This bill amends New Jersey's bias intimidation law to explicitly include Sikhism as a protected class, alongside existing categories such as race, color, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, and ethnicity. It establishes that individuals can be charged with bias intimidation if they commit or threaten certain offenses with the intent to intimidate someone based on their membership in these protected classes, including Sikhism. Additionally, the bill mandates that all local, county, and state law enforcement agencies report violations of this statute to relevant state and federal agencies responsible for compiling hate crime statistics.

Furthermore, the bill outlines several initiatives aimed at increasing awareness and education about Sikhism. The Office of the Attorney General, in collaboration with the Department of Education, is tasked with developing training for law enforcement on Sikh identity features and the classification of anti-Sikh bias incidents. It also calls for a public awareness campaign and educational initiatives to be reported annually to the Governor and Legislature. The Chief Diversity Officer's responsibilities are expanded to ensure that anti-Sikh hate definitions are included in public entity policies. To support these efforts, the bill appropriates $100,000 annually for three years to fund Sikh awareness initiatives and outreach to the Sikh community.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 52:32-18.1