Authorizes State acquisition of certain real property to expand affordable, rapid, and transitional housing options; makes appropriation.

S4502

SENATE, No. 4502

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED JUNE 22, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� BRITNEE N. TIMBERLAKE

District 34 (Essex)

Senator� RAJ MUKHERJI

District 32 (Hudson)

SYNOPSIS

���� Authorizes State acquisition of certain real property
to expand affordable, rapid, and transitional housing options; makes
appropriation.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning acquisition of certain real property and
supplementing chapter 27D of Title 52 of the Revised Statutes and making an
appropriation.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� The Legislature finds
and declares that:

���� a.���� There exists in the
State a housing crisis as residents face a severe shortage of affordable
housing options in addition to the cost of housing rising faster than household
incomes;

���� b.��� The persistence of a
Statewide housing crisis contributes to an increase in overall housing
insecurity and further stalls economic development, leading to municipalities
facing an influx of housing needs for displaced individuals and families;

���� c.���� Housing displacement is
often seen among formerly incarcerated individuals who struggle to transition
back into society, amplifying the housing crisis;

���� d.��� As the State continues
to support re-entry services through budgetary assistance within the annual appropriations
act, it becomes necessary to aide these supportive services in providing
sufficient housing for formerly incarcerated individuals;

���� e.���� Housing crises are
further amplified in the face of unpredictable natural disasters, such as
hurricanes, fires, floods, storms, public-health emergencies, and other crises,
which lead to individuals and families being displaced with little or no
advance notice and nowhere to live;

���� f.���� As climate change
continues to worsen, it is expected that the housing needs for individuals and
families displaced by natural disasters will increase;

���� g.��� New Jersey faces a
growing and urgent need for transitional housing, driven by rising
homelessness, a severe shortage of affordable rentals, and the increasing
number of residents leaving institutional settings without stable places to go;

���� h.��� Across the State,
shelters are consistently full; current rapid‑rehousing programs are
unable to meet the needs of people with deeper barriers; and permanent and
affordable housing is scarce and slow to build;

���� i.���� Transitional housing
fills this critical housing gap by providing stable, service‑rich,
community‑based housing that helps individuals and families rebuild their
lives, secure employment, address health needs, and move toward long‑term
stability;

���� j.���� As a result of the
ongoing housing crisis, there exists a need for the creation of housing and
supportive services designed to help individuals and families facing housing insecurity,
requiring coordinated facilities for temporary support, referral, case
management, and rapid rehousing for those facing homelessness, including individuals
and families displaced by natural disasters and individuals re-entering society;

���� k.��� The most populous cities
within the State with superior air travel connectivity are particularly
suitable for the creation of new, publicly owned housing and providing the
facilitation of supportive services to provide emergency displacement response,
rapid rehousing support, public-benefit programming, education,
workforce-development services, language access, and community services in the
face of the ongoing housing crisis as these municipalities provide emergent
access for resources, and enhance options for individuals and families residing
in and making use of such facilities;

���� l.���� The residents of the
State have a substantial public interest in the availability of sufficient housing
and supportive services spaces that can provide supportive services, emergency
displacement response, rapid rehousing support, transitional housing, and
community services;

���� m.�� Eminent domain is the
inherent right of the government to take private property for public use so
long as just compensation is paid and is considered here by the Legislature in
light of the State�s critical housing shortage and the urgent need to rapidly
expand access to safe, affordable homes;

���� n.��� The acquisition of real
property through the use of eminent domain within the top five most populous
cities within the State provides an opportunity to aid New Jersey residents and
promote the efficient use of housing for homeless or displaced individuals and
families; and

���� o.��� In permitting the
acquisition of sufficient property that is useable for high-quality residential
housing and supportive services purposes in the most populous city in the State,
it is necessary, and a legitimate public purpose, for the State to acquire real
property with sufficient size, scale, infrastructure, and existing facilities to
provide housing access, supportive services, and travel connectivity to a large
number of individuals and promote the efficient use of and maximize housing
availability for housing insecure individuals and families in the State and
provide rapid rehousing support.

���� 2.��� As used in P.L.��� ,
c.��� (C.������� ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):

���� �Commissioner� means the
Commissioner of Community Affairs.

���� �Department� means the
Department of Community Affairs.

���� �Director� means the Director
of the Division of Purchase and Property in the Department of Treasury.

���� �Emergency housing� means
temporary housing designed to assist individuals and families who have been
displaced due to a natural disaster.

