This bill requires that before any public highway or transportation projects are initiated near operating or retired mines, relevant entities, including the Department of Transportation and New Jersey Transit Corporation, must conduct an underground structural assessment to evaluate the risks of mine subsidence. The assessment must comply with guidance from the mine safety section of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development and be submitted to the Department of Transportation within ten business days of completion. If a mine is deemed high risk for subsidence, a post-construction monitoring plan must be developed to ensure ongoing structural stability.

Additionally, the bill enhances the role of the mine safety section by mandating it to issue risk-based guidance for assessing the proximity of proposed projects to mines, which will help determine the necessity of an underground structural assessment. It also establishes penalties for non-compliance, including potential stop-work orders from the Commissioner of Transportation. The mine safety section is required to maintain guidance on its website for transparency, and the Commissioner of Transportation must evaluate the bill's implementation and effectiveness, reporting back to the Governor and Legislature within ten years. The overarching goal of the legislation is to mitigate risks associated with ground subsidence and sinkholes due to historical mining activities, thereby improving safety and infrastructure resilience in New Jersey.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 34:6-98.3