New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 19 - OTHER AGENCIES › NEW JERSEY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY › Chapter 31Z - BROWNFIELDS REDEVELOPMENT INCENTIVE PROGRAM › Subchapter 1 - BROWNFIELDS REDEVELOPMENT INCENTIVE PROGRAM › Section 19:31Z-1.2 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
The following words and terms, as used in this subchapter,
					 shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
					 otherwise.
"Act" means the "New Jersey Brownfields Redevelopment
					 Incentive Program Act" sections 9 through 19 at
					 P.L.
					 2020, c. 156, as
					 amended by sections 9 through 19 at
					 P.L.
					 2021, c. 160
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 34:1B-277 through 287).
"Affiliate" means an entity that directly or indirectly
					 controls, is under common control with, or is controlled by, the developer.
					 Control exists in all cases in which the entity is a member of a controlled
					 group of corporations, as defined pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
					 (26 U.S.C. § 1563), or the entity is an organization in a group of
					 organizations under common control, as defined pursuant to the Internal Revenue
					 Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. § 414(c)).
"Authority" means the New Jersey Economic Development
					 Authority established by
					 N.J.S.A.
					 34:1B-4.
"Authorized agent of the developer" means the chief
					 executive officer, or equivalent officer, for the North American operations of
					 the developer.
"Board" means the Board of the New Jersey Economic
					 Development Authority, established pursuant to
					 N.J.S.A.
					 34:1B-4.
"Brownfield site" means any former or current commercial or
					 industrial site that is currently vacant or under-utilized and on which there
					 has been, or there is suspected to have been, a discharge of a contaminant, or
					 on which there is contaminated building material.
"Building services" means any cleaning or routine building
					 maintenance work, including, but not limited to, sweeping, vacuuming, floor
					 cleaning, cleaning of rest rooms, collecting refuse or trash, window cleaning,
					 securing, patrolling, or other work in connection with the care or securing of
					 an existing building, including services typically provided by a door-attendant
					 or concierge. "Building services" shall not include any skilled maintenance
					 work, professional services, or other public work for which a contractor is
					 required to pay the "prevailing wage," as defined in section 2 at P.L. 1963, c.
					 150 (N.J.S.A. 34:11-56.26).
"Contaminated building material" means components of a
					 structure where abatement or removal of asbestos, or remediation of materials
					 containing hazardous substances defined pursuant to section 3 at P.L. 1976, c.
					 141 (N.J.S.A. 58:10-23.11b), is
					 required by applicable Federal, State, or local rules or regulations.
"Contamination" or "contaminant" means any discharged
					 hazardous substances, as defined pursuant to section 3 at P.L. 1976, c. 141
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 58:10-23.11b), hazardous waste as defined
					 pursuant to section 1 at P.L. 1976, c. 99 (N.J.S.A.
					 13:1E-38), pollutant as defined pursuant to
					 section 3 at P.L. 1977, c. 74 (N.J.S.A. 58:10A-3),
					 or contaminated building materials.
"Department" means the New Jersey Department of
					 Environmental Protection.
"Developer" or "applicant" means any person that enters or
					 proposes to enter into a redevelopment agreement with the Authority pursuant to
					 the provisions at
					 N.J.A.C.
					 19:31-27.9 and section 13 at
					 P.L.
					 2020, c. 156
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 34:1B-281), including, but not limited to, a
					 lender that completes a redevelopment project, operates a redevelopment
					 project, or completes and operates a redevelopment project.
"Director" means the Director of the Division of Taxation
					 in the New Jersey Department of the Treasury.
"Discharge" means an action or omission defined as such
					 pursuant to the Technical Requirements for Site Remediation rules, at
					 N.J.A.C.
					 7:26E-1.8.
"Diverse" means being a historically under-served or
					 under-represented identity within the following categories: race, ethnicity,
					 gender, sexual orientation, disability status, educational attainment, veteran
					 status, nation of origin, and language use.
"Equity" means developer-contributed capital that may
					 consist of cash, deferred development fees, costs for project feasibility
					 incurred within the 12 months prior to application, property value less any
					 mortgages when the developer owns the site of the redevelopment project, and
					 any other investment by the developer in the project, as deemed acceptable by
					 the Authority. Property value shall be the lesser of either: the purchase
					 price, provided the property was purchased pursuant to an arm's length
					 transaction within 12 months of application, or the value as determined by a
					 current appraisal acceptable to the Authority. Equity shall include Federal or
					 local grants and tax credits. Equity shall not include State grants or tax
					 credits.
