Maddy summaryThis bill (S 4584) strengthens New Jersey's child abuse reporting laws by upgrading penalties for failing to report abuse and adding penalties for failing to cooperate with investigations. It upgrades failure to report general child abuse from a disorderly persons offense to a fourth-degree crime (up to 18 months in jail or $10,000 fine), and upgrades failure to report sexual abuse against children from a fourth-degree to a third-degree crime (3-5 years in jail or $15,000 fine). It also creates a new fourth-degree crime for knowingly failing to cooperate with child abuse or neglect investigations conducted by the Division of Child Protection and Permanency or designated agencies. These changes directly affect mandated reporters (like teachers, healthcare workers, and social workers) who have reasonable cause to believe child abuse occurred.
Sponsored bills
Maddy summaryS 4575 requires New Jersey electric public utilities to submit transmission project proposals to the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) for approval before starting new or modified transmission lines. Proposals must detail environmental and safety impacts, all project costs, how the project meets a public need (such as improved reliability or lower consumer costs), and cheaper alternatives. The BPU must review proposals within 90 days and approve them if they are reasonable, in the public interest, and cost-effective. This bill directly affects utilities that transmit electricity in New Jersey, aiming to ensure projects are necessary and cost-efficient.
Maddy summaryThis bill requires New Jersey's Board of Public Utilities (BPU) to publish third-party energy supplier information on its website in a user-friendly format, modeled after the most effective website from another state, within 90 days and update it quarterly. The BPU must also run a public awareness campaign to educate residential electricity and gas customers about their right to choose an alternative energy supplier (retail choice), explaining the benefits and how to use the website information. Currently, only about 6.2% of residential electricity customers and 2.5% of residential gas customers exercise this option, so the bill aims to increase awareness and participation. The website content must be in plain language and designed to help customers make informed decisions about their energy provider.
Maddy summaryThis New Jersey bill (S 4571) requires public utilities (like gas, electric, or water companies) to notify customers directly when they file a rate increase petition with the Board of Public Utilities. Utilities must include specific details in the first bill after filing: a summary of the request, the reason for it, its impact on customers, hearing information, and how to submit feedback. Customers can also opt into email alerts about related public hearings. The law applies immediately to all affected utilities and their customers in New Jersey.
Maddy summaryThis bill prohibits New Jersey's Board of Public Utilities (BPU) from approving rate increases for electric and gas utilities that use "inclining block rates" for residential customers. Inclining block rates charge higher prices once a household's usage exceeds specific thresholds (e.g., higher costs for the second 100 kWh of electricity). The bill directly affects residential customers in New Jersey who currently pay these tiered rates, aiming to eliminate a rate structure the sponsor cites as outdated and not cost-reflective. The BPU must create implementing rules under state administrative procedures, and the bill takes effect immediately.
Maddy summaryThis bill requires New Jersey's Board of Public Utilities (BPU) to include a plain language summary in its final decisions about utility rate increase requests. The summary must clearly explain the utility's petition, the BPU's reasoning, the impact on customers, the current and new rates (including the total increase amount), the utility's rate of return, and when new rates will take effect. It directly affects all New Jersey utility customers (electricity, gas, water providers) by making complex rate decisions easier to understand. The BPU must include these specific details in every final order regarding rate changes, replacing technical jargon with accessible language. This applies to all rate increase filings, including those for infrastructure investments.
Maddy summaryS 4585 prohibits the New Jersey Turnpike Authority and South Jersey Transportation Authority from charging E-ZPass account holders a "service fee" - defined as an extra charge added to monthly bills for simply having an account, not for actual toll usage. The bill directly affects all E-ZPass users in New Jersey by eliminating this enrollment-related fee from their billing statements. It bans such fees from being imposed by the authorities or their contracted administrators. The law takes effect immediately upon passage.
Maddy summaryS 4004 updates New Jersey's law governing employment programs for people with disabilities by renaming the "Sheltered Workshop Act" to the "Extended Employment Act" and replacing outdated terminology. It expands eligibility to include individuals with "significant" disabilities (not just "severe" ones) and removes requirements like prior workshop completion or proof of inability to compete in the open labor market. The bill shifts oversight from the New Jersey Commission for the Blind to the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services, revises funding to tie annual increases to inflation or 80% of provider expense reports (whichever is greater), and repeals outdated labeling and transportation rules for program products. This directly affects nonprofit extended employment providers, people with disabilities using these programs, and state agencies managing vocational rehabilitation services.
Maddy summaryThis bill would redirect excess revenues from New Jersey's energy and utility sales and use tax to the Universal Service Fund, supporting programs that help residents with utility costs. If tax collections from energy and utility services exceed those collected in fiscal year 2025, the state must deposit the excess into the Universal Service Fund administered by the Board of Public Utilities. Currently, such excess revenue is deposited into the General Fund rather than specifically for utility assistance programs. The bill would take effect for fiscal years beginning July 1, 2025.
Maddy summaryThis bill reinstates automatic cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) for retirement benefits of State Police Retirement System (SPRS) members who have been retired and receiving benefits for at least 10 years. Eligible retirees with annual pension benefits up to $75,000 will receive annual COLAs tied to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, while those with higher benefits will receive a maximum 1% adjustment. The $75,000 threshold will be adjusted annually based on the CPI, with a maximum 3% increase. The bill requires the Legislature to appropriate funds from the General Fund to cover these adjustments, which will take precedence over other budget items, and mandates the State Treasurer to implement COLAs if the SPRS Board fails to do so within six months.