S1788 2R

An Act ²[establishing a fee refund program for ¹individuals and¹ businesses applying] concerning the processing of applications² for permits, licenses, or certifications in this State and supplementing Title 52 of the Revised Statutes².²

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

²[1. a. Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, upon and after the effective date of this act¹[, P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill)]¹, any State entity that issues permits, licenses, or certifications to ¹individuals or businesses¹ shall compile a catalog of the types of permits, licenses, or certifications it issues and submit that catalog to the Governor. The catalog shall include:

(1) a description of each type of permit, license, or certification issued by the State entity, the term thereof, and the statutory, regulatory, or other legal authority therefor;

(2) the method by which the State entity receives applications for each type of permit, license, or certification and when that method was last updated;

(3) the statutory, regulatory, or other legal authority governing the length of time within which the State entity ¹[must] shall¹ process applications for each type of permit, license, or certification;

(4) the application fee charged by the State entity for each type of permit, license, or certification, and the statutory, regulatory, or other legal authority therefor;

(5) the State entity’s analysis and recommendation of the appropriate length of time to promptly process applications for each type of permit, license, or certification, after the applicant has properly and timely submitted all information required by the State entity to act upon the application; and

(6) other relevant information as requested.

b. Following receipt and review of the State entity catalogs, information, recommendations, and analyses, the Governor’s office shall establish recommended application processing times for the various types of permits, licenses, and certifications, as appropriate ¹, no later than 180 days after the effective date of this act¹.

c. ¹(1)¹ Any State entity that exceeds ¹15 days past¹ the recommended application processing time as established after having received a completed application shall refund the amount of the application fee to the extent permitted by law. The refund shall have no bearing on the disposition of the underlying application.

¹(2) A State entity shall not be required to refund an application fee pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection if a delay in processing an application for a permit, license, or certification is due to the fault of the applicant, including, but not limited to, the submission of an incomplete application.¹

d. For the purposes of this section, “State entity” means a State department or agency, board, commission, corporation, or authority.]²

²[2. This act shall take effect on the 90th day after the date of enactment.]²

²1. a. Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, upon and after the effective date of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), any State entity that issues permits, licenses, or certifications to individuals or businesses shall compile a catalog of the types of permits, licenses, or certifications it issues and submit that catalog to the Governor. The catalog shall include:

(1) a description of each type of permit, license, or certification issued by the State entity, the term thereof, and the statutory, regulatory, or other legal authority therefor;

(2) the method by which the State entity receives applications for each type of permit, license, or certification and when that method was last updated;

(3) the statutory, regulatory, or other legal authority governing the length of time within which the State entity shall process applications for each type of permit, license, or certification;

(4) the application fee charged by the State entity for each type of permit, license, or certification, and the statutory, regulatory, or other legal authority therefor;

(6) the number of applications received for each type of permit, license, or certification issued by the State entity during the prior fiscal year;

(7) the median and average application processing times, which shall include the median and average application completeness review times and the median and average processing times for providing the appropriate permit, license, or certification after the application is deemed to be complete;

(8) the number and percentage of completed applications that receive a final determination within the applicable statutory, regulatory, or recommended processing period;

(9) the number of applications for which processing was suspended or extended due to the applicant’s action or omission;

(10) whether the application for a permit, license, or certification issued by the State entity requires the review or approval of another State entity;

(11) the State entity’s application completeness checklist required pursuant to subsection d. of this section; and

(12) other relevant information as requested by the Governor’s Office.

The State entity shall review the catalog prepared pursuant to this subsection at least once every four years. Upon completion of the review, the head of the State entity shall submit the review to the Governor. A comprehensive written review prepared in accordance with section 2 of P.L.2011, c.34 (C.52:14B-27) shall satisfy the requirements of this subsection upon submission of the review to the Governor.

b. (1) Following receipt and review of the State entity catalogs, information, recommendations, and analyses, the Governor’s Office shall, using uniform standards, establish target application processing times for the various types of permits, licenses, and certifications, as appropriate, no later than one year after the effective date of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). The target application processing times shall include, but not be limited to, a time period in which a State entity shall:

(a) determine the completeness of an application;

(b) electronically notify applicants of the completion status of an application, the notification of which shall provide the determination of completeness or, if the application is determined to be incomplete, shall identify the information and documentation necessary to complete the application; and

(c) provide an applicant with a final determination regarding the application for the permit, license, or certification after notifying the applicant of application completeness.

