LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE

ASSEMBLY, No. 2805

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

221st LEGISLATURE

 

DATED: JUNE 3, 2025

 

 

SUMMARY

 

Synopsis:

Requires issuance of report on certain information and data on processing of applications for professional and occupational licenses and mandates review of training and call intake in Division of Consumer Affairs.

Type of Impact:

Time-limited State expenditure increase. 

Agencies Affected:

Department of Law and Public Safety.

 

Office of Legislative Services Estimate

Fiscal Impact

Year 1

 

State Expenditure Increase

Indeterminate

 

 

 

 

·       The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) finds that the bill will cause an indeterminate expenditure increase to the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety to implement the bill’s requirements to collect certain data, issue a report, and complete trainings over a six-month period. 

 

BILL DESCRIPTION

 

      This bill requires the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety to review and collect certain information and data on the professions and occupations regulated by the division, or a board, committee or other entity within the division, and compile a report on the findings to be released, six months after the bill is enacted, to the Governor and State Legislature.

      The information and data to be reviewed and collected include: 1) the number of outstanding applications each profession and occupation has for initial licensure or other type of credential; 2) the number of incomplete applications received; 3) funding expended to retain employees; 4) categorization, if possible, of the reasons for calls from applicants and how many calls come in under each category; and 5) the calculation of the percentage of completed applications for initial licensure or other credential over the past five years, to include a calculation of the number of applications that have taken at least twice as long to process in comparison to the average time to process an application.

      The bill requires the Attorney General to 1) develop and administer training specific to a profession and occupation to new employees hired to process initial applications for licensure in the profession or occupation; and 2) review the feasibility of outsourcing phone call intake and response to businesses or associations that assist individuals seeking a license in a specific profession or occupation.

 

 

FISCAL ANALYSIS

 

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

 

      The OLS has not received a formal fiscal note on this bill, but has received informal information from the Department of Law and Public Safety.  The Office of the Attorney General informally indicated that the training requirement and the consideration of outsourcing phone calls might not result in a significant cost impact, as the division regularly updates training and has historically considered the outsourcing of phone call intake.

 

OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES

 

      The OLS finds that the bill will cause an indeterminate expenditure increase to the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety to implement the bill’s requirements to collect certain data, issue a report, and complete trainings over a six-month period.  However, depending on the division’s resource allocation policies, the added workload may or may not augment State administrative expenditures.

      The OLS estimates that the division’s collection and assessment of the data required may provide a better understanding of the licensure application processing delays, which may result in better efficiency within the division.

      In addition, as noted above, the Office of the Attorney General informally indicated that the training requirement and the consideration of outsourcing phone calls might not result in a significant cost impact, as the division regularly updates training and has historically considered the outsourcing of phone call intake.

      The Division of Consumer Affairs maintains an estimated 51 professional and occupational boards and committees that oversee and regulate more than 720,000 individuals and businesses in New Jersey.  Between FY 2015 and FY 2024, annual State budgets included budget language permitting the Attorney General to reallocate a total of $203 million, an average of $20.3 million annually, from State professional boards, advisory boards, and committees’ unexpended appropriation balances for other departmental purposes.  The OLS estimates that going forward such excess funds could be utilized in part toward efforts to increase the efficiency of the division.

 

Section:

Law and Public Safety

Analyst:

Kristin Brunner Santos

Lead Fiscal Analyst

Approved:

Thomas Koenig

Legislative Budget and Finance Officer

 

This legislative fiscal estimate has been produced by the Office of Legislative Services due to the failure of the Executive Branch to respond to our request for a fiscal note.

 

This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980, c.67 (C.52:13B-6 et seq.).