"Government-restricted municipality" means a municipality
					 in this State with a municipal revitalization index distress score of at least
					 75, that met the criteria for designation as an urban aid municipality in the
					 2019 State fiscal year, and that on January 7, 2021, the effective date of
					 P.L.
					 2020, c. 156
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 34:1B-269 et seq.), is subject to financial
					 restrictions imposed pursuant to the Municipal Stabilization and Recovery Act,
					 P.L.
					 2016, c. 4 (N.J.S.A.
					 52:27BBBB-1 et seq.), or is restricted in its ability to levy property taxes on
					 property in that municipality as a result of the State of New Jersey owning or
					 controlling property representing at least 25 percent of the total land area of
					 the municipality, or as a result of the Federal government of the United States
					 owning or controlling at least 50 acres of the total land area of the
					 municipality, which is dedicated as a national natural landmark.
"Labor harmony agreement" means an agreement between a
					 business that serves as the owner or operator of a retail establishment or
					 distribution center and one or more labor organizations, which requires for the
					 duration of the agreement that: any participating labor organization and its
					 members agree to refrain from picketing, work stoppages, boycotts, or other
					 economic interference against the business; and the business agrees to maintain
					 a neutral posture with respect to efforts of any participating labor
					 organization to represent employees at an establishment or other unit in the
					 retail establishment or distribution center, agrees to permit the labor
					 organization to have access to the employees, and agrees to guarantee to the
					 labor organization the right to obtain recognition as the exclusive collective
					 bargaining representatives of the employees in an establishment or unit at the
					 retail establishment or distribution center by demonstrating to the New Jersey
					 State Board of Mediation, Division of Private Employment Dispute Settlement, or
					 a mutually agreed upon, neutral, third-party, that a majority of workers in the
					 unit have shown their preference for the labor organization to be their
					 representative by signing authorization cards indicating their preference. The
					 labor organization or organizations shall be from a list of labor organizations
					 that have requested to be on the list and which the Commissioner of the
					 Department of Labor and Workforce Development has determined represents
					 substantial numbers of retail or distribution center employees in the
					 State.
"Licensed or certified professional" means an individual
					 who is licensed or certified in remediation or other activities that are not
					 subject to the jurisdiction of the Site Remediation Reform Act, sections 1
					 through 29 at
					 P.L.
					 2009, c. 60
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 58:10C-1 et seq.), including, but not limited
					 to: contaminated building material abatement or removal; hazardous materials or
					 waste disposal; building and structural remedial activities; or other
					 infrastructure remedial activities. Such individuals may include, but are not
					 limited to: a New Jersey licensed professional engineer, an Asbestos Hazard
					 Emergency Response Act (AHERA) inspector, a New Jersey certified lead
					 inspector, an industrial hygienist, or other appropriately qualified and
					 licensed or certified professional.
"Licensed site remediation professional" or "LSRP" means an
					 individual who is licensed by the Site Remediation Professional Licensing Board
					 pursuant to section 7 at
					 P.L.
					 2009, c. 60
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 58:10C-7) or the Department pursuant to
					 section 12 at
					 P.L.
					 2009, c. 60
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 58:10C-12).
"Minimum environmental and sustainability standards" means
					 standards established by the Authority in accordance with the green building
					 manual prepared by the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs
					 pursuant to section 1 at
					 P.L.
					 2007, c. 132
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 52:27D-130.6), regarding the use of renewable
					 energy, energy-efficient technology, and non-renewable resources to reduce
					 environmental degradation and encourage long-term cost reduction. The Authority
					 shall publish these standards on its website.
"Program" means the Brownfields Redevelopment Incentive
					 Program established by section 11 at
					 P.L.
					 2020, c. 156, as
					 amended by sections 5 through 10 at
					 P.L.
					 2021, c. 160
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 34:1B-277.
