New Jersey
When will it start? Answering questions
Huge adjustments are involving the means Brand-new Jerseyans store — and also they have a great deal of concerns regarding it.
The state’s restriction on plastic bags, paper bags, foam containers and also even more starts May 4 in an initiative to reduce clutter that swamps coastlines and also riverfronts throughout New Jacket.
The legislation is the item of years of settlements and also concessions, so there are a variety of carve-outs and also exceptions. However the significant takeaways are this:
- Plastic carryout bags can no more be broken down or offered in any type of shop or dining establishment other than woven plastic carryall with sewn manages.
- Paper bags cannot be broken down in grocery stores or big-box shops that have grocery store areas.
- Foam food containers, consisting of clamshell boxes and also coffee, can no more be broken down. Plastic straws are readily available just upon demand.
After the United States TODAY Network New Jacket released an overview to the brand-new guidelines, it got lots of concerns from visitors throughout the state, from Hackensack to Direct Pleasant to Haddon Levels. Right here are the response to a few of one of the most typically asked inquiries.
Can I utilize my stock of old plastic bags after May 4?
No doubt was asked more frequently by visitors. As well as no doubt was asked in a higher range of means.
The straightforward response? The brand-new legislation does not quit individuals from utilizing plastic bags. It just outlaws shops from providing out.
So, can I still line my wastebasket with these bags?
Yes.
Can I still get my canine’s poop with my old bags?
Yes.
Can I bring them to the shop with me and also go shopping?
Yes, unless somehow the shop has its very own collection of guidelines.
You can do whatever you desire with these bags after May 4.
Can I still acquire plastic trash can?
Yes.
The legislation targets just carryout bags, not bags to buy.
Do we need to bring our very own bags for apparel and also houseware acquisitions?
It depends upon the shop.
The plastic bag restriction puts on all shops despite what they market.
The paper bag restriction uses just to grocery stores. So any type of shop that is not a grocery store — a chain store, apparel shop, electronic devices keep — can still offer paper bags if they so pick.
The most effective guidance: When doubtful, bring a recyclable bag.
I obtain my grocery stores provided or do curbside pick-up. Just how will they be loaded?
Grocery stores have actually restricted alternatives right here, considering that they basically cannot offer any type of bag free of cost.
Numerous will likely make use of a recyclable bag and also fee clients. Some might have the ability to place them in complimentary cardboard boxes in which the shops obtain shipments.
Instacart, among the greatest distribution solutions in the U.S., intends to make use of recyclable bags and also fee clients for them, a spokesperson claimed.
Why can not I spend for a paper bag at a grocery store, as is allowed New york city City or The Golden State?
The restriction theoretically bags being broken down at grocery stores is what makes New Jacket’s legislation one of the most strict in the country.
Grocery Stores, which have an awesome lobbying pressure in Trenton, dealt with to prohibit paper bags in return for sustaining the plastic bag restriction as the costs was being discussed and also reworded over numerous years.
Grocery stores did not desire the extra cost of supplying paper bags, which set you back 3 to 4 times greater than plastic, are larger to transfer and also occupy even more storeroom.
New York City City and also The golden state shops bill a minimum of 5 and also 10 cents specifically for paper bags.
Paper bags can still be broken down free of cost in any type of various other type of shop in New Jacket.
If dining establishments can’t have foam containers, how will a customer take home leftovers?
The law is very specific on this.
It only bans polystyrene foam containers, commonly referred to as Styrofoam.
It does not ban hard plastic containers. Restaurants can also use more environmentally friendly cartons that biodegrade.
The ban includes food containers, plates, hot or cold beverage cups, meat or vegetable trays, cutlery, and egg cartons made from polystyrene.
Can I still recycle other plastic bags?
Yes.
Unlike New York City, supermarkets in New Jersey are not required to take back old plastic bags.
But many do.
Large chains including ShopRite and Acme say they will continue to have bag bins near their entrances and exits for customers to dispose of old bags or bags that aren’t exempt, such as:
- Meat department, produce and deli bags.
- Pet store, dry cleaning, pharmacy and newspaper bags.
Recycled plastic bags are often used in composite deck material, such as the kind you find on many newer Jersey Shore boardwalks.
Can I put my plastic bags in my curbside recycling bin?
No.
Some towns even impose fines if they find carryout plastic bags in the curbside recycling.
Why?
Plastic bags can easily get caught in sorting machines, causing a recycling plant’s entire operation to temporarily shut down while workers remove them.
My business has a ton of leftover plastic bags. What do I do with them?
While businesses can not give plastic bags out to customers after May 4, they can do whatever they want with them between now and then.
As for getting rid of them responsibly, the state Department of Environmental Protection has no plan to collect bulk inventories of plastic bags.
Businesses should look to county and municipal recycling programs, some of which have drop-off locations for plastic bags, said Larry Hajna, a DEP spokesman.
Hajna also suggested donating plastic bags to food pantries, which were recently given a six-month extension to use plastic bags.
Is the new legislation posted online?
Yes.
Click here for all 4,412 words.
Still unsure about this new law?
See the USA TODAY Network New Jersey’s original Q&A about the law by clicking here.
