It’s been a busy spring for the New Jersey state legislature, where several RPA-backed legislative initiatives have advanced in recent weeks.

Below are updates on several significant pieces of legislation, including parking minimum reductions, warehouse review, and resilience measures.

• Parking Minimum Reductions: S3605 would reduce parking minimums around certain transit stops and stations. In NJ, the Residential Site Improvement Standards (RSIS) establish statewide requirements for improvements made in connection with residential development, including parking, water supply, sewers, and stormwater management. However, the parking minimums established by the RSIS are uniform across the state, regardless of whether the development is in a dense urban community or a sparsely populated area. S3605 would amend the RSIS to establish context-sensitive requirements that would reduce parking minimums around public transportation by 50% within ¼ mile; 30% between one-half mile and one-quarter mile; and 20% between one mile and one-half mile. RPA testified in favor of the bill at the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee on May 8th 2023, and the bill was subsequently passed on May 22nd by the full Senate, 21-12. We are grateful to Deputy Majority Leader Sarlo and Majority Whip Singleton for sponsoring and advancing this legislation.
  
• Warehouses: The Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee also held a discussion-only hearing of S3664, which would establish additional municipal review processes related to the development of certain large warehouses. Specifically, the bill would require that upon receiving a development application for a large warehouse, a municipality’s planning board must complete a special reexamination of the municipality’s master plan and development regulations, and prepare and adopt a special reexamination report that incorporates the State Planning Commission’s guidelines on warehousing. While the Committee did not take any formal action on the measure, it did discuss potential amendments including whether to expand the provisions to any large-scale industrial or commercial facility.
  
• Resilience: As previously reported, RPA championed several legislative initiatives during the state Assembly’s hearing on the 10th Anniversary of Hurricane Sandy.
  • A4866 - Establishes Community Hazard Assistance Mitigation Program within the NJ Infrastructure Bank to fund certain resilience projects. In January 2022, the federal STORM ACT authorized FEMA to provide revolving loan funds for hazard mitigation and resiliency projects. A4866 would enable the state’s infrastructure bank to receive federal funding and finance eligible projects for state and municipal governments, as well as non-profits and certain small businesses. RPA initially proposed this measure last fall during the hearings on Hurricane Sandy. The bill passed both chambers unanimously and was signed by Governor Murphy into law on May 25th, 2023.
  • Another hazard mitigation advancing in the Assembly is A4691, which would require any hazard mitigation plan (HMP) adopted or revised by either the State Office of Emergency Management or by a county office of emergency management. The plans would seek to address the current and future impacts of climate change, identify its specific hazards and risks, and include strategies to prevent and mitigate its impacts. The measure has been passed by both the Environment and Appropriations committees in May, and now heads to the floor for a full vote.
  • Finally, we are pleased to announce that a flood disclosure bill is close to being enacted. S3110 would require landlords and sellers of real estate to disclose in writing whether a property has been determined to be located in a flood zone or area or has experienced any flood damage, water seepage, or pooled water due to a natural flood event, such as heavy rainfall, coastal storm surge, tidal inundation, or river overflow. RPA has been supporting the bill along with our partners. It was conditionally vetoed on May 8th, but the Senate agreed to the Governor’s recommendations on May 22nd, 2023.