New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy Signs Executive Order Allowing Extended Rule-Making Deadlines at NJDEP to Expire and Setting Deadlines for Soil and Fill Recycling Activities and A-901 Licensing

By Melissa A. Clarke, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr

Executive Order (EO) 263, effective September 17, 2021, provides for the expiration of extensions of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) rule-making deadlines that were instituted in EO 127 (2020) due to the COVID-19 pandemic. EO 127 provided an extension for any rules or emergency rules that would have otherwise expired during the public health emergency for 90 days following the end of the public health emergency. The public health emergency ended on June 4, 2021, as discussed below. EO 263 provides, in relevant part: “All rules of the DEP…that were scheduled to expire prior to the effective date of this Order but were extended pursuant to Executive Order No. 127…shall expire on the effective date of this Order.”   What You Need to Know:  The public health emergency ended on June 4, 2021, but a state of emergency remains in New Jersey. The tolling of timeframes governing public notice, review, or final action on NJDEP applications has ended.  The extension of deadlines for public comment on applications for certain NJDEP permits and approvals has ended. Extensions of NJDEP rule-making deadlines have expired. There are new deadlines for complying with N.J.S.A. 13:1E-127.1, the Dirty Dirt law. Read the full post here Don’t miss environmental information like this Click for updates