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A2364
ASSEMBLY, No. 2364
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman WILLIAM F. MOEN, JR.
District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)
Assemblywoman LINDA S. CARTER
District 22 (Somerset and Union)
Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Sauickie, Assemblywomen Fantasia, Speight and
McCoy
SYNOPSIS
���� Requires DMVA notify certain veteran organizations
and county officers and municipal registers of names of persons buried or
cremated in State veteran cemeteries.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.
��
An Act
requiring the Department of Military and
Veterans� Affairs to provide certain burial and cremation information to
certain veteran organizations and county officers and municipal registers, and
amending N.J.S.38A:3-6.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.� N.J.S.38A:3-6 is amended
to read as follows:
���� 38A:3-6.� Under the direction
of the Governor, the Adjutant General shall:
���� (a) Exercise control over the
affairs of the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs and in connection
therewith make and issue such regulations governing the work of the Department
of Military and Veterans' Affairs and the conduct of its employees as may, in
his judgment, be necessary or desirable.
���� (b) Be the request officer of
the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs within the meaning of such
term as defined in section 1 of P.L.1944, c.112 (C.52:27B-1).
���� (c) (Deleted by amendment,
P.L.1988, c.138.)
���� (d) Command the organized
militia of the State, with responsibility for recruiting, mobilization,
administration, training, discipline, equipping, supply and general efficiency
thereof.� He may issue such regulations and delegate such command functions as
he shall deem necessary.� The regulations so issued shall, insofar as possible,
conform to the federal laws and regulations concerning the same.
���� (e) Maintain the archives and
be the custodian of the records and papers required, by laws or regulations, to
be filed with the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs.
���� (f) Supervise, administer and
coordinate those activities of the selective service system for which the
Governor is responsible.
���� (g) Acquire by gift, grant,
purchase, exchange, eminent domain, or in any other lawful manner, in the name
of and for the use of the State of New Jersey, all those parcels of land as
shall be necessary for armories and other militia facilities, and supervise the
design, construction, alteration, maintenance and repair of said property.
���� (h) Establish and maintain
such headquarters as may be required for the militia.
���� (i) Exercise the powers vested
in him and perform such other duties and functions as required of him by the
Governor and by federal and State laws and regulations.
���� (j) Exercise all of the
functions, powers and duties heretofore vested in the Director of the Division
on Veterans' Programs and Special Services.
���� (k) Appoint and remove
officers and other personnel employed within the department, subject to the
provisions of N.J.S.38A:3-8 and Title 11A of the New Jersey Statutes and other
applicable statutes, except as herein otherwise specifically provided.
���� (l) Have authority to organize
and maintain an administrative division and to assign to employment therein
secretarial, clerical and other assistants in the department or the Adjutant
General's Office for the purpose of providing centralized support to all
segments of the department, including budgeting, personnel administration and
oversight of equal opportunity programs.
���� (m) Perform, exercise and
discharge the functions, powers and duties of the department through such
divisions as may be established by this act or otherwise by law.
���� (n) Organize the work of the
department in divisions not inconsistent with the provisions of this act and in
bureaus and other organizational units as the Adjutant General may determine to
be necessary for efficient and effective operation.
���� (o) Adopt, issue and
promulgate, in the name of the department, pursuant to the "Administrative
Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), such rules and
regulations as may be authorized by law.
���� (p) Institute, or cause to be
instituted, legal proceedings or processes as necessary to properly enforce and
give effect to any of the Adjutant General's powers or duties.
���� (q) Make an annual report to
the Governor and to the Legislature of the department's operations, and render
other reports as the Governor shall from time to time request or as may be
required by law.
���� (r) Coordinate the activities
of the department, and the several divisions and other agencies therein, in a
manner designed to eliminate overlapping and duplicative functions.
���� (s) Integrate within the
department, so far as practicable, all staff services of the department and of
several divisions and other agencies therein.
���� (t) Request access to all
relevant files and records of other State agencies, which may be made available
to the Adjutant General by the head of a State agency, and request, subject to
the permission of the head of the State agency, any officer or employee therein
to provide information as necessary to assist in the performance of the
functions of the department.
���� (u) Supervise and operate the
New Jersey Veterans' Memorial Home-Menlo Park, the New Jersey Veterans'
Memorial Home-Vineland, the New Jersey Veterans' Memorial Home-Paramus and the
New Jersey Veterans' Memorial Cemetery-Arneytown.
