TRENTON – Aiming to compliment the broader affordable housing reforms enacted by S-50 last year, the Senate approved legislation sponsored by Senators Troy Singleton and Benjie Wimberly that would provide more clarity to the existing requirements relating to the housing and land use planning elements of municipal master plans.

“Requirements for municipal master plans have been repeatedly tweaked and added to over the years, leading to unnecessary confusion and a lack of clarity for municipalities, planners, and the public,” said Senator Singleton (D-Burlington), Chair of the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee. “This bill will clarify and streamline existing requirements, ensuring that all master plan requirements are located in one, logical location within statutory law and making it easier to comply with or understand for all parties.”

The bill, S-4451, seeks to streamline the multitude of laws governing various elements that are required to be included within municipal master plans by reorganizing and consolidating them within the same section of law. The legislation would additionally add clarifying language to ensure that a municipality’s land use plan element is coordinated with its housing plan element as well as ensure redevelopment plans and their status are clearly documented.

“While the requirements that have been added to municipal master plans throughout the last several decades are good additions, it has created problems in relation to ease of understanding,” said Senator Wimberly (D-Passaic/Bergen). “This bill will facilitate already existing reforms to affordable housing, making it easier for municipalities to comply with their constitutional housing obligations.”

The Senate passed the bill in a 23-14 vote.