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EPA SIGNALS TO NEW JERSEY – GET READY FOR 250% INCREASE IN FUNDING

In a hopeful signal that the federal government is serious about getting funding from the recent Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework (BIF) to work, EPA put out a notice yesterday to all states to be prepared to advance water infrastructure projects and urges them to begin prioritizing now and encourages states to leverage the new Lead Service Line Replacement funding sources, including ARPA (“Recovery Act”) money. UTCA is also pushing for the State to use its discretion to apply upwards of $900M of “Recovery Act” funding for priority water infrastructure projects.
The EPA communication includes breakdown of state allotments of the BIB money that will go through SRFs. NJ first-year allotment of SRF funds is $168,949,000 with additional funds for Lead Service Line Replacement and Emerging Contaminants. This will bring the first year total to over $200M, a 250% increase from the last FY. This funding will be leveraged several fold by the NJ Infrastructure Bank. As a reminder, funding will increase every year for the next 5 years under the BIF.
Please know that the staff at the UTCA along with Robert Briant Jr, CEO are already working with the Governors Office, DEP, NJDOT, NJ Transit and others to be sure we get projects shovel ready as we anticipate the much needed funding for NJ Infrastructure.
As a reminder here is the breakdown of the $13.5 Billion designated for New Jersey over the next five years:
$6.8 Billion for highways
$1.1 Billion for bridges
$1 Billion for lead water line replacement
$4.1 Billion for Mass Transit
$272 Million for Airport improvements
$100 Million for broadband expansion
Billions for the Gateway Tunnel
If you have any questions please contact the UTCA Office 732-292-4300 or email Dave Rible or Dan Kennedy with any questions.

FEDERAL INFRASTRUCTURE BILL SIGNED

The Federal Infrastructure Bill was signed yesterday by President Biden. Please know that the staff at the UTCA along with Robert Briant Jr, CEO are prepared to work with the Governors Office, NJDOT, NJ Transit and others to be sure we get projects shovel ready as we anticipate the much needed funding for NJ Infrastructure.

As a reminder here is the breakdown of the $13.5 Billion designated for New Jersey over the next five years:

$6.8 Billion for highways

$1.1 Billion for bridges

$1 Billion for lead water line replacement

$4.1 Billion for Mass Transit

$272 Million for Airport improvements

$100 Million for broadband expansion

Billions for the Gateway Tunnel

Please Read CEO Robert Briant Jr Statement Here

If you have any questions please contact the UTCA Office 732-292-4300 or Email Dave Rible Here

Governor Phil Murphy’s Executive Order

Governor Murphy signed a New Executive Order yesterday that will require workers employed under state contracts to be vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus or be subjected to weekly COVID-19 testing.
We are sending you a memo from our Association Attorney, Lou Cappelli of Florio Perrucci Steinhardt Cappelli Tipton & Taylor, LLC. This is going to be fluid information as we sort through the details. We will continue to update you as soon as we get more information. UTCA staff has numerous questions ranging from liability to oversight. We expect another update early next week.
If you have any questions on this Executive Order, please contact Dan Neville Email Dan or Dave Rible Email Dave or you can always call the UTCA Office for assistance 732-292-4300.

Latest COVID Guidelines – HIPAA, COVID Vaccination & The Workplace

Attached is recent Guidance from Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”), the agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services responsible for, among other things, enforcing compliance with HIPAA. The guidance highlights that HIPAA only applies to the three categories of covered entities—health plans, health care clearinghouses and health care providers that conduct standard electronic transactions—and their respective business associates. More particularly, OCR’s guidance aims to clarify when HIPAA applies to the disclosures of, and requests for, information regarding whether an individual has received one of the COVID-19 vaccines, with a specific focus on the workplace.
The guidance is organized into five FAQs, each followed by a detailed response. The general response is no to questions 1-4 and yes to question 5:
  1. Does the HIPAA Privacy Rule prohibit businesses or individuals from asking whether their customers or clients have received a COVID-19 vaccine?
  2. Does the HIPAA Privacy Rule prevent customers or clients of a business from disclosing whether they have received a COVID-19 vaccine?
  3. Does the HIPAA Privacy Rule prohibit an employer from requiring a workforce member to disclose whether they have received a COVID-19 vaccine to the employer, clients, or other parties?
  4. Does the HIPAA Privacy Rule prohibit a covered entity or business associate from requiring its workforce members to disclose to their employers or other parties whether the workforce members have received a COVID-19 vaccine?
  5. Does the HIPAA Privacy Rule prohibit a doctor’s office from disclosing an individual’s protected health information (PHI), including whether they have received a COVID-19 vaccine, to the individual’s employer or other parties?
UTCA Staff is doing its best to keep you informed on all COVID related rules / guidance and as the information becomes available we will be getting it to you. If you have any questions please call Dave at 732-292-4300 or email Dave

NJ Gas Tax To Drop 8.3 Cents – No Impact To Transportation Capital Plans

The New Jersey Department of Treasury today announced that the gas tax will decrease 8.3 cents per gallon beginning October 1, 2021. The transportation capital plans remain unchanged for NJDOT (including Local Aid) and NJ Transit.

