Asm. Aura Dunn

Maddy summaryThis bill (A648) requires all New Jersey public school districts to include water safety instruction in health education for students in grades K-12, beginning with the 2018-2019 school year. The instruction must cover four key topics: proper use of flotation devices, recognizing water conditions, responding to rip currents, and swimming near lifeguard-monitored areas. It directly affects every public school district and K-12 student in New Jersey by mandating this curriculum as part of existing health education standards. The law takes immediate effect upon enactment.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires New Jersey's Commissioner of Health to establish a Parkinson's disease public awareness and education program using available funds. The program will develop public outreach campaigns covering disease causes, symptoms, treatment options, and safety concerns; create accessible educational materials for patients and providers; and train healthcare workers, law enforcement, emergency responders, and judicial staff to recognize symptoms and respond appropriately. It mandates the Department of Health to maintain a list of specialized treatment providers with disclaimers about current research limitations, and to publish plain-language information in English and Spanish on its website after consulting with the American Parkinson Disease Association and Rutgers medical experts. The initiative directly affects Parkinson's patients, their caregivers, and public safety and healthcare professionals across New Jersey.

Maddy summaryThis bill elevates severe animal cruelty against domestic pets to a second-degree crime, punishable by 5-10 years in prison or fines up to $150,000. It specifically targets acts like torture, mutilation, or causing death through extreme indifference to a pet's life - such as repeatedly beating or poisoning an animal. The law applies directly to individuals who commit these acts against companion animals, while maintaining existing penalties for less severe abuse. It is named "River's Law" after a pet that suffered such cruelty. The bill amends New Jersey's animal cruelty statute (R.S.4:22-17) to create this higher penalty tier.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows New Jersey municipalities to count transitional housing reserved for low or moderate-income veterans toward their affordable housing requirements. Specifically, municipalities earn one credit and one bonus credit for each bedroom in such housing occupied by eligible veterans for at least 10 years. "Transitional housing" refers to housing with supportive services (like counseling or job training) designed to help homeless veterans move to permanent housing within 24 months. It applies to veterans who are New Jersey residents and were honorably discharged from active military service (excluding certain court-martial separations). The change modifies existing affordable housing rules to incentivize veteran-focused housing projects.

Maddy summaryACR 100 proposes a constitutional amendment requiring every bill and joint resolution introduced in New Jersey's Legislature to be referred to a standing committee for a public hearing during the two-year legislative term. This would apply to all bills, replacing the current system where committees may choose whether to review legislation. The amendment would mandate that each bill must be heard at a public committee meeting at least once per term. If approved by voters, it would change the legislative process by making committee review mandatory for all introduced bills.

Maddy summaryThis bill updates New Jersey's domestic violence law to explicitly include psychological abuse and economic abuse in the legal definition of domestic violence. Psychological abuse is defined as behavior causing fear, serious alarm, or distress that substantially disrupts daily activities, while economic abuse is defined as actions hindering a person's ability to manage money, property, or access essential goods and services. The change ensures victims experiencing these non-physical forms of abuse can access the same legal protections, restraining orders, and support services as those facing physical violence under the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act. It directly affects all individuals protected by the act, including current or former intimate partners, family members, and those in dating relationships who face these specific abuses.

Maddy summaryNew Jersey Assembly Bill A3249 increases the state child tax credit and expands eligibility. It raises the income threshold for full credit from $80,000 to $100,000 annually, and increases the credit amount for children under age 6 (from $1,000 to $2,600 at the lowest income level) and for children ages 6-12 (from $2,000 to $2,000 at the lowest income level). This bill directly affects New Jersey residents with children under 12 years old who earn under $100,000 in taxable income. The changes make permanent state-level tax relief that temporarily matched federal increases under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a $500,000 child care reimbursement program through New Jersey's Department of Children and Families (DCF) to help parents with costs incurred due to pandemic-related school closures. It directly affects employed parents or guardians who need licensed child care because schools switched to remote learning or closed during the COVID-19 emergency. Eligible families apply to DCF, which will set selection criteria and distribute funds to reimburse tuition for licensed child care centers. The program uses federal CARES Act funds and expires when the state's declared public health emergency ends.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a single New Jersey Suicide Prevention Advisory Council within the Department of Health, replacing two existing councils (youth and elderly-focused) to streamline suicide prevention efforts. The council will examine prevention needs, make recommendations to relevant entities, and coordinate data collection across state agencies. The bill also requires school staff to complete suicide prevention training, creates a confidential reporting system for suicide attempts and deaths (with legal protections for reporters), and mandates annual reports on suicide data to guide prevention strategies. These changes aim to improve coordination, training, and data collection for suicide prevention across New Jersey.

Maddy summaryThis bill revises New Jersey's standard for determining whether workers are employees or independent contractors under state labor laws. It replaces the current "ABC" test with a new framework that considers three categories of evidence: behavioral control, financial control, and the nature of the working relationship. The new standard aligns with the test used by the federal Internal Revenue Service. This change affects workers and employers across multiple laws, including unemployment compensation, wage payment rules, and tax withholding requirements. Under the new standard, the Department of Labor must consider all relevant evidence about control and independence when making these determinations.