New Jersey-2012-S2397-Introduced

An Act appropriating $38,500,000 from the "2009 Farmland Preservation Fund" and the "Garden State Farmland Preservation Trust Fund" to the State Agriculture Development Committee for planning incentive grants to counties for farmland preservation purposes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. There is appropriated to the State Agriculture Development Committee the following sums for the purpose of providing planning incentive grants to counties pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1999, c.180 (C.4:1C-43.1) for up to 80% of the cost of acquisition of development easements on farmland for projects approved as eligible for such funding pursuant to this section:

(1) $31,184,106 from the "2009 Farmland Preservation Fund," established pursuant to section 18 of the "Green Acres, Water Supply and Floodplain Protection, and Farmland and Historic Preservation Bond Act of 2009," P.L.2009, c.117; and

(2) $7,315,894 from the "Garden State Farmland Preservation Trust Fund," established pursuant to section 20 of the "Garden State Preservation Trust Act," P.L.1999, c.152 (C.13:8C-20), made available due to project withdrawals, canceled obligations, and reallocation of previously appropriated funds.

The total expenditure by the State Agriculture Development Committee pursuant to subsections b. and c. of this section shall not exceed $38,500,000.

b. The following projects are eligible for funding with the monies appropriated pursuant to subsection a. of this section:

Applicant (County)	Municipality	Amount of Grant
Atlantic County	Buena Boro Buena Vista Twp Corbin City Estell Manor City Folsom Boro Galloway Twp Hamilton Twp Hammonton Town Mullica Twp	$1,000,000
Bergen County	Allendale Boro Closter Boro Demarest Boro Emerson Boro Franklin Lakes Boro Harrington Park Boro Hillsdale Boro Mahwah Twp Montvale Boro Norwood Boro Oakland Boro Old Tappan Boro Paramus Boro Park Ridge Boro River Vale Twp Saddle River Boro Waldwick Boro Westwood Boro Woodcliff Lake Boro Wyckoff Twp	1,000,000
Burlington County	Bass River Twp Bordentown Twp Burlington Twp Chesterfield Twp Cinnaminson Twp Eastampton Twp Evesham Twp Florence Twp Hainesport Twp Lumberton Twp Mansfield Twp Medford Twp Moorestown Twp Mount Laurel Twp New Hanover Twp North Hanover Twp Pemberton Boro Pemberton Twp Shamong Twp Southampton Twp Springfield Twp Tabernacle Twp Washington Twp Westampton Twp Woodland Twp Wrightstown Boro	1,000,000
Cape May County	Dennis Twp Lower Twp Middle Twp Upper Twp West Cape May Boro Woodbine Boro	500,000
Cumberland County	Deerfield Twp Downe Twp Fairfield Twp Greenwich Twp Hopewell Twp Lawrence Twp Shiloh Boro Stow Creek Twp Upper Deerfield Twp Vineland City	1,000,000
Gloucester County	Clayton Boro East Greenwich Twp Elk Twp Franklin Twp Glassboro Boro Greenwich Twp Harrison Twp Logan Twp Mantua Twp Monroe Twp South Harrison Twp Swedesboro Boro Washington Twp West Deptford Twp Woolwich Twp	1,000,000
Hunterdon County	Alexandria Twp Bethlehem Twp Clinton Twp Delaware Twp East Amwell Twp Franklin Twp Hampton Boro Holland Twp Kingwood Twp Lebanon Twp Raritan Twp Readington Twp Tewksbury Twp Union Twp West Amwell Twp	1,000,000
Mercer County	East Windsor Twp Hamilton Twp Hopewell Boro Hopewell Twp Lawrence Twp Princeton Twp Robbinsville Twp West Windsor Twp	1,000,000
Middlesex County	Cranbury Twp East Brunswick Twp Monroe Twp North Brunswick Twp Old Bridge Twp Plainsboro Twp Sayreville Boro South Brunswick Twp	500,000
Monmouth County	Colts Neck Twp Farmingdale Boro Freehold Twp Holmdel Twp Howell Twp Manalapan Twp Marlboro Twp Middletown Twp Millstone Twp Roosevelt Boro Tinton Falls Boro Upper Freehold Twp Wall Twp	1,000,000
Morris County	Boonton Twp Chatham Twp Chester Boro Chester Twp Denville Twp Harding Twp Kinnelon Boro Lincoln Park Boro Long Hill Twp Madison Boro Mendham Boro Mendham Twp Mine Hill Twp Montville Twp Morris Twp Morristown Town Mount Arlington Boro Mount Olive Twp Pequannock Twp Randolph Twp Rockaway Twp Roxbury Twp Washington Twp	1,000,000
Salem County	Alloway Twp Carneys Point Twp Elmer Boro Elsinboro Twp Lower Alloways Creek Twp Mannington Twp Oldmans Twp Pilesgrove Twp Pittsgrove Twp Quinton Twp Upper Pittsgrove Twp Woodstown Boro	500,000
Somerset County	Bedminster Twp Bernards Twp Bernardsville Boro Branchburg Twp Bridgewater Twp Far Hills Boro Franklin Twp Hillsborough Twp Millstone Boro Montgomery Twp Peapack-Gladstone Boro Rocky Hill Boro Warren Twp	1,000,000
Sussex County	Andover Boro Andover Twp Frankford Twp Fredon Twp Green Twp Hampton Twp Hardyston Twp Lafayette Twp Montague Twp Newton Town Sandyston Twp Sparta Twp Stillwater Twp Vernon Twp Wantage Twp	1,000,000
Warren County	Allamuchy Twp Alpha Boro Blairstown Twp Franklin Twp Frelinghuysen Twp Greenwich Twp Hardwick Twp Harmony Twp Hope Twp Independence Twp Knowlton Twp Liberty Twp Mansfield Twp Oxford Twp Pohatcong Twp Washington Twp White Twp	1,000,000