UTCA worked for language in the 2016 reauthorization of the Transportation Trust Fund that mandates an annual evaluation of the gas tax to ensure the state can provide a $2 billion transportation capital program. Pegging the rate to the size of the capital plan was necessary to avoid the political hurdles that enabled over two decades of neglect and debt that ultimately led to a complete shutdown of our industry in 2016.

Up until 2020, the “true-up” language has produced several small increases to the tax. In 2020 a 9.3 cent increase was necessary due to a pandemic-related decline in consumption. Citing a “swifter than expected economic recovery,” Treasury stated that gasoline and diesel fuel consumption had risen beyond stated projections, requiring under the law the decrease announced earlier today.

This action is not unexpected. UTCA anticipated a 2021 decrease in the tax given the rapid return of drivers and increases in-home deliveries. This provision of the TTF law is working as intended, to guarantee NJ has adequate funding to maintain its vast transportation network without overburdening the driving public.

House To Vote On Infrastructure Package September 27

Congressional Democrats today adopted a plan to consider the Senate-passed Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) by September 27 of this year, and passed a procedural vote allowing work to begin on a separate, $3.5 trillion social spending package.

As previously reported, under the five-year IIJA New Jersey would receive approximately $6.8 billion for highways, $1.1 billion for bridges, $4.1 billion for transit, $250 million for drinking water, and $598 million for clean water under existing federal formulas, as well as a portion of the national allocations of $25 billion for airports, $21 billion for environmental remediation, and $17 billion for ports and waterways.

The 220-212 party-line vote ends a stalemate between Speaker Pelosi and a group of Democratic centrists led by NJ Congressman Josh Gottheimer, who wanted the IIJA passed before the $3.5 trillion social package was taken up for consideration. Passing the IIJA as soon as possible is imperative because the current surface transportation law, known as the FAST Act, expires on September 30.

If passed, the IIJA would be transformative for New Jersey infrastructure and today’s House agreement brings us one step closer to this historic investment. We will keep you updated as this landmark bill progresses.

Senate Passes $1 Trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill

The Senate today passed the long-awaited $1 trillion infrastructure package, formally known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The 69-30 vote marks a pivotal step in the advancement of the nation’s largest long-term infrastructure investment in nearly a century.

Under the five-year plan, New Jersey would receive approximately $6.8 billion for highways, $1.1 billion for bridges, $4.1 billion for transit, $250 million for drinking water, and $598 million for clean water under existing federal formulas.

For transportation, these figures do not include funding the state could receive under grants and related programs including $16 billion program for projects of national significance, $30 billion earmarked for Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor and $8 billion for capital improvement grants, each being considered as possible funding sources for the Gateway Tunnel Project.

We are also pleased to report that the UTCA toll credit marketplace provision is included in the bill, thanks to the efforts of Senator Booker. NJ has $5.5 billion of these credits and this provision would allow the State to sell them at a discount to other states. If included in the final legislation, this provision could raise billions of dollars for New Jersey’s transportation capital plan.

What’s Next
The Senate worked through the weekend, holding several procedural votes Saturday and Sunday which cleared the way for today’s final vote. The bill now heads to the House for consideration, although the timeframe for action remains unclear.

The bill has detractors on both sides of the aisle and will need to clear significant hurdles in the House to earn passage, not the least of which is House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s statement that the lower chamber will not consider the bill until the Senate passes Democrats’ $3.5 trillion social spending package.

Despite the challenges, there is still a viable path forward for the measure as both President Biden and House moderates push for passage of the Senate-brokered language. Pressure on the Speaker has been increasing steadily, but for now it is a waiting game – both chambers have a scheduled August recess, but could be called back early.

This is the closest we’ve come to passing an infrastructure bill of this size, and for now, we remain cautiously optimistic that Congress will pass this once-in-a-generation measure. We’ll be sure to keep you updated as this historic bill advances.