Asm. Jessica Ramirez

Maddy summaryThis bill (A4524) creates a new third-degree crime of incest in New Jersey, establishing specific penalties for certain family relationships. It makes it illegal to marry, enter a civil union, or commit sexual penetration with ancestors, descendants, siblings, aunts/uncles (siblings of a parent), or nieces/nephews (children of a sibling), including blood relatives regardless of legitimacy or adoption. The offense carries a penalty of 3-5 years in prison, a fine up to $15,000, or both. This addresses a gap where current law does not cover incestuous acts between consenting adults under sexual assault statutes.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes a property right for individuals to control the commercial use of their name, image, likeness, or voice, allowing them to sue when these elements are used without permission. It creates civil remedies for unauthorized commercial use, including through AI technology, and a disorderly person offense for violations punishable by up to 6 months in jail or a $1,000 fine. The right applies to living individuals and can be inherited by heirs for 10 years after death, with options to extend if commercially exploited or terminate after two years of non-use. The bill includes fair use exceptions for news reporting, criticism, and other protected activities under federal law.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires the Office of Public Defender to provide legal representation to indigent defendants charged with contempt for violating specific domestic violence protection orders under New Jersey's Prevention of Domestic Violence Act. It applies only to contempt violations involving orders related to safety restrictions (not parenting time, financial compensation, counseling, or housing payments), which could otherwise lead to jail time as a fourth-degree crime or disorderly persons offense. Currently, the Office represents indigent defendants in similar cases with potential imprisonment, but this bill explicitly expands that duty to cover these contempt violations for covered domestic violence orders. The change implements Recommendation 29 from the 2023 Joint Committee on Criminal Justice report.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires New Jersey's Department of Children and Families to develop a program promoting trauma-informed care to help children and families affected by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and toxic stress. The program mandates creating a toolkit for state employees and community partners, promoting a Trauma Awareness Month, and identifying gaps in services. It also requires all state agencies serving children and adults to implement trauma-informed practices, including staff training on ACEs and using trauma-sensitive language in contracts. The goal is to improve health and educational outcomes by addressing childhood trauma early through evidence-based approaches.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires New Jersey county Sexual Assault Response Teams to include specific training on interacting with victims who have developmental disabilities as part of their standard education program. The teams, composed of forensic sexual assault nurse examiners, rape care advocates, and law enforcement officials, must now receive this training under existing law. The amendment adds "interacting with victims who have developmental disabilities" as a required topic in the standardized training curriculum developed by county program coordinators. This change ensures team members receive targeted instruction to better support victims with developmental disabilities during sexual assault investigations and medical examinations.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows New Jersey municipalities to impose an employer payroll tax of up to 1% for general municipal purposes, with a new provision enabling them to retain up to 5% of collected tax revenue annually to cover administrative costs. For municipalities with a median household income of $55,000 or higher, the bill mandates that all employer payroll tax revenues must be deposited into a trust fund exclusively for school purposes, including charter schools. The trust fund provides monthly payments to school districts to cover the gap in state school aid between current fiscal years and 2018, replacing certain state aid categories. This policy directly affects municipalities implementing the tax and their local school districts, particularly in higher-income areas.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires employers in New Jersey municipalities that impose a local payroll tax to provide additional information to the municipality when requested, to help administer the tax more effectively. It directly affects businesses that pay these local taxes, which are collected by towns and cities as part of their revenue. The change adds a new requirement for employers to share extra data (beyond standard payroll reports) without creating new taxes or altering existing payment deadlines, penalties, or confidentiality rules. The bill focuses on improving tax administration efficiency for local governments while maintaining current enforcement mechanisms.

Maddy summaryThis bill (A4377) requires New Jersey's state tax agency to automatically share certain employer payroll tax information with qualifying municipalities, specifically Newark and Jersey City (the only cities over 200,000 residents with employer payroll tax ordinances). It mandates disclosure of wage and tax withholding data to verify reported payroll information and identify employers who failed to report payroll for prior quarters. The key change removes the current requirement that the tax agency director must personally approve each disclosure, making the sharing mandatory for these two specified purposes. This directly affects municipal tax collection efforts by enabling more efficient verification of employer compliance with local payroll tax rules.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a new "general barber" license category in New Jersey, distinct from the existing "barber" license. It establishes a two-year barbering apprenticeship program with a maximum of 550 hours of training, requiring instruction in shears-over-comb techniques, shop management, ethics, state laws, and sanitation/hygiene. To qualify for the apprenticeship, individuals must be at least 17 years old, have good moral character, and be free of communicable diseases. Barber shops hosting apprenticeships must meet specific requirements regarding oversight and management. Upon completing the apprenticeship, individuals can apply for either a barbering or general barbering license.

Maddy summaryThis bill would exempt certain plastic materials processed at advanced plastic processing facilities from New Jersey's solid waste disposal and recycling laws. Specifically, plastics transported to and processed using chemical methods like gasification, pyrolysis, or solvolysis would no longer be classified as "solid waste" under state law. The exemption does not apply to plastics labeled with codes 1 (PETE) or 2 (HDPE). Advanced plastic processing facilities would still be subject to environmental regulations governing air and water pollution. This change would primarily affect plastic processors using these advanced chemical conversion methods.