This bill, known as the "Efficient Energy Use Act," requires electric public utilities in New Jersey to offer time-varying electricity rates to residential customers who have smart meters. Under the law, these customers must actively choose to opt-in to a pricing plan where electricity costs change based on the time of day, rather than being automatically switched. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities will oversee the creation of these rates and must work with other state agencies to ensure that existing energy assistance programs can still help eligible households. Additionally, the board is required to send a report to the Governor and Legislature within one year detailing how many customers enrolled, the financial impact on those customers, and suggestions for future changes to the program.
This bill allows county sheriffs in New Jersey to hire special law enforcement officers, a power currently reserved for municipalities and counties with their own police forces. The legislation enables sheriffs to appoint three types of officers: Class One for traffic duties, Class Two for full police powers including arrests, and Class Three for school security. These officers would perform their duties under existing state laws regarding training, equipment, and authority limits.
This bill creates a new program within the New Jersey Department of Health to improve awareness and access to lung cancer screening for first responders and veterans. The initiative will coordinate education and referral efforts to help these high-risk groups learn about low-dose computed tomography screening, which is recommended for adults aged 50 to 80 with a significant smoking history. The Department of Health will manage the program in consultation with the Adjutant General and the Attorney General to ensure eligible individuals can connect with existing public and private coverage options. By establishing this specific outreach strategy, the legislation aims to address current gaps in the state's cancer control efforts for these populations.
This bill, known as the Utility Rate Recovery Fairness Act, prevents electric and gas public utilities in New Jersey from passing specific operational costs onto their customers. Under the new rules, utilities cannot include charges for legal fees, expert witness costs, employee salaries related to rate disputes, lobbying expenses, trade association dues, or executive travel in the rates they bill consumers. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities will be responsible for creating regulations to enforce these restrictions, which take effect immediately upon passage.
This New Jersey bill establishes a formal framework for law enforcement agencies to use investigative genetic genealogy in solving violent crimes and identifying human remains. It creates a system where police and medical examiners must work with specialized, accredited centers to analyze DNA samples from crime scenes. The legislation also allocates $500,000 in funding to support these operations and defines specific rules for how DNA testing and data sharing should be conducted.
This bill designates the 'Freedom Flag' as the official state flag of New Jersey to honor victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and their aftermath. The legislation requires state agencies and officials to display this specific flag, which features a blue background with a white star, red stripes representing the Twin Towers and flights, and white bars symbolizing the Pentagon and first responders. By updating state statutes, the measure ensures the flag is used officially in anticipation of the 25th anniversary of the attacks.
This bill creates a two-year pilot program in New Jersey to improve flood monitoring and rainfall sensing, primarily affecting flood-prone areas and local municipalities. The Department of Environmental Protection will partner with the Davidson Laboratory at Stevens Institute of Technology to install sensors in 30 selected municipalities across the state's northern, central, and southern regions. The program includes $2 million in funding to support research, data analysis, and best practice identification, with a final report required after two years to determine if the initiative should become permanent.
This bill requires organizations that provide services to homeless individuals in New Jersey to join the Homeless Management Information System to track shelter bed occupancy. It establishes an Office of Homelessness Prevention within the Department of Community Affairs to coordinate services and manage data from state, county, and municipal agencies. The legislation also allows for the transfer of the Homeless Management Information System from the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency to the new office and provides funding to help organizations cover the costs of participation.
This bill creates a ten-year exemption from new state and local rules and regulations for specific manufacturing facilities in New Jersey. Under the law, agencies cannot apply new or amended regulations to these facilities unless federal law requires it, though facilities can choose to waive this protection on a case-by-case basis. The Department of Labor and Workforce Development is tasked with establishing the criteria for eligibility and the process for applying for this exemption. The measure directly affects existing and future manufacturing operations by shielding them from regulatory changes for a decade.
This bill prohibits employers from using the fringe benefit portion of the prevailing wage rate to fund bonus, incentive, or retention programs for employees. It also prevents employers from automatically enrolling workers in specific pension or retirement plans designed to meet prevailing wage requirements without first obtaining written consent. Employees who opt out of such retirement programs will still receive their required fringe benefits through other allowable methods. The law does not apply to workers employed by companies that have collective bargaining agreements used to determine prevailing wage rates.
This bill creates a 13-member task force to review and improve New Jersey's existing anti-bullying rules and procedures in public schools. The group will consist of state education officials, representatives from various school organizations, and four public members appointed by legislative leaders. Their specific duties include evaluating current laws, suggesting ways to reduce administrative work for school districts, and researching better discipline methods used in other states. The task force must organize within 30 days and submit a final report with its findings and recommendations to the Governor and Legislature within six months of starting. Once the report is issued, the task force will automatically dissolve.
This bill, titled the "Fairness for School Districts in Development Restricted Areas Act," provides additional state funding to specific school districts located in municipalities within New Jersey's Highlands or Pinelands preservation areas. To qualify, a school district must have a resident enrollment of more than 500 students, be situated entirely within a municipality where at least 25 percent of the land is protected, and have experienced a net loss in state school aid between the 2017-2018 and 2024-2025 school years. The funding amount is calculated by multiplying $250 by the number of protected acres in the municipality, with annual caps of $2.5 million for districts with fewer than 1,000 students and $5 million for those with more. This legislation aims to offset financial impacts on schools in these regions by supplementing existing state aid formulas.
