STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator JAMES W. HOLZAPFEL
District 10 (Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Appropriates $4 million to DEP for local cost share certain beach replenishment project in Ocean County.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act making an appropriation of $4 million for the local cost share of a certain beach replenishment project in Ocean County.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Environmental Protection the sum of $4 million to be used for the local portion of the nonfederal cost share requirement for the beach replenishment project to be undertaken by the United States Army Corps of Engineers on the Barnegat Peninsula in Ocean County, New Jersey.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would appropriate $4 million from the General Fund to the Department of Environmental Protection to provide funding to meet the local portion of the nonfederal share requirement of the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) beach replenishment project on the Barnegat Peninsula in Ocean County.
The USACE provides monies, as authorized by the United States Congress, to carry out shore protection projects, including beach replenishment. These projects help the beach system absorb waves, protect upland areas from flooding, and mitigate erosion.
The Barnegat Peninsula, also known as the Island Beach Peninsula or Barnegat Bay Island, is a 20-mile long, narrow barrier peninsula located in Ocean County, New Jersey. The municipalities on the Barnegat Peninsula have experienced severe beach erosion and are in need of the USACE beach replenishment project, which is scheduled to begin in late 2022 or early 2023. The federal government is covering a majority of the costs of the project, however the State and the affected municipalities are financially responsible for the nonfederal share of the project. The municipal cost share, after the State contributes its share of the costs, is approximately $7.5 million, which is unaffordable for many municipal budgets. This bill would provide $4 million in State aid in order to assist municipalities meet the local cost share requirement necessary to receive the federal monies for this critical project covering approximately 14 miles of coastline on the Barnegat Peninsula.