Bill Text: NJ S4251 | 2026-2027 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires Director of Division of Housing and Community Resources in DCA to establish program to reimburse municipality which provides services to nonresident homeless persons; requires participation in Homeless Management Information System; appropriates $10 million.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Introduced) 2026-05-14 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee [S4251 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2026-S4251-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator BENJIE E. WIMBERLY
District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Requires Director of Division of Housing and Community Resources in DCA to establish program to reimburse municipality which provides services to nonresident homeless persons; requires participation in Homeless Management Information System; appropriates $10 million.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the reimbursement of agencies that provide services to persons experiencing homelessness, supplementing chapter 12A of Title 40A of the New Jersey Statutes, amending P.L.2019, c.73 and P.L.2021, c.440, and making an appropriation.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. (New section) As used in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):
"Agency" means the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.1983, c.530 (C.55:14K-4).
"Director" means the Director of the Division of Housing and Community Resources in the Department of Community Affairs.
"Division" means the Division of Housing and Community Resources in the Department of Community Affairs.
"Homeless Management Information System" means the system administered by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, or the Office of Homelessness Prevention if the Homeless Management Information System is transferred pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection e. of section 1 of P.L.2019, c.73 (C.52:27D-287.5), to provide real-time information about the occupancy status of available shelter beds.
"Municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless" means an emergency shelter for the homeless as that term is defined in section 2 of P.L.1985, c.48 (C.55:13C-2), and that is operated by a municipality, or by a nonprofit organization in partnership with a municipality.
"Program" means the municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless reimbursement program established pursuant to section 2 of in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
2. (New section) a. The director shall establish a cost-sharing program to reimburse a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless which provides services to an individual who is homeless or at risk for homelessness when that person seeks services at a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless that is not located in the person's last-known municipality of residence. The purpose of the cost-sharing reimbursement formula shall be to:
(1) compensate municipally-operated emergency shelters for the homeless which serve, in addition to their own homeless population, the homeless population of other municipalities; and
(2) require a municipality to pay a portion of the costs, as determined by the director pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection b. of this section, when the homeless population of their municipality seeks services at a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless of another municipality.
b. (1) The director shall develop a list of municipal costs that are eligible for reimbursement, including, but not limited to: emergency shelter, temporary housing, food, clothing, transportation services, and any other costs the director deems appropriate.
(2) Pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection, the director shall establish a reimbursement formula based on factors including, but not limited to: the number of nonresident individuals served; the duration and type of services provided; regional cost variations; and available program funding. The reimbursement formula shall include a cost-sharing component for a municipality that is not the person's last-known municipality of residence.
(3) A municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless shall not be eligible for the reimbursement of costs if:
(a) the individual seeking services voluntarily relocated to the municipality for either employment or family reasons;
(b) the individual's last-known municipality of residence cannot be verified; or
(c) the individual has lived in the municipality where the municipally-operated emergency shelter is located for more than 12 consecutive months.
c. To participate in the reimbursement program established pursuant to subsection a. of this section, a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless shall submit an application to the division in a manner and on such forms as determined by the director. An application shall include information detailing the shelter's costs that are eligible for reimbursement, pursuant to subsection b. of this section, and include verification that the last known municipality of residence of the person who received the listed services is a municipality other than a municipality in which the municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless which provided those services is located.
d. The director shall
encourage regional coordination among municipally-operated emergency shelters
for the homeless to improve efficiency, reduce the duplication of services, and
enhance the outcomes for individuals experiencing homelessness. Nothing in
P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)
shall be construed to authorize or require the relocation, transfer, or
displacement of an individual experiencing homelessness based solely on
municipal residency or an individual's prior connection to a municipally-operated
emergency shelter for the homeless.
3. (New section) a. Each municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless shall utilize the Homeless Management Information System administered by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, or the Office of Homelessness Prevention if the Homeless Management Information System is transferred pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection e. of section 1 of P.L.2019, c.73 (C.52:27D-287.5) to provide real-time information about the occupancy status of available shelter beds.
b. In addition to the information required to be recorded and delineated for persons who are homeless or at risk for homelessness under the Homeless Management Information System pursuant to section 1 of P.L.2019, c.73 (C.52:27D-287.5), each municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless shall catalog the last-known municipality of residence for each person who is homeless or at risk for homelessness and is seeking services from the shelter through official records including, but not limited to:
(1) State identification;
(2) prior address records;
(3) social services documentation; or
(4) if the individual's last-known municipality of residence cannot be verified.
c. In the event that an individual who is homeless or at risk for homelessness seeks services at a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless in a municipality other than the person's last known municipality of residence during the previous 12 months, the municipally-operated emergency shelter shall be authorized to seek reimbursement from the individual's last-known municipality of residence for the provision of those services, pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
4. Section 1 of P.L.2019, c.73 (C.52:27D-287.5) is amended to read as follows:
1. a. There is hereby established within the Department of Community Affairs an Office of Homelessness Prevention to coordinate among State and local agencies and private organizations that provide services to persons who are homeless or at risk for homelessness, and to implement a Statewide strategy to address homelessness.
b. The office shall be under the immediate supervision of a director, who shall be a person qualified by training and experience to direct the work of [such] the office. The Commissioner of Community Affairs shall appoint the director, who shall serve at the pleasure of the commissioner. The director shall administer the work of the office under the direction of the commissioner and shall perform such other functions of the department as the commissioner may prescribe.
