ASSEMBLY APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

[First Reprint]

SENATE, No. 2051

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  DECEMBER 18, 2025

      The Assembly Appropriations Committee reports favorably Senate Bill No. 2051 (1R).

      As reported, this bill requires law enforcement officers to conduct a risk assessment of and provide assistance to domestic violence victims.

      Under current law, pursuant to Attorney General Law Enforcement Directive 2016-6 v3.0 (AG Directive), law enforcement officers are required to administer a domestic violence risk assessment tool to assist in identifying the risk of future assaults against intimate partners.  The Director of the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) within the Office of the Attorney General has designated the Ontario Domestic Assault Risk Assessment (ODARA) as the domestic violence risk assessment instrument to be used by law enforcement officers in this State.

      The amended bill requires a law enforcement officer to conduct the ODARA, or an alternative approved risk assessment, of any person who the officer has reasonable cause to believe is a victim of domestic violence.  The risk assessment is to be conducted with the consent of the alleged victim.  The bill sets forth criteria for approving an alternative assessment instrument should the Attorney General decide in the future to no longer use ODARA.

      The risk assessment instrument is required to generate a score or rating that indicates whether there is an elevated risk that an alleged victim of domestic violence will suffer serious bodily injury or death as a result of a future act of domestic violence. Regardless of the risk assessment score, a law enforcement officer is  required to determine if the victim is in immediate need of services, and is required to facilitate the provision of services.

      The Director of the DCJ is required to evaluate the training related to ODARA in addition to other domestic violence training already required by statute.  In the event an alternative assessment instrument is approved in the future by the Attorney General, in accordance with the provisions of the bill, within 60 days of the approval of an alternative assessment instrument, the Director is required to develop and approve a training course and curriculum for the implementation of the alternative assessment instrument.

      An approved instrument is to be based on information deemed relevant by the Attorney General which is to include, but not be limited to:

· the date of all recent acts of domestic violence using a calendar provided by the officer to the victim to identify or approximate the date of all recent acts; and

· for each recent act of domestic violence:

o a description of each act including the type of physical violence used, if any;

o whether any injuries were sustained by the alleged victim; and

o whether the act involved the use of, or threat to use a firearm or other weapon.

      If the risk assessment generates a score or rating that indicates an elevated risk of serious bodily injury or death to an alleged victim, the law enforcement officer is required to: notify the victim that the score generated indicates there is an elevated risk; with the consent of the alleged victim, facilitate the provisions of immediate assistance through a domestic crisis team or other services available to victims of domestic violence; and charge the defendant by way of complaint-warrant, in accordance with the rules promulgated by the Attorney General and the Rules of Court.

      The bill also requires the Attorney General to incorporate into the current domestic violence curriculum for law enforcement officers training on how to conduct the risk assessment, and how to notify and facilitate access to services for alleged victims who are deemed to be at an elevated risk of harm.

      In addition to the training course and curriculum for domestic violence cases required under current law, the Administrative Director of the Courts is required to also include training related to the approved risk assessment to judges and court personnel.

      As reported by the committee, Senate Bill No. 2051 (1R) is identical to Assembly Bill No. 1802, which was amended and reported by the committee on this date.

FISCAL IMPACT:

      The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) anticipates that this bill will lead to an indeterminate increase in annual expenditures to the Administrative Office of the Courts to develop and implement training on domestic violence risk assessments, and the Department of Law and Public Safety to regularly evaluate the effectiveness of the assessment tools.

      Law enforcement agencies’ facilitation of immediate access to services for victims of domestic violence may increase officer response times, which may result in increased labor or administrative costs to State and local law enforcement agencies.