SENATE, No. 1203

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Senator LINDA R. GREENSTEIN

District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)

Senator RAJ MUKHERJI

District 32 (Hudson)

Co-Sponsored by:

Senators O'Scanlon and Turner

SYNOPSIS

     Requires DOE and DCF to establish online reporting systems for schools and child care centers to report lead testing results.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.

An Act concerning lead in drinking water at schools and child care centers and supplementing Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes and P.L.1983, c.492 (C.30:5B-1 et seq.).

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

     1.    a.   Within one year after the effective date of this act, the Department of Education shall establish an online reporting system that allows a school to submit the results of any tests it has conducted for lead in drinking water and other related information to the department electronically.

     b.    Within 90 days after the establishment of the online reporting system pursuant to subsection a. of this section, any school that was required by law, rule, or regulation, on or after July 1, 2016, to test its drinking water for lead shall submit or resubmit its test results and other required information to the department via the online reporting system.  The department shall compile the test results and other relevant information on its Internet website for access by the public in an easily-searchable format.

     2.    a.   Within one year after the effective date of this act, the Department of Children and Families shall establish an online reporting system that allows a child care center to submit the results of any tests it has conducted for lead in drinking water and other related information to the department electronically.

     b.    Within 90 days after the establishment of the online reporting system pursuant to subsection a. of this section, any child care center that was required by law, rule, or regulation, on or after January 1, 2017, to test its drinking water for lead shall submit or resubmit its test results and any other required information to the department via the online reporting system.  The department shall compile the test results and other relevant information on its Internet website for access by the public in an easily-searchable format. 

     3.    Within two years after the effective date of this act, the Department of Education and the Department of Children and Families, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection, shall prepare and submit a report to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the Legislature, outlining the extent of lead contamination in the drinking water of schools and child care centers, the associated need for assistance with remediation activities, and recommendations for how the State could assist schools and child care centers with remediating lead in drinking water.  The Department of Education and the Department of Children and Families shall post the report on their respective Internet websites. 

     4.    This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

     This bill requires the Department of Education (DOE) and the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to establish online reporting systems for schools and child care centers to report lead testing results electronically.

     Under the bill each school and child care center required pursuant to law or regulation to test for lead is required to submit or resubmit its test results and any other required information through the online reporting system within 90 days after establishment of the databases.  The bill also requires the DOE and DCF to compile the test results on their respective Internet websites for access by the public. Finally, the bill requires both departments to prepare and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature outlining the extent of lead contamination in the drinking water of schools and child care centers, the associated need for assistance with remediation activities, and recommendations for how the State can assist schools and child care centers with remediating lead in drinking water.

     This bill stems from recommendations in the Joint Legislative Task Force on Drinking Water Infrastructure’s final report, released in January 2018.