"Project financing gap" means the part of the total cost of
					 remediation, including reasonable and appropriate return on investment, that
					 remains to be financed after all other sources of capital have been accounted
					 for, including, but not limited to, developer contributed capital, which shall
					 not be less than 20 percent of the total cost of remediation, and investor or
					 financial entity capital or loans for which the developer, after making all
					 good faith efforts to raise additional capital, certifies that additional
					 capital cannot be raised from other sources; provided, however, that for a
					 redevelopment project located in a government-restricted municipality, the
					 developer-contributed capital shall not be less than 10 percent of the total
					 cost of remediation.
"Qualified incentive tract" means either a population
					 census tract having a poverty rate of 20 percent or more, or a census tract in
					 which the median family income for the census tract does not exceed 80 percent
					 of the greater of the Statewide median family income or the median family
					 income of the metropolitan statistical area in which the census tract is
					 situated.
"Reasonable and appropriate return on investment" means the
					 discount rate at which the present value of the future cash flows of an
					 investment is equal to the cost of the investment. For the purposes of the
					 analysis of the reasonable and appropriate return on investment, an investment
					 shall not include any Federal, State, or local tax credits.
"Redevelopment agreement" means an agreement between the
					 Authority and a developer in accordance with N.J.A.C. 19:31Z-1.9 pursuant to
					 which the developer agrees to perform any work or undertaking necessary for a
					 redevelopment project, comprising of the remediation of a brownfield site,
					 which is the site of the redevelopment project, and may involve the clearance,
					 development or redevelopment, construction, reconstruction, or rehabilitation
					 of any structure or improvement of commercial, industrial, or public structures
					 or improvements within an area of land whereon a brownfield site is
					 located.
"Redevelopment project" means a specific construction
					 project or improvement undertaken, pursuant to the terms of a redevelopment
					 agreement, by a developer within an area of land whereon a brownfield site is
					 located. A redevelopment project may involve construction or improvement upon
					 lands, buildings, improvements, or real and personal property, or any interest
					 therein, including lands under water, riparian rights, space rights, and air
					 rights, acquired, owned, developed or redeveloped, constructed, reconstructed,
					 rehabilitated, or improved. Redevelopment projects shall include improvements
					 that are solely or primarily remediation related to the remediation of the site
					 of the redevelopment project.
"Remediation" or "remediate" means all necessary actions to
					 investigate and clean up or respond to any known, suspected, or threatened
					 discharge of contaminants, including, as necessary, the preliminary assessment,
					 site investigation, remedial investigation, and remedial action, or any portion
					 thereof, as those terms are defined in section 23 at P.L. 1993, c. 139
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 58:10B-1); hazardous materials abatement;
					 hazardous materials or waste disposal; building and structural remedial
					 activities, including, but not limited to, demolition, asbestos abatement,
					 polychlorinated biphenyl removal, contaminated wood or paint removal, or other
					 infrastructure remedial activities. However, "remediation" or "remediate" shall
					 not include the payment of compensation for damage to or loss of natural
					 resources.
"Remediation costs" means all reasonable costs by the
					 developer and any affiliate that are associated with the remediation of a
					 contaminated site or other brownfield site, except: the cost of acquisition of
					 the site at which the redevelopment project will be conducted; any costs
					 incurred in financing the remediation, legal fees, incentive consultant fees;
					 and Authority fees. Remediation costs may include required Department site
					 remediation program fees and other Department permit fees. Remediation costs
					 shall not include payment for penalties or violations. Remediation costs shall
					 not include costs prior to application, except that remediation costs shall
					 include costs for studies and surveys including, but not limited to,
					 preliminary environmental assessments, environmental site investigations, and
					 workplans incurred within the 24 months prior to date of application.
"Representative of the community" means being a
					 heterogenous group that includes individuals sharing diverse identities with
					 those found within the diverse population of a defined community no larger than
					 the municipality(s) in which the redevelopment project is located.
"Response Action Outcome" or "RAO" has the meaning as
					 defined by the Department in the Administrative Requirements for the
					 Remediation of Contaminated Sites,
					 N.J.A.C.
					 7:26C-1.3.
"Site of the redevelopment project" means the brownfield
					 site at which the redevelopment project is located.
"Total cost of remediation" means any and all costs
					 incurred for, and in connection with, the redevelopment project by the
					 developer and any affiliate, until submission of the documents necessary for
					 the issuance of certification of completion of remediation by the Department or
					 upon such other event evidencing project completion as set forth in the
					 redevelopment agreement. These costs may also include fees incurred for
					 financing, penalties, and violations of the redevelopment
					 project.