Sen. Brian Stack

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 4372) prohibits New Jersey's Board of Public Utilities (BPU) from approving electric or gas utility rate increases that would raise the average residential customer's bill by more than 2% over any five-year period. It directly affects residential utility customers in New Jersey by limiting cumulative rate hikes on their monthly bills. The key provision requires the BPU to reject any proposed rate increase that projects exceeding this 2% cap over five years. The bill takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Maddy summaryS 2236 exempts nursing mothers of children one year old or younger from jury duty in New Jersey. This change adds to existing hardship exemptions under N.J.S.2B:20-10(c)(3)(b), allowing mothers who are nursing or expressing milk to claim exemption without needing to prove additional financial or medical hardship. The policy directly affects nursing mothers summoned for jury service during their infant's first year. The law took effect immediately upon approval (P.L.2025, c.43) and applies to all jury summonses issued after that date.

Maddy summaryNew Jersey's S 3620 requires electric and gas utilities using smart meters to establish an "Energy Bill Watch" program for smart meter customers. The program mandates utilities to notify customers when their daily usage exceeds the previous billing cycle's average (on the 10th and 20th days of each cycle), offer customizable dollar-value alerts, and include average monthly usage costs and kilowatt/therm amounts in notifications. Utilities must automatically enroll smart meter customers, provide opt-out options, advertise the program through multiple channels, and include specific billing details in all customer bills (previous cycle amount, current cycle amount, and the difference between them). This bill directly affects smart meter customers of New Jersey's electric and gas utilities.

Maddy summaryS 3587 upgrades retail theft offenses in New Jersey, including elevating "leader of organized retail theft enterprise" to a first-degree crime punishable by 10-20 years in prison. The bill creates a new offense for "fostering the sale of stolen property" (including online sales), which is a disorderly persons offense punishable by up to six months in jail. It establishes a retail theft unit within the Department of Law and Public Safety to investigate and prosecute organized retail theft, appropriating $1 million for this purpose. The bill also includes new requirements for gift card sales to prevent fraud, such as mandatory notices for retailers and packaging restrictions for both open- and closed-loop gift cards.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires the New Jersey State Police to verify whether a person has an unprocessed expungement order before releasing their criminal history background check. If an expungement order exists but hasn't been reflected in the system, the State Bureau of Identification must update the record to show the expungement prior to dissemination. This ensures individuals with court-ordered expungements are not incorrectly listed as having criminal records. The bill directly affects people seeking background checks for employment, licensing, or volunteer opportunities who have had expungement orders granted but not yet processed by the State Police.

Maddy summaryNew Jersey's S 2952 amends the state's rooming and boarding house regulations to specifically address cooperative sober living residences, which are facilities for people recovering from alcohol or drug addiction. The bill increases civil penalties for licensing violations to $25,000, requires two unannounced annual inspections of these facilities (compared to one for regular rooming houses), and establishes new reporting requirements for serious incidents like overdoses, fires, or communicable disease outbreaks. It mandates that these residences employ staff who live on-site and are qualified to assist with addiction recovery, prohibit alcohol and drug use within the facilities, conduct random testing of residents, and provide individual counseling and group recovery meetings. The bill appropriates $100,000 for implementation and requires the Department of Community Affairs to maintain a public list of licensed cooperative sober living residences with their locations and contact information.

Maddy summaryS 2911 expands eligibility for New Jersey's "Combat Infantryman Badge" license plate to include veterans who hold a Combat Action Ribbon, as certified on their DD-214 or discharge form. Currently, only holders of the Combat Infantryman Badge qualify, excluding Marines who receive the Combat Action Ribbon instead. The bill amends existing law to allow these veterans to obtain the same distinctive plate design (bearing the badge emblem and "Combat Infantryman Badge" wording) for a $15 additional fee. Surviving spouses of eligible veterans may retain the plate on their vehicle under the same rules. This change specifically addresses a gap that prevented Marines from accessing the plate under current law.

Maddy summaryThis bill would extend New Jersey's early voting period for primary elections to begin 11 days before the election (up from 4 days for non-presidential primaries and 6 days for presidential primaries), ending on the second day before the election. It would require county boards of elections to designate public locations for early voting based on population size, with specific requirements for accessibility and security of ballots. The bill specifies that early voting would occur Monday through Saturday from 10 AM to 8 PM and Sunday from 10 AM to 6 PM at designated locations. The bill appropriates $6 million to support these changes, which would affect all registered voters participating in primary elections in New Jersey.

Maddy summaryThis bill, the "Senior Citizen Tenant Protection Act," would allow New Jersey residents aged 55 or older who have lived in the same rental unit (not public housing) for at least 10 years and earn $80,000 or less annually to apply for "protected senior citizen tenant" status. Approved tenants would limit rent increases to 75% of the annual Consumer Price Index change in their region, adjusted each year. Landlords violating this limit could face penalties of $500 or three times the excess rent, plus legal fees. Landlords may request hardship waivers if the limit causes financial strain, but waivers do not override local rent control laws.

Maddy summaryS 2948 requires that only structural engineers or employees of certified fire escape inspection companies can install, service, repair, inspect, and maintain fire escapes. The bill amends New Jersey's fire protection laws to add fire escapes to the definition of "fire protection equipment" and creates a new "Fire Escape Contractor" certification classification. It specifies that building occupancy certificates for structures with fire escapes can only be issued after inspections by these qualified professionals, and requires officials enforcing fire code related to fire escapes to be structural engineers or certified employees. This directly affects contractors, building inspectors, and property owners who must comply with these new requirements for fire escape installations and inspections.