SENATE, No. 697
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
219th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2020 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator M. TERESA RUIZ
District 29 (Essex)
Senator SHIRLEY K. TURNER
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
SYNOPSIS
Authorizes common law public nuisance suits regarding lead paint under State law; exempts Attorney General from certain aspects of public nuisance claims when pursuing lead paint actions.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As reported by the Senate Environment and Energy Committee on May 11, 2021, with amendments.
An Act concerning public nuisance actions related to lead paint, supplementing P.L.1971, c.366 (C.24:14A-1 et seq.), and amending P.L.1987, c.197.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. (New section) Nothing in P.L.1971, c.366 (C.24:14A-1 et seq.) shall preclude recourse to any other remedy available pursuant to common law for a violation of P.L.1971, c.366 (C.24:14A-1 et seq.) or for damages 1[caused by] , abatement, or any other appropriate legal or equitable relief related to1 the 1manufacture,1 sale 1[or] ,1 distribution 1, or use in dwellings1 of lead paint 1[and the subsequent use of such lead paint in dwellings] or the production, promotion, or distribution of lead pigments for use in residential paints or coatings1.
2. (New section) The Attorney General may bring an action for damages 1, abatement, and any other appropriate legal or equitable relief1 against a former or present lead paint manufacturer 1or an entity that produced, promoted, or distributed lead pigments for use in residential paints or coatings1 pursuant to a common law theory of public nuisance, and shall not be limited to injunctive relief. The Attorney General need not demonstrate that a defendant physically controls lead paint, or real property that contains lead paint, in order to prevail in a common law public nuisance claim based upon the sale or distribution of lead paint, nor demonstrate a special injury in order to recover damages or prevail in such an action. 1Nothing in this section shall be construed to deny, abrogate, or impair any common law or statutory right, remedy, or prohibition otherwise available to the Attorney General in any action, including, but not limited to, public nuisance claims.1
3. Section 6 of P.L.1987, c.197 (C.2A:58C-6) is amended to read as follows:
6. The provisions of this act shall not apply to :
a. any environmental tort action ; or
b. a public nuisance claim brought 1[pursuant to common law]1 by the Attorney General concerning lead paint 1or lead pigments used in residential paints or coatings.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to deny, abrogate, or impair any common law or statutory right, remedy, or prohibition otherwise available to the Attorney General in any claims not concerning lead paint, including, but not limited to, public nuisance claims1.
(cf: P.L.1987, c.197, s.6)
4. This bill shall take effect immediately and shall apply to 1[causes of action] all actions pending, including those on appeal, on the date of enactment and to any action1 filed on or after the date of enactment 1, except that judgments entered or awards made pursuant to law for which no appeal is pending on the date of enactment shall not be affected by the provisions of this act1.