The DEP has set up an email address and also phone number to answer questions from residents and businesses: singleuseplastics@dep.nj.gov and 609-984-4250.
A real human being answered when we called during business hours.
Scott Fallon has covered the COVID-19 pandemic since its onset in March 2020. To get unlimited access to the latest news about the pandemic’s impact on New Jacket, please subscribe or trigger your electronic account today.
Email: fallon@northjersey.com
Twitter: @newsfallon
The drones spotted over the Garden State were probably not looking for a missing shipment of radioactive material.
Should underage gambling no longer be a crime?
New Jersey lawmakers are considering changing the law to make gambling by people under the age of 21 no longer punishable under criminal law, making it subject to a fine.
It also would impose fines on anyone helping an underage person gamble in New Jersey.
The bill changes the penalties for underage gambling from that of a disorderly persons offense to a civil offense. Fines would be $500 for a first offense, $1,000 for a second offense, and $2,000 for any subsequent offenses.
The money would be used for prevention, education, and treatment programs for compulsive gambling, such as those provided by the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey.
“The concern I had initially was about reducing the severity of the punishment,” said Assemblyman Don Guardian, a Republican former mayor of Atlantic City. “But the fact that all the money will go to problem gambling treatment programs changed my mind.”
Figures on underage gambling cases were not immediately available Thursday. But numerous people involved in gambling treatment and recovery say a growing number of young people are becoming involved in gambling, particularly sports betting as the activity spreads around the country.
The bill was approved by an Assembly committee and now goes to the full Assembly for a vote. It must pass both houses of the Legislature before going to the desk of the state’s Democratic governor, Phil Murphy.
New Jersey
New Jersey lawmakers will consider new tighter oversight rules on charter schools in 2025
TRENTON — State officials are considering new rules that could impose greater oversight on New Jersey’s 86 charter schools after a year of increased scrutiny from media outlets and politicians.
The state’s Senate Education Committee heard testimony Monday from experts who urged lawmakers to ensure that existing oversight laws were enforced and, in some cases, to write new laws requiring more public disclosure and oversight in regard to spending and administrator salaries.
“Clearly, there’s some work to be done,” said state Sen. Paul Sarlo of the 36th Legislative District, which represents 11 municipalities in Bergen and Passaic counties. “There are some bad actors out there.”
The legislators cited a series of reports from NJ.com and other media outlets that took aim at charter schools’ high administrator salaries, allegations of nepotism, and accusations that some former school leaders personally profited from their positions. The Asbury Park Press also scrutinized a charter network with campuses in Asbury Park and Neptune.
Deborah Cornavaca, director of policy for the New Jersey Education Association, the state’s largest teachers’ union, urged legislators to establish a task force to review numerous impacts of charter schools, to require more transparency and add disclosure rules for charter schools.
“When we see things that are going wrong… it is incumbent upon us to make sure that taxpayer dollars are being responsibly spent and that the students… are the priority of where the money is going,” Cornavaca said.
Harry Lee, president of the New Jersey Charter Schools Association, said that a majority of these publicly funded schools, which serve about 63,000 students, are not skirting rules, but are rather giving parents in low-income communities access to high-quality education. The schools are also improving academic outcomes for many of New Jersey’s Black and brown students, he said.
“In middle school, charter school students overall are outperforming the state average in reading, despite serving twice as many low-income students,” he said before the Senate Education Committee on Monday. “The longer you stay in a charter school, the more likely you will be able to read at grade level.”
While charter schools are given more flexibility than traditional district-based schools to educate at-need students, they also use taxpayer money in their mission. Yet, charter schools are not held to all the same oversight rules and regulations that district public schools must follow, according to critics.
“It is a privilege, not a right, to operate a charter school in New Jersey, and there are simply higher expectations (for positive academic results),” said Lee. “We stand by that, and we agree that there should be accountability for schools that aren’t doing the right thing.”
The flexibility given to charter schools is why they are succeeding where nearby traditional districts are not, he said. Many charter schools have adopted longer school days and a longer school year to achieve results, he said.
When charter schools fail to meet their educational missions, they are closed, Lee said.
“That is the ultimate accountability,” he added.
Since 2020, four schools have closed, surrendered their charter, or not had their charter contract renewed, according to the state Department of Education.
One of the charter schools that has faced criticism in the press is College Achieve Public Schools, which has sites in Asbury Park and Neptune. Michael Piscal, CEO and founder of the charter school group, made $516,084 in the 2022-23 school year, according to filings obtained through GuideStar, an organization that provides information about American nonprofit organizations.
Piscal also made an additional $279,431 in compensation that year from the school and related organizations, according to the tax documents.
For comparison, the average school superintendent pay in New Jersey was $187,737 last year, according to state Department of Education records.
A representative of College Achieve told the Press that administrative salaries have since between reduced.
State Sen. Vin Gopal, who chairs the Senate Education Committee, said he expected amendments to New Jersey’s charter school law to be proposed sometime in 2025.
“There needs to be more accountability on how that (charter school) money is spent,” he said.
Amanda Oglesby is an Ocean County native who covers education and the environment. She has worked for the Press for more than 16 years. Reach her at @OglesbyAPP, aoglesby@gannettnj.com or 732-557-5701.
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