A5259

An Act creating the “Coastal Climate Change Commission.”

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

1. a. There is created in, but not of, the Department of Environmental Protection the “Coastal Climate Change Commission.” The commission shall be comprised of 15 members as follows:

(1) the Commissioner of Environmental Protection and the Commissioner of Community Affairs, or their designees, who shall serve ex officio;

(2) two members of the Senate appointed by the President of the Senate, who shall not be both of the same political party;

(3) two members of the General Assembly appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, who shall not be both of the same political party; and

(4) nine members, appointed by the Governor, of whom (a) one shall be a representative of the New Jersey State League of Municipalities; (b) one shall be a representative of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce; (c) one shall be a representative of the New Jersey Society of Municipal Engineers; (d) one shall be a representative of a public utility in the State with expertise, knowledge, or experience in disaster preparedness or response; (e) one shall be a representative of an environmental or land use organization with expertise, knowledge, or experience in environmental issues driven by climate change and the ecological impacts of storm surge, flooding, and other weather-generated threats to the State’s ecosystems; (f) one shall be a representative of Rutgers, the State University, and one shall be a representative of Stevens Institute of Technology, each of whom are familiar with climate change issues and their potential impacts on the State; (g) one shall be a representative of a financial service corporation involved in bond credit rating and providing investment advice and analysis to municipalities, and (h) one shall be a member of the public with relevant expertise in disaster preparedness or response, engineering, flood mitigation, public planning, environmental protection, or related issues.

b. The members set forth in paragraph (4) of subsection a. of this section shall be appointed by the Governor within 30 days after the date of enactment of this act. Any vacancy in the membership of the commission shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment.

c. The commission shall:

(1) study climate change issues and the challenges they present to municipalities;

(2) develop recommendations for Statewide climate change related policies and ways to assist municipalities to address these issues and challenges; and

(3) report these recommendations to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature no later than 18 months after the commission’s first meeting.

d. The commission shall solicit input from:

(1) the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the United States Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and any other federal, State, or local agencies involved in disaster preparedness, flood and emergency response, or municipal construction and development; and

(2) mayors, council members, and administrators of municipalities impacted by Superstorm Sandy, Hurricane Irene, or other significant storm and flooding events, and individual citizens in those municipalities.

The commission may also consult with experts in the public or private sector on any aspect of its mission in conducting the business of the commission.

e. The commission shall organize as soon as may be practicable after the appointment of a majority of its members, and shall select a chairperson from among its members and a secretary who need not be a member of the commission.

f. The commission shall meet regularly as it may determine, and shall also meet at the call of the chairperson of the commission or a majority of the membership.

g. A majority of the membership of the commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of commission business. Action may be taken and motions and resolutions adopted by the commission at any meeting thereof by the affirmative vote of a majority of the membership of the commission in attendance at the meeting.

h. The commission shall be entitled to call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of such employees of any State, county, or municipal department, authority, board, bureau, commission, agency as it may require and as may be available to it for the purpose of carrying out its duties under this act.

i. If requested by the commission, the Department of Environmental Protection shall provide primary staff support to the commission.

2. The commission shall expire on the 180^th day after the date it submits its report to the Governor and Legislature.

3. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill creates a 15-member commission in, but not of, the Department of Environmental Protection, entitled the “Coastal Climate Change Commission.” The membership of the commission would be appointed as set forth in subsection a. of section 1 of this bill. The commission is directed to:

1) study climate change issues and the challenges they present to municipalities in the State;

2) develop recommendations for Statewide policies and ways to assist municipalities in the State to address these issues and challenges; and

3) report these recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature no later than 18 months after the commission’s first meeting.