S 4151 New Jersey Senate · 2026-2027 Regular Session

Authorizes Class Three special law enforcement officers to provide security in places of religious worship; makes certain clarifications concerning their use in nonpublic schools.

This bill expands the authority of Class Three special law enforcement officers in New Jersey to provide security at places of religious worship, such as churches and mosques, in addition to their existing roles at schools. Under the new provisions, these officers would possess full police powers while on duty at religious sites, though they must complete specific training and certification to carry firearms. The legislation also clarifies that school districts hiring these officers for public schools must also provide them for nonpublic schools within the same district. Finally, the act allows current officers to continue their service if they complete the required training and certification within 24 months of the bill's effective date.
Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
May 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced May 11, 2026 Last action Jun 24, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Reprint · 3 edits
MINOR
This is a first reprint of S4151 following Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee action on June 24, 2026. The most substantive change adds a provision allowing nonpublic schools to enter into a memorandum of understanding with a municipality or local unit outside their own municipality for Class Three security services. Co-sponsors (Senators Johnson and Singer) were added, and the committee statement section was removed as is typical upon reprint.
Scope change
The bill's scope expanded slightly to permit nonpublic schools to contract for Class Three security services with municipalities outside their own municipality, rather than being limited to the local unit within the school district.
SCOPE

A new provision allows a nonpublic school to enter into a memorandum of understanding with a municipality or local unit outside the municipality where the nonpublic school is located for security services. This expands flexibility in how nonpublic schools can arrange for Class Three officer coverage, particularly relevant for schools near municipal boundaries.

TECHNICAL

Senators Johnson and Singer were added as co-sponsors of the bill.

The committee statement section explaining the bill's purpose and background was removed from the reprint, which is standard practice when a bill is reprinted after committee action.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
3
Key actions
0
Committee
1
Jun 18, 2026
Committee
Transferred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee
upper
May 11, 2026
Introduced
Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee
upper
2 primary · 2 co-sponsors

Sponsors