���� �Natural disaster� means a
natural phenomenon, either weather or health-related, such as hurricanes,
fires, floods, storms, public-health emergencies, including, but not limited
to, code red emergencies when heat advisories are in effect or there are
reports of an Air Quality Index of 151 or higher, and code blue emergencies
when a code blue alert is declared pursuant to section 3 of P.L.2017, c.68
(App.A:9-43.20), and other crises that have caused serious damage to real
property.

���� �Qualifying facility� means
real property located in a qualifying municipality and that consists of one or
more buildings, totaling not less than 115,000 square feet and not more than
120,000 square feet, located on a single site, and which has been approved for
the housing of individuals and families in at least 1,000 beds and across two
stories.

���� �Qualifying municipality� means
a municipality that is one of the five most populous municipalities in the
State, and in which is located an international airport that has historically
experienced the highest annual passenger volumes of all airports in this
State.

���� �Qualifying support facility�
means real property located in a qualifying municipality and that consists of
one or more buildings, totaling not less than 95,000 square feet and not more
than 100,000 square feet, located on a single site, and is not located more
than 10 miles away from the selected qualifying facility, and which in its
current use has been used to process and house individuals and families for at
least 25 years.

���� �Supportive services� means
operational support to provide re-entry services, emergency displacement
response, rapid rehousing support, public-benefit programming, education,
workforce-development services, language access, and community services for
individuals and families housed in transitional housing and emergency housing.

���� �Transitional housing� means temporary
housing for individuals and families that includes, but is not limited to,
single-room occupancy housing or shared living and supportive living
arrangements;� provides access to on-site or off-site supportive services for
very low-income households who have recently been homeless or lack stable
housing; and allows households to remain for a minimum of six months.�
�Transitional housing� shall also include temporary housing designed to assist
individuals transitioning from incarceration back into the community.

���� 3.��� a.�������� The Department
of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Department of Treasury and the Department
of Law and Public Safety, shall be authorized to acquire by purchase, lease, or
gift real property that is deemed to be a qualifying facility for the purpose
of providing publicly owned transitional housing and emergency housing.� The
department, in consultation with the Department of Treasury and the Department
of Law and Public Safety, shall also be authorized to acquire by purchase,
lease, or gift real property that is deemed to be a qualifying support facility
for the purpose of providing supportive services.

���� b.��� For the purpose of
providing transitional housing and emergency housing, if real property cannot first
be acquired, pursuant to subsection a. of this section, by purchase, lease, or
gift, the department shall be authorized to acquire real property that is
deemed to be a qualifying facility or a qualifying support facility, or both, by
the exercise of the power of eminent domain pursuant to the provisions of the
�Eminent Domain Act of 1971,� P.L.1971, c.361 (C.20:3-1 et seq.).� The department
shall, in consultation with the Department of Treasury and the Department of
Law and Public Safety, conduct an environmental review and a title search before
final acquisition, or as otherwise provided under the provisions of the
�Eminent Domain Act of 1971,� P.L.1971, c. 361 (C. 20:3-1 et seq.) or by court
order.� The department shall additionally conduct a review of all leasehold and
contractual interests associated with the qualifying facility or qualifying
support facility before final acquisition.

���� c.���� Following acquisition
of a qualifying facility pursuant to subsections a. or b. of this section, the department
shall modify and renovate the property acquired into safe, sanitary, and high-quality
residential dwelling units, with trauma informed designs, for a combination of
transitional housing and emergency housing, and shall ensure that all
rehabilitated spaces reflect local housing standards and utilize HEPA and
carbon‑based air filtration systems to mitigate health concerns
associated the transient environments within qualifying municipalities.

���� d.��� Following acquisition of
a qualifying support facility pursuant to subsections a. or b. of this section,
the department shall modify and renovate the property acquired into office and
community spaces to provide supportive services to individuals and families housed
in transitional housing and emergency housing in the qualifying facility.

���� e.���� The commissioner shall
submit a report within 180 days after the effective date of P.L.��� , c.���
(C.������� ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), detailing the
status of negotiations to acquire real property by purchase, lease, or gift or
otherwise by eminent domain; estimated acquisition, renovation and operating
costs; community advisory input received; and any policy recommendations to the
Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1),
concerning the advancement of the objectives of P.L.��� , c.��� (C.������� )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill).

���� f.���� The Attorney General
shall review any asserted leasehold or contractual interest relating to the real
property before the filing of any eminent domain action pursuant to subsection
b. of this section.

