This week in Trenton, the State Legislature moved education-related bills that seek to address sustainability in food service, improve employment processes for educators, and enhance the representation of Latino and Hispanic contributions in education.
Single-Use Plastic Utensils and Condiments Bill
S-3195 would prohibit food service businesses (including schools) from providing single-use plastic utensils and condiment packets, except upon explicit customer request. Establishments with seating for 50 or more must provide easy access to reusable utensils. The bill outlines penalties for non-compliance, starting at $1,000 for the first offense, and emphasizes eco-friendly alternatives. Funds from penalties will support litter cleanup initiatives. The Committee did amend the bill to exempt schools from the bill’s provisions for the first five years after the effective date of the bill in order to give schools time to prepare for these changes. The bill was advanced by the committee by a razor-thin margin of (3-2) a has been second-referenced to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee. NJPSA opposed this bill.
Educator Common Application Portal Bill
S-2498/2505 (SCS) establishes a common application and web portal for educators seeking employment in New Jersey public schools. It aims to streamline the hiring process by allowing candidates to submit a single application while ensuring high standards for data privacy. School districts can still utilize their own application processes. The common application and web portal are to: (1) maximize the ability of educators to connect with public schools that have employment openings; (2) increase the degree of information sharing regarding employment opportunities for educators; and (3) maintain high standards for data privacy and security. This bill was advanced to Second Reading by a unanimous vote of 13-0. NJPSA supports this Senate Committee Substitute.
NJSLS for Latino and Hispanic History
S-2335/3096 (SCS) mandates the adoption of New Jersey Student Learning Standards (NJSLS) that include instruction on Latino and Hispanic history in K-12 curricula. Instruction must be historically accurate and developmentally appropriate. The Commissioner of Education will provide resources to assist districts in implementing these standards, which will be updated concurrently with other NJSLS revisions. The sponsors believe the bill is necessary because a 2023 report released by Johns Hopkins Institute for Education Policy and UnidosUS evaluating how Latinos are portrayed in widely used United States history textbooks found that 87 percent of key topics in Latino history were either not covered in the evaluated textbooks, or mentioned in five or fewer sentences. This bill was advanced to Second Reading by a unanimous vote of 13-0. NJPSA is neutral on this Senate Committee Substitute.
Legislation Signed Into Law
Alleviating Bus Driver Shortages
A-2180/S-3000 (P.L.2024, c.81) was signed by Gov. Phil Murphy following his conditional veto of the original bill last month.
NJPSA supported the original version of this bill that would have created a new “Type S School Bus Certificate” to be issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission. The certificate would have authorized a person to operate a Type S school bus to transport children to and from school without obtaining a commercial driver’s license, passenger endorsement, or school bus endorsement.
As signed, the new law will expand the existing statute, which currently allows school personnel to transport students to school-related activities, to permit school personnel to transport students to and from school. Vehicles used to transport students must have a capacity of eight passengers or less, excluding the driver. Drivers will have to meet various age, driving, physical, training and background check requirements.
If you would like to discuss, or have questions about any of the legislative initiatives that moved this week, please contact your NJPSA Government Relations team. Department Director Debbie Bradley dbradley@njpsa.org or Assistant Director Jennie Lamon jlamon@njpsa.org.
If you are interested in legislation and education policy, please consider joining the NJPSA Legislative Committee. We meet approximately four times a year to discuss and develop positions on pending legislation and regulations. We always have lively and often entertaining discussions! Email jlamon@njpsa.org for more information or to join our committee! If you are attending our conference next week in Atlantic City, please be sure to stop by the Government Relations PAC table and say hello. We would love to see you! We appreciate your advocacy – and all that you do.
-Jennie Lamon, Assistant Director of Government Relations