Contaminant Disclosure Bill Enacted
On January 14, 2000, Governor Whitman signed Public Law 1999, Chapter 362, expanding the information that water companies are required to provide to customers. The law requires annual reporting of the results of testing (including a list of contaminants detected in the drinking water and health risks). The law will also require the posting of drinking water test reports in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, child care centers, public and private schools and multiple dwellings.
Proposed Revisions to Rule-Making Process Introduced
A bill to ensure a more open and deliberative rule-making process has passed in the Assembly and has been referred to the Senate State Government Committee. Under A-1484, the public could petition for rule adoption or revision, and agencies would be directed to hold a public hearing whenever "sufficient public interest" is shown. Currently, the Administrative Procedure Act ("APA") requires a public hearing only at the request of a committee of the Legislature or of a governmental agency or subdivision. Also, in contested cases, the bill would specify standards to be used by agency heads in reviewing decisions by administrative law judges. A similar bill was passed by both houses in the previous legislative session but was pocket vetoed by the Governor.
Bill Requiring Local Filing of Hazardous Site Lists Advances
Assembly Bill A-949, requiring NJDEP to develop a list of known hazardous discharge sites that need remediation and sanitary landfill facilities, had its second reading in the Assembly on February 7, 2000. The annual list is to be filed with every municipal clerk and county health agency for inspection by the public. The bill also would require all contracts for the sale of real property to provide notice of the list's availability.
Tax Cap Bill Becomes Law
Public Law 1999, Chapter 342, signed on January 10, 2000, clarifies the application and calculation of cap limitations on the tax imposed on owners or operators of major facilities that store, handle, refine, produce, transfer, process or transport hazardous substances to allow for deductions based on closures since 1986. The tax is assessed pursuant to the Spill Compensation and Control Act, at a rate that varies depending on the volume and nature of the hazardous substance. The law also provides the cap to corporate successors in interest.
Bills Introduced to Assist Dislocated Persons
Companion Bills A-101 and S-1034 aim to provide low-interest loans to persons who must vacate their homes and relocate due to the presence of hazardous substances. The Governor's pocket veto of an earlier version of the bills was based on her concerns that NJDEP lacked the expertise necessary to manage the financing program, and that the standards were not given for determining how much financing would be appropriate. The current versions of the bills address the Governor's concerns by placing responsibility for administration of the loan program with the Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency ("HMFA") and by setting a cap on the loan amounts.
New Civil Penalty Enforcement Act
On December 29, 1999, New Jersey's new Civil Penalty Enforcement Law took effect, adopting recommendations made by the Law Revision Commission in November 1997. The new law authorizes an administrative agency to have a final order entered on the judgment docket of either the Superior Court or the Special Civil Part. Previously, agencies would have to engage in a protracted legal process to have such an order entered as a judgment. The law covers actions to enforce civil penalties, awards or violations where the facts have been judged and monetary penalties or awards have been determined in contested cases under the APA (or where a party was afforded an opportunity for hearing under the APA). After a judgment is docketed, the agency order is treated as a judgment; it may be enforced against the property of the person against whom the order runs and a court may conduct proceedings to require payment.
