Bill Text: NJ A3977 | 2026-2027 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Concerns electrical linemen and associated building trades during weather-related states of emergency.
Sponsorship: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Introduced) 2026-01-13 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee [A3977 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2026-A3977-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman KEVIN P. EGAN
District 17 (Middlesex and Somerset)
Assemblywoman DAWN FANTASIA
District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)
Assemblywoman MITCHELLE DRULIS
District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Concerns electrical linemen and associated building trades during weather-related states of emergency.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning electrical linemen and certain utility workers in certain emergencies, supplementing Title 48 and Title 53 of the Revised Statutes and Title 2A of the New Jersey Statutes, and amending P.L.1989, c.3.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. (New section) As used in this section, "electrical lineman or utility worker" means a person that installs, maintains, or repairs electrical transmission and power distribution systems or water infrastructure.
An electrical lineman or utility worker shall be referred to as a "first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker" during a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or by the President of the United States.
2. (New section) a. As used in this section, "first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker" means a person that installs, maintains, or repairs electrical transmission and power distribution systems or water infrastructure during a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or by the President of the United States.
b. The Division of State Police may issue special decals for motor vehicles owned, leased, or used by a first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker to provide or restore electrical or water service during a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or by the President of the United States.
c. The decals shall be designed by the Division of State Police, in consultation with the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission and the Division of Highway Traffic Safety in the Department of Law and Public Safety. The decals shall be displayed in a manner prescribed by the Division of State Police, in consultation with the Division of Highway Traffic Safety in the Department of Law and Public Safety, and shall be clearly visible to law enforcement officers.
d. (1) A first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker shall not display the special decals at any time except in the course of providing or restoring electrical or water service during a weather-related state of emergency. The decals shall be removed after the weather-related state of emergency has ended.
(2) Abuse of any privilege, benefit, use or consideration granted to any person to whom the special decals are issued shall be sufficient cause for revocation of the special decals, and shall subject the person to all other penalties in this section.
(3) A first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker shall return the special decals to the Division of State Police when the first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker is no longer employed or utilized to provide electrical or water service during a weather-related state of emergency. A first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker who fails to return the special decals within 30 days of no longer being employed or utilized to provide electrical or water service during a weather-related state of emergency shall be subject to a fine of $100 to be imposed by the Division of State Police.
e. The Division of State Police shall determine a method for distributing and returning the special decals to and from a first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker and establish any regulations necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section.
f. Any person who submits a false statement or provides false information to obtain or facilitate the receipt of the special decals, or the misuse of the special decals pursuant to this section shall be subject to a fine of not more than $1,000, which fine may be assessed by the Division of State Police. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed in any way to preclude or limit the prosecution or conviction of any person for falsifying or tampering with records under N.J.S.2C:21-4 or for any other crime or offense.
3. (New section) a. As used in this section, "first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker" means a person that installs, maintains, or repairs electrical transmission and power distribution systems or water infrastructure during a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or by the President of the United States.
b. A first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker shall not be liable for any civil damages as a result of any acts or omissions undertaken in good faith that arise out of and in the course of providing or restoring electrical or water service during a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or by the President of the United States.
c. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to grant immunity to a first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker causing damage by a willful, wanton, or grossly negligent act or omission, nor for any damage caused to any person as the result of the negligent operation of a motor vehicle.
4. Section 8 of P.L.1989, c.3 (C.52:17C-8) is amended to read as follows:
a. Each public safety answering point shall be capable of dispatching or forwarding requests for law enforcement, fire fighting, emergency medical services, or other emergency services to a public or private safety agency that provides the requested services.
b. Each public safety answering point shall be equipped with a system approved by the office for the processing of requests for emergency services for the physically disabled. No person shall connect to a telephone company's network any automatic alarm or other automatic alerting device which causes the number "9-1-1" to be automatically dialed and which provides a prerecorded message in order to directly access emergency services, except for devices which may be approved by the office. Devices approved by the office shall be registered with the office on forms provided by the office.
c. Each entity operating a public safety answering point shall be responsible for obtaining, operating, and maintaining enhanced 9-1-1 termination equipment. The operations and maintenance of this equipment shall be in accordance with standards set forth by the office pursuant to section 3 of [this act] P.L.1989, c.3 (C.52:17C-3).
d. During a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or the President of the United States, each public safety answering point shall be capable of dispatching or forwarding requests for electric or water utility services to a first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker, as defined in this subsection, that provides the requested service.
As used in this subsection, "first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker" means a person that installs, maintains, or repairs electrical transmission and power distribution systems or water infrastructure during a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or by the President of the United States.
(cf: P.L.1989, c.3, s.8)
5. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill designates electrical linemen and certain utility workers as first responders (first responders) during weather-related states of emergency and establishes several benefits to these first responders during a weather-related state of emergency.
Under the bill, first responders, during a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or the President of the United States, are not liable for any civil damages as a result of any act or omission undertaken in good faith that arise out of and in the course of providing or restoring electric or water service. The immunity provided for in this bill does not apply to a first responder that causes damage by a willful, wanton, or grossly negligent act or omission or causes damage to any person as the result of the negligent operation of a motor vehicle.
Additionally, this bill permits the Division of State Police (State Police) to issue special decals for motor vehicles owned, leased, or used by first responders during a weather-related state of emergency. The decals are required to be displayed in a manner determined by the State Police, in consultation with the Division of Highway Traffic Safety in the Department of Law and Public Safety, and to be clearly visible to law enforcement officers. First responders are prohibited from displaying the special decals at any time except in the course of providing or restoring electric or water service during a weather-related state of emergency. The decals are required to be removed after the weather-related state of emergency has ended.
Abuse of any privilege, benefit, use or consideration granted to any person to whom the special decals are issued is sufficient cause for revocation of the special decals, and the person is subject to any penalties imposed by this bill. First responders are required to return the special decals to the State Police when the first responder is no longer employed or utilized to provide electric or water service during a weather-related state of emergency. If a first responder fails to return the special decals within 30 days of no longer being employed or utilized to provide electric or water service during a weather-related state of emergency, the first responder is subject to a fine of $100 to be imposed by the State Police. The State Police are required to determine a method for distributing and returning the special decals to and from a first responder to establish any regulations necessary to effectuate the purposes of this bill. Additionally, any person who submits a false statement or provides false information to obtain or facilitate the receipt of the special decals or the misuse of the special decals is subject to a fine of not more than $1,000 to be assessed by the State Police.
This bill also amends current law to require public safety answering points, which are facilities that receive and dispatch or transfer 9-1-1 calls, to be capable of dispatching and forwarding emergency calls for electric or water utility services to a first responder during weather-related states of emergency.
As defined in the bill, a "first responder electrical lineman or first responder utility worker" means a person that installs, maintains, or repairs electrical transmission and power distribution systems or water infrastructure during a weather-related state of emergency, as declared by the Governor or by the President of the United States.
