Bill Text: NJ A5816 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Changes membership of Lake Hopatcong Commission and requires DEP to develop water level management plan for Lake Hopatcong to be approved by commission.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-12-04 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee [A5816 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-A5816-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman CHRISTIAN E. BARRANCO
District 26 (Essex, Morris and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Changes membership of Lake Hopatcong Commission and requires DEP to develop water level management plan for Lake Hopatcong to be approved by commission.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning Lake Hopatcong and amending and supplementing P.L.2000, c.175.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 3 of P.L.2000, c.175 (C.58:4B-3) is amended to read as follows:
3. a. There is created, in but not of the Department of Environmental Protection, the Lake Hopatcong Commission, which shall comprise 11 voting members, as follows: a representative of Morris county appointed by the Board of Chosen Freeholders thereof; a representative of Sussex county appointed by the Board of Chosen Freeholders thereof; a representative of Hopatcong borough appointed by the governing body thereof; a representative of Jefferson township appointed by the governing body thereof; a representative of Mount Arlington borough appointed by the governing body thereof; a representative of Roxbury township appointed by the governing body thereof; [two] four members of the public appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate [;] and a chairperson of the commission appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate [; the Commissioner of Community Affairs, or a designee thereof, who shall serve ex officio; and the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, or a designee thereof, who shall serve ex officio].
b. Each county and municipal appointing authority as prescribed pursuant to subsection a. of this section may also respectively appoint an alternate member for each regular member appointed by the county or municipal appointing authority to act in the absence or disability of the regular member, and while so acting an alternate member shall have all the powers, including voting powers, of the regular member.
c. (1) The chairperson of the commission shall serve a term of three years and until a successor shall have been appointed and qualified. A chairperson may be reappointed to successive terms.
(2) Each member of the public appointed by the Governor shall serve a term of two years and until a successor shall have been appointed and qualified [; except that of the two members of the public first appointed, one shall serve a term of two years and the other a term of one year] . Members of the public appointed by the Governor may be reappointed to successive terms.
(3) Each member or alternate member appointed by a county or a municipality shall serve a term of two years and until a successor shall have been appointed and qualified; except that each member and alternate member first appointed by Sussex county, Mount
Arlington borough, and Roxbury township shall serve a term of one year, and thereafter each member and alternate member appointed by that county and those two municipalities shall serve a term of two years and until a successor shall have been appointed and qualified. Members and alternate members may be reappointed to successive terms.
d. Vacancies in the appointed positions on the commission shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments were made but for the unexpired term only.
e. Members of the commission shall serve without compensation, but the commission may, within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to it, reimburse members for actual expenses necessarily incurred in the discharge of their official duties.
f. Members of the commission shall serve at the pleasure of the relevant appointing authority.
(cf: P.L.2000, c.175, s.3)
2. Section 6 of P.L.2000, c.175 (C.58:4B-6) is amended to read as follows:
6. The duties and responsibilities of the Lake Hopatcong Commission shall be to:
a. conduct water quality and water quantity monitoring of Lake Hopatcong to assess conditions and changes thereto over time, and identify the causes and sources of environmental threats and impacts to Lake Hopatcong and its watershed;
b. assess present and projected development, land use, and land management practices and patterns, and determine the effects of those practices and patterns upon the natural, scenic, and recreational resources of Lake Hopatcong and its watershed;
c. develop plans, strategies, policies, ordinances, and funding mechanisms necessary to protect, preserve, restore, maintain, manage, and enhance Lake Hopatcong and its watershed, to be implemented by those entities with representatives on the commission;
d. coordinate with, and make recommendations to, the Department of Environmental Protection with respect to any State plan or program for watershed management, water quality, water quantity, water supply, stormwater management, nonpoint source pollution, or wastewater management for the area that includes Lake Hopatcong and its watershed;
e. recommend appropriate State legislation and administrative action pertaining to the protection, preservation, restoration, maintenance, management, and enhancement of Lake Hopatcong and its watershed;
f. encourage and assist in the creation of special local improvement districts for purposes beneficial to Lake Hopatcong and its watershed, including control of stormwater runoff and nonpoint source pollution, and the preservation of significant environmental areas, including wetlands, to control stormwater runoff and nonpoint source pollution;
g. review and assess the potential impact upon Lake Hopatcong and its watershed of environmental permit applications pending before or received by the Department of Environmental Protection and provided to the commission pursuant to subsection b. of section 8 of this act, and provide recommendations to the Department of Environmental Protection for appropriate action thereon;
h. review and assess the potential impact upon Lake Hopatcong and its watershed of proposed amendments and revisions to municipal master plans, zoning and other ordinances governing land use and development, and applications for specific development projects, which have been provided to the commission pursuant to section 9 of this act, and provide recommendations to the appropriate municipal agency for appropriate action thereon;
i. conduct, manage, and coordinate specific activities and projects pertaining to the protection, preservation, restoration, maintenance, management, and enhancement of Lake Hopatcong and its watershed, including, but not limited to, weed control measures, dredging, installation and maintenance of boat sewage pump outs, and environmental education;
j. encourage individuals, corporations, associations, and organizations to preserve and enhance the natural scenic beauty, and protect and preserve the purity of the waters, of Lake Hopatcong and its watershed, and to engage in environmental education of the public for such purposes; and
k. establish advisory committees and enlist and accept the support and cooperation of organizations of property owners and others interested in promoting the purposes and objectives of this act.
