Bill Text: NJ A820 | 2014-2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Changes priorities for financial assistance from Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-16 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee [A820 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2014-A820-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
216th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2014 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman CRAIG J. COUGHLIN
District 19 (Middlesex)
Assemblyman DANIEL R. BENSON
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman Lampitt and Assemblyman Singleton
SYNOPSIS
Changes priorities for financial assistance from Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act concerning financial assistance from the Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund, and amending P.L.1993, c.139.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 29 of P.L.1993, c.139 (C.58:10B-7) is amended to read as follows:
29. a. A qualified applicant for financial assistance or a grant from the remediation fund shall be awarded financial assistance or a grant by the authority upon the availability of sufficient moneys in the remediation fund for the purpose of the financial assistance or grant. The authority shall award financial assistance and grants in the following order of priority:
(1) Sites on which there has been a discharge and the discharge poses an imminent and significant threat to a drinking water source, to human health, or to a sensitive or significant ecological area shall be given first priority; [and]
(2) Sites that are owned by a municipality in a brownfield development area where the developer is a public entity shall be given second priority;
(3) Sites in brownfield development areas other than those described in paragraph (2) of this subsection shall be given third priority; and
(4) in areas designated as Planning Area 1 (Metropolitan), Planning Area 2 (Suburban), designated centers, or areas receiving plan endorsement as designated pursuant to the "State Planning Act," sections 1 through 12 of P.L.1985, c.398 (C.52:18A-196 et seq.), and sites that the Brownfields Redevelopment Task Force, established pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1997, c.278 (C.58:10B-23), determines are of immediate economic development potential [, and sites in brownfield development areas] , shall be given [second] fourth priority.
The priority ranking of applicants within any priority category enumerated in this section for awarding financial assistance and grants from the remediation fund shall be based upon the date of receipt by the authority of an application from the applicant. If an application is determined to be incomplete by the authority, an applicant shall have 30 days from receipt of written notice of incompleteness to file any additional information as may be required by the authority for a completed application. If an applicant fails to file the additional information within those 30 days, the filing date for that application for financial assistance or a grant for a site that is not within a priority category enumerated in this section, shall be the date that the additional information is received by the authority. An application shall be deemed complete when all the information required by the authority has been received in the required form.
b. Within 90 days, for a private entity, or 180 days for a municipality, county, or a redevelopment entity authorized to exercise redevelopment powers pursuant to section 4 of P.L.1992, c.79 (C.40A:12A-4), of notice of approval of a financial assistance or grant application, an applicant shall submit to the authority an executed contract for the remediation activities for which the financial assistance or grant application was made. The contract shall be consistent with the terms and conditions for which the financial assistance or grant was rendered. Failure to submit an executed contract within the time provided, without good cause, shall constitute grounds for the alteration of an applicant's priority ranking for the awarding of financial assistance or a grant.
(cf: P.L.2005, c.223, s.5)
2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall also apply retroactively to any applications for financial assistance or grants from the Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund pending before the New Jersey Economic Development Authority on the effective date of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill would change the order of priority for awards of financial assistance and grants by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA) from the Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund (HDSRF) and would add new priority categories.
Specifically, the bill provides that sites that are owned by a municipality in a brownfield development area where the developer is a public entity would be given second priority for funding, and other sites in brownfield development areas would be given third priority. The bill would change the funding priority from second to fourth priority for those sites in areas designated as Planning Area 1 (Metropolitan), Planning Area 2 (Suburban), designated centers, or areas receiving plan endorsement as designated pursuant to the "State Planning Act," and sites that the Brownfields Redevelopment Task Force determines are of immediate economic development potential.
The provisions of the bill would apply retroactively to any applications for financial assistance or grants from the remediation fund pending before the New Jersey Economic Development Authority on the effective date of the bill.
