New Jersey S 3671: "Honoring and Listening to Our First Responders Act"; establishes offense of interfering with official duties of first responder under certain circumstances.

Bill Text

S3671 

SENATE, No. 3671 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

� 

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 24, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� ANTHONY M. BUCCO

District 25 (Morris and Passaic)

SYNOPSIS

���� �Honoring and Listening to Our First Responders Act�; 
establishes offense of interfering with official duties of first responder 
under certain circumstances.�� 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT 

���� As introduced.

�� 

An Act concerning protections for first responders and 
supplementing Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes.� 

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

���� 1.��� a.� This act shall be 
known and may be cited as the �Honoring and Listening to Our First Responders 
Act� or the �HALO Act.�� 

���� b.��� As used in this section:

���� �First responder� means a law 
enforcement officer, paid or volunteer firefighter, or paid or volunteer member 
of a duly incorporated first aid, emergency, ambulance, or rescue squad 
association.� 

���� c.���� A person is guilty of a 
disorderly persons offense if, despite having received instruction from a first 
responder acting in the performance of the first responder�s official duties to 
maintain distance, the person knowingly approaches or remains within a distance 
of less than 25 feet of the first responder with the 
purpose to: 

���� (1)�� obstruct, impair, or 
interfere with the performance of the first responder�s official duties; or� 

���� (2)�� interfere with the first 
responder�s performance of official duties by threatening, intimidating, or 
harassing the first responder.� 

���� d.��� This section shall not 
preclude the prosecution and conviction of a person under any other applicable 
provision of law.� 

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

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes the 
�Honoring and Listening to Our First Responders Act� or the �HALO Act.�� 

���� This bill provides that it is 
a disorderly persons offense for a person to disregard a request from a first 
responder to maintain distance and to knowingly approach or remain within 25 
feet of the first responder with the purpose to: 

� 
obstruct, impair, or interfere with the first responder�s 
performance of official duties; or

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interfere with the first responder�s performance of official 
duties by threatening, intimidating, or harassing the first responder.� 

���� Under the bill, �first 
responder� would include any law enforcement officer, paid or volunteer 
firefighter, or paid or volunteer member of a duly incorporated first aid, 
emergency, ambulance, or rescue squad association.� 

���� A 
disorderly persons offense is punishable by a term of imprisonment of up to six 
months, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

���� The bill provides that 
prosecution and conviction for an offense under the bill would not preclude the 
prosecution and conviction of a person under any other applicable provision of 
law.