, each day on which the violation continues would constitute a separate and distinct offense. The bill also authorizes the Department of Environmental Protection, a county, a municipality, or any entity certified pursuant to the "County Environmental Health Act," P.L.1977, c.443 (C.26:3A2-21 et seq.), to institute a summary civil action for a civil penalty or injunctive relief to enforce the bill's provisions or prohibit and prevent a violation thereof. The United States annually consumes more than three million trees and approximately nine billion gallons of water, creates approximately 300 million pounds of solid waste, and emits approximately five billion pounds of carbon dioxide (the same amount emitted from 400,000 cars) in the production and use of paper receipts. In addition, an estimated 93 percent of paper receipts are coated with BPA and BPS, which are toxic chemicals that have been banned from water bottles and other plastic products due to the chemicals' association with reproductive impairment, type 2 diabetes, thyroid conditions, endocrine system disruption, metabolic and neurological problems, cancer, and other health conditions. When present on receipts, these chemicals can enter a person's body simply through touch, and, as a result, the use of paper receipts containing these chemicals poses a major health risk, not only to consumers, but to the workers who regularly handle them. For these reasons, the bill's prohibitions are necessary both to protect the health and welfare of consumers and retail and service workers in the State and to reduce, and ultimately eliminate, the negative effects on the environment that result from paper receipt production and use. | In Committee |
| A197 | Provides gross income tax deduction for amounts paid to taxpayers for sale of certain real property interests for conservation purposes. | This bill provides for a gross income tax deduction for amounts paid to taxpayers in exchange for their sale of certain real property interests for conservation purposes. The New Jersey gross income tax provides a deduction for a charitable, qualified conservation contribution of real property interests for land preservation purposes modeled on the similar federal income tax deduction which covers full land interest sales and restricted land use easements. But land interest sales in New Jersey to various conservation programs for which a purchase price is paid to the New Jersey taxpayer can result in taxable gains for those New Jersey sellers who need to garner some investment income from these sales. To allow a deduction for these transfers with preservation or conservation restrictions on the real estate can prevent developers from buying up environmentally valuable land in this State and benefit both the taxpayer and the residents of the State at large. The bill will allow the deductions for both parts of some mixed transfers referred to as bargain sales in which there is both a charitable donation aspect and a cash purchase payment for less than the land's fair market value (FMV). The donation value is the difference between the FMV and the cash payment. In a bargain sale, a real estate owner is both a seller (for the cash portion) and a donor (for the donated portion) of the real estate interest. The bill will also allow a deduction for full market value sales to conservation organization which include certain governmental programs and non-profit run preservation programs. These programs will include but not be limited to those run by a governmental unit, charitable trust, foundation or charitable non-profit organization that participates in a Green Acres program, Blue Acres program, farmland preservation program, historic preservation program, the Highlands Transfer Development Rights Program, a park or forestry or an open space and recreation space preservation or conservation program or a wildlife, hunting or fishing conservation and restoration program. | In Committee |
| A2097 | Provides corporation business tax and gross income tax credits for purchase and installation of electric vehicle charging stations and for commercial zero emission vehicle fleet conversions. | This bill provides corporation business tax and gross income tax credits for the purchase and installation of electric vehicle charging stations and for the purchase of commercial zero emission vehicles. The first component of the credit is based on the amount a taxpayer pays to purchase and install an electric vehicle charging station at their business, trade, or occupation, or at the taxpayer's primary residence in this State. The credit is capped at 50 percent of the amount paid towards the purchase and installation of the electric vehicle charging station during a privilege period or taxable year, or $1,000 per station, whichever amount is less. The second component of the credit is based on the difference in the amount paid by a taxpayer for a qualified commercial zero emission vehicle compared to what the taxpayer would have paid for a comparable conventionally fueled vehicle. This credit is capped at 50 percent of the difference between the amount paid during the privilege period or taxable year towards the purchase of a qualified commercial zero emission vehicle and the amount that would have been paid for a comparable conventionally fueled vehicle, except that the credit cannot exceed $25,000 if the qualified commercial zero emission vehicle weighs less than 14,000 pounds, $50,000 if the vehicle weighs 14,001 to 26,500 pounds, and $100,000 if the vehicle weighs more than 26,500 pounds. A taxpayer is required to submit an application with the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, who is responsible for certifying a taxpayer's application for the credit, and providing a copy of the certification to the taxpayer and the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury. These tax credits are non-refundable, but may be carried forward for seven years after the privilege period or taxable year during which the credit are initially earned. The credit would be available for a five-year period commencing on January 1 next following the effective date of the bill. | In Committee |
