5 NJ Bills That Could Impact Your And Your Child's Life

NEW JERSEY — New Jersey lawmakers are seeking to protect young people from social media’s potentially harmful effects with several bills before the state legislature this week. And, a bill aimed at letting police and firefighters retire earlier is on the docket, as is one widely expanding the reasons NJ teachers could use their accrued sick time.

Lawmakers are putting more effort into the issue of student mental health as rates of teen anxiety and depression continue to increase, and after a 14-year-old Ocean County teenager died by suicide in early February.

Friends say that Adriana Kuch took her own life after experiencing severe bullying for several years, including a recent physical attack that was filmed and spread via social media. Officials charged four of her classmates in connection with the attack.

Data from 2021 shows that 16 percent of high school students said they had been electronically bullied through social media or texting within the last year – more female students than male students.

Teens who have same-sex partners or identify outside the gender binary are more likely to be electronically bullied, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some New Jersey lawmakers want federal lawmakers to sign a law requiring a parent or guardian to consent for children 13 years old and younger to open a social media account (more on that below).

Bullying, mental health issues, and body dysmorphia are just part of the problem, as officials probe whether companies indeed tailor their products to get children and teenagers addicted to the app, potentially stuck in a loop of comparing themselves to others and reading nasty comments.

Social media companies have come under fire from NJ lawmakers and school districts in the past, as well. Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced last year he would co-lead an investigation into TikTok’s possibly harmful effects on young users, and NJ is also part of an investigation into Instagram.

Preventing social media addiction

One bill that is before NJ lawmakers is aimed at curbing social media addiction in children and teens, and would impose up to $250,000 civil penalties on a social media platform that uses practices or features designed to make young users “addicted to the platform.”

Three Democratic members sponsored the Assembly version of this bill (A5069), and Democrat Joseph F. Vitale (NJ-19) sponsored the Senate version (S3608).

Under the bill, social media platforms would be able to implement an audit and correct certain addictive practices so as to not violate the law. Specifically, social media platforms “would be required to conduct quarterly audits, and hire an independent third party to conduct an annual audit, to determine whether any of its practices, designs, features, or affordances would cause, have the potential to cause, or contribute to the addiction of child users to the platform.” They would then be given 30 days to correct it.

Social media platforms controlled by smaller companies, and those applications designed for gaming, would not fall under the guidelines.

Where’s this bill? Has yet to appear in the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee as of Tuesday. Was reported favorably from the Assembly Health Committee and referred to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

Who sponsored it? In the Senate, Joseph Vitale (D-19). In the Assembly, Dems Herb Conaway Jr., (NJ-7) Shanique Speight (NJ-29), and Sterley S. Stanley (NJ-18).

Effects of smartphone and social media use

Another bill in both houses (S715/A1992), establishes a committee to study the effects of smartphone and social media use in and out of schools. The Senate passed its version of this bill by a vote of 37-0 in October 2022, and it awaits an Assembly vote.

The bill would establish a Commission on the Effects of Social Media Usage on Adolescents, a 19-member commission appointed by legislative leadership and Gov. Phil Murphy and including representatives from a variety of NJ school-based associations, nurses, two students, and two parents.

This committee would study how much social media is used in and out of NJ public schools during a typical day and how much time students spend on electronic devices, the effects social media have on emotional health of students “including incidents of depression, anxiety, body dysmorphia, harassment, intimidation or bullying, or other disruptive or violent behaviors,” and effects that social media may have on academic performance and students’ physical health.

This commission would report its findings to the Governor and legislature no later than one year after its first organizational meeting, the bill states.

Where’s this bill? On the calendar for the Assembly session Thursday.

Who sponsored it? In the Senate, Richard Codey (D-27) and Edward Durr (R-3). In the Assembly, Herb Conaway Jr., (D-7) Carol A. Murphy (D-7), and Benjie E. Wimberly (D-35)

Parental consent for social media platforms

Democratic Assemblyman Herb Conaway Jr. (Burlington) is the primary sponsor of an Assembly resolution (AR167) urging the President and Congress to enact legislation requiring parental consent for children 13 years of age and younger to use social media and certain websites.

