Homeowner Bill Will Hurt Efforts to Clean Up Our Lakes

Today, the Assembly Housing Committee released A2480 (Murphy/Wirths)/S908 (Singleton/Oroho). The bill clarifies association assessment payment and election participation requirements in planned real estate developments. The bill passed both houses last year but was conditionally vetoed by Governor Murphy in August.

“We oppose this bill because it could end up hurting the environment and our effort to clean up our lakes. This legislation could limit the ability of associations to enact fees for maintaining and making improvements on lakes or common property owned by the association. More importantly, funding that is going to be needed to retrofit stormwater basins, restore stream corridors and buffers, or other things that can help deal with non-point pollution in the community will be limited,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.  “Given what happened in Lake Hopatcong and dozens of other lakes across the state last summer, this legislation will undermine attempts to try to clean up those lakes and stop improvements necessary to maintain and improve water quality.”

The bill provides restrictions against compulsory assessments on property owners in communities in which association payments have historically been voluntary.  The bill provides that in such associations, a person would not: (1) be required to pay assessments or other compulsory charges to the association; (2) be provided with membership in the association; or (3) be entitled to election participation or voting rights in the association.

“Under the bill, people will not have to pay associations who will consequently not be able to pay for environmental improvements and maintenance. Given the crisis with our lakes, we need help whenever we can get it, whether on a state, local, community, and an association is important part of that help for cleaning up our lakes. In many lake associations, people can either join and swim or not join the community. However, many of them still have to pay for certain improvements or other things.  A lake, community, or home association would not be able to function if it could not raise revenue for maintenance or make improvements,” said Tittel.  “This bill may have started out with good intentions but instead can end up with the law of unintended consequence. It may have had good meaning behind it to prevent abuses in homeowner and lake association can consequently be used to stop critical improvements, especially around the environment.”

Many of New Jersey’s lakes have high levels of toxic algae bloom.  Lake Hopatcong, Budd Lake Beach, Spruce Run and others have been impacted by cyanobacteria. Greenwood Lake is still shut down because of harmful algae blooms. Harmful Algae Bloom Levels are up in some areas of Greenwood Lake, and down in others, however levels according to week’s NJDEP results show bacteria levels from toxic algae at Greenwood Lake are as much as 7 times higher than the state health standards. Overdevelopment and stormwater runoff are one of the main causes that have created these blooms.

“Given the widespread harmful algal blooms that plagued our lakes last summer, this legislation could undermine necessary improvements to be able to maintain and improve water quality. Several of our lakes were closed and many are privately owned by these associations. This bill could prevent making fees or borrowing money to do improvements. The language needs to be changed to allow for important improvement projects like stormwater management, retrofitting storm drains, environmental restoration, and green energy,” said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club. “Last year was the summer of algae with most of New Jersey’s largest recreational lakes closed. This summer our lakes are at risk again, and lakes association are one of the ways to help improve those lands”