Massive, Diverse Groups To NJ Assembly: 
Pass Nation’s Strongest Cumulative Impacts Bill

(Trenton) — An incredibly powerful and diverse array of over 165 organizations (see letter below) representing hundreds of thousands of New Jersey residents including unions, environmental justice, social justice, community, faith-based groups, urban mayors, and an united environmental community called on the NJ State Assembly to pass the strongest possible version of the cumulative impacts bill (S232/A2212) out of committee today and the full Assembly on July 30th.

Together, we assert that a strong bill is necessary to correct decades of environmental racism and chart a cleaner and healthier future in NJ’s Of Color and low income neighborhoods.  Ironbound Community Corporation, New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance, and Clean Water Action are leading this state-wide effort and rallying cry for justice. US Senator Booker has been a long standing national champion for this bill and will be testifying at today’s 1 pm virtual NJ Assembly Environment Committee hearing for its passage.

This letter goes hand in hand with the message delivered by Governor Murphy and DEP Commissioner McCabe, as well as Speaker Coughlin calling on us to “carry the torch and live up to his (John Lewis’) example”, the national civil rights leader and congressman who passed away this past weekend.

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Monday, July 20, 2020

Dear Members of the NJ State Assembly,

It is long known that communities of color and low-income neighborhoods often bear the greatest burden of pollution and COVID has only exacerbated the problem. This impacts our physical and economic health, quality of life, and ability to thrive, learn, and work.

Unfortunately, the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) currently does not have a policy in place directing it to review pollution permit applications based on the cumulative impacts of toxic air from polluting facilities in a neighborhood.

That’s why it’s so important a strong cumulative impacts bill (S232/A2212, Singleton–Weinberg– Ruiz+2/McKeon–Vainieri Huttle-Timberlake+13) passes committee today and the full Assembly on July 30th. This bill has already passed the Senate and has the strong support of Governor Murphy, Senator Booker, the NJ Urban Mayors Association, Lt. Governor Oliver, and DEP Commissioner McCabe.

The bill is up in the Assembly Environment this afternoon and gives DEP the authority under reasonable circumstances to reduce cumulative disproportionate pollution impacts in already overburdened communities. It is a needed first step in correcting a legacy of environmental racism and injustice by expanding the rights of residents to weigh in on decisions, reducing disproportionate pollution burdens, promoting clean businesses over toxic industries, and making New Jersey a leader in the fight for environmental justice.

This bill is long overdue. We urge you to do everything in your power, not just voting for but speaking up, to ensure a bill that not only stops future environmental injustice but also begins to reduce existing disproportionate and unfair pollution burdens. Help us get the strongest bill possible on the Governor’s desk by July 30th.

The importance of passing this legislation into law could not be greater as the federal government works to roll back protections. We need our state to step up, be courageous and honor the legacy of John Lewis, civil rights leader and congressman, who passed away this weekend.

Let’s not just say Black Lives Matter, let’s mean it, justice delayed is justice denied.
 