���� (v) Supervise and operate the
liaison office and the field offices which serve the federal Veterans' Affairs
Medical Centers.
���� (w) Make application for
federal grants and programs, other than education grants or funds.
���� (x) Administer the
federally-funded training and rehabilitation programs, except for the
administration of federally-funded education and training programs set forth in
38 U.S.C. s.36 et seq.
���� (y) Provide current
information to the general public on State and federal veterans' programs and
benefits; create a comprehensive public webpage for women veterans that
includes, but is not limited to, the following information: veterans' legal
rights, benefits, medical and insurance issues, education, the transition from
active service to civilian life, and other resources available to veterans.
���� (z) Develop and administer the
New Jersey Homeless Veterans Grant Program established pursuant to section 3 of
P.L.2013, c.239 (C.38A:3-6.2b).
���� (aa) Encourage and facilitate
the registration of each service member residing in New Jersey with the United
States Department of Veterans Affairs, or its successor agency.� Registration
shall take place, as appropriate, when the service member returns from
deployment on federal active duty or is discharged or as soon as possible
thereafter.� The term "service member" shall mean members of the New
Jersey National Guard and members of the United States Armed Forces, or a
Reserve component thereof, when the information on each member is made
available to the department.�
���� (bb) Develop and coordinate a
volunteer-based program comprised of former servicemembers to assist and mentor
veterans who become involved with the criminal justice system, while criminal
proceedings are pending and afterward, in accessing assistance to resolve the
underlying problems that led or contributed to the veteran's involvement with
the criminal justice system including, but not limited to, offering support and
guidance, securing housing, employment linkages, job training, education,
transportation, disability compensation claims, discharge status, health care
and other linkages available at the local, State and federal level that can
ease the challenge of reentry into civilian life.� In addition, the Adjutant
General shall develop a registry of volunteer mentors and make the registry
available pursuant to P.L.2017, c.42 (C.2C:43-23 et al.).
���� (cc) Prepare and disseminate a
directory of Veterans Diversion Resource Program entities currently available
within New Jersey pursuant to P.L.2017, c.42 (C.2C:43-23 et al.).
���� (dd) Create a comprehensive
public webpage for Gold Star family members that includes, but is not limited
to, the following information: State benefits; State and county liaisons; a
list of service members from New Jersey killed in action; links to other Gold
Star family organizations; and such other information and resources as the
Adjutant General deems necessary and beneficial to a Gold Star family member.�
A "Gold Star family member" means the spouse, domestic partner,
partner in a civil union, parent, brother, sister, child, legal guardian, or
other legal custodian, whether of the whole or half blood, or by adoption.
���� (ee) Identify each New Jersey
resident who enrolls in the United States Military Academy, United States Naval
Academy, United States Coast Guard Academy, United States Merchant Marine
Academy, or United States Air Force Academy, and issue a New Jersey State flag
to that individual.
����
(ff) Provide a monthly
report to veteran organizations and the appropriate county officer and
municipal register of the names of all persons buried or cremated in the State
veteran cemeteries the previous month.
The monthly
reports and waivers may be transmitted and received electronically.�
As
used in this section, "veteran organization" means a veteran
organization that qualifies as a section 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(19) tax exempt
organization under the Internal Revenue Code, or a federally chartered Veterans�
Service Organization.� No burial or cremation information shall be released to
a veteran organization or county officer until a representative of the person
buried or cremated has signed a waiver permitting release of the information.�
The monthly reports and waivers shall not be considered a
government record and shall be not be accessible under the law commonly
referred to as the open public records act, P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.).
(cf: P.L.2019, c.283, s.1)
���� 2.� This act shall take effect
immediately.
STATEMENT
����� This bill requires the
Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to provide a monthly report to
veteran organizations, county officers, and municipal registers of the names of
persons buried or cremated in State veteran cemeteries the previous month.� The
bill also requires that a representative of the person buried or cremated in a
State veteran cemetery sign a waiver before the information may be released.
The department may transmit and receive the reports and waivers
electronically.� The monthly reports and waivers will be confidential and not
subject to the law commonly referred to as the open public records act.�
���� Veteran organization means a
veteran organization that qualifies as a section 501(c)(3) or a 501(c)(19)
tax-exempt organization under the Internal Revenue Code, or a federally
chartered Veterans� Service Organization.