Bill Text: NJ S4142 | 2026-2027 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes abandoned mine reclamation programs and funding in DOT and DEP.
Sponsorship: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced) 2026-06-04 - Reported from Senate Committee, 2nd Reading [S4142 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2026-S4142-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
sSenator PAUL A. SARLO
District 36 (Bergen and Passaic)
Senator ANTHONY M. BUCCO
District 25 (Morris and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes abandoned mine reclamation programs and funding in DOT and DEP.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning abandoned mines and supplementing Titles 13 and 27 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in sections 1 through 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):
"Abandoned mine" means a mine where mining operations have occurred in the past and no mining operations have occurred for five years or more.
"Department" means the Department of Transportation.
"DOT reclamation plan" or "plan" means the State reclamation plan for abandoned mines developed pursuant to subsection b. of section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
"Fund" means the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program Fund" established pursuant to section 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
"Mine" means and includes: any mines and mineshafts within the State, whether on the surface or underground and any mining plant, material, equipment, or explosives on the surface or underground, which may contribute to the mining or handling of ore or other metalliferous or nonmetalliferous products; and any quarries, sand pits, gravel pits, clay pits, and shale pits within the State.
"Program" means the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program established pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
"Transportation and public utility infrastructure" means any road, street, highway, bridge, or mass transit facility, and all related structures and utilities, and all public utility systems, including gas, electric, water, telecommunications, sanitary sewers, and stormwater sewers.
2. a. There is established in the Department of Transportation the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program. The purpose of the program shall be to protect the citizens of New Jersey from abandoned mines and mine subsidence causing adverse impacts to transportation and public utility infrastructure in the State, through the creation and execution of a reclamation plan and mine reclamation projects.
b. The department shall develop, in consultation with the section chief of the mine safety section of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development established pursuant to section 3 of P.L.1954, c.197 (C.34:6-98.3), and the New Jersey Geological and Water Survey of the Department of Environmental Protection, a DOT reclamation plan for abandoned mines that potentially pose a threat to transportation and public utility infrastructure in the State.
c. The reclamation plan shall provide, at a minimum:
(1) a comprehensive mapping of all abandoned mines in the State that potentially pose a threat to transportation and public utility infrastructure in the State;
(2) an identification of the mines that pose the greatest threat to human life, safety, property, and transportation and public utility infrastructure, or where evidence indicates that the subsidence of the mine poses an imminent or continuous threat to the surrounding transportation and public utility infrastructure;
(3) a ranked order of the reclamation projects designed to reclaim, backfill, stabilize, or otherwise render safe all mine voids present in the State, including an estimate of the costs of each project;
(4) information about the ownership status of each mine identified pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection; and
(5) a recommended course of action to safely reclaim abandoned mines in the State.
d. Employees of the department, including contractors and consultants thereof and employees of other state departments providing consultation or assistance to the department, shall have the right to enter upon any property for the purpose of conducting exploratory work necessary to develop the reclamation plan or to determine the feasibility of restoring, reclaiming, abating, controlling, or preventing the adverse effects of an abandoned mine. At least two months prior to entry, written and verbal notice shall be provided to the property owners, if known, or if not known, by posting notice upon the premises and advertising once either in a print newspaper of general circulation in the county of the locality of the land or in an online news publication with viewership from internet provider addresses within the county of the locality of the land. The department shall provide reasonable accommodations concerning the time, date, and manner of entry, at the request of the property owner. Any entry pursuant to this subsection shall be construed as an exercise of the State's police power and shall not be construed as an act of condemnation or trespass.
e. The department shall provide all findings, including risk assessments and safety concerns, resulting from investigations conducted on private property to the owner of the private property and shall not require a property owner to expend any funds for the implementation of the provisions of this section.
f. After completing the reclamation plan pursuant to this section, the department shall begin implementing the plan.
(1) To implement the plan, the department may carry out the mine reclamation projects itself, contract with private construction firms, or distribute grants to local governments or private property owners.