| A2117 | Provides for establishment of three-year pilot program to expand provision of paratransit services in New Jersey. | This bill would require the Commissioner of Transportation, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, to establish a three-year pilot program to enhance the availability and accessibility of paratransit and expand the number of community-based paratransit options for senior citizens and persons with disabilities in the State, particularly in those areas of the State that are not served by the Access Link - the paratransit service that has been implemented by the New Jersey Transit Corporation for the purposes of complying with the "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990," Pub.L.101-336 (42 U.S.C. s.12101 et seq.). The commissioners, in consultation with each other, will be required to designate at least three regions of the State, one in the southern, one in the northern, and one in the central parts of the State, in which the pilot program will operate. When designating paratransit service regions, the commissioners are to consider: 1) the demand for paratransit services in the region and the number of people who would benefit from enhanced paratransit services in the region; 2) whether, and the extent to which, the region is served by Access Link; and 3) any other factor deemed to be relevant. To the extent practicable, pilot program service regions are to be designated in areas of the State that are not well served by Access Link. The bill will require the Commissioner of Transportation to solicit applications from, and approve a sufficient number of, organizations to provide paratransit services under the pilot program. In order to be approved to provide paratransit services under the pilot program, a service provider will need to: 1) be a community-based for-profit or not-for-profit organization (with priority consideration being given to those community-based organizations that are dedicated to serving senior citizens or persons with disabilities); 2) certify that the provider is capable of complying with the transportation responsibilities established under the pilot program; 3) demonstrate that the provider has a workers' compensation policy, a general liability insurance policy, and an automobile liability insurance policy that covers all vehicles that will be used in the provision of paratransit services under the pilot program; 4) certify that, when operating under the pilot program, the provider will use vehicles that seat no less than four passengers, in addition to the driver; 5) certify that all drivers and other staff members employed by the provider are appropriately licensed or certified to provide transportation services, as required by law; 5) comply with all applicable criminal history record background check requirements imposed by the Commissioner of Transportation, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, and not employ any driver or other person who has ever been convicted of a disqualifying offense, regardless of the date of the offense or conviction therefor; 6) register each vehicle to be used in the pilot program as a "commercial" or "livery" vehicle, as appropriate, and maintain a current vehicle inspection report for each such vehicle; and 7) commit to providing paratransit services within fifteen minutes of the scheduled pick-up time. Each community-based organization approved to participate in the pilot program will also be required to ensure that training is completed by the organization's drivers and by other staff members who will come into direct contact with a person receiving paratransit services, either within three months after the organization is approved to participate in the pilot program or within 30 days after the employee is hired, whichever is later. Training is to include instruction on how to provide appropriate and courteous treatment, how to engage in positive interactions with, and how to satisfy the special needs of, persons who are receiving paratransit services under the pilot program. The Commissioner of Human Services will be required to develop and distribute training materials to all approved providers. Each community-based organization approved to participate in the pilot program will be required to maintain the following records and make them available to the commissioners at the conclusion of each year of the pilot program's operation or at more frequent intervals as determined by the commissioners to be appropriate: 1) a daily and monthly paratransit log showing the types of vehicles dispatched, the number of unique passengers served, and the dedicated routes, if any, or pick-up locations that were established for and used by each vehicle; 2) a log of cases in which the waiting time for paratransit service was in excess of 15 minutes past the scheduled pick-up time; and 3) a copy of any complaints received by the provider in relation to the services provided under the pilot program, including an indication as to whether and how each complaint was resolved. Within 90 days after the conclusion of the three-year pilot program, the commissioners will be required to jointly prepare and submit a written report to the Governor and the Legislature, evaluating the success of the program. The report is to include certain details about the program, as specified by the bill, as well as an indication as to whether the pilot program should be continued on a permanent, Statewide basis and recommendations for any executive or legislative action that will be necessary to ensure the program's ongoing success, if continued. | In Committee |
