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S 1576

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2025 Regular Session Introduced by George Borrello and 1 co-sponsor

Establishes a voluntary statewide program to collect and safely dispose of unused farm pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and their containers, with regional sites and events.

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Bill Summary · S 1576

Summary — S.1576

Title: Establishes a farm pesticide (later amended to include herbicide and fertilizer) collection and disposal program

Main purpose

Create a voluntary statewide program to collect, transport, dispose of, and (where appropriate) recycle unused pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and associated containers held by commercial farms, to reduce unsafe on‑farm stockpiles and improper disposal and to improve environmental outcomes.

Key provisions

  • Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), in consultation with the Department of Agriculture (DoA), shall establish the program to:
    • Collect, transport, and safely dispose of unused pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers (and their containers) owned by commercial farms.
    • Collect, transport, and recycle pesticide/herbicide container materials where feasible.
    • Strategically locate collection sites across the State with at least one site in each of the northern, central, and southern regions.
    • Offer at least two collection events per year at each collection site.
    • Contract with qualified entities to perform safe collection, transport, disposal, and recycling and provide DEP oversight of those contracts.
    • Appoint local agents/representatives to inventory items collected and report information to DEP in a timely manner.
  • Department of Agriculture (with DEP) must run a cooperative public education and outreach campaign to inform farmers of site locations, event dates, accepted materials, benefits, and other program information; information must be posted on the DoA website and updated as needed.
  • DEP (with DoA) must adopt implementing regulations under the Administrative Procedure Act.
  • Committee amendments (Nov. 13, 2025) expanded scope to explicitly include herbicides and fertilizers and added a DEP annual report requirement to the Governor and Legislature summarizing program operations.

Who is affected

  • Primary: commercial farms (participation is voluntary).
  • State agencies: DEP and DoA (implementation, oversight, outreach).
  • Local governments: may incur indeterminate costs if local agents inventory materials; counties/municipalities might incorporate activities into existing hazardous waste events.
  • Private contractors: firms qualified to handle hazardous collection/transport/disposal and container recycling.

Fiscal & operational impact

  • Office of Legislative Services estimate: up to $500,000 annually.
    • Assumes up to 2 full‑time equivalent (FTE) positions (~$250,000 total personnel cost including fringe) and up to $250,000 annual contracting costs for collection/disposal/recycling.
  • Local cost impact: indeterminate (depends on use of local agents and whether tasks are folded into existing events).

Implementation timeline & procedural status

  • Effective 180 days after enactment (agencies may take anticipatory administrative action beforehand).
  • Legislative activity includes committee reports and amendments (Senate Environment & Energy; Senate Budget & Appropriations — amended 11/13/2025). A new draft (S2588) was filed 9/4/2025.
  • Current sources include introduced and amended New Jersey texts and fiscal estimates.

Note: the compilation materials include an unrelated Massachusetts docket labeled “SENATE No. 1576” (a different bill). The summary above is based on the New Jersey S.1576 materials (Turner) and associated committee/fiscal documents.

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

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