(2) The Governor’s Office shall also establish uniform procedures for:

(a) the suspension or extension of a processing period due to an applicant’s action or omission, which shall, at a minimum, require State entities to provide applicants with a written or electronic notice of the suspension or extension, the reason for the suspension or extension, and the information, documentation, or action necessary for the processing of the application to resume;

(b) the identification of applications requiring coordinated review by multiple State agencies; and

(c) the escalation of applications that materially exceed applicable processing times, which shall include the assigning of an appropriate supervisory employee who was not principally assigned to review the application or, in the case of a multi-entity review, include the referral of the application to the designated lead State entity and shall not require the approval of the application.

(3) The Governor’s Office shall amend, establish, or reestablish the target application processing times and uniform procedures at least once every four years upon receipt of the review required pursuant to subsection a. of this section.

c. (1) Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, any State entity that exceeds 15 days past the target application processing time as established after having received a completed application shall refund the amount of the application fee unless otherwise prohibited by State or federal law. The refund shall have no bearing on the disposition of the underlying application, shall not constitute approval, and shall not limit the State entity’s obligation to process the application.

(2) A State entity shall not be required to refund an application fee pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection if a delay in processing an application for a permit, license, or certification is due to:

(a) the applicant’s failure to timely provide information reasonably necessary for the processing of the application;

(b) a material modification requested by the applicant;

(d) a judicial order;

(e) a requirement of federal law or action of a federal agency;

(f) a declared state of emergency, or a substantially similar circumstance, beyond the reasonable control of the State entity; or

(g) another circumstance expressly provided by State or federal law.

A State entity shall not be required to refund an application fee if, after an application has been deemed complete, additional investigation, fact-finding, professional or technical review, background investigation, adjudicatory proceeding, or other review is reasonably necessary to determine whether the applicant satisfies applicable statutory, regulatory, and legal standards. The State entity shall provide the applicant with written or electronic notice stating the basis for the additional review and a revised anticipated processing period. An extension pursuant to this paragraph shall not be based solely upon staffing shortages, administrative backlog, or ordinary workload.

When an application for a permit, license, or certification, or any combination thereof, requires the review of multiple State entities, a State entity shall be prohibited from withholding a refund pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection due to the failure of another State entity to complete its review, unless the State entity is legally unable to make a final determination without the completed review.

d. Any State entity that issues permits, licenses, or certifications to individuals or businesses shall establish an application completeness checklist for each type of permit, license, or certification. The checklist shall identify the information and documentation necessary for an application for that permit, license, or certification to be deemed complete and shall be made available on the State entity’s Internet website.

e. As used in this act:

“Certification” means mandatory and nonmandatory government-issued credentials including, but not limited to, those required for contracting as a small business with a State entity, obtaining formal permission to conduct work that requires specialized approval, or meeting State eligibility to become a public educator or any other vocational or technical professional.

“Completed application” means an application containing all information and documentation required by applicable law or regulation and the State entity's publicly available application completeness checklist established pursuant to subsection d. of this section, together with additional information reasonably necessary to address circumstances particular to the application.

“Final determination” means the approval, conditional approval, denial, issuance, or other final disposition of an application by the responsible State entity.

“License” means a legal authorization that grants continuing and formalized permission to an applicant to conduct work including, but not limited to, work that involves utility installation on State property, work that involves the handling of personal identification, or work that requires legal authorization to practice the profession, specialized endorsements, or legal documentation for the purchase and use of goods and services.