| A2092 | Requires State entities engaging in projects resulting in deforestation of any size to submit plan to DEP for no net loss of forested areas. | This bill would expand current law to require State entities engaging in projects of any size resulting in deforestation to submit a plan to DEP for no net loss of forested areas. The requirement to develop a reforestation plan, commonly called the no net loss compensatory reforestation program, currently applies to State entities that are engaging in projects that would deforest land at least one-half acre in size. This bill would eliminate the one-half acre threshold and require State entities to develop and submit a plan for compensatory reforestation of areas of any size that are scheduled for deforestation. The New Jersey Global Warming Response Act 2020 80x50 Report recommended that lowering or eliminating the one-half acre threshold could help to ensure greater protection of the State's natural resources. Compensatory reforestation plans are required to be approved by the Division of Parks and Forestry in the Department of Environmental Protection prior to the commencement of a deforestation project. Compensatory reforestation plans provide for the maturity of the forest that is to be deforested to be assessed and for the reforestation plan to provide for comparable tree density based on accepted forestry and research practices, so that there is no net loss of trees across the State as a result of deforestation projects. This effort will help to ensure that trees deforested, as a result of construction projects, are replanted elsewhere. | In Committee |
| A1686 | Requires school districts to provide information on process of obtaining US citizenship. | This bill requires school districts to provide written informational materials to students in grades kindergarten through 12 on the steps to become a citizen of the United States. The bill requires the materials to include information on: applying for citizenship, including organizations that provide application assistance; preparing for citizenship tests; and pathways to citizenship workshops or programs in the surrounding area. The written informational materials are to be made available in English, Spanish, and any other language the school district determines is the first language of a significant number of students and their families in the district. Additionally, the bill requires the Department of Education to develop guidelines for school districts to help identify resources and information concerning the required informational materials. Over a quarter-million residents in New Jersey live with at least one family member who is undocumented, and about one in 11 children in the State live with at least one undocumented family member. This bill aims to provide resources for undocumented individuals in New Jersey by providing educational services to those who seek to become citizens of the United States. | In Committee |
| A2091 | Establishes "Zero Energy Construction Act"; requires all new residential and commercial developments to be zero energy ready; requires developers to offer zero energy construction. | This bill would establish the "Zero Energy Construction Act," which would, beginning on January 1, 2025, require all new residential and commercial developments to be zero energy ready and require developers to offer zero energy construction to prospective owners. Zero energy buildings consume only as much energy as can be produced onsite through renewable resources, and zero energy ready buildings are buildings capable of reaching this level of energy consumption with the addition of renewable resources. Requiring new developments to be constructed as zero energy ready will reduce both the consumption of energy that contributes to climate change as well as the long-term energy costs of home and business owners. The bill requires the Commissioner of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Board of Public Utilities, to compile, and make available on the Internet website of the Department of Community Affairs, information for prospective owners and developers concerning the environmental benefits of, and potential energy cost savings associated with, zero energy buildings, and any applicable credits, rebates, or other incentives that may be available to the prospective owner for purchasing a zero energy building. The bill also requires the Commissioner of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Board of Public Utilities, to adopt rules and regulations necessary to effectuate the purposes of the bill and to revise the State Uniform Construction Code and the energy subcode accordingly. While the construction requirements of the bill would be inoperative until January 1, 2025, the bill authorizes the Commissioner of Community Affairs, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Board of Public Utilities, to take any anticipatory administrative action in advance as is necessary for the implementation of the bill. | In Committee |
| A2086 | Requires certain telecommunications, cable television, and public utility service providers to notify BPU of service discontinuance to public entities 14 business days prior to shutoff. | This bill requires certain telecommunications, cable television, and public utility service providers to notify the Division of Customer Assistance in the Board of Public Utilities, in writing, of any pending service discontinuance due to an unpaid bill at least 14 business days prior to discontinuing service to any property owned or operated by a board of education, local government unit, or State agency. The notice is to include the name of the customer of record, the location of the premises, the amount owed, a statement of account including payment history, the method of and attempts made for negotiation and resolution, and the scheduled service discontinuance date. | In Committee |