The bill originally called for federal lawmakers to require protections for people under the age of 16, but lowered it to 13 after committee discussion.

“The rise of social media use amongst teenagers has sadly coincided with the rise in rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide amongst teenagers, and there is evidence that certain social media platforms have known of the negative mental health impacts of their social media platforms on teenagers and have done very little to address those issues,” legislators say.

The U.S. Senate did not pass the Kids Online Safety Act introduced by a bipartisan duo in 2022, which New Jersey legislators say did not go far enough and require websites to obtain parental consent for children to open an account.

“As Internet usage continues to evolve, it is important for parents to have the tools to safeguard their children from the evolving threats that exist online,” NJ resolution sponsors say.

Where’s this bill? There’s only one version, and it’s on the calendar for the Assembly session Thursday.

Who sponsored it? Assemblyman Herb Conaway Jr. (D-7).

Expanding scope of NJ teacher sick leave

Teachers in New Jersey could use their sick leave to take care of an ill family member, take their child to a school event, or get preventative care for themselves under a bill in both houses of the state legislature.

Currently, New Jersey school district employees may only take sick leave because of personal illness, injury, or disability, or because they are ordered to do so by health officials in the case of a contagious disease. A bill recently passed by the Assembly Labor Committee (A5060) allows teachers to use that accrued sick time for a much wider variety of reasons.

This bill allows school district employees to use sick leave so they may care for a seriously ill member of their family, increases the number of bereavement days to seven, and allows district employees to use sick time for diagnosis, care, or treatment of any mental or physical illness or injury.

The legislation mentions that it is not meant to supersede any collective bargaining rights for school district employees “and shall not reduce, diminish, or adversely affect an employee’s collective bargaining rights.”

Under the proposed bill, district employees could use sick time to take absence if they or a family member are a victim of domestic or sexual violence, and needs medical attention, counseling, or more time away. Staff members could also use sick time to attend their child’s school-related conference, meeting, or function; or care for their child if the child’s care center is closed.

The bill also amends state law to require a doctor’s note to be filed with the board of education when the teacher takes sick leave, only when it is used for personal injury or illness, and sets out how school boards may require advance notice of leave.

A version of this bill is also in the Senate (S3440), where it awaits a committee hearing.

Where’s this bill? Reported favorably from the Assembly Labor Committee on March 23 by a vote of 7-1, and referred to the Assembly Appropriations Committee. The Senate version was introduced, and referred to the Senate Education Committee; it has not had a committee vote yet.

Who sponsored it? In the Senate, primary sponsors are Democrats Vin Gopal (NJ-11) and Shirley Turner (NJ-15). In the Assembly, four Democrats are primary sponsors with a number of other Dems and several Republicans as co-sponsors.

Police, firefighters could retire after 20 years

A bill allowing New Jersey police officers and firefighters the option to retire after 20 years of service, regardless of age, is also moving through the state legislature.

Current state law allows PFRS members who are 55 years of age or older to retire on a service retirement allowance of 50 percent of final compensation, if they have served for 20 years or more. PFRS members are currently mandated to retire at age 65.

The bill allows members of the state Police and Firemen’s Retirement System (PFRS) to retire after 20 years of service and get a reduced pension.

A bill signed in 2021 by Gov. Murphy permitted members enrolled in PFRS before or after the effective date of the legislation would be able to retire after the effective date for a period of up to two years.

The state Office of Legislative Services said it anticipates the bill “will result in an indeterminate increase in the annual contributions required to be paid by the State and local governments to the PFRS.”

“It is not known how many PFRS members will retire to receive the benefit provided by this bill,” the OLS said in a statement.

Where’s this bill? The Senate has passed the bill (S3090) by a vote of 36-0. The Assembly version of the bill (A4498) advanced out of the Appropriations Committee on March 23, with the full body scheduled to vote on it Thursday.

Who sponsored it? In the Senate, Democrats Vin Gopal (NJ-11) and Joseph Lagana (NJ-38). In the Assembly, Wayne P. DeAngelo (D-NJ-14).