TOTAL		$13,500,000

c. (1) In addition to the funding provided pursuant to subsection b. of this section, each applicant identified in subsection b. of this section shall be eligible, in accordance with the rules and regulations of the State Agriculture Development Committee providing for a county planning incentive grant program competitive grant fund, to receive a grant not to exceed $5,000,000 from the monies appropriated pursuant to subsection a. of this section.

(2) The following applicants shall be eligible, in accordance with the rules and regulations of the State Agriculture Development Committee providing for a county planning incentive grant program competitive grant fund, to receive a grant not to exceed $5,000,000 from the monies appropriated pursuant to subsection a. of this section:

Applicant (County)	Municipality
Camden County	Berlin Boro Berlin Twp Cherry Hill Twp Chesilhurst Boro Gloucester Twp Voorhees Twp Waterford Twp Winslow Twp
Ocean County	Jackson Twp Lakewood Twp Plumsted Twp Toms River Twp
Passaic County	Bloomingdale Boro Clifton City North Haledon Boro Ringwood Boro Totowa Boro Wanaque Boro Wayne Twp West Milford Twp

(3) (a) The total expenditure by the State Agriculture Development Committee pursuant to this subsection shall not exceed $25,000,000.

(b) The maximum grant award an applicant identified in subsection b. of this section may receive pursuant to the funding provided by subsection b. of this section and paragraph (1) of this subsection is $6,000,000.

(c) The maximum grant award an applicant identified in paragraph (2) of this subsection may receive pursuant to the funding provided by this subsection is $5,000,000.

2. Of the monies appropriated or reappropriated pursuant to P.L.1999, c.138, P.L.2000, c.49, P.L.2000, c.50, P.L.2000, c.51, P.L.2000, c.176, P.L.2001, c.103, P.L.2001, c.104, P.L.2001, c.181, P.L.2001, c.182, P.L.2001, c.183, P.L.2001, c.185, P.L.2003, c.80, P.L.2003, c.81, P.L.2003, c.82, P.L.2003, c.83, P.L.2003, c.271, P.L.2003, c.272, P.L.2005, c.14, P.L.2005, c.15, P.L.2005, c.16, P.L.2005, c.181, P.L.2005, c.182, P.L.2006, c.71, P.L.2006, c.74, P.L.2007, c.184, P.L.2007, c.185, and P.L.2009, c.93 from the "Garden State Farmland Preservation Trust Fund," established pursuant to section 20 of the "Garden State Preservation Trust Act," P.L.1999, c.152 (C.13:8C-20), the sum of $7,315,894 is made available due to project withdrawals, canceled obligations, and reallocation of previously appropriated funds.

3. The expenditure of the sums appropriated by this act is subject to the provisions and conditions of P.L.2009, c.117, P.L.1999, c.180 (C.4:1C-43.1), P.L.1983, c.32 (C.4:1C-11 et seq.), and P.L.1999, c.152 (C.13:8C-1 et seq.), as appropriate.

4. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill appropriates $38.5 million to the State Agriculture Development Committee (SADC) for the purpose of providing planning incentive grants to counties for up to 80% of the cost of acquisition of development easements on farmland for farmland preservation purposes.

Of this funding: $31,184,106 is from the "2009 Farmland Preservation Fund," established pursuant to section 18 of the "Green Acres, Water Supply and Floodplain Protection, and Farmland and Historic Preservation Bond Act of 2009," P.L.2009, c.117, and $7,315,894 is reappropriated from the "Garden State Farmland Preservation Trust Fund," established pursuant to section 20 of the "Garden State Preservation Trust Act," P.L.1999, c.152 (C.13:8C-20), made available due to project withdrawals, canceled obligations, and reallocation of monies previously appropriated for projects.

Fifteen counties will each receive a "base grant" of either $500,000 or $1 million as specified in the bill. Those 15 counties, plus Camden, Ocean, and Passaic counties, would also be eligible to compete to receive an additional grant from the "competitive grant fund" of $25 million pursuant to subsection c. of section 1 of the bill, in an amount not to exceed $5 million.

These allocations and the projects listed in this bill have been approved by the SADC and the Garden State Preservation Trust.

Lastly, this bill would cancel certain prior appropriations totaling $7,315,894 for farmland preservation projects which have been made available due to project withdrawals, canceled obligations, and reallocation of previously appropriated funds, thereby making those moneys available for appropriation again to fund other farmland preservation projects.