Bill Text: NJ S3202 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes municipal water infrastructure planning and design project grant program in DEP; appropriates $100 million.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-09 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee [S3202 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S3202-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator VIN GOPAL
District 11 (Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes municipal water infrastructure planning and design project grant program in DEP; appropriates $100 million.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing a municipal water infrastructure planning and design project grant program in the Department of Environmental Protection, supplementing Title 58 of the Revised Statutes, and making an appropriation.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. As used in this section:
"Department" means the Department of Environmental Protection.
"Drinking water infrastructure project" means the construction, reconstruction, improvement, rebuilding, or relocation of any component of a public water system, and includes the acquisition of property, right-of-way, easement, or interest therein necessary for the project or the maintenance thereof.
"New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Financing Program" means the same as the term is defined in section 3 of P.L.1985, c.334 (C.58:11B-3).
"Overburdened community" means the same as the term is defined in section 2 of P.L.2020, c.92 (C.13:1D-158).
"Public water system" means the same as the term is defined in section 3 of P.L.1977, c.224 (C.58:12A-3).
"Stormwater infrastructure project" means the construction, reconstruction, improvement, rebuilding, or relocation of any component of a stormwater management system, and includes the acquisition of property, right-of-way, easement, or interest therein necessary for the project or the maintenance thereof.
"Stormwater management system" means the same as the term is defined in section 3 of P.L.1985, c.334 (C.58:11B-3).
"Wastewater infrastructure project" means the construction, reconstruction, improvement, rebuilding, or relocation of any component of a wastewater treatment system, and includes the acquisition of property, right-of-way, easement, or interest therein necessary for the project or the maintenance thereof.
"Wastewater treatment system" means the same as the term is defined in section 3 of P.L.1985, c.334 (58:11B-3).
"Water infrastructure project" means a drinking water infrastructure project, stormwater infrastructure project, or wastewater infrastructure project.
b. The department shall establish a program to provide grants to municipalities to fund planning and design projects related to prospective water infrastructure projects to be carried out by the municipality or an agency thereof. The purpose of the program shall be to support water infrastructure upgrades carried out by municipalities, and to allow municipalities to better access federal and State funds and financing to support those upgrades, by removing the upfront cost burden associated with the planning and design stage of water infrastructure projects.
c. In order to be eligible for a grant, a planning and design project shall be associated with a water infrastructure project, which, in the determination of the department, would be eligible for funding under the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Financing Program, and which would be carried out by the applying municipality or an agency thereof.
d. The maximum grant award amount a water infrastructure project may receive under the program shall be $2 million.
e. The department shall not require a municipality to provide any matching funds, in order to be eligible for a grant.
f. The department shall give priority for grant awards to planning and design projects for water infrastructure projects located in overburdened communities.
g. In establishing the grant program pursuant to this section, the department shall:
(1) develop guidelines and procedures for the submission of grant applications, and criteria for the evaluation of such applications;
(2) establish terms and conditions for the awarding of a grant under this section, and monitor grant recipients' compliance with the terms and conditions;
(3) require the recipient of a grant to report to the department information relating to its use of grant funds under the program; and
(4) submit a report to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the Legislature, during each year in which a grant is awarded, on the effectiveness of the grant program in accomplishing the purposes enumerated in subsection b. of this section.
h. The department may, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt rules and regulations as necessary to establish and implement the grant program.
2. There is appropriated to the Department of Environmental Protection, from the General Fund, the sum of $100 million to fund the grant program established by section 1 of this act.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would direct the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to establish a program to provide grants to municipalities that undertake planning and design projects related to prospective water infrastructure projects.
In order to be eligible for a grant, a planning and design project would be required to be in support of a water infrastructure project that would be eligible for financing under the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Financing Program, carried out jointly by the DEP and the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank. The maximum grant award per project would be $2 million. Municipalities would not be required to provide matching funds in order to be eligible for a grant. The bill would also require the DEP to provide priority to applications for projects located in overburdened communities. Under the bill, the DEP would determine the application procedures and criteria for evaluating applications. The bill would require the DEP to report to Governor and the Legislature on the progress of the program in achieving its goals. Finally, the bill would appropriate $100 million from the General Fund to the DEP for the purposes of the grant program established by the bill.
