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A3236 FISCAL ESTIMATE
LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE
ASSEMBLY, No. 3236
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
DATED: MARCH 10, 2026
SUMMARY
Synopsis:
Establishes oversight and qualifications of peer recovery
specialists.
Type of Impact:
Annual State expenditure and revenue increases.
Agencies Affected:
Department of Law and Public Safety.
Office
of Legislative Services Estimate
Fiscal Impact
Annual State Expenditure Increase
Indeterminate
Annual State Revenue Increase
Indeterminate
�
The
Office of Legislative Services (OLS) finds that the bill�s provisions establishing
a peer recovery specialist certification in the Division of Consumer Affairs will
result in annual indeterminate increases in State expenditures and revenues.�
The OLS lacks the informational basis to estimate the magnitude of these increases
because it will depend on the number of individuals that pursue the new
certification, the extent to which the division�s workload will be augmented by
the bill, and the fee structure the division will set.
BILL DESCRIPTION
����� The bill incorporates peer recovery specialists into
current law and authorizes the Division of Consumer Affairs, in the Department
of Law and Public Safety, to oversee their regulation.� A peer recovery
specialist is an individual who provides services as a result of lived
experience to other individuals struggling with substance use disorder or
mental health problems.� The bill requires that an individual may only provide
services as a peer recovery specialist and hold themselves out as a specialist
if approved by the division.
����� The division is to establish the requirements to
qualify as a peer recovery specialist and will: 1) determine standards to
qualify for certification as a peer, including the passage of a criminal
history record background check; 2) evaluate the qualifications and make a
determination of the eligibility for certification of all applicants; 3)�
conduct hearings pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act; 4) set fees
necessary to process documentation related to certification; and 5) have the
authority to address any other item deemed necessary in the oversight of peer
recovery specialists.
���� FISCAL ANALYSIS
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
����� None received.
OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
����� The OLS finds that the bill�s provisions establishing
a peer recovery specialist certification in the Division of Consumer Affairs
will result in an annual indeterminate increase in State expenditures and
revenues.
�����
State Expenditure Increase
: The OLS
expects the peer recovery specialist certification to result in additional
applications and renewals, thereby increasing the division�s administrative and
enforcement expenditures.
����� During the Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal
Relations Committee hearing on February 12, 2026, a peer recovery specialist
with Mainstream Recovery indicated the organization had trained and certified
over 2,000 certified peer recovery specialists.
����� The OLS, however, has no information on the number of individuals,
including those certified by Mainstream Recovery, who will apply for a peer
recovery specialist certification with the Division of Consumer Affairs or the
marginal regulatory cost per applicant, given that the cost will depend on
operating decisions made by the division.
�����
State Revenue Increases
: The OLS
anticipates that the bill would increase annual State revenue collections from
application fees, fines, and penalties related to the new certification.
Currently, the division has discretion in setting license fees, fines, and
penalties. In the absence of information on these new amounts, the OLS cannot
project the magnitude of the associated annual State revenue gain.
Section:
Law and Public Safety
Analyst:
Kristin Brunner Santos
Lead Fiscal Analyst
Approved:
Thomas Koenig
Legislative Budget and Finance Officer
This legislative fiscal estimate has been produced by the
Office of Legislative Services due to the failure of the Executive Branch to
respond to our request for a fiscal note.
This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980,
c.67 (C.52:13B-6 et seq.).