Read the full stored bill text
A4060
ASSEMBLY, No. 4060
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 12, 2026
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman� ALEX SAUICKIE
District 12 (Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
���� Limits speculative development of warehouses until
500,000 acres of farmland are preserved under farmland preservation programs.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� As introduced.
��
An Act
to limit speculative development of warehouses
until 500,000 acres of farmland are preserved under farmland preservation
programs.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� a.� Notwithstanding the
provisions of any other law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, no approving
authority shall schedule or convene a hearing to consider an application,
pending as of, or following, the date of enactment of P.L.��� , c.�� �(pending
before the Legislature as this bill), for the speculative development of a
warehouse on active farmland, nor shall any approving authority take a vote on
the merits of that application or a vote on a resolution memorializing an
approval, until the date the State Agriculture Development Committee,
established pursuant to section 4 of the �Right to Farm Act,� P.L.1983, c.31
(C.4:1C-4), catalogs 500,000 acres of preserved farmland under farmland
preservation programs. �An application for the speculative development of a
warehouse on active farmland may be considered by an approving authority if the
applicant commits to the approving authority and to the State Agriculture
Development Committee to preserve an area of farmland in the State equal in
size to the number of acres proposed for development in the application.� The
State Agriculture Development Committee shall report to the Governor and,
pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the Legislature when
the State Agriculture Development Committee catalogs 500,000 acres of preserved
farmland under farmland preservation programs.
���� b.��� As used in this section:
���� �Active farmland� means
farmland used for agricultural purposes as of the date of enactment of P.L.���
, c.��� (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
���� �Speculative development�
means the construction of a warehouse without a contractual commitment from a
warehouse tenant or buyer.
���� �Warehouse� means a building
that stores cargo, goods, or products of any type on a short-term or long-term
basis for later distribution to wholesale or retail customers, and includes,
but is not limited to, a distribution center, flex-warehouse, or any other type
of warehouse.
���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and shall expire upon the date the State Agriculture
Development Committee submits the report required pursuant to subsection a of
section 1 of this act confirming the cataloging of 500,000 acres of preserved
farmland under farmland preservation programs.
STATEMENT
���� This bill limits speculative
development of warehouses until the State Agriculture Development Committee
(SADC) catalogs 500,000 acres of preserved farmland under farmland preservation
programs (programs).� An application for the speculative development of a
warehouse on active farmland may be considered by an approving authority if the
applicant commits to the approving authority and to the SADC to preserve an
area of farmland in the State equal in size to the number of acres proposed for
development in the application.� The SADC is to report to the Governor and to the
Legislature when the SADC catalogs 500,000 acres of preserved farmland under
these programs.� The bill is to expire upon the submission of that report.
���� In 1998, the Governor�s
Council on New Jersey Outdoors issued a report recommending that at least
500,000 acres of farmland should be preserved to maintain a critical mass of
land for agricultural production and to assure the future success of farming in
this State.� As of January 9, 2023, the SADC has accounted for 248,009 acres of
preserved farmland under these programs.