Local news- Press Release
New Jersey League of Municipalities New Jersey - Bills Revising Workers Compensation Coverage Advances 05 January 2024 ( news )
New Jersey League of Municipalities , state New Jersey ( By Press Release office)
Jan 05,2024
| 9| 1
On Thursday
,
the Assembly Appropriations Committee favorably
reported ,
A - 5
9
09
and the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee favorably reported
S - 4267
. The identical legislation
revises workers’ compensation coverage for certain injuries to volunteer and professional public safety and law enforcement personnel .
The legislation is
nearly identical
to
A - 161
, which was favorably reported from the Assembly Labor Committee
in November and
the
League reported on
, as well as
S - 651
,
which was favorably reported from the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee in December . 9 - 1 - 1 dispatcher
s
were removed from the new legislation .
We are concerned about the fiscal impact the legislation will have on
municipalities which
currently face the highest workers ' compensation costs in the nation
. W
ithout an available fiscal note to evaluate the cost to municipalities , we are unable to
determine
if the cost to municipalities will be negligible and
cannot
support such legislation .
While the goal of this legislation is laudable and we are grateful for the service of public safety professionals and volunteers , it is simply unaffordable to municipal governments
at this time
.
Consistent with the
League Conference Resolution 2023 - 14
,
the League opposes this legislation because the increased costs further hamstring municipalities
’
annual
compliance to
a 2% levy cap .
The bills are scheduled for consideration by both the full Assembly and Senate on Monday .
Contact:
Paul Penna , Senior Legislative Analyst ,
ppenna@njlm . org
, 609 - 695 - 3481 , x110
.
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