S3941

An Act concerning accessibility in multistory buildings and supplementing P.L.1967, c.76.

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

1. a. For the purposes of this section:

“Division” means the Division of Codes and Standards in the Department of Community Affairs.

“Multistory building” means a hotel or multiple dwelling building with two or more floors. “Multistory building” shall not include owner-occupied single- or multi-family buildings having less than four dwelling units.

“Person with a disability” means a person with a physical disability, infirmity, malformation, or disfigurement which is caused by bodily injury, birth defect, aging, or illness including epilepsy and other seizure disorders, and which shall include, but not be limited to, any degree of paralysis, amputation, lack of physical coordination, or physical reliance on a service animal, wheelchair, or other remedial appliance or device.

“Property owner” means the owner of a multistory building.

b. Within 18 months of the date of enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), a property owner shall ensure access to and from each floor of the multistory building for persons with a disability, including in the event of an elevator outage through:

(1) for a multistory building that provides elevator service, restoration of elevator service for at least one elevator in the building, within two hours of notification of an elevator outage; or

(2) for multistory buildings without an elevator or if an elevator outage lasts longer than two hours, means of access to and from each floor of a multistory building, other than through elevator service which may include, but shall not be limited to, evacuation chairs, ramps, or motorized stairlifts.

c. A property owner shall, in the event of an elevator outage, immediately notify residents of the multistory building of the elevator outage and provide an estimated time of elevator service restoration.

d. For the purpose of enforcing the provisions of this section, the division shall:

(1) establish a form and manner for a resident of a multistory building to report a violation of this section;

(2) periodically conduct inspections of multistory buildings for compliance with this section;

(3) conduct investigations of violations and reported violations of this section; and

(4) impose penalties pursuant to subsection e. of this section.

e. (1) A property owner who violates the provisions of this section shall be liable for a penalty of not more than:

(a) $500 for the first violation in a given calendar year, and not more than $500 for each continuing violation associated with the first violation;

(b) $1,000 for a second or subsequent violation in a given calendar year, and not more than $1,000 for each continuing violation associated with the second violation; and

(c) $2,500 for any violation if the violation determined by the division to create an acute health or safety risk, and not more than $2,500 for each continuing violation associated with an acute health or safety risk violation.

(2) Where any violation of this section is of a continuing nature, each day during which the continuing violation remains unabated, shall constitute an additional, separate, and distinct violation. A penalty pursuant to this subsection may be collected pursuant to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection to the contrary, a property owner shall not be liable for a penalty if the property owner can demonstrate an active contract with an elevator servicer or the presence of alternative means of access to and from each floor of the multistory building.

f. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the Director of the Division of Codes and Standards may recommend, and the Commissioner of Community Affairs may, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt revisions to the barrier free subcode authorized pursuant to paragraph (5) of subsection b. of section 5 of P.L.1975, c.217 (C.52:27D-123) to ensure persons with a disability have sufficient access to each floor of a multistory building, including in the event of an elevator outage.

g. Nothing in this section shall be construed to:

(1) limit the applicability of the federal "Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990," (42 U.S.C. s.12101 et seq.), or other applicable federal law;

(2) prohibit a municipality from adopting an ordinance that is consistent with P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), enforcing and imposing additional penalties for violations of such municipal ordinance.

2. The Director of the Division of Codes and Standards in the Department of Community Affairs shall establish a grant program to assist property owners in purchasing accessibility equipment utilizing funds made available to the division for such purpose.

3. Notwithstanding the deadline imposed by subsection b. of section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), a property owner experiencing financial hardship or structural limitations may apply to the Division of Codes and Standards in the Department of Community Affairs for an extension of not more than 12 months to comply with the provisions of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) in a form and manner to be determined by the director of the division.

4. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill requires owners of multistory buildings, as that term is defined in the bill, to ensure access to and from each floor of the multistory building for persons with a disability, including in the event of an elevator outage through (1) restoration of elevator service within two hours of notification of an elevator outage; or (2) alternative means of access to and from each floor of a multistory building which may include evacuation chairs, ramps, and motorized stairlifts.

The Division of Codes and Standards in the Department of Community Affairs is to be tasked with the enforcement of the provisions of the bill and required to receive reports of violations of bill, conduct inspections of multistory buildings, conduct investigations of violations of the bill, and impose penalties. A property owner would not be liable for a penalty, however, if they can demonstrate an active contract with an elevator servicer or the presence of alternative means of access to and from each floor of the multistory building.

The bill requires property owners to comply with its provisions within 18 months of enactment, but allows a property owner experiencing financial hardship or structural limitations to seek an extension of not more than 12 additional months from the division.

The bill requires the division establish a grant program to assist property owners in purchasing accessibility equipment utilizing funds made available to the division for such purpose.

The bill also permits the Director of the Division of Codes and Standards to recommend, and the Commissioner of Community Affairs to adopt, revisions to the barrier free subcode to ensure persons with a disability have sufficient access to each floor of a multistory building, including in the event of an elevator outage.

The bill also expressly permits municipalities to adopt ordinances consistent with the bill’s provisions and impose additional penalties for violations of such ordinances.