Bill Text: NJ S1611 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Concerns radon testing in certain schools and institutions of higher education.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-09 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee [S1611 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S1611-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator ANDREW ZWICKER
District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Concerns radon testing in certain schools and institutions of higher education.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning radon testing in certain schools and institutions of higher education, supplementing Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes, and repealing N.J.S.18A:20-40.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Except as otherwise provided by subsection b. of this section, every building used by a public school, private school, or institution of higher education in the State shall be tested for the presence of radon gas or radon progeny at least once every five years. If a building used by a public school, private school, or institution of higher education has been tested for radon gas or radon progeny within the five-year period preceding the effective date of this act, the test required by this subsection shall be performed on the building within five years of that prior test and once every five years thereafter. If a building used by a public school, private school, or institution of higher education has not been tested for radon gas or radon progeny within the five-year period preceding the effective date of this act, the test required by this subsection shall be performed on the building within 60 days after the effective date of this act and once every five years thereafter.
b. The Commissioner of Education or the Commissioner of Higher Education, as appropriate, in consultation with the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, shall determine the extent of testing required pursuant to this section. The superintendent of each school district in the State, the board of trustees of a charter school, the principal or chief administrator of a private school, or the chief administrator of the institution of higher education, as applicable, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection, shall identify the buildings to be tested, the locations within each building to be tested, the method of testing, and the procedures concerning notification and circulation of the testing results.
c. As used in this section:
"Institution of higher education" means a qualified institution of collegiate grade, located in this State, which is approved by any regional accrediting association recognized by the National Commission on Accrediting or approved by the Department of Higher Education, or any county college or junior college licensed or approved by the department, operated in accordance with rules and regulations of the Board of Higher Education.
"Private school"
means a school, under college grade, which does not derive its support entirely
or in part from public funds. "Public school" means a
school, under college grade, which derives its support entirely or in part from
public funds.
2. Section 3 of P.L.2000, c.122 (C.18A:20-40) is repealed.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require radon gas or radon progeny testing in buildings used by public schools, private schools, and institutions of higher education at least once every five years. If such a building has been tested for radon within the five-year period preceding the bill's effective date, the test required under the bill would need to be performed on such building within five years after that prior test and once every five years thereafter. If a building has not been tested for radon within the five-year period preceding the bill's effective date, the test required by the bill is to be performed on the building within 60 days after the bill's effective date and once every five years thereafter.
The Commissioner of Education or Commissioner of Higher Education, as appropriate, in consultation with the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, would be required to determine the extent of testing required by the bill, and the superintendent of each school district in the State, the board of trustees of a charter school, the principal or chief administrator of a private school, or the chief administrator of the institution of higher education, as applicable, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection, would be required to identify the buildings to be tested, the locations within each building to be tested, the method of testing, and the procedures concerning notification and circulation of the testing results.
This bill repeals an existing section of law that previously required radon testing in public school buildings, but that was deemed to be expired after a determination by the Council on Local Mandates that it constituted an unfunded mandate. Because this bill's radon testing requirements would be equally applicable to similarly situated government and non-government entities, it would not constitute an unfunded mandate.
