Ray Cantor – Vice President, Government Affairs
Two bills intended to alleviate environmental contamination issues advanced in the Legislature on Thursday.
- Assembly Bill No. 4382 by Assemblywoman Nancy Pinkin, D-18, was released by the Assembly Appropriations Committee. This bill requires certain paint producers to implement paint stewardship programs. The intent of the bill is to prevent contamination issues by ensuring that paint products are appropriately recycled or disposed. NJBIA supported this bill.
- Senate Bill No. 4177 by Senator Troy Singleton, D-7, was released by the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee. This bill would require water companies to inventory lead service lines and to replace them. While NJBIA is supportive of efforts to prevent lead from contaminating our drinking water, we have concerns with the funding mechanisms in the bill. Senator Singleton made it clear that this bill is still in its early stages and will be subject to further discussion and amendment.
Several bills of interest to NJBIA will be heard in the Senate Environment and Energy Committee on Monday.
- Senate Bill No. 3919 would phase out and ultimately ban hydrofluorocarbons. HFCs are short lived but highly potent greenhouse gases. HFCs were originally proposed to be banned by the federal Environmental Protection Agency but regulations were overturned in a lawsuit. Since that time, numerous states have sought to use their own authority to ban these substances. NJBIA supports this bill because industry has already begun to switch to new replacement substances and the bill contains sufficient time periods for a smooth transition. Working with our colleagues at the Chemistry Council and the national Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute, we were able to obtain several amendments to minimize impacts to the business community.
- Several bills are being considered that will appropriate funds to the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank to support water infrastructure projects in the state. NJBIA is supportive of this legislation as it will help improve our environment and support jobs in the construction industries.