���� 4.��� There is appropriated
from the General Fund to the Department of Community Affairs such sums as may
be necessary to acquire real properties pursuant to section 3 of P.L.��� ,
c.��� (C. ) (pending before
the Legislature as this bill).

���� 5.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill permits the Department
of Community Affairs (department), in consultation with Department of Treasury
and the Department of Law and Public Safety, to acquire by purchase, lease,
gift, or eminent domain a qualifying facility and a qualifying support facility
for the purpose of providing publicly owned transitional housing for
individuals and families empiercing displacement or homelessness; emergency
housing for individuals and families displaced from a natural disaster; and
supportive services, as defined in the bill, for these individuals and families.
�

���� The bill specifies that a
qualifying facility means real property located in the most populous city in
the State and that consists of one or more buildings, totaling not less than
115,000 square feet and not more than 120,000 square feet, located on a single
site, and which has been approved for the housing of individuals and families
in at least 1,000 beds and across two stories.� The bill also specifies that a
qualifying support facility means real property located in a qualifying
municipality and that consists of one or more buildings, totaling not less than
95,000 square feet and not more than 100,000 square feet, located on a single
site, and is not located more than 10 miles away from the selected qualifying
facility, and which in its current use has been used to process and house individuals
and families for at least 25 years.� The bill provides that a qualifying
municipality is one the top five most populous municipalities in the State that
is also home to the international airport in the State with the greatest
passenger volumes.

���� The bill provides that if a
qualifying facility or a qualifying support facility cannot first be acquired
by purchase, lease, or gift, the department is authorized to acquire a
qualifying facility or a qualifying support facility by the exercise of eminent
domain.� The department is required to conduct a title search before final
acquisition, or as otherwise provided under the provisions of the �Eminent
Domain Act of 1971,� P.L.1971, c.� 361 (C. 20:3-1 et seq.) or by court order.�
The department is additionally required to conduct a review of all leasehold and
contractual interests associated with the property before final acquisition.

���� Following acquisition of real
property, the bill requires the department to modify and renovate real property
deemed to be a qualifying facility into safe, sanitary, and high-quality
residential dwelling units, with trauma informed designs, �for transitional
housing and emergency housing, and to ensure that all rehabilitated spaces
reflect local housing standards and utilize HEPA and carbon‑based air
filtration systems to mitigate health concerns associated the transient
environments within qualifying municipalities.� The bill also requires that the
department modify and renovate real property deemed to be a qualifying support
facility into office and community spaces to provide supportive services to
individuals and families housed in transitional housing and emergency housing.

���� The bill requires the Commissioner
of Community Affairs to submit a report within 180 days after the effective
date of the bill detailing the status of negotiations to acquire real property
by purchase, lease, or gift or otherwise by eminent domain; estimated
acquisition, renovation and operating costs; community advisory input received;
and any policy recommendations to the Legislature on addressing the objectives
of the bill.

���� The provisions of the bill require
the Attorney General to review any asserted leasehold or contractual interest
relating to the real property before the filing of any eminent domain action.

���� The bill appropriates from the
General Fund to the Department of Community Affairs such sums as may be
necessary to acquire real properties pursuant to the provisions of the bill.

���� The State is currently
experiencing a housing crisis as residents face a severe shortage of affordable
housing options in addition to the cost of housing rising faster than household
incomes. The persistence of a Statewide housing crisis contributes to an
increase in overall housing insecurity and further stalls economic development,
leading to municipalities facing an influx of housing needs for displaced
individuals and families.� There is a substantial public interest in the
availability of sufficient housing that can provide supportive services, including
but not limited to, emergency displacement response, rapid rehousing support,
public-benefit programming, education, workforce-development services, language
access, and community services.

���� The most populous cities in
the State with air travel connectivity are particularly suitable for the
creation of new, publicly owned housing in the face of the ongoing housing
crisis.� The acquisition of real property through the use of eminent domain, if
necessary, within these qualifying municipalities provides an opportunity to
aid New Jersey residents and promote the efficient use of housing for homeless
or displaced individuals and families.� In permitting the acquisition of property
for housing and supportive services purposes in the most populous cities in the
State, it is necessary that the State acquire real property with sufficient
size, scale, infrastructure, and existing facilities to provide housing and
supportive services access to a large number of individuals and promote the
efficient use of and maximize housing availability for housing insecure
individuals and families in the State.