Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman ELLEN J. PARK
District 37 (Bergen)
SYNOPSIS
Requires DOC to establish and implement standards for cell sizes in prison housing units.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning prison cells and supplementing chapter 4 of Title 30 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. For the purposes of this act:
“Unencumbered space” means usable space that is not encumbered by furnishing or fixtures.
“Square footage” means the total square footage of the cell minus the square footage of fixtures and equipment when all fixtures and equipment are in operational position.
b. The Department of Corrections shall establish and implement standards for cell sizes in prison housing units. The standards shall meet or exceed the standards established by the American Correctional Association.
c. Cells housing incarcerated persons shall provide at a minimum, 35 square feet of unencumbered space in a single-occupancy cell with a minimum ceiling height of eight feet. All multiple occupancy units shall provide a minimum of 25 square feet of unencumbered space per occupant with a minimum ceiling height of eight feet.
d. The Department of Corrections shall adopt rules and regulations pursuant to the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to effectuate the purposes of this act.
2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the twenty-fifth month next following enactment. The Department of Corrections may take such anticipatory action as necessary for the timely implementation of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Department of Corrections (department) to establish and implement standards for cell sizes for all prison housing units.
This bill requires the department to meet or exceed the standards pertaining cell sizes established by the American Correctional Association. Cells housing incarcerated persons are required to provide at a minimum, 35 square feet of unencumbered space for a single occupancy cell and a minimum of 25 square feet of unencumbered space for a multiple occupancy cell, with a minimum ceiling height of eight feet.
In a report issued in October 2024, the Office of the Corrections Ombudsperson recommended that legislation be enacted to set minimum standards for habitability of prison housing units, including the size of the cell. Furthermore, while the New Jersey Administrative Code regulates the size of county jail cells, no minimum standard size for State prison cells have been established yet.