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A 5947

Prohibits certain wildlife and fish from being imported into the state; and relates to live animal markets

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Jo Anne Simon

The bill requires state entities to verify recipients’ immigration status for aid, report aggregate monthly costs of aid to undocumented individuals to the Health Dept, and publish

REFERRED TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION
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Bill Summary · A 5947

Summary of Bill A-5947 (New Jersey)

Note: The header’s reference to wildlife imports and live animal markets appears inconsistent with the bill text provided. The introduced content for A-5947 in this summary describes the “Public Charge Healthcare Transparency Act,” not wildlife import prohibitions. The summary below covers the bill’s actual introduced provisions as contained in the text.

Overview

  • Bill: A-5947
  • Title (as introduced content): Public Charge Healthcare Transparency Act
  • Purpose: To require state entities that provide government assistance to disclose recipient citizenship/immigration status and to report the cost of providing assistance to individuals who are not lawfully present. The act also creates compliance and enforcement provisions, and authorizes regulatory rulemaking.
  • Status: Referred to the Environmental Conservation Committee
  • Introduced: July 24, 2025
  • Primary Sponsor: Jo Anne Simon

What the bill would do (Key Provisions)

  • Inquiries and documentation

    • Each state entity that provides government assistance to individuals in New Jersey must inquire about and record the individual’s citizenship or immigration status as a condition of participation.
    • Each such entity must require documentation authenticating the individual’s citizenship or immigration status.

  • Reporting to the Department of Health

    • Each state entity providing government assistance must submit a monthly report to the Department of Health detailing:
    • The citizenship and immigration status of recipients.
    • The monthly cost of providing government assistance to individuals who are illegal aliens.
    • Reports must be in aggregate form and must not include personal identifying information.
    • The Department of Health must make each monthly report publicly available on its website.

  • Prohibited conduct and penalties

    • It is unlawful to knowingly make a false or misleading statement, or to omit a material fact, regarding an individual’s citizenship or immigration status.
    • Violations are classified as a crime of the fourth degree.

  • Definitions

    • Government assistance: monetary or non-monetary benefits, including clothing, electronics (e.g., cell phones, tablets, computers and related plans), education, food, healthcare, housing, legal services, public utilities, transportation, and more.
    • Illegal alien: a person residing in New Jersey who cannot produce documentary evidence of lawful presence.
    • State entity: a state department/agency/unit or a local department/agency/unit that both receives state funding and provides government assistance to illegal aliens.

  • Rulemaking and effective date

    • The Commissioner of Health may adopt rules and regulations as necessary to implement the act, under the Administrative Procedure Act.
    • The act takes effect immediately upon enactment.

Who would be affected

  • Recipients of government assistance in New Jersey (including both monetary and non-monetary benefits).
  • State and local government entities that administer government assistance programs.
  • The Department of Health, which would aggregate and publish reports.
  • The general public would gain access to aggregated cost data via the DoH website.

Procedural and timeline notes

  • Legislative actions: Introduced July 24, 2025; referred to the Assembly Oversight, Reform and Federal Relations Committee (per the provided action history). The bill has also shown a prior path in related actions and is listed alongside related prior-session bills.
  • Related bills: A-11144, A-2054, A-10645 (prior sessions).
  • Data privacy: Reports must avoid personal identifiers; data is to be aggregated for public release.

If you need a side-by-side comparison with wildlife-import bills or a crosswalk with the stated wildlife-related title, I can prepare that as well.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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