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A4058
ASSEMBLY, No. 4058
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 12, 2026
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman� ALEX SAUICKIE
District 12 (Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
���� Establishes Emergency Medical Services Provider
Safety Grant Program in DOH; appropriates $10 million.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� As introduced.
��
An Act
concerning emergency medical services providers,
supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes, and making an appropriation.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� As used in this act:
���� �Emergency medical services
provider� shall have the same meaning as provided in section 1 of P.L.2017,
c.116 (C.26:2K-66).
���� �Personal protective
equipment� shall have the same meaning as provided in section 1 of P.L.2020,
c.135 (C.26:2H-12.100).
���� 2.��� a.� Notwithstanding the
provision of any other law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, the
Commissioner of Health shall establish the EMS Provider Safety Grant Program to
award one-time, competitive grants to providers of emergency medical services
to offset the costs associated with the purchase of:
���� (1)�� personal protective
equipment;
���� (2)�� protective clothing,
such as footwear, gloves, or eyewear;
���� (3)�� cleaning and advanced
cleaning equipment; and
���� (4)�� other virus protection
equipment as may be determined to be appropriate by the commissioner.
���� b.��� Grant amounts and awards
shall be dependent upon the availability of funds.� The grant program will
expire once the available funding, appropriated pursuant to section 5 of this
act, has been expended.
���� c.���� Eligible grant
applicants shall be emergency medical services providers, which currently
provide services in the State.
���� d.��� The commissioner shall
develop an online application and a process by which emergency medical services
providers may apply for funding through the EMS Provider Safety Grant Program
established pursuant to this act.�
���� e.���� Emergency medical
services providers shall be required to submit, as part of the grant
application process:
���� (1) a description of the
emergency medical services provider�s intended use of funding awarded pursuant
to the grant program; and
���� (2)�� a list of the personnel
or outside consultants, if any, who will be responsible for managing the grant
funds, awarded pursuant to this act, and the purchase of safety equipment.
���� f.���� The commissioner shall
establish procedures and criteria for reviewing and awarding grants under the
EMS Provider Safety Grant Program.� In awarding funding to emergency medical
services providers for the purchase of safety equipment, the commissioner shall
give preference to grant applicants based upon:
���� (1)�� the scope of provider
need, as demonstrated by equipment need, annual number of service calls, number
of active emergency medical services personnel, and service area population;
���� (2)�� the impact of the
COVID-19 virus on the emergency medical services provider, as demonstrated by
the burden of illness among the emergency medical services provider�s personnel
and the local community served by the provider; and
���� (3)�� the strength of the
applicant�s proposed plan to use the grant funds for the purchase of approved
safety items and equipment.
���� 3.��� The Commissioner of
Health shall report to the Governor and to the Legislature pursuant to section
2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1) within one year after the effective date of
this act on the number of grants awarded and the number of safety items procured
through the EMS Provider Safety Grant Program.
���� 4.��� The Commissioner of
Health shall adopt such 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 requirements of this act.
���� 5.��� From the federal
�Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund� monies allocated to the State,
pursuant to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, $10,000,000 shall be
appropriated to the Department of Health to establish the EMS Provider Safety
Grant Program and implement the provisions of this act.
���� 6.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.
STATEMENT
���� The bill establishes the EMS
Provider Safety Grant Program in the Department of Health to award one-time,
competitive grants to emergency medical services (EMS) providers to offset the
costs of purchasing safety equipment.� It is the intent of the bill�s sponsor
to protect the health and safety of these essential first responders by
ensuring that EMS providers have sufficient funding for crucial safety
equipment.�
���� Under the bill, EMS providers
will be eligible to apply for grands through the EMS Provider Safety Grant
Program.� Expenditures eligible for reimbursement under the grant program
include those for the purchase of: personal protective equipment, such as N-95
masks and disposable gloves; protective clothing, such as footwear or safety
eyewear; advanced cleaning equipment; and any other virus protection equipment
as may be determined appropriate by the Commissioner of Health.�
���� Grant awards and amounts will
be dependent upon the availability of State fiscal resources.� The grant
program, additionally, will expire once the funding has been expended.
���� Pursuant to the bill, the
commissioner is required to develop an online application and a process by
which EMS providers may apply for grants through the program.� As part of the
grant application, EMS providers are required to include:� 1) a description of
the applicant�s intended use of the grant funding; and 2) a list of the
personnel or outside consultants, if any, who will be responsible for managing
the grant funds and the purchase of safety equipment.
���� The bill also provides that
the Commissioner of Health will establish procedures and criteria for reviewing
and awarding EMS Provider Safety Grants, and will give preference to applicants
based upon:
���� (1)�� the scope of provider
need, as documented by the annual number of service calls handled by the EMS
provider, the number of active EMS personnel, and service area population;
���� (2)�� the impact of the
COVID-19 virus on the EMS provider, based on the burden of illness among the
provider�s personnel and the local community served by the provider; and
���� (3)�� the strength of the
applicant�s proposed plan of use for the grant funds.
���� One year after the bill�s
effective date, the commissioner will report to the Governor and the
Legislature on the number of grants awarded and the number of safety items
procured through the EMS Provider Safety Grant Program.
���� The bill, finally,
appropriates $10 million from the federal �Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery
Fund� allocation, available to the State under the American Rescue Plan Act of
2021, to the Department of Health to establish the EMS Provider Safety Grant Program.