Requires modernization of all State blanks, forms, documents, and applications to incorporate new standards for collection of information about sex, gender, and sexual orientation.

A1362

ASSEMBLY, No. 1362

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ELLEN J. PARK

District 37 (Bergen)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Freiman

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires modernization of all State blanks, forms,
documents, and applications to incorporate new standards for collection of
information about sex, gender, and sexual orientation.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning State forms and supplementing Title 52 of
the Revised Statutes.

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

���� 1.��� a.� Notwithstanding the
provisions of any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, on or after the
effective date of this section, all blanks, forms, documents, and applications
furnished to the public for official business by every State department, commission,
committee, council, or agency shall be modernized to incorporate new standards
for the collection of information about an individual�s sex, gender, and sexual
orientation, as follows:

���� (1)�� Information about an
individual�s sex, gender, or sexual orientation shall only be collected when
such information is vitally necessary for the health and wellbeing of the
individuals seeking the service;

���� (2)�� The collection of
information about an individual�s sex, gender, or sexual orientation for the
purposes of statistical research or study shall be optional, and shall be
clearly marked as such on each blank, form, document, or application, in order
to inform each individual filer that services will not be withheld if the filer
chooses not to provide such information;

���� (3)�� Any questions relating
to sex, gender, or sexual orientation shall be posed in a manner that is
sensitive to the individual, and that does not infringe upon or threaten the
individual�s mental and physical wellbeing; shall allow for non-binary
designations; and shall be consistent with relevant best practices, as
recognized by Garden State Equality and other relevant organizations that
engage in advocacy on behalf of the State�s lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, or questioning (LGBTQ) communities; and

���� (4)�� The authority to grant
or refuse the disclosure of information about an individual�s sex, gender, or
sexual orientation shall remain with the individual, or with the individual�s
parent or guardian, if the individual is a minor under the age of 18.� No third
party actor, including, but not limited to, a health care provider or a State
employee or partner, shall have the agency to grant or refuse the disclosure of
such information.

���� b.��� If the State is required
by a federal agency or other federal initiative to collect and report
information related to an individual�s sex, gender, or sexual orientation, the
State department, commission, committee, council, or agency responsible for
collecting and reporting that information shall include, within its program
rules, documentation verifying the applicable federal requirements before it
will be authorized to include any questions related to sex, gender, or sexual
orientation on the forms, blanks, documents, or applications that it uses to
comply with those federal requirements.�

���� c.���� The Secretary of State
shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the �Administrative Procedure
Act,� P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as may be necessary to implement
the provisions of this section.

���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect on the first day of the third month next following enactment, except
that the Secretary of State may take anticipatory administrative action, in
advance of the effective date, as necessary to implement the provisions of this
act.

STATEMENT

���� This bill would require all
blanks, forms, documents, and applications furnished to the public for official
business by every State department, commission, committee, council, or agency
to be modernized to incorporate new standards for the collection of information
about an individual�s sex, gender, and sexual orientation.�

���� The bill would provide, in
particular, that:� 1) information about an individual�s sex, gender, or sexual
orientation may only be collected when such information is vitally necessary
for the health and wellbeing of the individuals seeking the service; 2) the
collection of information about an individual�s sex, gender, or sexual
orientation for the purposes of statistical research or study is to be
optional, and is to be clearly marked as such on each blank, form, document, or
application, in order to inform each individual filer that services will not be
withheld in the case that the filer chooses not to provide such information; 3)
any questions relating to sex, gender, or sexual orientation are to be posed in
a manner that is sensitive to the individual, and that does not infringe upon
or threaten the individual�s mental and physical wellbeing; are to allow for
non-binary designations; and are to be consistent with relevant best practices,
as recognized by Garden State Equality and other relevant organizations that
engage in advocacy on behalf of the State�s lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender, or questioning (LGBTQ) communities; and 4) the authority to grant
or refuse the disclosure of information about an individual�s sex, gender, or
sexual orientation is to remain with the individual, or with the individual�s
parent or guardian, if the individual is a minor under the age of 18, and no
third party actor, including, but not limited to, a health care provider or a
State employee or partner, will have the ability to grant or refuse the
disclosure of such information.

���� The bill would further provide
that, in cases where the State is required by a federal agency or other federal
initiative to collect and report information related to a person�s sex, gender,
or sexual orientation, the State department, commission, committee, council, or
agency responsible for collecting and reporting that information will be
required to include, within its program rules, documentation verifying the
applicable federal requirements before it will be authorized to include any
questions related to sex, gender, or sexual orientation on the forms, blanks,
documents, or applications that it uses to comply with those federal
requirements.�

���� Most, if not all, State
blanks, forms, documents, and applications currently use outmoded means of
collecting information about sex and gender.� Specifically, they often conflate
the meanings of sex and gender, unnecessarily require the collection of information
related to sex, gender, and sexual orientation, and do not allow individuals
who exist outside of the historical male/female binary system to accurately
document their gender identity and biological sex.� This is inconsistent with
recent changes made to New Jersey birth certificates, which now allow for
documentation of biological sex outside of a historical male/female binary
system.� By requiring all State forms and other documents to reflect a more
modernized methodology for the collection of information on sex, gender, and
sexual orientation, the State can better prevent unnecessary psychological harm
and medical risk to New Jersey�s transgender, transsexual, and intersexual
communities.