S3685 • 2026

Establishes permanent unit in Office of Emergency Management to address access and functional needs of residents related to disasters and emergencies.

Budget

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Greenstein, Linda R.
Last action: 2026-03-19
Official status: Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Establishes permanent unit in Office of Emergency Management to address access and functional needs of residents related to disasters and emergencies.

What This Bill Does

Establishes permanent unit in Office of Emergency Management to address access and functional needs of residents related to disasters and emergencies.
Topic: Budget and Appropriations Fiscal note: This bill has been certified by OLS for a fiscal note.

Limits and Unknowns

This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

2026-03-19 New Jersey Legislature
Reported from Senate Committee with Amendments, 2nd Reading
2026-03-19 New Jersey Legislature
Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee
2026-02-24 New Jersey Legislature
Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee

Official Summary Text

Establishes permanent unit in Office of Emergency Management to address access and functional needs of residents related to disasters and emergencies.
Topic:
Budget and Appropriations
Fiscal note:
This bill has been certified by OLS for a fiscal note.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

S3685 SLP Statement 3/19/26

SENATE LAW AND PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No.
3685

with
committee amendments

STATE
OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:
�MARCH
19, 2026

����� The Senate Law and Public Safety Committee reports
favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 3685.

����� As amended and reported by the committee, this bill
requires the State Office of Emergency Management to establish a permanent unit
in the office to serve the needs of State residents with access and functional
needs. The responsibilities of the unit are to include:

����� 1) determining the needs of residents with access and
functional needs before, during, and after disasters and emergencies;

����� 2) determining the Statewide availability of relevant
resources and assistance;

����� 3) assessing and addressing the ability of residents
with access and functional needs to access available resources and assistance;
and

����� 4) coordinating with county and local offices of
emergency management and relevant resource providers to determine, expand, and
implement best practices to be utilized in support of residents with access and
functional needs.�

����� Under the bill, a �resident with access and functional
needs� is defined as:

����� 1) a person with a disability;

����� �2) an older adult;

����� 3) a person with limited English proficiency;

����� 4)� a person with limited access to transportation
that would enable the person to prepare for, respond to, recover from, and
mitigate the effects of a disaster or emergency; or

����� 5) a person with limited access to financial resources
that would enable the person to prepare for, respond to, recover from, and
mitigate the effects of a disaster or emergency.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS
:

����� The committee amended the bill to remove findings and
declarations that are no longer current.