This bill, now law as P.L.2025, c.272, provides employment protections for New Jersey paid first responders (including police, firefighters, EMTs, and 9-1-1 dispatchers) diagnosed with work-related PTSD. It prohibits employers from firing, harassing, or discriminating against employees who take leave for qualifying PTSD treatment, requiring reinstatement to their previous position after documented recovery. Employers violating these protections face civil fines ($5,000 for first violation, $10,000 for subsequent), court-ordered reinstatement, lost wages, and attorney fees. The law applies only when PTSD arises from on-the-job trauma or vicarious trauma experienced during official duties.
This bill helps National Guard and Reserve members who passed police or firefighter civil service exams but couldn't start jobs due to military service. If they served 30+ consecutive days after September 11, 2001, during specified military operations (including Operation Enduring Freedom and Freedom’s Sentinel), their name moves to the next eligible hiring list for the same job type. It also extends age eligibility - those who met age requirements when the exam closed are considered eligible when their name is added to the new list. The bill applies only to those whose military service prevented completing employment requirements.
This bill requires New Jersey school districts, receiving schools, and nonpublic schools to train all employees - including substitutes - on school safety protocols, including how to report threats. It mandates that school employees immediately notify principals about threats involving potential death or serious injury, prompting principals to alert law enforcement. If law enforcement confirms a credible threat, principals must notify students, parents, staff, and place the individual on a restricted access list shared with all schools in the district and neighboring districts. The training must address accessibility needs for students with disabilities and align with state safety guidelines.
This bill requires New Jersey's Commissioner of Community Affairs (with input from the Board of Public Utilities) to create safety standards for indoor storage of specific energy storage batteries used in buildings or facilities. The standards must cover lithium-ion, nickel-cadmium, nickel metal hydride, flow/redox flow, and lead-acid batteries, including specific storage requirements, mandatory communication with local fire/code officials before installation, and disposal procedures developed with the Department of Environmental Protection. Once adopted, these standards will be added to New Jersey's State Uniform Construction Code. The bill directly affects building owners and facility operators installing these battery systems, ensuring safety protocols are integrated into construction regulations.
This bill requires health insurers, the State Health Benefits Program (SHBP), and the State Employees Health Benefits Program (SEHBP) to cover specific mammogram screenings. It mandates one baseline mammogram for women aged 35 and annual screenings for women 35 and older, while also requiring coverage for women under 35 with breast cancer risk factors (like family history) as determined by their provider. Additional tests like ultrasounds or MRIs are covered if needed due to dense breast tissue, abnormal results, or other risk factors. The law applies to all health insurance plans in New Jersey, ensuring these screenings are covered without additional out-of-pocket costs for eligible individuals.
This bill, the "Assistance to Firefighters' Families Act," doubles survivor pension amounts for families of volunteer firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and rescue squad workers who die while on duty. It increases the maximum group life insurance coverage a municipality can provide from $25,000 to $250,000 per member and requires municipalities to cover reasonable funeral and burial costs not covered by firemen's associations. Municipalities can fund these benefits by adding a surcharge to fire code inspection fees. The changes directly affect the spouses, children, or parents of deceased volunteer emergency service providers in New Jersey.
This bill allows local governments in New Jersey to use a "layoff plan" instead of a full "employment reconciliation plan" when transitioning employees between municipalities under shared service agreements or joint meetings. It requires layoff plans to include minimum protections: terminal leave payments (one month per five years of service for terminated employees) and placement on a special reemployment list for future civil service jobs. The bill directly affects civil service employees in local governments entering shared service arrangements and the Civil Service Commission, which must review plans within 45 days. These changes streamline transitions while ensuring basic worker protections during service-sharing agreements.
This bill requires New Jersey public employers (including state agencies, school boards, and local governments) to set contribution limits for medical/dental and dependent care flexible spending accounts (FSAs) at the same annual federal limits as specified in the Internal Revenue Code. Specifically, it mandates that public employees' salary reductions for medical/dental FSAs cannot exceed the federal limit adjusted for inflation (26 U.S.C. §125(i)), and dependent care FSA contributions must follow the federal limit (26 U.S.C. §129(a)). The bill amends existing statutes to align state rules with federal standards, ensuring public employees' FSA contributions comply with IRS guidelines. It directly affects all public employees participating in cafeteria plans for healthcare and dependent care expenses.
This bill expands accidental death benefits under New Jersey's State Police Retirement System to cover recruits who die during required pre-service training at the academy or from related complications. It directly affects surviving spouses, children, or parents of such recruits by reclassifying these deaths as "in the line of duty" for benefit purposes. Key provisions set a minimum $50,000 benefit for surviving spouses, with calculated amounts for children or parents if no spouse exists (e.g., 70% of final compensation for children, 25-40% for parents). The law also allows retroactive payments for past deaths, with survivors having 12 months from enactment to apply. Current law previously excluded recruits since they weren't sworn officers during training.
This bill amends New Jersey law to include volunteer firefighters and other volunteer emergency responders (such as first aid, rescue, or ambulance squad members) in the definition of "eligible employee" for municipal small employer health benefits plans. Previously, these volunteers were excluded from the group that qualifies for such health coverage under municipal plans. The change directly affects volunteer emergency personnel across New Jersey municipalities, allowing them to access the same health benefits available to paid municipal employees who work at least 25 hours per week. The key mechanism is a specific update to the statutory definition of "eligible employee" in existing health benefits law.
