NJBIA, along with other business and labor groups, on Tuesday asked the governor and Legislature to block the state Department of Environmental Protection from adopting a flawed rule that changes current flood hazard and land use regulations statewide.
Public comment on the DEP proposal, known as the Resilient Environment and Landscapes (REAL) rule proposal, has ended and the department has previously said it expects to finalize and adopt the controversial rule in the summer of 2025. NJBIA and a wide range of other stakeholders have testified against the PACT rule at public hearings.
“The businesses and labor groups who have signed this letter believe that this proposal is extreme and will harm homeowners, workers, and the economy of the state,” the group wrote in letters to Gov. Phil Murphy and all 120 members of the Legislature. “We believe we can accomplish the goal of protecting our residents from the impacts of a changing climate through a more balanced, well-thought-out approach.”
The land use rules, among other things, create “inundation risk zones” (IRZs) and “climate adjusted flood elevation” (CAFE) areas for any new, expanded, redeveloped or substantially improved development in the state. Any such home or subject building in these IRZs will be required to be built 5 feet higher than existing flood standards.
The business and labor groups listed six reasons why the DEP PACT rule should not be adopted in its current form:
- The creation of new flood zones (IRZs) in areas that have never flooded before will devalue property, stop development and redevelopment, and ultimately impact rateables leading to property tax increases for other property owners.
- The rule, if implemented, will significantly increase the cost of new housing, and throw into chaos the efforts of cities and municipalities to meet their state-mandated affordable fourth round affordable housing obligations.
- The rule would undermine urban redevelopment efforts by requiring revitalization projects in cities to be downsized to meet the same stormwater standards as “greenfield” development with onsite stormwater basins.
- The rule proposal imposes hundreds of new requirements on all developments, even small “backyard” projects for homeowners, which will drive up the costs of development and redevelopment of homes, businesses, roads, and other infrastructure.
- Mandatory deed notices declaring that impacted properties will be flooded in the future, even though they may never flood, will decrease property values and lead to widespread property tax appeals, impacting municipal and county revenues.
- Expansion of regulatory flood zones will lead banks to require homeowners to purchase costly flood insurance that was never needed before.
Go here to read a copy of the letter to the Legislature and here to read the copy of the letter to the governor.
