Sponsored by:
Senator BOB SMITH
District 17 (Middlesex and Somerset)
Senator JOHN F. MCKEON
District 27 (Essex and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Requires certain State-funded construction projects to utilize plastic construction materials that contain certain amounts of postconsumer recycled content.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning certain plastic construction materials and supplementing Title 13 of the Revised Statues.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. As used in this section:
"Construction material" means an article, material, or supply that is brought to the site of a construction project for incorporation into the building or work, which meets applicable standards related to performance and is of a satisfactory quality. "Construction material" includes an item that is brought to the site preassembled from articles, materials, or supplies.
"Construction project" means a project for the construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, modernization, alteration, conversion, extension, repair, or improvement of buildings, structures, roads, parks, or other real property, or for the production, delivery, or disposal of water, waste, wastewater, energy, fuel, information, or communications.
"Governmental entity" means any agency, board, bureau, commission, department, division, office, or other instrumentality of the State, or a county or municipality.
"Overall cost" means the total cost of a State-funded construction project, calculated in accordance with any applicable regulations or standards, and including the cost of labor, materials, and any other costs.
"Plastic construction material" means a construction material that is made of greater than 50 percent plastic, measured in terms of cost.
"Postconsumer recycled content" means a material or product that has completed its intended end use and product life cycle, and which has been separated from the solid waste stream for the purposes of collection and recycling. "Postconsumer recycled content" shall not include secondary waste material or materials and by-products generated from, and commonly used within, an original manufacturing and fabrication process.
"State-funded construction project" means a construction project supported in whole or part by funds granted, loaned, or otherwise provided by the State.
b. Commencing one year after the effective date of this section, a State-funded construction project carried out by a governmental entity shall not incorporate plastic construction material unless the plastic construction material:
(1) contains at least 10 percent postconsumer recycled content, for plastic construction material purchased prior to two years after the effective date of this section; or
(2) contains at least 15 percent postconsumer recycled content, for plastic construction material purchased thereafter.
c. The provisions of subsection b. of this section shall not apply if (1) the use of plastic construction material that meets the provisions of subsection b. of this section would increase the overall cost of the project by 25 percent, or (2) plastic construction materials that meet the criteria in the provisions of subsection b. of this section do not exist for the intended application, or are not available in sufficient quantities.
2. The Commissioner of Environmental Protection shall, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.). adopt rules and regulations as necessary to implement this act.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require State-funded construction projects carried out by the State, a county, or a municipality to incorporate plastic construction materials that contain 10 percent postconsumer recycled content until two years after the bill's enactment, and 15 percent thereafter.
The bill would apply to construction materials that contain greater than 50 percent plastic, calculated by cost. The bill defines "construction material" as an article, material, or supply that is brought to the site of a construction project for incorporation into the building or work, which meets applicable standards related to performance and is of a satisfactory quality.
The bill would provide exemptions to the bill's postconsumer recycled content requirements if: (1) the use of plastic construction material that contains the necessary recycled content would increase the overall cost of the project by 25 percent, or (2) plastic construction materials that contain the necessary recycled content do not exist for the intended application, or are not available in sufficient quantities.