Asm. Aura Dunn

Maddy summaryThis bill extends New Jersey's existing telemedicine pay parity law, requiring health insurance plans to pay providers the same rate for telehealth services as in-person visits for covered services. It applies to all health benefits plans in New Jersey (including Medicaid and private insurers) and affects providers delivering telehealth care. The extension, now ending December 31, 2025 (previously 2024), maintains the requirement that telehealth reimbursement equals in-person rates for covered services, excluding audio-only visits (which receive 50% of in-person rates) and behavioral health services (which receive full in-person rates). This is a procedural extension of an existing policy, not a new mandate.

Maddy summaryThis bill (A908) requires New Jersey's Attorney General to create a statewide Internet-based tracking system for rape kits (sexual assault forensic evidence kits). It directly affects victims of sexual assault, healthcare facilities that collect kits, law enforcement agencies, and laboratories that process them. The system must track kits through every step - from collection at a hospital to final disposition - allowing authorized users to monitor the chain of custody. The Attorney General must issue guidelines to implement the system, which takes effect seven months after enactment. The bill focuses on improving transparency and accountability in handling rape kits, not on changing legal standards for sexual assault cases.

Maddy summaryThis bill (A5140) increases penalties for businesses, public facilities, and transportation providers who deny access to service dogs and their handlers. Currently, violators face civil fines ($250-$1,000 for repeat offenses), but this bill makes first violations criminal offenses (petty disorderly persons, up to 30 days jail or $500 fine) and subsequent violations criminal (disorderly persons, up to 1 year jail or $1,000 fine). It applies to public facilities, New Jersey Transit (NJT), and transportation network companies (like ride-sharing services). Penalties collected fund law enforcement training on service dog rights, and the Attorney General must launch a public awareness campaign. The bill takes effect immediately.

Maddy summaryThis bill (A5148) allows 12th-grade students in New Jersey public schools to have excused absences for military enlistment activities without penalty. It directly affects students planning to join the U.S. Armed Forces or National Guard, covering required activities like testing, medical evaluations, interviews, and fingerprinting. The absence is recorded as excused on attendance records, does not appear on transcripts or employment forms, and is excluded from perfect attendance calculations. Schools may require documentation to verify the student's eligibility under this provision. The bill takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 871, now P.L.2024, c.97) grants retirement eligibility to certain county fire instructors in New Jersey. It allows eligible individuals - those who were enrolled in the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) before November 1, 2008, employed by a county on the bill’s effective date, maintained continuous membership, earned over $1,500 annually, and held permanent career status - to receive service credit for their tenure and qualify for retirement benefits. It also reinstates membership for those whose PERS coverage was terminated within five years prior to the bill’s effective date, provided they repay any returned contributions. The law takes effect immediately, directly impacting qualifying county fire instructors who previously lacked full retirement eligibility under PERS.

Maddy summaryThis bill would expand eligibility for New Jersey veterans' benefits by removing specific time periods and locations that veterans must have served in to qualify for certain civil service and pension benefits. Instead of requiring service during particular wars or in specific conflict zones, the bill would allow veterans who have served in federal active duty in any branch of the U.S. Armed Forces or Reserve component to qualify. This change would impact civil service preferences, retirement benefits through the Teachers' Pension and Annuity Fund and Public Employees' Retirement System, and the ability to purchase military service credit for retirement. It would make it easier for veterans of more recent conflicts to access these benefits.

Maddy summaryThis bill excludes certain military compensation from New Jersey's gross income tax for residents who serve outside the state. Specifically, it applies to New Jersey residents stationed or deployed out-of-state for at least six months during a taxable year. The exclusion covers pay from the U.S. Armed Forces, including mustering-out payments and housing allowances, but only for service performed outside New Jersey. It directly affects New Jersey military members stationed or deployed out-of-state, reducing their state tax burden on that income.

Maddy summaryNew Jersey's S 2652 revises laws to better protect children from sexual exploitation. It creates a civil right for victims (or their guardians/advocacy groups) to sue perpetrators for three times the profits gained from distributing child sexual abuse material, holding both individuals and corporate employees personally liable. The bill also expands sex offender registration requirements to include anyone working with children in schools or jobs for over 14 consecutive days, clarifies which offenses trigger registration (like creating or sharing exploitative material), and adds a limited exception for juvenile-created nude photos under strict conditions. These changes directly affect victims of child exploitation, perpetrators, and institutions that facilitate such abuse. The law passed unanimously in 2024 (P.L.2024, c.92).

Maddy summaryNew Jersey's A5045 bill establishes a "Welcome Home Veterans Bonus" program within the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to encourage veterans to remain in the state after military service. It provides $1,000 for veterans who served outside the continental U.S. with hostile fire pay, $500 for other service (overseas or domestic), and $300 for certain expeditionary service, with eligibility requiring service in specified operations (e.g., Operation Enduring Freedom), an honorable discharge or discharge related to sexual orientation/gender identity/HIV status, and six months of New Jersey residency before entering service. Veterans who die during active duty receive a $1,000 payment to heirs, and applications are processed through the DMVA with established evaluation criteria and an appeals board. The program is funded by a dedicated state fund and requires applicants to submit documentation verifying residency and service.

Maddy summaryThis resolution urges the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement (SSUTA) to amend its definition of "grooming and hygiene products" to exclude oral healthcare items like toothpaste, toothbrushes, and mouthwash. Currently, these products are taxed at New Jersey's 6.625% sales tax rate under the SSUTA's existing definition. The resolution requests two specific changes: (1) removing oral care products from the "grooming" category, and (2) creating a new "oral healthcare products" category to allow states to exempt these items from sales tax. As a non-binding resolution, it seeks to enable future tax exemptions for these essential health products by modifying the multistate SSUTA agreement, not by directly changing New Jersey law.