(2) Prior to implementing a mine reclamation project, the department shall attempt to gain permission from the property owner of each property on or under which the mine is located.
g. The department shall have the right to enter upon or have access to any property adversely affected by past mining practices to restore, reclaim, abate, control, or prevent the adverse effects, if the department makes a finding that:
(1) the adverse effects pose a threat to transportation and public utility infrastructure; and
(2) the owners of the property are unknown, are not readily available, or refuse to give permission to enter.
h. (1) At least two months prior to entry, written and verbal notice shall be provided to the property owners, if known, or if not known, by posting notice upon the premises and advertising once either in a print newspaper of general circulation in the county of the locality of the land or in an online news publication with viewership from internet provider addresses within the county of the locality of the land.
(2) The department shall provide reasonable accommodations concerning the time, date, and manner of entry, at the request of the property owner.
(3) Any entry pursuant to this section shall be construed as an exercise of the State's police power and shall not be construed as an act of condemnation or trespass.
i. The department shall annually apply for any available federal funding in order to support the program.
3. a. There is established in the Department of Transportation a special, nonlapsing fund to be known as the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program Fund." Monies in the fund shall be held separately and dedicated solely for the purpose of making expenditures to fund a mine reclamation project or to support the department's administration of the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program.
b. The fund shall be credited with:
(1) any federal grant monies secured by the department;
(2) any monies appropriated by the Legislature or otherwise made available to the fund for the purposes of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill);
(3) other gifts, donations, or other monies received from any source, public or private, dedicated for deposit into the fund and approved by the State Treasurer; and
(4) any interest earnings or other investment income earned or received on the monies in the fund.
c. All monies appropriated or otherwise made available to the fund shall be dedicated for the purposes of the fund. Pending use, monies in the fund may be invested and reinvested in the same manner as other monies of the department in the manner provided by law. All earnings received from the investment or deposit of such monies shall be paid into and become a part of the fund and be available for use pursuant to P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
d. The department shall establish a grant program to disperse funds from the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program Fund" to sponsors of the mine reclamation projects. In order to effectuate the grant program, the department shall:
(1) establish eligibility criteria for a program grant award;
(2) adopt guidelines and procedures for the submission of grant applications, including, but not limited to, guidelines and procedures addressing the form and manner in which such applications are to be submitted;
(3) establish criteria for the evaluation and prioritization of program grant applications;
(4) identify the project costs that are eligible for financing through the use of program grant funding, and identify the specific factors that will be considered by the department in determining the appropriate dollar amount of each grant award issued under the program; and
(5) identify the terms and conditions for the awarding of a program grant, and for the use of program grant funds awarded, pursuant to this section, including, at a minimum, conditions requiring the recipient of a grant award to report relevant information to the department regarding the recipient's expenditure of grant funds awarded thereto under the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program Fund."
4. As used in sections 4 through 6 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):
"Abandoned mine" means a mine where mining operations have occurred in the past and no mining operations have occurred for five years or more.
"DEP reclamation plan" or "plan" means the State reclamation plan for abandoned mines developed pursuant to subsection b. of section 5 of P.L. . c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
"Department" means the Department of Environmental Protection.
"Environmental infrastructure" means private property, public lands, and natural resources, including lakes, rivers, streams, and drinking water reservoirs, but shall not include any transportation and public utility infrastructure, as that term is defined in section 1 of P.L , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
"Fund" means the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program Fund" established pursuant to section 6 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
"Mine" means and includes: any mines and mineshafts within the State, whether on the surface or underground and any mining plant, material, equipment, or explosives on the surface or underground, which may contribute to the mining or handling of ore or other metalliferous or nonmetalliferous products; and any quarries, sand pits, gravel pits, clay pits, and shale pits within the State.
