NJBIA Deputy Chief Government Affairs Officer Ray Cantor issued the following statement regarding NJDEP Commissioner Shawn LaTourette’s testimony today before the Assembly Budget Committee, where the commissioner denied or dismissed many reasons for concerns amongst the business community, labor groups, local officials and legislators relating to the agency’s Resilient Environment and Landscapes (REAL) rule proposal.
“We were very disappointed by Commissioner LaTourette’s testimony today as it relates to NJ PACT rules.
“The commissioner today denied that no-build zones would be created under the proposed Land Use rules, when new, expanded or substantially improved development in newly established ‘inundation risk zones’ will be required to be built 5 feet higher than existing flood standards, and many will require less than 3% of impervious cover.
“He said the rules will not harm property values, even though they call for new, expanded or substantially improved developments to require deed notices which declare properties in these zones will someday be flooded in the future, even if they never have flooded.
“The commissioner said the rules won’t impact flood insurance requirements, when it’s up to banks, which rightly protect their investments, to determine that.
“He dismissed the notion that the rules will impact affordable housing goals set by Governor Murphy. Yet the rules greatly increase areas in coastal and tidal areas where building restrictions are required.
“He said the DEP is using ‘the best science’ to determine these rules, when it is, in fact, basing them on a low-probability flood prediction over the next 75 years from an outdated, 2019 study that is dramatically higher than any other sea level rise forecast from international climate science consensus.
“And he said so-called ‘special interest groups’ oppose ‘everything’ as it relates to these rules. For NJBIA’s part, we actually do support an increased flood standard of 2 feet, which is in line with consensus climate science and FEMA projections – and then adjusting if necessary.
“To hear Commissioner LaTourette tell it today, this 1,000-page-plus rule is much ado about nothing. We find that’s irresponsible. While he continues to dismiss these concerns, we will continue to amplify why they represent the next major affordability shoe to drop in New Jersey if these rules are finalized as proposed.”
