New Jersey A 5162: Establishes asset forfeiture reporting and transparency requirements.

Bill Text

A5162 

ASSEMBLY, No. 5162 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

� 

INTRODUCED JUNE 1, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman� LUANNE M. PETERPAUL

District 11 (Monmouth)

Assemblywoman� ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Assemblyman� ANTHONY S. VERRELLI

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Sampson and Assemblywoman Park

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes �LGBTQIA+ Pride Month� in New Jersey. 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT 

���� As introduced.

�� 

An Act establishing �LGBTQIA+ Pride Month� in New Jersey and 
supplementing Title 36 of the Revised Statutes.

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

���� 1.� The month of June of each 
year is designated as �LGBTQIA+ Pride Month� in the State of New Jersey to 
recognize all members of the LGBTQIA+ community, including, but not limited to, 
those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, 
asexual, nonbinary, and any other gender identity or sexual orientation that 
letters and words cannot yet fully describe.

���� 2.� The Governor is requested 
to annually issue a proclamation calling upon public officials and citizens of 
the State to observe �LGBTQIA+ Pride Month� with appropriate activities and 
programs.

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

STATEMENT

���� Since January 2025, several 
federal executive orders have been signed aiming to end diversity, equity, and 
inclusion programs within the federal government.� Subsequently, several 
federal agencies have taken actions to comply with the executive orders, including 
the Defense Intelligence Agency, which has ordered a pause of all events 
related to several special observances.� These special observances include 
Martin Luther King, Jr.�s Birthday, Black History Month, Women�s History Month, 
Holocaust Remembrance Day, Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month, 
Pride Month, Juneteenth, Women�s Equality Day, National Hispanic Heritage 
Month, National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and National American 
Indian Heritage Month.

���� These federal executive orders 
have also resulted in the removal of certain terms related to gender identity.� 
The removal is evidenced through actions taken by the federal government, such 
as updated forms replacing the term �gender� with �sex,� websites related to 
diversity, equity, and inclusion being shut down, and health resources for 
transgender individuals being taken down from the Centers for Disease Control 
and Prevention�s website.� In addition, since the Stonewall National Monument 
is funded by the National Park Service, the monument�s website removed any 
references to transgender or queer individuals.� Federally funded research 
projects have also been required to pause while staff at the National Science 
Foundation search the research projects for dozens of words that could violate 
the executive orders, including �women,� �disability,� �bias,� �status,� �trauma,� 
�Black,� �Hispanic,� �socioeconomic,� �ethnicity,� and �systemic.�

���� The State of New Jersey 
currently celebrates commemorative days and months including, but not limited 
to, Black History Month, Women�s History Month, Holocaust Remembrance Day, 
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, Juneteenth, Women�s Equality Day, Hispanic 
Heritage Month, and Disability Employment Awareness Month.� It is appropriate 
for the State of New Jersey to acknowledge the importance of promoting the 
principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion by additionally commemorating 
�LGBTQIA+ Pride Month.�

���� Therefore, this bill 
designates the month of June of each year as �LGBTQIA+ Pride Month� in New 
Jersey.� LGBTQIA+ individuals have historically been persecuted by 
discriminatory laws and policies that denied access to rights, programs, 
benefits, and services otherwise guaranteed to the general population.� 
Commemorating �LGBTQIA+ Pride Month� is imperative to acknowledge the 
contributions LGBTQIA+ individuals, including those who identify as transgender 
or queer, have made and continue to make to strengthen the fabric of American 
society, as well as to celebrate authenticity, acceptance, inclusion, and love.