A 2256 New Jersey General Assembly · 2026-2027 Regular Session

Concerns "Sexual Violence Restorative Justice Pilot Program."

This bill establishes a three-year "Sexual Violence Restorative Justice Pilot Program" administered by New Jersey's Attorney General to provide trauma-informed restorative justice services for survivors of sexual violence, including those who chose not to report the crime to police. It requires the Attorney General to partner with organizations specializing in trauma care (not affiliated with law enforcement) to design and run the program, emphasizing survivor autonomy - participants may join or leave at any time - and mandates strict confidentiality for all communications related to the program, protecting them from use in court. The program will serve survivors statewide (replacing the prior requirement for specific county locations) and must be evaluated within 90 days of completion, with a report recommending whether to continue, expand, or make it permanent. The bill amends existing law by removing the requirement to compensate partner organizations and updating service delivery parameters.

Issues: ✓ Criminal Justice

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action May 4, 2026

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What changed between versions

Introduced → Reprint · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill moves from introduction to first reprint after committee action, with several substantive amendments: it removes the three-year time limit on the pilot program (making duration purely funding-dependent), replaces 'victims' with 'survivors,' narrows what judges may consider during in camera privilege hearings, and adds a sunset provision tying expiration to the filing of a required report.

Scope change

The program's geographic scope remains statewide, but its temporal scope changed from a fixed three-year pilot to an open-ended duration dependent on funding availability, and a new expiration trigger was added tied to a report filing requirement.

TIMELINE

Removed the three-year time limit on the Sexual Violence Restorative Justice Pilot Program. The program duration is now solely 'for a duration for which funding is available,' removing both the fixed three-year term and the alternative 'or of any other duration' language.

Added a sunset provision to Section 2: the act shall expire upon the filing of the report required pursuant to subsection c. of section 1 of P.L.2021, c.60. This creates a defined endpoint for the legislation tied to a reporting milestone.

DEFINITION

Replaced the term 'victims' with 'survivors' when describing who receives program services statewide, reflecting a shift in preferred terminology for people affected by sexual violence.

ENFORCEMENT

Narrowed the scope of what a judge may consider during an in camera hearing on privilege claims. Previously the judge could consider privileged information 'to the extent that the information is probative of the issue.' Now the judge may review communications 'solely for the limited purpose of determining whether the privilege applies,' providing stronger protection against disclosure.

SCOPE

The bill's status changed from 'Introduced Pending Technical Review' to 'As reported by the Assembly Community Development and Women's Affairs Committee on May 4, 2026, with amendments,' indicating it has passed committee with changes. A new co-sponsor (Assemblywoman Annette Quijano, District 20) was added.

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Committee

Jan 13, 2026

Introduced

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Community Development and Women's Affairs Committee

lower

2 primary · 0 co-sponsors