| A1461 | Establishes Climate Change Mitigation and Resilience Financing Program in NJ Infrastructure Bank; imposes per-kilowatt hour charge on electric energy consumption to finance climate change mitigation and resilience projects. | This bill would establish the Climate Change Mitigation and Resilience Financing Program in the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank (NJIB) and impose a per-kilowatt hour charge on electric public utility customers to finance the program. The purpose of the program would be to provide low interest loans and other financial assistance, through the NJIB, for climate change mitigation and resilience projects. Under the bill, "climate change mitigation project" means a project whose primary purpose is the construction, development, or production of energy sources, infrastructure, land management techniques, or technologies that eliminate, reduce, or sequester greenhouse gas emissions in the State. Climate change mitigation projects would include Class I or Class II renewable energy sources, community solar projects, energy efficiency improvements, energy storage, zero-emission vehicle infrastructure, zero-emission public transportation, carbon capture and sequestration technologies, reforestation of degraded land, or wetlands preservation and restoration. "Climate change resilience project" means an infrastructure project whose primary purpose is to protect human health, safety, the environment, or public infrastructure from the adverse effects of climate change including drought, sea level rise, extreme weather events, and harmful algal blooms. Climate change resilience projects would include sea barriers or other flood protection projects; water storage systems; the removal, relocation, or redesign of public infrastructure; and projects to mitigate harmful algal blooms. The NJIB would be authorized to make both short-term and long-term loans to finance climate change mitigation and resilience projects, and to issue bonds, notes, or other obligations to fund the program. Under the bill, the NJIB would be required to issue one or more separate series of bonds to be known as "New Jersey Climate Bonds." Proceeds from the bonds would be deposited into the State Climate Change Mitigation and Resilience Bank Fund, established under the bill, and used to finance climate change mitigation and resilience projects and for other costs associated with the financing program. Issuance of New Jersey Climate Bonds would be subject to existing laws concerning bonding, except that the trust would, to the greatest extent practicable, be required to make the bonds available for sale to individual investors, rather than institutional investors, and in denominations suitable for such sales. The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) would be responsible for developing a priority system, ranking criteria, and funding policies for climate change mitigation and resilience projects financed under the bill. The DEP and the BPU would also be responsible for developing an annual project priority list to be submitted for approval by the State Legislature. The DEP would prioritize projects that have the largest impact on protecting human health, safety, the environment, and critical infrastructure in the State from the adverse effects of climate change; reducing the State's greenhouse gas emissions; and meeting the State's clean energy goals. The financing program would be funded by a non-bypassable, irrevocable charge imposed on the customers of each electric public utility in the State. Beginning 120 days after the effective date of the bill, the charge would be $0.0003 per kilowatt-hour sold to each customer. However, the charge would decrease over time as the State meets certain renewable energy targets established in law. The charge would phase out completely upon certification by the BPU that 100 percent of the kilowatt hours sold in the State are from Class I and Class II renewable energy sources. | In Committee |
| A2143 | Eliminates smoking ban exemption for casinos and simulcasting facilities. | This bill amends the "New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act," P.L.2005, c.383 (C.26:3D-55 et seq.), to prohibit smoking in casinos and casino simulcasting facilities. Current law prohibits smoking in most indoor public places and workplaces, with certain exceptions, including indoor public places and workplaces which are within the perimeter of casinos and casino simulcasting facilities and accessible to the public for wagering. This bill would eliminate these exceptions from the smoking ban. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health found that casino workers are at greater risk for lung and heart disease because of secondhand smoke, and a study in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine found that the air in casinos can have up to 50 times more cancer-causing particles than the air on rush-hour highways. This bill would protect all workers in New Jersey from the hazards of second hand smoke by requiring that casinos and casino simulcasting facilities be smoke-free workplaces. | In Committee |
| Bill | Bill Name | Motion | Vote Date | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S1277 | Establishes centralized directory for affordable housing, and housing for senior citizens and veterans. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S862 | Requires DOT to provide additional information in annual report on pavement condition; makes report available to public. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| SJR30 | Designates June 23 of each year as "International Widows' Day." | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S1439 | Requires health benefits coverage for additional orthotic and prosthetic appliances under certain circumstances; requires coverage for orthotic and prosthetic appliances obtained through podiatrists. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S1400 | "Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act"; provides alternative process for handling partition actions filed in court concerning real property with multiple owners, at least one of whom had acquired title from relative. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| AJR62 | Designates first week of May of each year as "Children's Mental Health Awareness Week." | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A3008 | Requires certain health care facilities to offer lactation counseling and consultations to persons who have given birth. