TRENTON — A two-state commission would advise on flooding, environmental and recreational issues along waterways in North Jersey and New York, under a bill approved by lawmakers Thursday. The legislation — passed as the remnants of Tropical Storm Nicole were soaking parts of New Jersey — would involve the Hackensack, Saddle and Ramapo rivers, plus the Sparkill Brook and...
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Overall view from the gallery of the NJ Senate.TRENTON — A two-state commission would advise on flooding, environmental and recreational issues along waterways in North Jersey and New York, under a bill approved by lawmakers Thursday.
The legislation — passed as the remnants of Tropical Storm Nicole were soaking parts of New Jersey — would involve the Hackensack, Saddle and Ramapo rivers, plus the Sparkill Brook and Creek.
Bergen County homeowners near those bodies of water sustained devastating storm-related flooding in last April, and in 2007, 2005 and 1999, requiring hundreds of millions of dollars in federal disaster relief.
The most serious incident, in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Floyd in 1999, led to more than $35 million in federal aid for Bergen and Passaic counties alone, where more than 7,700 households needed assistance relocating or mitigating damage, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The bill to create the commission must be considered in the Assembly and signed by Governor Christie.
The governor two weeks ago signed an executive order to dismantle 60 inactive or outdated boards and commissions that he called “bureaucratic clutter.” He also is considering a report that recommends the elimination of 250 more such bodies and the mergers of 60.
Yet Christie appears sympathetic to flooding in North Jersey. In April he signed an executive order creating a committee to examine flooding related to the Passaic River. Rising water along that flood basin in March had led to evacuations for hundreds of residents.
The legislation approved Thursday was sponsored by Sens. Loretta Weinberg, D-Teaneck, and Gerald Cardinale, R-Cresskill. It passed 37-0.
It calls for New Jersey and New York to appoint 18 members — 12 with voting power — to examine flooding, preservation, maintenance, environmental cleanup and recreational uses for the waterways. Ten commissioners would need backgrounds in building or engineering.
The New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club noted that the legislation would not empower the commission to adopt any regulations.
“The commission has no authority to do anything other than meet,” Jeff Tittel, director of the group, said in a news release. “Meanwhile, flooding conditions continue to get worse.”
Tittel said state departments and federal agencies are familiar with the flood areas and the potential for trouble from future storms.
An identical Assembly bill has remained in committee since March. A similar bill has been pending in the New York Assembly since April 2009.
