Sponsored by:
Assemblyman DANIEL R. BENSON
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
Assemblyman HERB CONAWAY, JR.
District 7 (Burlington)
Assemblywoman ANGELICA M. JIMENEZ
District 32 (Bergen and Hudson)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblywomen Eulner, Piperno, Assemblyman Rooney and Assemblywoman Chaparro
SYNOPSIS
Establishes “End 9-1-1 Fund Diversion Now Act”; directs Treasurer to issue report concerning prevention of diversion of funds from “9-1-1 System and Emergency Response Trust Fund Account” to conform with federal law.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the diversion of funds from the “9-1-1 System and Emergency Response Trust Fund Account.”
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the “End 9-1-1 Fund Diversion Now Act.”
2. a. The State Treasurer, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Director of the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, shall study and prepare a written report concerning the diversion of funds from the “9-1-1 System and Emergency Response Trust Fund Account.” The report shall include but not be limited to:
(1) an account of the annual revenue of the fund since its establishment pursuant to section 3 of P.L.2004, c.48 (C.52:17C-19);
(2) an account of the annual expenditures from the fund and whether these expenditures comply with permitted uses established pursuant to 47 U.S.C. s.615a-1; and
(3) recommendations, including recommendations for legislation, to align State expenditures from the fund with the permitted uses established pursuant to 47 U.S.C. s.615a-1.
b. Within 180 days of the effective date of this act, the Treasurer shall submit a detailed written report of the study’s findings and recommendations to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature.
3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire upon the submission of the written report required pursuant to subsection b. of section 2 of this act.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the State Treasurer, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Director of the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, to study and prepare a written report concerning the diversion of funds from the “9-1-1 System and Emergency Response Trust Fund Account” (fund). The report is to include but not be limited to:
1) an account of the annual revenue of the fund since the fund’s establishment;
2) an account of the annual expenditures from the fund and whether these expenditures comply with permitted uses established pursuant to 47 U.S.C. s.615a-1; and
3) recommendations, including recommendations for legislation, to align State expenditures from the fund with the permitted uses established pursuant to federal law.
Within 180 days of the bill’s effective date, the Treasurer is to submit a detailed written report of the study’s findings and recommendations to the Governor and to the Legislature.
The federal government requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to annually submit a report to Congress entitled State Collection and Distribution of 911 and Enhanced 911 Fees and Charges (report). In the latest report, dated December 31, 2021, which compiled state information from between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020, the FCC found that New Jersey collected $127,370,000 in 9-1-1 funds and diverted $104,548,000, or 82.1 percent, to purposes other than those related to 9-1-1 services. The diversion of these funds may have negative consequences concerning the advancement of the State’s public safety services and, as a result, will put New Jerseyans at risk of not receiving timely aid in a crisis.