Gov. Mikie Sherrill on Thursday announced the application process has opened for the pilot phase of the state's new online New Jersey Permitting Dashboard, which will eventually help developers, businesses, and nonprofits track the permit applications for their projects across state agencies.
The pilot will solicit applications from energy, commercial, and multi-family housing projects that have recently submitted—or are about to submit—permit applications to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Department of Transportation, and/or Department of Community Affairs.
Up to 10 projects will be randomly selected from this pool for the pilot, allowing them to track the progress of their cross-agency permits in one place. This pilot will begin developing a system that can be scaled in the future and support the Sherrill administration in making the permitting process faster and easier. The application period will remain open until 11:59 p.m. on May 21.
More information can be found on the dashboard’s website, Permits.NJ.Gov.
“On Day One, I committed to cutting permitting times and delivering real accountability to make it easier and faster to build in New Jersey,” Sherrill said. “This is a critical step toward a more streamlined system, saving New Jerseyans time and money and making it easier to build more housing, open businesses, and deliver critical infrastructure across our state. That will drive affordability, job creation, economic growth, and opportunities for New Jersey families."
Kellie Doucette, the state’s chief operating officer, said the permitting dashboard is essential to the mission of operating government more effectively and transparently. “It will allow businesses and developers to see exactly where their permits stand will help reduce delays and costs...” she said.
Acting DEP Commissioner Ed Potosnak said his department has already launched Operation FAST for energy projects and held dozens of listening sessions with industry and nonprofits to identify permitting bottlenecks.
“The permitting dashboard will build on that progress and will later help accelerate the development of critical energy infrastructure – speeding up power generation while supporting cleaner air, water, and a healthier environment for the long term,” Potosnak said.
Powered by the New Jersey Innovation Authority and in partnership with state agencies, the full Permitting Dashboard will eventually allow applicants and members of the public to track permit applications, across state agencies on one website. The dashboard will display target due dates, next steps, and status updates for each of their permits. This will boost transparency and accountability, improve approval timelines, and break down permitting barriers and delays.
Sherrill noted the progress her administration has made in its first 100 days to streamline permitting processes and improve government transparency and accountability, including the:
- Establishment of the cross-agency Permitting Governing Council—bringing together DEP, DCA, DOT, NJIA, and the Governor's Office—to drive strategy, coordination, and accountability for the administration's permitting reform efforts.
- Completion of detailed permit catalogs by state agencies as directed under Executive Order 5 to help the administration better understand the current state of permitting, identify pain points, and target improvements.
- Announcement of a budget proposal that will expand capacity and staffing to ensure state agencies have the resources they need to process permits efficiently.
- Gathering of input from over 350 members of the business community, as part of the ongoing 21-county tour and direct engagement.
