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S 4512

Provides for transportation accommodation for passengers with disabilities

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Jessica Ramos

Establishes a statewide Problematic Sexual Behavior Program with no-cost care coordination and an expanded advisory board to improve medical/mental health services for youth.

REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION
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Bill Summary · S 4512

Summary — S-4512 (2025)

Status: Referred to Transportation; reported favorably with committee amendments by the Senate Health, Human Services & Senior Citizens Committee (11/13/2025); referred to Senate Budget & Appropriations Committee. Introduced: 5/29/2025. Primary sponsor: Senator Jessica Ramos.

Note: the bill text provided concerns child advocacy centers and a new Problematic Sexual Behavior program. (The bill header initially referenced transportation accommodations for passengers with disabilities — that appears to be a mismatch with the bill text. Verify the official legislative website for the correct short title.)

Purpose

Amend and supplement P.L.2017, c.90 to (1) revise oversight of child advocacy centers and multidisciplinary teams from a certification model to an annual progress review program; (2) expand and reconstitute the Child Advocacy Center–Multidisciplinary Team Advisory Board; and (3) establish a statewide Problematic Sexual Behavior Program, related subcommittee, and a Child Treatment Assistance Fund to support medical and mental health services for youth who engage in or are impacted by problematic sexual behavior.

Key provisions

  • Annual progress review: Replaces the prior “certification” requirement with an annual progress review process for child advocacy centers and multidisciplinary teams, based on guidelines consistent with National Children’s Alliance standards.
  • Advisory Board expansion: Increases the Child Advocacy Center–Multidisciplinary Team Advisory Board membership from 14 to 17; increases public member slots (from 10 to 13) and adds representatives such as care management organization leadership, specialized care coordinators (or supervisors), and a State Central Registry representative.
  • Definitions: Adds and clarifies definitions, notably “problematic sexual behavior” — behavior initiated by youth under 18 using sexual body parts in a developmentally inappropriate or potentially harmful way to themselves or others; explicitly includes technology-facilitated behaviors (e.g., sexting, posting sexual images, exposure to pornography).
  • Problematic Sexual Behavior Program: Establishes the program administered by the New Jersey Children’s Alliance and funded/coordinated with the Department of Children and Families (DCF). Purpose: create a statewide, coordinated response and address medical/mental health needs of youth who engage in or are impacted by problematic sexual behavior.
  • Specialized care coordinators: Program will coordinate with care management organizations to select specialized care coordinators who provide no-cost care coordination (service needs assessment, referrals to medical/behavioral health and community resources). Coordinators remain assigned until family cannot be reached or declines services.
  • Problematic Sexual Behavior Subcommittee: Establishes the subcommittee under the advisory board with at least seven public members (including a child advocacy center representative).
  • Data collection and reporting: Requires the program to develop systems for data collection, analysis, and reporting on service effectiveness; findings and recommendations must be forwarded to the Subcommittee.
  • Grants and fund administration: Clarifies how DCF grants to centers/teams (via the Child Advocacy Center–Multidisciplinary Team Fund) may be spent. Also creates the “Child Treatment Assistance Fund” in DCF as the repository for monies to cover medical/mental health service costs provided under the program.
  • Training standard: Ongoing specialized interdisciplinary training for team members to be based on the most recent progress review or National Children’s Alliance standards.
  • Policy clarification: Replaces a prior recommendation for a specialized assessment team in the State Central Registry with a recommendation to establish specialized positions within care management organizations to facilitate referrals and treatment.

Committee amendments (significant)

  • Clarify that problematic sexual behavior can be harmful to the youth who initiated it, not only others.
  • Increase public members on the Problematic Sexual Behavior Subcommittee from at least 6 to at least 7 (adds child advocacy center representative).
  • Require specialized care coordinators to provide services at no cost and remain assigned until family declines or cannot be contacted.
  • Add statewide data collection/reporting requirement.
  • Remove a proposed $8,500,000 appropriation that was in the introduced version.
  • Technical fixes: grammar, cross-citations, and title/synopsis edits.

Who is affected

  • Child advocacy centers and multidisciplinary teams in New Jersey (operations, funding eligibility tied to annual reviews).
  • Youth under 18 who engage in or are impacted by problematic sexual behavior, and their families (access to coordinated medical/behavioral health supports and care coordination).
  • Department of Children and Families, New Jersey Children’s Alliance, care management organizations, specialized care coordinators, State Central Registry, law enforcement, prosecutors, medical and mental health providers.
  • Members and operations of the Child Advocacy Center–Multidisciplinary Team Advisory Board and its subcommittee.

Procedural / fiscal notes

  • Introduced 5/29/2025; committee report with amendments 11/13/2025; referred to Budget & Appropriations thereafter. (Conflicting referral entries to Transportation appear in the docket — confirm current committee assignment on the official legislative site.)
  • The committee removed the bill’s $8.5 million appropriation; no appropriation remains in the amended bill as reported.

Related legislation

  • Companion: A-5682
  • Prior-session or related measures: A-11283, S-5404, S-3924, S-9461

For full text, status updates, and official bill history, consult the New Jersey Legislature’s website.

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

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