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A3361 | Establishes limit on rent increase for certain dwelling sites for modular or industrialized buildings or manufactured homes. | Assembly Floor: Concur in Senate Amendments | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A1996 | Establishes requirements to evaluate certain people who are pregnant and who have given birth for preeclampsia. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A3036 | "Swift Access For Emergency Response Actions Preservation Program (SAFER APP)"; authorizes Attorney General to order turn-by-turn navigation systems to reroute vehicular traffic under certain conditions. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A913 | Authorizes medical cannabis for treatment of sickle cell anemia. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A3157 | Requires DMVA create Bereavement Counseling Program for family members and volunteer caregivers of certain veterans. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A2415 | Requires Silver Alert System receive same broadcast alerts as Amber Alert System. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| AJR56 | Designates May of each year as "Older Americans Month" in New Jersey. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S2332 | Allows complaint for guardianship of minor to be filed six months before minor reaches age 18 under certain circumstances; establishes certain standards for filing guardianship complaints. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | 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. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A3759 | Prohibits internet sale of lottery tickets by State Lottery Commission. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S2886 | Requires pharmacies to provide certain information regarding insulin manufacturer assistance programs. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A3941 | Changes classification of State Investigators in civil service. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A3981 | Subjects certain rooming and boarding houses to municipal land use regulations; requires owners and operators of cooperative sober living residences to submit certain approvals with license applications. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4178 | Authorizes State Treasurer to grant temporary deed of easement in Borough of Sea Girt in Monmouth County. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4276 | Requires DOH to use Basic Screening Survey to access oral health in children. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| AJR171 | Celebrates career of New Jersey resident John Sterling. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4331 | Establishes licensure for cosmetic retail services. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4535 | Concerns State regulation of cooperative sober living residences and boarding houses generally; appropriates $100,000. | Assembly Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4562 | Allows State, municipality, and county to implement automatic enrollment of their employees in deferred compensation plans. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4618 | Requires official inspection facility employees covered by collective bargaining agreement to be offered employment following contract renewal or award of new contract; requires collective bargaining agreement to be binding in certain cases. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4652 | Establishes offense of inciting public brawl; upgrades penalty for disorderly conduct in certain circumstances. | Assembly Floor: Table Motion | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4652 | Establishes offense of inciting public brawl; upgrades penalty for disorderly conduct in certain circumstances. | Assembly Floor: Concur Governor Recommendations | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4767 | Limits regulated perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in menstrual products. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4763 | Requires development of educational fact sheet on water safety for public and nonpublic schools; requires DOE to maintain list of locations providing swim lessons. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4753 | Requires hospitals and birthing facilities to request new parents watch water safety video prior to discharge. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4762 | Designates May of each year as "Water Safety Month" in NJ; encourages DOE to provide resources on water safety. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4857 | Extends anti-SLAPP protections to complainants of sexual assault, harassment, and discrimination. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4854 | Modifies method of allocating State aid for providing auxiliary and remedial services to nonpublic school students. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4899 | Limits amount of residential rental property application fee; establishes penalty. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4913 | Establishes certain State funding preferences for municipalities that enhance opportunities to develop housing. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S3787 | Requires municipal tax collectors who obtain payments in lieu of taxes under "Long Term Tax Exemption Law" to transmit county portion directly to county. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | 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. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A4986 | Codifies early language instruction program for deaf, hard of hearing, and deaf-blind children in DHS. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S3850 | Permits county boards of elections to extend distance within which electioneering is prohibited. