Bill Text: NJ S2115 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires DMVA to create registry for organizations providing services to veterans.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-2)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-10-20 - Substituted by A3748 [S2115 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2016-S2115-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator JAMES BEACH
District 6 (Burlington and Camden)
SYNOPSIS
Requires DMVA to create registry for organizations providing services to veterans.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning a registry for organizations providing services to veterans and supplementing Title 38A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs shall create and maintain a registry of all organizations that provide services to military veterans. The registry shall be prominently displayed, organized topically, on a public webpage to provide a comprehensive listing of organizations with services addressing the needs of veterans. The department shall actively seek out organizations to include on the registry, and organizations may also voluntarily submit requests to be included on the registry.
The department shall conduct a review of any organization prior to the organization's inclusion on the registry, and the department may, in its discretion, refuse to include an organization on the registry or remove an organization from the registry if the department determines that the organization's services do not reflect the purpose of the registry. Inclusion on the registry shall not be construed to be an endorsement of an organization by the department or State.
b. As used in this section, "organizations that provide services to veterans" includes any organization, not for profit or otherwise, exclusively providing services to veterans or primarily providing services to veterans, or any organization that provides services to a variety of recipients including veterans.
2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the sixth month after the date of enactment, except that the Adjutant General may take any anticipatory administrative action in advance as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs to create a registry of all organizations that provide services to veterans. Under the bill, the department is required to seek out such organizations for inclusion on the registry, and organizations may also voluntarily submit requests to be included.
The department is required to prominently display the registry on a public webpage to create a "one-stop shop" for veterans in need of assistance. While an organization may be entirely or primarily devoted to providing veterans' services, an organization that provides a variety of services, including veterans' services, may also be eligible for inclusion. Likewise, while an organization may be a non-profit organization providing these services, an organization need not be non-profit for inclusion.
The department is required to review a proposed organization prior to its inclusion on the registry, but inclusion on the registry will not be an endorsement from the department or State.