"Program" means the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program established pursuant to section 5 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
5. a. There is established in the Department of Environmental Protection the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program. The purpose of the program shall be to protect the citizens of New Jersey from abandoned mines and mine subsidence causing adverse impacts, including water quality degradation, to environmental infrastructure in the State, through the creation and execution of a reclamation plan and mine reclamation projects.
b. The department shall develop, in consultation with the section chief of the mine safety section of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development established pursuant to section 3 of P.L.1954, c.197 (C.34:6-98.3), a DEP reclamation plan for abandoned mines that potentially pose a threat to environmental infrastructure in the State.
c. The reclamation plan shall provide, at a minimum:
(1) a comprehensive mapping of all abandoned mines in the State that potentially pose a threat to environmental infrastructure in the State;
(2) an identification of the mines that pose the greatest threat to human life, safety, property, and environmental infrastructure, or where evidence indicates that the subsidence of the mine poses an imminent or continuous threat to the surrounding environmental infrastructure;
(3) a ranked order of the reclamation projects designed to reclaim, backfill, stabilize, or otherwise render safe all mine voids present in the State, including an estimate of the costs of each project;
(4) information about the ownership status of each mine identified pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection; and
(5) a recommended course of action to safely reclaim abandoned mines in the State.
d. Employees of the department, including contractors and consultants thereof and employees of other state departments providing consultation or assistance to the department, shall have the right to enter upon any property for the purpose of conducting exploratory work necessary to develop the reclamation plan or to determine the feasibility of restoring, reclaiming, abating, controlling, or preventing the adverse effects of an abandoned mine. At least two months prior to entry, written and verbal notice shall be provided to the property owners, if known, or if not known, by posting notice upon the premises and advertising once either in a print newspaper of general circulation in the county of the locality of the land or in an online news publication with viewership from internet provider addresses within the county of the locality of the land. The department shall provide reasonable accommodations concerning the time, date, and manner of entry, at the request of the property owner. Any entry pursuant to this subsection shall be construed as an exercise of the State's police power and shall not be construed as an act of condemnation or trespass.
e. The department shall provide all findings, including risk assessments and safety concerns, resulting from investigations conducted on private property to the owner of the private property and shall not require a property owner to expend any funds for the implementation of the provisions of this section.
f. After completing the reclamation plan pursuant to this section, the department shall begin implementing the plan.
(1) To implement the plan, the department may carry out the mine reclamation projects itself, contract with private construction firms, or distribute grants to local governments or private property owners.
(2) Prior to implementing a mine reclamation project, the department shall attempt to gain permission from the property owner of each property on or under which the mine is located.
g. The department shall have the right to enter upon or have access to any property adversely affected by past mining practices to restore, reclaim, abate, control, or prevent the adverse effects if the department makes a finding that:
(1) the adverse effects pose a threat to environmental infrastructure; and
(2) the owners of the property are unknown, are not readily available, or refuse to give permission to enter.
h. (1) At least two months prior to entry, written and verbal notice shall be provided to the property owners, if known, or if not known, by posting notice upon the premises and advertising once either in a print newspaper of general circulation in the county of the locality of the land or in an online news publication with viewership from internet provider addresses within the county of the locality of the land.
(2) The department shall provide reasonable accommodations concerning the time, date, and manner of entry, at the request of the property owner.
(3) Any entry pursuant to this section shall be construed as an exercise of the State's police power and shall not be construed as an act of condemnation or trespass.
i. The department shall annually apply for any available federal funding in order to support the program.
6. a. There is established in the Department of Environmental Protection a special, nonlapsing fund to be known as the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program Fund." Monies in the fund shall be held separately and be dedicated solely for the purpose of making expenditures to fund a mine reclamation project or to support the department's administration of the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program.
b. The fund shall be credited with:
(1) any federal grant monies secured by the department;
(2) any monies appropriated by the Legislature or otherwise made available to the fund for the purposes of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill);
(3) other gifts, donations, or other monies received from any source, public or private, dedicated for deposit into the fund and approved by the State Treasurer; and
(4) any interest earnings or other investment income earned or received on the monies in the fund.