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5017 | Exempts certain personal information collected by insurance-support organizations from certain requirements concerning notification and disclosure of personal data. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S3928 | Limits general application of certain consumer contracts. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S3961 | Requires public and certain nonpublic schools to offer no-fee option to parents for making school lunch and other payments; requires payment processing platforms used by certain schools to provide users with information on user fees. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5170 | Requires State to purchase certain unused tax credits issued under New Jersey Economic Recovery Act of 2020. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5211 | Establishes New Jersey Pathways to Career Opportunities Initiative Act. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5264 | Requires establishment of automated platform to expedite construction code approval of applications to install residential solar energy systems. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S4121 | Amends Fiscal Year 2025 annual appropriations act to assign distribution of funding for Community Security Initiatives to Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5358 | Revises New Jersey Secure Choice Savings Program. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S4162 | Limits use or disclosure of certain education records. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5378 | Modifies provisions of Cultural Arts Incentives Program; eliminates Community-Anchored Development Program. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5395 | Requires cancellation option for any subscription service and establishes certain standards pertaining to use of negative option features. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5424 | Promotes housing availability and prevents speculation by imposing fee for institutional ownership of certain unproductive residential property. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5442 | Requires BPU members to have certain experience and complete certain training. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5432 | Establishes standards for determining an unconscionable rent increase; excludes from public access landlord tenant records in certain circumstances. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5435 | Requires Division of Housing and Community Resources in DCA and applicable State agencies and nonprofits to establish a consolidated application for residential utility assistance programs. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5466 | Requires BPU to study effects of data centers on electricity costs. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5463 | Requires electric public utilities to submit annual report on voting to BPU. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5463 | Requires electric public utilities to submit annual report on voting to BPU. | Assembly Floor: Table Motion | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5545 | Authorizes soil conservation districts to have more than five supervisors. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5598 | Modifies requirements to obtain licensure in public accountancy. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5572 | Establishes quorum standards for professional licensing entities under certain circumstances. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5606 | Amends Fiscal Year 2025 annual appropriations act to clarify distribution of Meals on Wheels Program grant to Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5618 | Requires Administrative Office of the Courts to collect and publish statistical information about consumer debt lawsuits. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| A5733 | Provides for State agency reviews and increases of income thresholds for residential customers to participate in certain utility bill payment assistance and energy efficiency programs. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| AR193 | Affirms support for SNAP and program's progress in reducing hunger among vulnerable populations in New Jersey. | Assembly Floor: Third Reading - Final Passage | 05/22/2025 | Yea |
| S862 | Requires DOT to provide additional information in annual report on pavement condition; makes report available to public. | Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/08/2025 | Abstain |
| S1400 | "Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act"; provides alternative process for handling partition actions filed in court concerning real property with multiple owners, at least one of whom had acquired title from relative. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A1423 | Requires MVC to conduct unscheduled surprise inspections of certain school buses. | Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Abstain |
| A2596 | Requires DOT to provide additional information in annual report on pavement condition; makes report available to public. | Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/08/2025 | Abstain |
| A3735 | Establishes crime of fertility fraud. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A4118 | Establishes Statewide targets to reduce disposal of organic waste in landfills; requires DEP to adopt regulations to achieve targets. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A4374 | Establishes criminal penalties for certain violations of the "New Jersey Prevailing Wage Act." | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A4618 | Requires official inspection facility employees covered by collective bargaining agreement to be offered employment following contract renewal or award of new contract; requires collective bargaining agreement to be binding in certain cases. | Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Abstain |
