Sen. Latham Tiver

Maddy summaryThis bill requires New Jersey's Attorney General to annually review all sex offenders released from prison or involuntary commitment the previous year. The review checks whether these individuals properly registered as sex offenders and were assigned to a tier (which determines public notification levels) as required by law. The Attorney General must complete this review by March 30th each year. This is a procedural measure focused on verifying compliance with existing registration rules, not changing the rules themselves. The bill was introduced in January 2024 and has not yet been voted on.

Maddy summaryS 597 requires electric, gas, water, and sewer utilities in New Jersey to notify customers about upcoming hearings on proposed rate increases. Utilities must include clear notice in customer bills or send it via mail/electronic means, and also publish the hearing details in local newspapers. The bill also revises where hearings must be held, mandating they occur in the largest-population municipality affected (or each affected county's largest municipality if multiple counties are involved). These changes aim to improve transparency for rate increase decisions before they take effect.

Maddy summaryThis bill provides tax credits to New Jersey small businesses (fewer than 25 employees, under $1 million annual revenue) and farm employers to offset increased labor costs from the state's minimum wage hike. It allows credits equal to the difference between the new minimum wage and the prior rate, multiplied by hours worked per employee, capped at $12,500 per employee. Credits apply to both corporation business tax (Section 1) and gross income tax (Section 2), must be calculated based on pre-2019 employee counts if growth occurred, and are available for ten years after enactment. The credits cannot exceed 50% of tax liability and cannot overlap with other business incentives for the same period.

Maddy summaryThis bill proposes a constitutional amendment allowing New Jersey municipalities to offer a partial property tax exemption for the primary residence of eligible 9/11 first responders. It would permit local governments to exempt the first 15% of a home's assessed value from property taxes for police officers, firefighters, and EMTs disabled due to medical conditions linked to their work at the World Trade Center site after the September 11, 2001 attacks. To qualify, individuals must have a condition certified by a federally authorized health program related to the 9/11 recovery efforts. The amendment requires the state legislature to pass enabling legislation but specifies that the state will not reimburse municipalities for lost tax revenue from this exemption.

Maddy summaryNew Jersey's S 600 establishes a program that helps volunteer emergency responders reduce student loan debt. It directly affects New Jersey residents who volunteer as firefighters, EMTs, or emergency management staff after the bill takes effect, provided they earned an in-state undergraduate degree or certificate since the bill's effective date. Participants can receive up to $6,000 total in loan repayment - $2,000 per year during their second, third, and fourth years of active volunteer service - after meeting annual hour requirements (500+ hours for EMTs/fire squads, or 60% alarm response for firefighters). The program requires documentation from their volunteer organization and excludes first-year service from eligibility.

Maddy summaryS 644 requires New Jersey's Department of Human Services to create a five-year pilot program providing coordinated services to adults with both developmental disabilities and mental illness. The program establishes community-based therapeutic respite homes in each of the state's three regions, with dedicated beds for crisis stabilization and preventive respite, and offers 24/7 crisis response services like emergency counseling to de-escalate behavioral health crises. It mandates individualized crisis management plans to help eligible adults avoid institutional care by maintaining community living through timely, non-clinical support. The pilot aims to streamline cross-system services - including assessments, crisis response, and therapeutic respite - to improve stability and reduce reliance on emergency medical services or institutional treatment.

Maddy summaryThis bill (S 601) changes New Jersey's Police and Firemen’s Retirement System (PFRS) to make death benefits retroactive to an officer or firefighter’s first day of employment if they died before enrolling in the system. It ensures that surviving spouses, children, or parents can receive death benefits even if the employee never enrolled, treating the death as occurring during active service. The bill allows survivors to apply for retroactive benefits within 12 months of the law’s enactment, including for deaths that occurred before the bill passed. It directly affects police and fire personnel who die without PFRS enrollment and their families.

Maddy summaryThis bill adds specific illicit fentanyl derivatives - including Furanyl Fentanyl, Carfentanyl, and 3-Methylfentanyl - to Schedule I of New Jersey's Controlled Dangerous Substances Act. Schedule I classification means these substances are deemed to have high abuse potential and no accepted medical use, making their possession or distribution illegal without authorization. The bill codifies a 2016 emergency order that had already temporarily added these substances to Schedule I, making the designation permanent through statute. This change directly affects law enforcement, pharmacies, and anyone handling these specific fentanyl derivatives, while leaving prescription fentanyl (a Schedule II substance) unaffected.

Maddy summaryThis New Jersey bill (S 607) makes it a crime to falsely claim to be a ride-hailing driver (like Uber or Lyft) to gain a benefit, cause harm, or defraud someone. It creates two offenses: a fourth-degree crime (up to 18 months in jail or $10,000 fine) for pretending to be a driver, and a third-degree crime (3-5 years in jail or $15,000 fine) if someone also uses fake identification. The law specifically excludes legitimate drivers offering cash rides. It directly affects individuals impersonating drivers to commit fraud, not actual transportation network company drivers.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires New Jersey's Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) to authorize private companies, such as driver training schools or local government agencies, to administer written and driving tests for commercial driver licenses (CDLs). It removes the previous requirement for a pilot program evaluation and eliminates limits on the number of vendors allowed to conduct these tests. The MVC must set testing fees at the state's actual cost (not higher) and regulate third-party administration. This directly affects CDL applicants seeking faster testing options and private testing providers eligible to offer these services.