New Jersey Assembly Bill A4785

New Jersey 2026-2027 Regular Session

• Introduced: 3/19/26
• Refer: 3/19/26

Caption

Requires installation of emergency power supply systems to certain common areas of new planned real estate developments; provides related tax incentives.

Summary

Assembly Bill 4785 would require the New Jersey Commissioner of Community Affairs to revise the State Uniform Construction Code so that new planned real estate developments with a common recreation or community facility, such as a clubhouse or community room, must install an emergency power supply system. The system would need to provide standby electrical power consistent with NFPA-110 standards, with rules covering installation, maintenance, operation, and testing. The bill also requires these facilities to include public charging stations and sufficient outlets so residents can charge devices needed for health and safety during extended outages. The bill is aimed at making clubhouses or community rooms usable as emergency shelters during prolonged power failures, a concern highlighted in the statement by reference to Hurricane Sandy and other outage events. It applies to new developments and to certain registrations submitted after the bill’s effective date, but it does not mandate retrofits for existing communities. In addition to the construction-code mandate, the bill creates tax incentives to offset the cost of the required equipment, including a corporation business tax deduction, a gross income tax deduction, and a sales tax rebate/exemption structure for qualifying emergency power supply system property, each capped at $10,000 for the deduction provisions.

Impact

The bill would amend the regulatory and tax treatment of new planned real estate developments in New Jersey by adding a construction-code requirement for emergency backup power in common recreation or community facilities. It would also affect developers, purchasers, and contractors involved in building these common areas by conditioning registration approvals on compliance and by extending tax relief through the Corporation Business Tax Act, the Gross Income Tax Act, and the Sales and Use Tax Act. The Department of Community Affairs and the Division of Taxation would need to adopt implementing rules and procedures, including rebate claims and code revisions.

Sentiment

The overall sentiment reflected in the bill text is supportive and preventive, with the measure framed as a public-safety response to extended outages and severe weather. The sponsor’s statement presents the bill as a way to provide residents of planned communities with a centrally located shelter and reliable power during emergencies. No committee transcript or vote record is provided, so there is no additional evidence of opposition or bipartisan debate in the available materials.

Contention

The main policy tension is between the added cost and regulatory burden on developers versus the public-safety benefit of requiring emergency power in new community facilities. The bill attempts to address that concern by offering tax incentives and limiting the deduction/rebate benefits to a capped amount, but the text does not indicate whether those incentives fully offset compliance costs. Another possible point of contention is that the mandate applies only to new developments and not existing common interest communities, which may raise fairness or implementation questions for residents of older developments that remain vulnerable to outages.