Section 40:55D-136.8 - Findings, declarationsThe Legislature finds and declares that:
a. COVID-19 is a contagious, and at times, fatal, respiratory disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus first discovered in the city of Wuhan, Hubei Province, People's Republic of China, and quickly spread to multiple other countries, including the United States, and has severely impacted residents of the State of New Jersey;b. Due to the potential risk of COVID-19 to residents of New Jersey, by way of Executive Order No. 103, Governor Philip D. Murphy declared that a State of Emergency and a Public Health Emergency exists in the State of New Jersey;c. To limit the spread of COVID-19, it has become imperative for governments, institutions, businesses, organizations, and people throughout New Jersey to implement strict social distancing measures and take other precautions to reduce the public health impacts of the disease;d. Due to the impacts of COVID-19, and protective measures necessary to avoid its further spread, much government, business, and economic activity has been halted, disrupted, or delayed;e. These delays have adversely impacted real estate developers and redevelopers, including homebuilders and commercial, office, and industrial developers, whose projects may be held in abeyance as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these projects have already received myriad governmental permits and approvals, which are expensive and time-consuming to obtain;f. Obtaining an extension of an approval pursuant to existing statutory or regulatory provisions can be both costly in terms of time and financial resources; moreover, the costs imposed may fall on the public as well as the private sector; andg. It is therefore appropriate, and the purpose of P.L. 2020, c. 53(C.40:55D-136.7 et seq.), to toll the term of certain permits and approvals during the COVID-19 extension period in order to prevent the wholesale abandonment of approved projects and activities due to the present unfavorable economic conditions, thereby preventing a waste of public and private resources and allowing for the quick resumption of projects when it is safe to restart normal business and government activity.Added by L. 2020, c. 53, s. 2, eff. 7/1/2020.