(cf: P.L.2000, c.175, s.6)
3. Section 8 of P.L.2000, s.175 (C.58:4B-8) is amended to read as follows:
8. a. The Division of State Police in the Department of Law and Public Safety, with respect to State boating laws, the Division of Fish and Wildlife in the Department of Environmental Protection, with respect to State fish and wildlife laws, and the Department of Environmental Protection, with respect to environmental violations, shall each prepare and submit a report, on at least an annual basis, to the Lake Hopatcong Commission on the number and type of law enforcement stops made, violations for which citations, notices, or orders were issued, and crimes, offenses, and violations committed during the prior year either on Lake Hopatcong or in the immediate area of Lake Hopatcong as defined by the commission.
b. The Department of Environmental Protection shall provide to the commission notice of any permit application pending before or received by the department or any division thereof for an activity that may impact upon Lake Hopatcong or its watershed, and request that the commission review and evaluate the permit application to assess the potential impact of the activity proposed therein upon Lake Hopatcong and its watershed and provide the commission's recommendations for appropriate action thereon.
c. The Division of Fish and Wildlife shall consult with the commission prior to engaging in any fish stocking or fishery management activities affecting Lake Hopatcong.
d. Prior to the adoption or revision of the water level management plan developed by the Department of Environmental Protection pursuant to section 4 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the plan or revision thereto shall be submitted to the commission for approval by an affirmative vote of a majority of the full membership of the commission.
e. Any action by the Department of Environmental Protection, or any division thereof, that will cause the water level of Lake Hopatcong to fall below a level of 8.5 feet as measured on the Lake Hopatcong lake gauge shall first be submitted to the commission for approval by an affirmative vote of a majority of the full membership of the commission.
(cf: P.L.2000, c.175, s.8)
4. (New section) Within 90 days after the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Department of Environmental Protection shall develop a water level management plan for the waters of Lake Hopatcong that establishes the objectives and uses of the waters, including uses within the Musconetcong River system, lake drawdowns, lakeshore construction and gate manipulation guidelines. The adoption of the water level management plan, or any revision thereto, shall not be subject to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), but shall comply with the requirements set forth in section 8 of P.L.2000, c.175 (C.58:4B-8). As used in this section, "Musconetcong River system" means the Musconetcong River and Lake Mustconetcong.
5. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
The Lake Hopatcong Commission has been charged with, among other things, managing and protecting the natural, scenic, and recreational resources of Lake Hopatcong and its watershed. This bill would grant the commission the authority necessary to carry out its duties.
Specifically, the bill would remove the Commissioners of Community Affairs and Environmental Protection as members of the commission and would replace them with two additional members of the public to be appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. Each member of the public would serve a term of two years until a successor is appointed and qualified. The bill also expressly adds to the commission's duties and responsibilities the coordination with the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) on any plan or program affecting the water quantity of Lake Hopatcong. The bill also requires DEP to provide the commission with notice of any permit application pending before or received by any division of DEP for any activity that may impact on Lake Hopatcong or its watershed.
Under the bill, the DEP is required to develop a water level management plan to establish the objectives and uses of the waters of Lake Hopatcong, including downstream uses within the Musconetcong River system. The plan would also provide guidelines on any drawdowns, lakeshore construction and gate manipulation for the lake. Additionally, the plan must be submitted for approval by an affirmative vote of the majority of the full membership of the commission before the DEP may adopt or revise the plan. Finally, the DEP is required to submit to the commission any proposed action that would cause the water level of Lake Hopatcong to fall below a level of 8.5 feet as measured on the Lake gauge for approval by an affirmative vote of the majority of the full membership of the commission.