“Permit” means any formal approval or authorization issued for the provision of goods and services including, but not limited to, construction; manufacturing; energy generation, transmission, or distribution; real estate development; operation of a business; or the provision of goods or services by an executive branch department or agency of the State.

“State entity” means any department or agency in the executive branch of State government, including, but not limited to, any board, commission, corporation, authority, or entity thereof.²

²2. a. If an application for a permit, license, or certification, or any combination thereof, requires the review of multiple State entities, the Governor, or the Governor’s designee, shall designate a lead State entity to oversee the review of that application.

b. The lead State entity shall, to the extent permitted by law:

(1) coordinate communication between the applicant and participating State entities;

(2) identify reasonably anticipated State approvals;

(3) establish a coordinated review schedule;

(4) facilitate concurrent reviews where legally and administratively feasible;

(5) identify and facilitate resolution of conflicting or duplicative information requests among State entities; and

(6) provide the applicant with information concerning the status of required State approvals.

c. (1) If an application for a permit, license, or certification, or any combination thereof, requires the review of multiple State entities, the applicant may request a pre-application conference. Any State entity participating in the review of the application shall participate in the conference to the maximum extent practicable.

(2) The conference shall identify anticipated approvals, application requirements, sequencing issues, opportunities for concurrent review, and any potential issues that may delay consideration of the application.

(3) Any statements or guidance provided during the course of a pre-application conference shall not constitute approval of the application and shall not limit the ability of any State entity to issue a determination for the application.

d. The provisions of this section shall not transfer or diminish the statutory authority of any State entity, modify approval standards for any permit, license, or certification, require approval of any application for a permit, license, or certification, alter any legally required public notice or participation, or supersede federal law.²

²3. a. The Governor’s Office, or an appropriate State entity designated by the Governor, shall establish an online permitting and licensing performance dashboard that is accessible to the public no later than two years after the effective date of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). The dashboard shall display, at a minimum, for each type of permit, license, and certification the:

(1) issuing State entity;

(2) application fee;

(3) statutory, regulatory, or other legal authority governing the length of time within which the State entity shall process applications;

(4) target application processing times established pursuant to subsection b. of section 1 of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill);

(5) median processing times during the preceding 12 months;

(6) percentage of completed applications receiving final determinations with the applicable processing time; and

(7) number of applications pending a determination past the applicable processing time.

b. The dashboard shall display the information required pursuant to subsection a. of this section in a manner consistent with all applicable federal and State statutory and regulatory requirements. The Governor’s Office, or an appropriate State entity designated by the Governor, shall update the dashboard on at least a quarterly basis.²

²4. a. Beginning two years after the effective date of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and biennially thereafter, the Governor, or the Governor’s designee, shall submit to the Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), a report analyzing the performance of State entities in processing applications for permits, licenses, and certifications.

b. The report may incorporate, by reference, information publicly available through the online permitting and licensing performance dashboard established pursuant to section 3 of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and shall not be required to reproduce information otherwise available through the dashboard. The report shall include, at a minimum:

(1) the number, and aggregate dollar amount, of application fees refunded;

(2) the number of applications administratively escalated;

(3) the number of applications requiring a multi-entity review;

(4) identification of categories of permits, licenses, and certifications that routinely exceed applicable processing times, including the principal causes of the recurring delays; and

(5) recommendations concerning statutory, regulatory, technological, staffing, or administrative changes to improve the processing of applications.

c. All reports prepared pursuant to this section shall be made publicly available.²

²5. Nothing in this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), shall:

a. require or authorize approval of an application that fails to satisfy applicable law;

b. create automatic or deemed approval due to a State entity’s failure to act within an established processing period;

c. modify, waive, or diminish substantive environmental, public health, worker safety, consumer protection, professional qualification, land use, or other legal or regulatory standards;

d. eliminate legally required public notice, comment, hearing, or participation requirements;

e. supersede federal law or federally mandated processing requirements; or

f. transfer statutory decision-making authority from the State entity legally responsible for issuing the applicable permit, license, certification, or approval.²

²6. This act shall take effect on the 180th day after the date of enactment.²