Bill Text: NJ A1911 | 2012-2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Authorizes Global Warming Solutions Fund monies to be used to support freshwater wetlands stewardship and restoration.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-10 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee [A1911 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2012-A1911-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
215th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2012 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman SCOTT T. RUMANA
District 40 (Bergen, Essex, Morris and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Authorizes Global Warming Solutions Fund monies to be used to support freshwater wetlands stewardship and restoration.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act concerning freshwater wetlands and amending P.L.2007, c.340.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 7 of P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-51) is amended to read as follows:
7. a. The agencies administering programs established pursuant to this section shall maximize coordination in the administration of the programs to avoid overlap between the uses of the fund prescribed in this section.
b. Moneys in the fund, after appropriation annually for payment of administrative costs authorized pursuant to subsection c. of this section, shall be annually appropriated and used for the following purposes:
(1) Sixty percent shall be allocated to the New Jersey Economic Development Authority to provide grants and other forms of financial assistance to commercial, institutional, and industrial entities to support end-use energy efficiency projects and new, efficient electric generation facilities that are state of the art, as determined by the department, including but not limited to energy efficiency and renewable energy applications, to develop combined heat and power production and other high efficiency electric generation facilities, and to stimulate or reward investment in the development of innovative carbon emissions abatement technologies with significant carbon emissions reduction or avoidance potential. The authority, in consultation with the board and the department, shall determine: (a) the appropriate level of grants or other forms of financial assistance to be awarded to individual commercial, institutional, and industrial sectors and to individual projects within each of these sectors; (b) the evaluation criteria for selecting projects to be awarded grants or other forms of financial assistance, which criteria shall include the ability of the project to result in a measurable reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases or a measurable reduction in energy demand, provided, however, that neither the development of a new combined heat and power production facility, nor an increase in the electrical and thermal output of an existing combined heat and power production facility, shall be subject to the requirement to demonstrate such a measurable reduction; and (c) the process by which grants or other forms of financial assistance can be applied for and awarded including, if applicable, the payment terms and conditions for authority investments in certain projects with commercial viability;
(2) Twenty percent shall be allocated to the board to support programs that are designed to reduce electricity demand or costs to electricity customers in the low-income and moderate-income residential sector with a focus on urban areas, including efforts to address heat island effect and reduce impacts on ratepayers attributable to the implementation of P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-45 et al.). For the purposes of this paragraph, the board, in consultation with the authority and the department, shall determine the types of programs to be supported and the mechanism by which to quantify benefits to ensure that the supported programs result in a measurable reduction in energy demand;
(3) Ten percent shall be allocated to the department to support programs designed to promote local government efforts to plan, develop and implement measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including but not limited to technical assistance to local governments, and the awarding of grants and other forms of assistance to local governments to conduct and implement energy efficiency, renewable energy, and distributed energy programs and land use planning where the grant or assistance results in a measurable reduction of the emission of greenhouse gases or a measurable reduction in energy demand. For the purpose of conducting any program pursuant to this paragraph, the department, in consultation with the authority and the board, shall determine: (a) the appropriate level of grants or other forms of financial assistance to be awarded to local governments; (b) the evaluation criteria for selecting projects to be awarded grants or other forms of financial assistance; (c) the process by which grants or other forms of financial assistance can be applied for and awarded; and (d) a mechanism by which to quantify benefits; and
(4) Ten percent shall be allocated to the department to support programs that enhance the stewardship and restoration of the State's forests [and] , tidal marshes , and freshwater wetlands that provide important opportunities to sequester or reduce greenhouse gases.
c. (1) The department may use up to four percent of the total amount in the fund each year to pay for administrative costs justifiable and approved in the annual budget process, incurred by the department in administering the provisions of P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-45 et al.) and in administering programs to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases including any obligations that may arise under subsection a. of section 11 of P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-55).
(2) The board may use up to two percent of the total amount in the fund each year to pay for administrative costs justifiable and approved in the annual budget process, incurred by the board in administering the provisions of P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-45 et al.) and in administering programs to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases including any obligations that may arise under subsection a. of section 11 of P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-55).
(3) The New Jersey Economic Development Authority may use up to two percent of the total amount in the fund each year to pay for administrative costs justifiable and approved in the annual budget process, incurred by the authority in administering the provisions of P.L.2007, c.340 (C.26:2C-45 et al.) and in administering programs to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases.
d. The State Comptroller shall conduct or supervise independent audit and fiscal oversight functions of the fund and its uses.
(cf: P.L.2007, c.340, s.7)
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would provide that monies in the Global Warming Solutions Fund (GWSF) could be used for freshwater wetlands stewardship and restoration.
Under P.L.2007, c.340, commonly known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative or RGGI, funds from the regional carbon auction proceeds are deposited into the GWSF and 10% thereof is allocated to the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for forest and tidal marsh stewardship and restoration, in order to sequester or reduce greenhouse gases.
Since tidal marshes include only coastal wetlands, this bill would allow the 10% allocated to the DEP for carbon sequestration to additionally include the stewardship and restoration of freshwater wetlands.
