Both houses of the New Jersey Legislature were busy passing environmental and energy bills on Monday, Jan. 10. Several of them received final passage and were sent to Gov. Christie for review and possible signing. They included:
A-2215 McKeon, J.F. (D-27); Chivukula, U.J. (D-17)
Permits developer to qualify for low-interest loan from NJEDA when building a high performance green building. Related Bill: S-2558
Permits developer to qualify for low-interest loan from NJEDA when building a high performance green building. Related Bill: S-2558
A-2529 Chivukula, U.J. (D-17); Quijano, A. (D-20); Stender, L. (D-22)
Concerns energy efficiency and renewable energy requirements. Related Bill: S-2306
A-2859 Quijano, A. (D-20); Burzichelli, J.J. (D-3); Riley, C.M. (D-3); Evans, E. (D-35)
Authorizes sale and lease of unneeded public property to certain nonprofits for gardening and urban farming and exempts such urban farms from property taxation. Related Bill: S-1964
S-483 Lesniak, R.J. (D-20); Coutinho, A. (D-29); Quigley, J.M. (D-32)
Expands availability of general development plan approvals and long-term vesting
of preliminary and final site plan approvals in Smart Growth areas. Related Bill: A-3295
of preliminary and final site plan approvals in Smart Growth areas. Related Bill: A-3295
S-2126 Whelan, J. (D-2); Haines, P.E. (R-8)
Permits development of solar and wind facilities and structures on landfills and resource extraction operations under certain circumstances. Related Bill: A-3139
S-2381 Smith, B. (D-17); Bateman, C. (R-16)
Establishes a long-term capacity agreement pilot program to promote construction of qualified electric generation facilities.
Streamlining the regulatory process
Also receiving final legislative approval were three bills designed to streamline the process used by state agencies to adopt and amend rules and regulations. The bills grew out of a review conducted in the early months of the Christie’s Administration by Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno’s Red Tape Review Group. Praised by business organizations and criticized by the Sierra Club, they are:
A-2720 Burzichelli, J.J. (D-3); Rumana, S.T. (R-40); Caputo, R.R. (D-28
Establishes new procedure in “Administrative Procedure Act” to allow substantial changes to agency rule-making upon adoption. Related Bill: S-2014
A-2721 Burzichelli, J.J. (D-3); Rumana, S.T. (R-40); Quijano, A. (D-20
Changes five year chapter expiration date for rules to 10 years; changes procedures
for re-adoption of rules. Related Bill: S-2013
Changes five year chapter expiration date for rules to 10 years; changes procedures
for re-adoption of rules. Related Bill: S-2013
A-2853 Burzichelli, J.J. (D-3); Milam, M.W. (D-1); Albano, N.T. (D-1)
Streamlines process for State and local agency business permits related
to economic development projects.
Learn more about the legislation above in the stories below.
Controversial ratepayer subsidy bill passes both Houses The legislature gave final approval yesterday to a controversial bill meant to lower the cost of electricity in New Jersey by having ratepayers subsidize the construction of new power plants — but it took new amendments and some behind-the-scenes lobbying to get the measure passed NJ Spotlight
Bill abolishing COAH gets final OK Both houses of the Legislature today passed a controversial bill that overhauls the state’s affordable housing system, but it is likely to be vetoed by the governor Statehouse Bureau
Legislature clears ‘green’ developer bill A bill that would give incentives to developers for building environmentally-friendly buildings cleared both houses of the legislature Monday. The legislation would qualify developers for low-interest loans from the New Jersey Economic Development Association if they build high-performance green buildings Star-Ledger
Bills streamline the way business gets done NJ Spotlight
Bills pit business interests against environmentalists Four-bill package enjoys bipartisan support, but conservationists say it undercuts environmental regulations NJ Spotlight
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Readers of our daily newsletter, EnviroPolitics, got to review a total of 42 environmental, energy and business bills that passed through both houses on Monday. If legislation like this is important to you, your business or your organization, take advantage of our 30-day, free trial subscription.
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