Sen. Linda Greenstein

Maddy summaryThis bill requires boards of trustees at New Jersey's state colleges/universities and county colleges to include two employee members. These members must be appointed by the Governor from a list recommended by labor organizations representing college staff, serve two-year terms (with initial one-year terms), and have full voting rights except on employment matters affecting staff. The legislation amends existing statutes to mandate this employee representation on all such boards, ensuring labor perspectives are directly included in governance. It directly affects college employees who become board members and the decision-making processes of these educational institutions.

Maddy summaryS 905 creates a 14-member "Disability Life-Sustaining Measures Advisory Council" within New Jersey's Department of Health. The council directly affects people with disabilities during public health emergencies by requiring it to recommend policies for emergency care (including ventilators and resuscitation), protect disability rights in medical settings, review emergency standards for federal compliance, and gather public input. The council includes ex-officio members from disability advocacy and state agencies, plus public members with lived experience or advocacy expertise, and must submit annual reports to the Governor and Legislature. This bill establishes a formal process to ensure disability rights are protected in emergency healthcare decisions.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires owners of specific buildings - including hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, public housing (with HUD funding), and multi-unit residential properties - to test their drinking water annually for Legionella bacteria. Testing must be conducted by a lab accredited by New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) using DEP-established best practices. If Legionella levels exceed the DEP's set standard, owners must immediately notify residents and begin remediation within 30 days, completing it within six months. Violations could result in civil penalties of up to $25,000 under the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Maddy summaryS 997 establishes a $10 million grant program within New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection to help municipalities upgrade improperly closed sanitary landfills (those closed before June 1, 1987, without completing required closure standards). The program directly assists municipalities owning such landfills by covering costs for infrastructure improvements like methane vents, leachate systems, and capping to prevent pollution and health hazards. Applicants must submit detailed project plans, and grants cannot duplicate federal funding. Municipalities receiving grants must report annually on fund usage and project outcomes, with the Department required to submit annual program effectiveness reports to the Governor and Legislature.

Maddy summaryS 1357 offers temporary tax credits to New Jersey businesses that relocate operations to the state. It provides a 35% credit for expenses moving operations from outside the U.S. and a 25% credit for expenses moving from within the U.S. but outside New Jersey, covering costs like relocating staff and eliminating overseas units. To qualify, businesses must maintain more full-time employees in New Jersey during the credit year than before relocation, and unused credits expire by 2025. If a business later reduces its New Jersey workforce, the state can recapture the credit. This bill directly affects corporations relocating operations to New Jersey under specific conditions.

Maddy summaryNew Jersey's S 2169 provides tax credits to businesses that hire apprentices in U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)-registered programs. Businesses receive a base $1,000 credit per apprentice per tax year, with an additional $2,000 credit if the apprentice is a veteran, displaced worker, previously incarcerated, or from an underrepresented group (based on race, gender, etc.). To qualify, the apprentice must be employed for at least seven months during the tax year, and the credit cannot be claimed for more than four years per apprentice. The bill also prohibits using these credits to displace existing workers or undermine collective bargaining agreements.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows New Jersey taxpayers to deduct union dues paid to qualifying labor organizations from their gross income when filing state taxes. It directly affects New Jersey residents who pay dues to labor organizations, including public employees. The key provision requires taxpayers to provide verification of dues paid to the Division of Taxation, with "union dues" defined to include fees, assessments, and other required charges. The deduction applies to taxable years starting January 1 after the bill's enactment.

Maddy summaryS 1050 requires landlords who rent space to child care providers (like daycares, preschools, or after-school programs) to install and maintain NSF/ANSI-certified water filters at all fixtures used for drinking, food prep, or baby formula if they refuse to allow lead service line replacements. This applies to properties where the landlord denies access for the public water system to replace lead pipes, as mandated by another law (P.L.2021, c.183). Landlords must annually certify filter installation to the Environmental Protection Department and face civil penalties of up to $500 per violation per day for noncompliance. Tenants can also notify landlords of violations, triggering a 30-day correction period or court-ordered rent escrow if landlords fail to act.

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 1419) establishes new structural inspection requirements for specific residential buildings in New Jersey. It applies to condominium and cooperative buildings with concrete, masonry, steel, or hybrid structural systems (excluding single-family homes, certain rental buildings, and frame constructions). Key provisions require initial inspections before occupancy for new buildings and mandatory 15-year inspections afterward to verify structural integrity, with costs borne by building owners. The bill was introduced in the Senate on January 9, 2024, but was withdrawn the same day.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows New Jersey municipalities to allocate up to 30% of their municipal development trust funds - collected from residential construction fees - to provide down payment grants for first-time veteran homebuyers. Each veteran can receive up to $15,000 in grants, which do not count as income for eligibility in other state programs or for tax purposes. The funds must come from existing trust funds designated for affordable housing, not new taxes, and supplement existing state housing assistance programs like the NJ Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency’s low-interest loans. This provision directly benefits veterans purchasing their first home in municipalities that choose to implement it.