SENATE RESOLUTION No. 68

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED OCTOBER 28, 1996

By Senators LaROSSA and LITTELL

A Senate Resolution urging the Commissioner of Environmental Protection to rescind Administrative Order 1996-06 requiring that the goals of the State Development and Redevelopment Plan be incorporated into environmental programs.

Whereas, The Commissioner of Environmental Protection issued Administrative Order 1996-06 on July 29, 1996 without notice to the public or the regulated community; and

Whereas, The order requires that the goals and objectives of the State Development and Redevelopment Plan become part of the department's decision making process and that the assistant commissioners at the Department of Environmental Protection shall take "those necessary steps to insure that all policies and regulations which guide and regulate their respective programs to the extent permitted by law, are applied to be made consistent with and compatible with the New Jersey State Plan;" and

Whereas, The New Jersey State Development and Redevelopment Plan was adopted pursuant to the "State Planning Act" which does not provide an enforcement mechanism for its implementation, and has always been understood to be a guide to the local government entities which have traditionally been responsible for planning in the State; and

Whereas, The order will result in the control of local planning from a central State bureaucracy which influences development by virtue of its permit and land use programs; and

Whereas, Centralized State control of planning is unlikely to be as responsive to local concerns such as loss of property values and other community and economic impacts as planning at the local level; and

Whereas, The regulated community was granted no notice or opportunity to comment on the new standards to be applied to Department of Environmental Protection decisions, because the order does not provide for the amendment or readoption of the department's existing regulations, but instead rather vaguely requires that the existing regulations be applied in a manner compatible with the State Development and Redevelopment Plan; now, therefore,

    Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:

    1. The Commissioner of Environmental Protection is urged to rescind Administrative Order 1996-06.

    2. Duly authenticated copies of this resolution, signed by the President of the Senate and attested by the Secretary thereof shall be sent to the Governor and the Commissioner of Environmental Protection.

STATEMENT

    This resolution urges the Commissioner of Environmental Protection is urged to rescind Administrative Order 1996-06. The order requires that the goals and objectives of the New Jersey State Development and Redevelopment Plan become part of the decision-making process of officials in the Department of Environmental Protection. The order also requires all assistant commissioners to take steps to insure that policies and regulations are applied to be made consistent with the New Jersey State Development and Redevelopment Plan. This vague and unwise order could result in the control of local planning issues from the State's most unresponsive bureaucracy, and imposes requirements upon permittees without providing notice or the opportunity to comment. Therefore, the Commissioner is urged to rescind the order.

Urges Commissioner of Environmental Protection to rescind order requiring incorporation of State Plan goals in all environmental programs.