13:8C-24 - Office of Green Acres established
13:8C-24 Office of Green Acres established.
24. a. (1) There is established in the Department of Environmental Protection the Office of Green Acres. The commissioner may appoint an administrator or director who shall supervise the office, and the department may employ such other personnel and staff as may be required to carry out the duties and responsibilities of the department and the office pursuant to this act, all without regard to the provisions of Title 11A, Civil Service, of the New Jersey Statutes. Persons appointed or employed as provided pursuant to this subsection shall be compensated in a manner similar to other employees in the Executive Branch, and their compensation shall be determined by the Civil Service Commission.
(2)The Green Acres Program in the Department of Environmental Protection, together with all of its functions, powers and duties, are continued and transferred to and constituted as the Office of Green Acres in the Department of Environmental Protection. Whenever, in any law, rule, regulation, order, contract, document, judicial or administrative proceeding or otherwise, reference is made to the Green Acres Program, the same shall mean and refer to the Office of Green Acres in the Department of Environmental Protection. This transfer shall be subject to the provisions of the "State Agency Transfer Act," P.L.1971, c.375 (C.52:14D-1 et seq.).
b.The duties and responsibilities of the office shall be as follows:
(1)Administer all provisions of this act pertaining to funding the acquisition and development of lands for recreation and conservation purposes as authorized pursuant to Article VIII, Section II, paragraph 7 of the State Constitution;
(2)Continue to administer all grant and loan programs for the acquisition and development of lands for recreation and conservation purposes, including the Green Trust, established or funded for those purposes pursuant to: P.L.1961, c.45 (C.13:8A-1 et seq.); P.L.1971, c.419 (C.13:8A-19 et seq.); P.L.1975, c.155 (C.13:8A-35 et seq.); or any Green Acres bond act; and
(3)Adopt, with the approval of the commissioner and pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations:
(a)establishing application procedures for grants and loans for the acquisition and development of lands for recreation and conservation purposes, criteria and policies for the evaluation and priority ranking of projects for eligibility to receive funding for recreation and conservation purposes using constitutionally dedicated moneys, any conditions that may be placed on the award of a grant or loan for recreation and conservation purposes pursuant to this act, and any restrictions that may be placed on the use of lands acquired or developed with a grant or loan for recreation and conservation purposes pursuant to this act. The criteria and policies established pursuant to this subparagraph for the evaluation and priority ranking of projects for eligibility to receive funding for recreation and conservation purposes using constitutionally dedicated moneys may be based upon, but need not be limited to, such factors as: protection of the environment, natural resources, water resources, watersheds, aquifers, wetlands, floodplains and flood-prone areas, stream corridors, beaches and coastal resources, forests and grasslands, scenic views, biodiversity, habitat for wildlife, rare, threatened, or endangered species, and plants; degree of likelihood of development; promotion of greenways; provision for recreational access and use; protection of geologic, historic, archaeological, and cultural resources; relative cost; parcel size; and degree of public support; and
(b)addressing any other matters deemed necessary to implement and carry out the goals and objectives of Article VIII, Section II, paragraph 7 of the State Constitution and this act with respect to the acquisition and development of lands for recreation and conservation purposes; and
(4)Establishing criteria and policies for the evaluation and priority ranking of State projects to acquire and develop lands for recreation and conservation purposes using constitutionally dedicated moneys, which criteria and policies may be based upon, but need not be limited to, such factors as: protection of the environment, natural resources, water resources, watersheds, aquifers, wetlands, floodplains and flood-prone areas, stream corridors, beaches and coastal resources, forests and grasslands, scenic views, biodiversity, habitat for wildlife, rare, threatened, or endangered species, and plants; degree of likelihood of development; promotion of greenways; provision for recreational access and use; protection of geologic, historic, archaeological, and cultural resources; relative cost; parcel size; and degree of public support.
L.1999, c.152, s.24; amended 2002, c.76, s.2; 2008, c.29, s.114.