| A4857 | Extends anti-SLAPP protections to complainants of sexual assault, harassment, and discrimination. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5004 | Creates separate crime for items depicting sexual exploitation or abuse of children; concerns computer generated or manipulated sexually explicit images. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5009 | "Packaging and Paper Product Stewardship Act." | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported with Substitution | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5195 | Requires manufacturer of certain firefighting equipment containing perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances to provide written notice to purchaser; prohibits sale, manufacture, and distribution of certain firefighting equipment containing intentionally added perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported with Substitution | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5223 | Requires manufacturer of firefighting personal protective equipment containing perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances to provide written notice to purchaser. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported with Substitution | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5265 | Authorizes enforcement of landscape irrigation law by local enforcing agency and increases penalties. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5262 | Codifies United States Supreme Court ruling that in defamation suit, public official must prove defendant had actual malice: knowledge that defendant's statement was false or reckless disregard of whether it was false. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| S4126 | Prohibits certain uses of perchloroethylene and trichloroethylene. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5427 | Eliminates presumption of pretrial release for sex offenses committed against minor. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5448 | "Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act"; provides alternative process for handling partition actions filed in court concerning real property with multiple owners, at least one of whom had acquired title from relative. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5534 | Requires business that violates State environmental laws to forfeit economic development subsidies under certain circumstances. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5533 | Establishes requirements for receipt and purchase of scrap metals containing propulsion batteries. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5535 | Requires certain facilities that store or process automotive shredder residue to obtain DEP permit; defines "hazardous waste" to include automotive shredder residue. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5584 | Prohibits certain uses of perchloroethylene and trichloroethylene. | Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5612 | Concerns parking violations that obstruct NJT bus operations and bicycle lanes in certain circumstances. | Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5614 | Requires Division of Parole to establish residency restrictions for certain sex offenders. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| AJR222 | Designates May 1 of each year as "Rule of Law Day" in NJ. | Assembly Judiciary Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A5623 | Authorizes NJ Infrastructure Bank to expend certain sums to make loans for transportation infrastructure projects for FY2026; makes appropriation. | Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/08/2025 | Yea |
| A4844 | Requires BPU to establish beneficial building electrification and decarbonization program and requires certain entities to submit plans to implement individual beneficial building electrification and decarbonization programs. | Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/05/2025 | Yea |
| AJR216 | Directs BPU to investigate PJM Interconnection, L.L.C.'s Reliability Pricing Model; directs State to promote affordable energy practices and to urge PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. to implement certain reforms. | Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/05/2025 | Yea |
| A5438 | "Public Utility Fair Profit Act"; requires public utilities to take certain actions regarding excess profits and directs fines for violations to fund utility assistance programs. | Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/05/2025 | Yea |
| A5442 | Requires BPU members to have certain experience and complete certain training. | Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/05/2025 | Yea |
| A5436 | Requires BPU to determine and consider lowest reasonable return on equity before approving electric, gas, and water public utility base rate cases. | Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/05/2025 | Yea |
| A5466 | Requires BPU to study effects of data centers on electricity costs. | Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/05/2025 | Yea |
| A5464 | Prohibits BPU from approving electric public utility rate increase without full rate review. | Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee: Reported Favorably | 05/05/2025 | Yea |
| A5517 | Directs BPU to study feasibility of developing small modular reactors Statewide. | Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee: Reported with Amendments | 05/05/2025 | Yea |
| Committee | Position | Rank | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detail | New Jersey General Assembly Environment, Natural Resources and Solid Waste Committee | Chair | 1 |
| Detail | New Jersey General Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee | Vice Chair | 2 |
| Detail | New Jersey General Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee | 10 |
| State | District | Chamber | Party | Status | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NJ | New Jersey Assembly District 22 | Assembly | Democrat | In Office | 01/12/2016 |