ASSEMBLY, No. 774

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION

By Assemblywoman BUONO

An Act concerning sinkholes, supplementing P.L.1967, c.76 (C.55:13A-1 et seq.), and making an appropriation.

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

    1. a. Within 45 days of the effective date of P.L. , c. (C.             )(pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Department of Community Affairs shall prepare and publish educational materials concerning the problem of sinkholes. The materials shall include, but shall not be limited to, a discussion of the dangers which sinkholes represent to the public, the causes of the creation of sinkholes, a list of the symptoms which may lead to the identification of sinkholes, and advise on how to conduct periodic visual inspections to detect the presence of sinkholes. The department shall distribute these educational materials to the owner and manager of each multiple dwelling project, the administrator or board of administration of each horizontal property regime established pursuant to P.L.1963, c.168 (C.46:8A-1 et seq.), the governing board of each condominium association established pursuant to P.L.1969, c.257 (C.46:8B-1 et seq.), and the association of each cooperative created pursuant to P.L.1987, c.381 (C.46:8D-1 et seq.), and shall make the materials available to any member of the general public who requests them.

    b. An owner, board or association shall preserve a record of remedial action taken whenever the presence of a sinkhole has been detected, and any such record shall be submitted to the person performing an inspection pursuant to P.L.1967, c.67 (C.55:13A-1 et seq.).

     c. Inspections of multiple dwellings undertaken pursuant to section 13 of P.L.1967, c.76 (C.55:13A-13) shall include a visual inspection for sinkholes.

    2. There is appropriated to the Department of Community Affairs from the General Fund the sum of $25,000 to effectuate the purposes of this act.

    3. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

    This bill requires the Department of Community Affairs to prepare and publish educational materials concerning the problem of sinkholes. It also requires the department to distribute these educational materials to the owner and manager of each multiple dwelling project, the administrator or board of administration of each horizontal property regime, the governing board of each condominium association, and the association of each cooperative, and to make the materials available to members of the public who request them.

    The bill requires owners, boards and associations to preserve records of remedial action taken when a sinkhole is detected, and to submit these records to the person performing an inspection pursuant to section 13 of P.L.1967, c.76 (C.55:13A-13).

    The bill provides that these inspections shall include a visual inspection of sinkholes.

    The bill appropriates $25,000 to the Department of Community Affairs from the General Fund to effectuate the purposes of the bill.

Establishes certain requirements concerning sinkholes.