Bill Text: NJ S1839 | 2026-2027 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes "New Jersey Gold Star Family Annuity Program."
Sponsorship: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced) 2026-02-19 - Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee [S1839 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2026-S1839-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator TROY SINGLETON
District 7 (Burlington)
Senator ANTHONY M. BUCCO
District 25 (Morris and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes "New Jersey Gold Star Family Annuity Program."
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act establishing a "New Jersey Gold Star Family Annuity Program" in the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs and supplementing chapter 3 of Title 38A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that:
a. Residents of New Jersey who serve as members of the United States military and as members of the New Jersey National Guard preserve our freedom.
b. Throughout history, these brave New Jersey residents have made the ultimate sacrifice for this country by giving their lives to preserve our freedom.
c. The family members left behind after the untimely deaths of these brave service members, known as Gold Star family members, have made the preservation of our freedom possible while experiencing great personal loss.
d. It is honorable and appropriate that the State of New Jersey recognize the life and service of those heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice for this country by establishing an annuity program to support Gold Star family members.
2. As used in this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):
"Gold Star family member" means an individual who is a New Jersey resident and is the surviving spouse, domestic partner, partner in a civil union, parent, brother, sister, child, legal guardian, or other legal custodian, whether of the whole blood or the half blood, or by adoption, of a member of the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard who died while on active duty for the United States.
3. a. There is established in the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs a "New Jersey Gold Star Family Annuity Program." The purpose of the program shall be to provide an annual annuity to surviving Gold Star family members of a member of the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard who died while on active duty for the United States.
b. The annual annuity shall be in the sum of six hundred dollars disbursed January 1 of each year. Commencing two years after the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the amount of the annual annuity shall be the same as the amount of the annuity due in the preceding year plus a percentage adjustment equal to the annual percentage increase, if any, for compensation and pension benefits administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs in the previous year. Such percentage increase shall be rounded up to the next highest one-tenth of one percent and shall not be less than one percent nor more than four percent.
No payment shall be made to a Gold Star family member who is not a New Jersey resident.
Remarriage shall not disqualify an otherwise eligible Gold Star family member from receiving the annual annuity provided under the program.
c. The Adjutant General of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs shall include in the annual budget request of the department a request for sufficient funds to effectuate the purposes of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
d. The Adjutant General and the Deputy Commissioner of Veterans Services may solicit and accept donations or grants of money from any source for the purpose of making payments to eligible Gold Star family members under the program.
e. Application for the annuity program established pursuant to subsection a. of this section shall be made to the Adjutant General on forms and in a manner prescribed by the Adjutant General. In order to be deemed complete, an application shall be accompanied by proof satisfactory to the Adjutant General that the applicant is a New Jersey resident and a Gold Star family member. Satisfactory proof may include any or all of the following:
(1) a certification from the Department of New Jersey of American Gold Star Mothers, Inc., or any other organization formed for the support of parents of members of the armed services who lost their lives while on active duty for the United States, that the applicant is either the spouse, domestic partner, partner in a civil union, parent, brother, sister, child, legal guardian or other legal custodian, whether of the whole or half blood or by adoption, of a member of the armed services who died while on active duty for the United States, or any documentation indicating the applicant's relationship to the service member;
(2) documentation deemed acceptable by the Adjutant General, including but not limited to a federal DD Form 1300, Report of Casualty, or its succeeding form, which identifies the member of the armed services who died while on active duty for the United States; and
(3) documentation indicating the applicant or service member's state of residency.
The copy of the DD Form 1300 and the application shall be kept confidential and shall not be considered a government record under P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), except that they may be released to another government agency.
Proof of New Jersey residency shall be provided to the Adjutant General annually.
Any applicant or beneficiary Gold Star family member who ceases to be a New Jersey resident, but subsequently resumes residency in this State shall be required to submit a new application.
f. The Adjutant General shall be responsible for determining whether any person seeking to be considered a "Gold Star family member" under P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), for the purpose of receiving an annuity from the program, meets the criteria set forth in subsection e. of this section and adjudicating an appeal from any person disputing this determination. The determination of the Adjutant General shall apply only prospectively from the date of initial determination or date of determination from an appeal, as appropriate, and shall be binding for that application or appeal.
g. The Adjutant General may adopt, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations necessary to effectuate the annuity program.
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes the "New Jersey Gold Star Family Annuity Program" in the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to provide an annual annuity to a surviving Gold Star family member of a member of the Armed Forces or National Guard who died on active duty for the United States.
The bill defines a Gold Star family member as an individual who is a New Jersey resident and is the surviving spouse, domestic partner, partner in a civil union, parent, brother, sister, child, legal guardian, or other legal custodian, whether of the whole blood or the half blood, or by adoption, of a member of the Armed Forces of the United States or the National Guard who died while on active duty for the United States.
The annual annuity will be paid January 1 of each year in the amount of $600. Starting two years after the bill's effective date, the amount of the annual annuity may be increased by an amount equal to the increase for compensation and pension benefits administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs in the previous year, provided that any such adjustment may not be less than one percent nor more than four percent.
No payment will be made to a Gold Star family member who is not a New Jersey resident.
Remarriage will not disqualify an otherwise eligible Gold Star family member from receiving the annual annuity provided under the program.
Under the bill, the Adjutant General of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs will include in the department's annual budget request an amount of funding necessary to fund the annuity program. The Adjutant General and the Deputy Commissioner of Veterans Services may also accept donations or grants for the purpose of making benefit payments.
The bill requires program applicants to submit applications for annuity benefits to the Adjutant General. Any complete application is required to demonstrate the applicant's relationship to the deceased service member, confirm that the deceased service member died while on active duty for the United States, and provide proof of New Jersey residency.
Proof of New Jersey residency must be provided annually.
Any applicant or beneficiary Gold Star family member who ceases to be a New Jersey resident, but subsequently resumes residency in this State is required to submit a new application to reinstate an annuity benefit.
Under the bill, the Adjutant General is responsible for determining whether any person seeking to be considered a "Gold Star family member" for the purpose of receiving an annuity benefit meets the program qualifications, adjudicating appeals, and making a final determination regarding benefits for a particular application or appeal.
