New Jersey Land Use and Environmental Law

By: Henry T. Chou, Esq.

On January 17, 2012, Governor Chris Christie signed into law P.L. 2011, c. 203, which extends the deadline for counties and municipalities to file wastewater management plans by at least 180 days. The legislation, which was passed by the Senate and General Assembly on January 9, 2011, is aimed at averting the “negative economic impacts” associated with New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) regulations that would have required the withdrawal of numerous wastewater service areas throughout the state.

Continue reading "Governor Christie Signs Bill Extending Deadline for Wastewater Management Plans" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 03:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By: Henry T. Chou, Esq.

The New Jersey Senate has passed a bill known as S3156, which would extend the deadline for counties and municipalities to file wastewater management plans by at least 180 days, and potentially up to 2 years. The bill, which was passed by the Senate on January 9, 2011, will now move to the General Assembly, which is also anticipated to pass it in short order.

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Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 06:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By: Henry T. Chou, Esq.

The New Jersey Legislature is set to introduce a bill that aims to stablize the state’s solar industry, which has been in free fall since early summer. Assemblyman Upendra Chivakula (D-Middlesex) expects to introduce a bill in the lame duck session that would halt the precipitous drop of prices for solar renewable energy certificates (SRECs), which is a major mechanism for financing photovoltaic (PV) systems in New Jersey.

Continue reading "Legislature Poised to Boost Struggling Solar Industry" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 06:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By: Michael J. Lipari, Esq.

Today, Acting Governor Kim Guadagno signed a bill into law that extends a prior moratorium on the 2.5 percent non-residential development fee. This law (Legislative Bill S-2974) extends the moratorium for an additional two years, which should provide relief to commercial real estate developers.

Continue reading "Acting Governor Guadagno Signs Bill to Extend Moratorium on 2.5 Percent Non-Residential Development Fee" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 09:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By: Michael J. Lipari, Esq.

In an effort to provide certainty to development projects in the urban and more developed areas of the State, legislation has been adopted that extends general development plan (GDP) protection to large development projects situated on smaller sites.

Continue reading "New “Vertical GDP” Law Provides Options to Developers" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 01:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By: Michael J. Lipari, Esq.

Governor Christie has unveiled his new housing reform proposal, which seeks to drastically change affordable housing policies that have been in place for decades. As promised, the Governor proposes to eliminate the Council on Affordable Housing (“COAH”) and limit State involvement in the affordable housing process. The proposal is generally consistent with the report issued in March by the Governor’s Affordable Housing Task Force.

Continue reading "Governor Christie Reveals Plan for Affordable Housing and COAH" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 12:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By: Michael J. Lipari, Esq.

In yet another move to ease the burden on environmentally friendly development in New Jersey, the legislature passed the bill known as S-921, which exempts solar panels from surfaces classified as impervious. One of the most fundamental land use restrictions in New Jersey concerns the amount of impervious coverage (e.g. buildings, pavement, decks and patios) permitted on any single project or property. It was previously unknown whether solar panels were pervious or impervious because the panels usually sit on brackets and are typically not flush on the ground or a building and therefore do not necessarily reduce or prevent absorption of stormwater into the land.

Continue reading "Solar Panels No longer Considered in Calculating Impervious Coverage" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 01:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By: Michael J. Lipari, Esq.

The task force created by Governor Christie to examine and provide the Governor with recommendations on how to handle COAH and the future of affordable housing in New Jersey, has issued its findings and recommendations, which was published by the Governor’s office on March 23, 2010.

Continue reading "Affordable Housing Task Force Issues Report; Suggests 10% of All New Housing Be Deemed Affordable" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 06:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By Michael J. Lipari, Esq.

In his last full day in office, ex-Governor Jon Corzine signed legislative bill A-4347 that extends all permits and approvals that were subject to the Permit Extension Act of 2008 (“PEA”) through 2012. Corzine did not sign legislative bill A-4345 that would have extended the requirement of wastewater management planning agencies to establish or update wastewater management plans, and extended validity of sewer service areas and wastewater service areas, until April 7, 2011.

Continue reading "Ex-Governor Corzine Acts (and Fails to Act) on Legislation in Final Full Day in Office" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 02:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By Michael J. Lipari, Esq.

The Legislature adopted A-4345 that extends the requirement of wastewater management planning agencies to establish or update wastewater management plans, and extends validity of sewer service areas and wastewater service areas, until April 7, 2011. The bill just needs the endorsement of the Governor to become law.

Continue reading "Bill to Delay Adoption of Wastewater Management Plan Awaits Governor’s Approval" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 05:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

By Michael J. Lipari, Esq.

As the economic recession continues, the New Jersey Legislature took another proactive and necessary measure to aid builders and developers struggling to save approvals for jobs that are not currently able to proceed. On January 11, 2010, both houses passed legislative bill A-4347 that extends certain permits and approvals that were subject to the Permit Extension Act of 2008 (“PEA”) through 2012.

Continue reading "Legislature Adopts Bill to extend the “Permit Extension Act of 2008”" »

Posted by Henry T. Chou, Esq. at 05:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)