c. All monies appropriated or otherwise made available to the fund shall be dedicated for the purposes of the fund. Pending use, monies in the fund may be invested and reinvested in the same manner as other monies of the department in the manner provided by law. All earnings received from the investment or deposit of such monies shall be paid into and become a part of the fund and be available for use pursuant to P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
d. The department shall establish a grant program to disperse funds from the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program Fund" to sponsors of the mine reclamation projects. In order to effectuate the grant program, the department shall:
(1) establish eligibility criteria for a program grant award;
(2) adopt guidelines and procedures for the submission of grant applications, including, but not limited to, guidelines and procedures addressing the form and manner in which such applications are to be submitted;
(3) establish criteria for the evaluation and prioritization of program grant applications;
(4) identify the project costs that are eligible for financing through the use of program grant funding, and identify the specific factors that will be considered by the department in determining the appropriate dollar amount of each grant award issued under the program; and
(5) identify the terms and conditions for the awarding of a program grant, and for the use of program grant funds awarded, pursuant to this section, including, at a minimum, conditions requiring the recipient of a grant award to report relevant information to the department regarding the recipient's expenditure of grant funds awarded thereto under the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program."
7. a. The Department of Transportation shall, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt rules and regulations as necessary to implement the provisions of sections 1 through 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
b. The Department of Environmental Protection shall, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt rules and regulations as necessary to implement the provisions of sections 4 through 6 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
8. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes abandoned mine reclamation programs and funds in the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
Specifically, the bill establishes the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program within the DEP and the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program within the DOT (collectively "the abandoned mine reclamation programs"). The purpose of the abandoned mine reclamation programs is to protect the citizens of New Jersey from abandoned mines and mine subsidence causing adverse impacts to transportation and public utility infrastructure and environmental infrastructure in the State.
Under the bill, the DOT and DEP are required to develop, in consultation with certain entities, reclamation plans for abandoned mines that potentially pose a threat to transportation and public utility infrastructure and environmental infrastructure in the State, as outlined in the bill.
To carry out the respective plans, the bill authorizes employees and certain contractors of the DOT and DEP, to enter upon any property for the purpose of conducting exploratory work necessary to develop the plan or to determine the feasibility of restoring, reclaiming, abating, controlling, or preventing the adverse effects of an abandoned mine. At least two months prior to entry, written and verbal notice is required to be provided to the property owners, if known, or if not known, by posting notice upon the premises and advertising once either in a print newspaper of general circulation in the county of the locality of the land or in an online news publication with viewership from internet provider addresses within the county of the locality of the land. The DOT and the DEP are required to provide reasonable accommodations concerning the time, date, and manner of entry, at the request of the property owner. Any entry is to be construed as an exercise of the State's police power and is not to be construed as an act of condemnation or trespass.
The bill requires the DOT and the DEP to provide all findings, including risk assessments and safety concerns, resulting from investigations conducted on private property to the owner of the private property and prohibits the DOT and DEP from requiring a property owner to expend any funds for the implementation of the bill.
After completing the respective reclamation plans, the DOT and DEP are required to begin implementing the plans by taking certain actions outlined in the bill. While implementing the respective plans, the DOT and DEP are authorized to enter upon or access any property adversely affected by past mining practices to restore, reclaim, abate, control, or prevent the adverse effects if the DOT or DEP makes certain findings, as outlined in the bill. At least two months prior to entry, written and verbal notice is required to be provided to the property owners, if known, or if not known, by posting notice upon the premises and advertising once either in a print newspaper of general circulation in the county of the locality of the land or in an online news publication with viewership from internet provider addresses within the county of the locality of the land. The bill requires the DOT and the DEP to provide reasonable accommodations concerning the time, date, and manner of entry, at the request of the property owner and any entry pursuant to bill is to be construed as an exercise of the State's police power and is not to be construed as an act of condemnation or trespass. Annually, the DOT and DEP are required to apply for any available federal funding in order to support the respective programs.
Finally, the bill establishes, in the DOT a special, nonlapsing fund to be known as the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Transportation and Utility Protection Program Fund" and in the DEP a special, nonlapsing fund to be known as the "Abandoned Mine Reclamation Environment Protection Program Fund." Monies in the funds are to be held separately and be dedicated solely for the purpose of making expenditures to fund a mine reclamation project or to support the abandoned mine reclamation programs. The funds are to be credited with certain monies, as outlined in the bill. Finally, the bill requires the DOT and the DEP to establish a grant program to disperse monies from the respective funds to sponsors of the mine reclamation projects.
