New Jersey S 652: Requires owner or operator of certain trains to have discharge response, cleanup, and contingency plans to transport certain hazardous materials by rail; requires DEP to request bridge inspection reports from US DOT.

Bill Text

S652 

SENATE, No. 652 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

� 

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Senator BOB SMITH

District 17 (Middlesex and Somerset)

Co-Sponsored by:

Senator Johnson

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires owner or operator of certain trains to have 
discharge response, cleanup, and contingency plans to transport certain 
hazardous materials by rail; requires DEP to request bridge inspection reports 
from US DOT.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT 

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative 
Counsel.

��

An Act concerning freight rail safety and supplementing 
Title 58 of the Revised Statutes.� 

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

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

���� "Cleanup and removal 
costs" means all direct costs associated with a discharge, and those 
indirect costs that may be imposed by the department pursuant to section 1 of 
P.L.2002, c.37 (C.58:10b-2.1) associated with a discharge, incurred by the State, 
or its political subdivisions, or their agents, or any person with written 
approval from the department in the: (1) removal or attempted removal of 
hazardous substances, or (2) taking of reasonable measures to prevent or 
mitigate damage to the public health, safety, or welfare, including, but not 
limited to, public and private property, shorelines, beaches, surface waters, 
water columns and bottom sediments, soils, and other affected property, 
including wildlife and other natural resources, and shall include costs 
incurred by the State for the indemnification and legal defense of contractors 
pursuant to sections 1 through 11 of P.L.1991, c.373 (C.58:10-23.11f8 et seq.);

���� "Commissioner" means 
the Commissioner of Environmental Protection;

���� "Contamination" or 
"contaminant" means any discharged hazardous substance, hazardous 
waste as defined pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1976, c.99 (C.13:1E-38), or 
pollutant as defined pursuant to section 3 of P.L.1977, c.74 (C.58:10A-3);

���� "Department" means 
the Department of Environmental Protection;

���� "Discharge" means 
any intentional or unintentional action or omission resulting in the releasing, 
spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, or dumping of 
hazardous substances into the waters or onto the lands of the State, or into 
waters outside the jurisdiction of the State when damage may result to the 
lands, waters, or natural resources within the jurisdiction of the State;

���� "Emergency response 
action" means those activities conducted by a local unit to clean up, 
remove, prevent, contain, or mitigate a discharge that poses an immediate 
threat to the environment or to the public health, safety, or welfare;

���� �Emergency services personnel� 
means a person who is employed as a law enforcement officer, emergency medical 
service technician, firefighter, emergency communications operator, hazardous 
materials responder, or in a related occupation or profession, or who serves as 
a volunteer member of a fire department, duly incorporated fire or first aid 
company, or volunteer emergency, ambulance, or rescue squad association, 
organization, or company which provides emergency services for a local unit;

���� �Emergency services provider� 
means a law enforcement agency, emergency medical services unit, fire 
department, emergency communications provider, hazardous material response 
unit, volunteer fire department, duly incorporated fire or first aid company, or 
volunteer emergency, ambulance, or rescue squad association, organization, or 
company which provides emergency services for a local unit;

���� "Hazardous 
substances" means the "environmental hazardous substances" on 
the environmental hazardous substance list adopted by the department pursuant 
to section 4 of P.L.1983, c.315 (C.34:5A-4); elements and compounds, 
including petroleum products, which are defined by the department, after public 
hearing, and which shall be consistent to the maximum extent possible with, and 
which shall include, the list of hazardous substances adopted by the federal 
Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to section 311 of the �Federal Water 
Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972,� Pub.L.92-500, as amended by the 
�Clean Water Act of 1977,� Pub.L.95-217 (33 U.S.C. s.1251 et seq.); the list of 
toxic pollutants designated by the Congress of the United States or the federal 
Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to section 53 of that act; and the 
list of hazardous substances adopted by the federal Environmental Protection 
Agency pursuant to section 101 of the "Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980," Pub.L.96-510 (42 
U.S.C. s.9601 et seq.); provided, however, that sewage and sewage sludge shall 
not be considered as hazardous substances for the purposes of P.L.�� , 
c. (C.����� ) (pending before the Legis