Respectfully, 
Ironbound Community Corporation
New Jersey Environmental Justice Alliance
Clean Water Action
32BJ SEIU 
BlueWaveNJ
Camden County NAACP Branch # 2080
CWA Local 1081
Fair Share Housing Development
Garden State Equality
Housing & Community Development Network of NJ
HPAE
Hudson County Central Labor Council
IFPTE Local 194
Latino Action Network Foundation and Latino Coalition of NJ
Make the Road New Jersey
Metuchen-Edison Branch, NAACP
NAACP Edison Branch
National Organization for Women of New Jersey
New Brunswick Area NAACP
New Jersey Working Families 
Salvation and Social Justice
Southern Burlington County NAACP Environmental & Climate Justice Committee
350NJ Rockland
Action Together New Jersey
American Reentry Initiative
Anti-Poverty Network of New Jersey
Archangel Raphael’s Mission
Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions (ANJEC)
Bergen County Green Party
Bergen County Immigration Strategy Group
Bergen SWAN
Black Human Rights Defender 
Camden Clean Air
Camden Shade Tree Advisory Board
Center for Sustainability at Ramapo College of New Jersey
Central Jersey Environmental Defenders
Central Jersey Coalition Against Endless War
Central Jersey Environmental Defenders
Citizens United for Renewable Energy (CURE)
City of Newark Environmental Commission
Clean Ocean Action
Clinton Hill Community Action 
Coalition Against the Pilgrim Pipeline
Coalition to Ban Unsafe Oil Trains
Coalition to Save South Mountain Reservation
Community In Action
Concerned Citizens Coalition of Long Branch
Delaware Riverkeeper Network
DivestNJ Coalition
Don’t Gas the Meadowlands Coalition
Don’t Gas the Pinelands
Earthjustice
Ecological Solutions LLC
Energy Justice Network
Environment New Jersey
Environmental Defense Fund
Environmental Justice Team at the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood
EraseTheRedline Inc.
Essex County Federation of Democratic Women
Faith In New Jersey
Federation of Democractic Women Burlington County
Fifth and Sixth Ward Neighborhood Association of New Brunswick
Food & Water Action
Franciscan Response to Fossil Fuel 
Franklin Township (Somerset County) Council
Franklin Twp (Som Cty) Environmental Comm
Franklin Twp Environmental Commission 
Franklin Twp. JFK Democratic Club – Somerset, NJ
Franklin Woman’s Club
Friends of Liberty State Park
Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives
Greater Cornerstone Baptist Church
Greater Newark Conservancy
Green Amendments For The Generations
Green Muslims of New Jersey
Green Ridgewood
GreenFaith
Groundwork Elizabeth
Hackensack Riverkeeper 
Hopewell Township Citizens Against the PennEast Pipeline
HUD Tenants Coalition
I Create Inc
Indivisible Cranbury
Indivisible NJ 5th District
Indivisible Lambertville/New Hope
Interfaith Action Movement (I AM)
JOLT USA
La Casa de Don Pedro
League of Women Voters of New Jersey (LWV)
LWV of Ridgewood
LWV Southern Monmouth County
Lutherans Engaging in Advocacy Ministry 
Metropolitan SDA Church
Middletown for Clean Energy
Moms Clean Air Force, New Jersey
Natural Resources Defense Council
Nehemiah Group 
Neighborhood Sun Benefit Corp
New Beginnings 
New Jersey and New York Awareness Project for Climate Justice
New Jersey Appleseed Public Interest Law Center
New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition
New Jersey Citizen Action 
New Jersey Climate Save
New Jersey Conservation Foundation
New Jersey Education Association – Essex County Retirees 
New Jersey Future
New Jersey Highlands Coalition
New Jersey League of Conservation Voters 
New Jersey Sustainable Business Council
New Jersey Tree Foundation
New Jersey-New York Metro Pachamama Alliance Community
Newark Water Coalition
NJ 11th For Change
NJ Association UCC Social Justice Task Force
NJ Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival
NJ Sierra Club 
NJ State Industrial Union Council
NJ21United
North Jersey Sierra Club
Northern New Jersey NOW
NY/NJ Baykeeper
Occupy Bergen County
Our Revolution Essex County
Our Revolution Monmouth 
Our Revolution Passaic County
OurSociety.org
Pinelands Preservation Alliance 
PosiGen Solar
Princeton Progressive Action Group (PPAG)
Rancocas Conservancy
Raritan Headwaters
Regional Plan Association
Rise to Resilience 
Rutgers-Camden College Democrats
Rutgers-Newark Students for Justice in Palestine
Scott A Weiner Associates LLC
Setting the Captives Free Ministries 
South Jersey Democratic Socialists of America
South Jersey Progressive Democrats
South Ward Environmental Alliance 
St. Matthew A.M.E. Church
St. Luke AME CHURCH
Sunrise Hunterdon County
Sunrise Movement Montclair
Surfrider Foundation
Sustainable Jersey City
Teaneck Creek Conservancy 
Tracey Stephens Interior Design Inc
The Center for Environmental Transformation
The Climate Mobilization Hoboken Chapter 
The Ethical Culture Society of Bergen County
The Land Conservancy of New Jersey
The Moving Forward Network
The Resistance Cafe
The Watershed Institute
The Wei LLC
Tristate Transportation Campaign
Unexpected Wildlife Refuge
Unitarian Universalist FaithAction NJ
Unitarian Universalist Of Sussex County Social Action Team
Urban League of Essex County
Vote Solar
Waterfront Alliance
Waterspirit
West Windsor Environmental Club
Westfield 20/20