c. In addition to other functions, powers, and duties vested in the Department of Community Affairs by P.L.2019, c.73 (C.52:27D-287.5 et al.) or by any other law, the Department of Community Affairs shall, through the Office of Homelessness Prevention:
(1) Collect, maintain, and make available information concerning persons who are homeless or at risk for homelessness, including demographics information, current services and resources available, the cost and availability of services and programs, and the met and unmet needs of this population. All entities that receive State, county, or municipal funding shall provide the office access to all data they maintain;
(2) Evaluate State and local services and resources and develop, implement, and revise, as necessary, a consolidated plan for addressing the needs of persons who are homeless or at risk for homelessness;
(3) Explore, compile, and disseminate information regarding public and private funding sources for State and local programs serving persons who are homeless;
(4) Assess and provide recommendations for coordinating the activities of State programs, including multi-State programs, and local coalitions for persons who are homeless and promote the effectiveness of programs addressing the needs of persons who are homeless;
(5) Convene meetings and workshops of State and local agencies, local coalitions and programs, and other stakeholders for developing and reviewing policies, services, activities, coordination, and funding of efforts to meet the needs of persons who are homeless, including training, counseling, and navigation services essential to enable persons who are homeless to make the transition to permanent housing; and
(6) Conduct or promote research on the effectiveness of programs addressing the needs of persons who are homeless.
d. All State, county, and municipal departments and agencies shall, upon request, make every reasonable effort to assist the Office of Homelessness Prevention in carrying out the office's functions, powers, and duties.
e. (1) On the effective date of P.L.2019, c.73 (C.52:27D-287.5 et al.), the Office of Homelessness Prevention shall have access to all information in the Homeless Management Information System administered in the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency.
(2) The Homeless Management Information System, administered in the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, including any personnel charged with administering and maintaining the Homeless Management Information System, may be transferred to the Office of Homelessness Prevention. If the Homeless Management Information System is transferred pursuant to this paragraph, all appropriations, grants, and other moneys available and to become available to the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, which the agency uses for the maintenance and administration of the Homeless Management Information System, shall be transferred to the Office of Homelessness Prevention.
(3) The New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, or the Office of Homelessness Prevention if the Homeless Management Information System is transferred pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection, shall adopt rules and regulations to require all State and local agencies and private organizations that provide services to persons who are homeless or at risk for homelessness to participate in the Homeless Management Information System and delineate necessary information reporting requirements as part of this participation.
(cf: P.L.2019, c.73, s.1)
5. Section 1 of P.L.2021, c.440 (C.55:14K-5.5) is amended to read as follows:
1. The New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, or the Office of Homelessness Prevention if the Homeless Management Information System is transferred pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection e. of P.L.2019, c.73 (C.52:27D-287.5), shall [allow] require all operators of shelters for the homeless and selected local information and referral providers who place persons in the shelters to [have access to] use the Homeless Management Information System and to provide real-time information about the occupancy status of shelter beds in the State, as collected by the Homeless Management Information System, in order to determine the availability of shelter beds in the community or within a certain geographic area. Shelter operators shall update information in the Homeless Management Information System about the availability of shelter beds not later than one hour after a bed becomes available, or an available bed has been filled.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to shelters for victims of domestic violence.
(cf: P.L.2021, c.440, s.1)
6. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Division of Housing and Community Resources in the Department of Community Affairs, the sum of $10,000,000 to effectuate the purposes of this act, including:
a. reimbursing a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless for eligible costs under the program established pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill); and
b. requiring each emergency shelter for the homeless in operation to utilize the Homeless Management Information System pursuant to section 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
7. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Director of Division of Housing and Community Resources (director) in DCA to establish a cost-sharing program to reimburse a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless which provides services to an individual who is homeless or at risk for homelessness when that person seeks services at a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless in a municipality other than the person's last-known municipality of residence. The purpose of the cost-sharing reimbursement formula is to:
� compensate municipally-operated emergency shelters for the homeless which serve, in addition to their own homeless population, the homeless population of other municipalities; and
� require a municipality to pay a portion of the costs, as determined by the director, when the homeless population of their municipality seeks services at a municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless of another municipality.
Under the bill, the director is required to develop a list of municipal costs that are eligible for reimbursement, including, but not limited to: emergency shelter, temporary housing, food, clothing, transportation services, and any other costs the director deems appropriate.
Factors that do not qualify for reimbursement include if: the individual seeking services voluntarily relocated to the municipality for either employment or family reasons; the individual's last-known municipality of residence cannot be verified; or the individual has lived in the municipality in which the municipally-operated emergency shelter is located for more than 12 consecutive months.
Under the bill, in addition to the information required to be recorded and delineated for persons who are homeless or at risk for homelessness under the Homeless Management Information System, each municipally-operated emergency shelter for the homeless is required to catalog the last-known municipality of residence for each person who is homeless or at risk for homelessness through official records including, but not limited to: State identification; prior address records; social services documentation; or if the individual's last-known municipality of residence cannot be verified.
The bill appropriates $10 million from the General Fund to the Division of Housing and Community Resources in the Department of Community Affairs to effectuate the purposes of the bill.
