NJEJA Statewide Policy Platform for the 2025 Governor’s Race

As voting residents across the state of New Jersey gear up for the 2025 Gubernatorial election, NJEJA is proud to publish our Statewide Policy Platform which details areas of concerns and consideration for both candidates. We believe that the issue of racial and environmental justice should transcend political and party lines, as the right to clean air, water, and land is not only immutable but fundamental to the wellbeing of every person.

We are grateful to the 15 organizations and counting, who have endorsed this platform and stand as partners and allies to the environmental justice movement in the Garden State. We welcome further conversation from candidates, elected/appointed officials, and any person who wishes to learn more about the history of environmental justice and how our work looks to build us towards a Just Transition.

For questions, please reach out to us at info@njeja.org.

Our NJEJA Statewide 2025 Policy Platform

NJEJA_Statewide-Policy-Platform-2025_FinalDownload

Our Letter to DEP on the Second Decision Under the Landmark Environmental Justice Law

Shortly after the release of the NJ Department of Environmental Protection first of it’s kind decision under the landmark 2020 Environmental Justice Law and subsequent rules, the DEP has released it’s second decision. The decision concerns the application of the Corning Pharmaceutical Glass, LLC facility in Vineland, NJ.

As before, while we are glad to see another decision released and the rules continue to be enforced, NJEJA and our partners have concerns regarding the components of the decision and – from our perspective – DEP’s decision to not be as protective as possible of EJ communities.

To voice these concerns and to spotlight areas of possible improvement, NJEJA and our partners wrote a letter to address our thoughts and identify points in which we thought that the EJ Law could have been more robustly enforced. This letter has been sent to NJ DEP. Read the full letter below.

For questions, please reach out to us at info@njeja.org.

Our full letter to NJ DEP regarding the Corning Pharmaceutical Glass, LLC decision:

EJ-Letter_EJ-Decision-CPG-PID34120350Download

Read NJEJA’s Comments on the NJ BPU Energy Resource Adequacy Technical Conference

As part of NJEJA’s aim to provide EJ guidance and technical expertise as well as educational materials to governmental agencies, bodies, and decision makers, we submitted comments regarding the New Jersey Board of Public Utility’s Resource Adequacy Technical conference. These comments were aimed at supporting the BPU in understanding the EJ perspective on different types of energy and call on the BPU to prioritize clean energy projects including more solar (both large scale and community-level), on- and offshore wind, battery storage, virtual power plants, and small-scale hydro-electric.

For questions, please reach out to us at info@njeja.org

Read our full set of comments below:

NJEJA-Comments-BPU-ResourceAdequacyDownload

NJEJA Endorses Letter from Partners to U.S. DOE on NEPA Procedures

On June 30, DOE issued an Interim Final Rule that guts enforceable public participation, exempts many energy projects from environmental review, and sidelines the voices of frontline and Tribal communities, all under the guise of “streamlining.”

This rule weakens hard-fought safeguards and opens the door to unchecked development.

NJEJA was proud to sign-on and endorse a letter from our partners regarding the U.S. DOE’s revision to these rules.

Read the full letter below:

EJ-DOE-InterimFinalRuleDownload

NJEJA Joins MFN Partners and California EJ Organizations In Letter on CARB’s In-Use Locomotive Regulation

We are proud to join our partners in California and across the Moving Forward Network in a letter to the California Air Resource Board regarding its repeal of the In-Use Locomotive Regulation. We stand firm with our partners in the mission of cleaning up rail pollution, supporting EJ communities impacted by rail and goods movement pollution, and doing everything we can to protect public health.

In all, the letter calls on CARB to:

  • Commit to doing everything it takes to address the problem of rail pollution
  • Build an electric rail system in California
  • Center community engagement and public health in every decision going forward
  • Import knowledge from other countries and regions that recently transitioned or are transitioning their rail systems to electric
  • Work creatively with the railroads to secure funding to electrify key freight corridors
  • Focus on zero-emission electric infrastructure
  • Oppose false solutions like CCS in the rail context and hydrogen locomotives

Read the full letter below:

CARB Letter re Loco Rule Repeal_6.26.25_FinalDownload

NJEJA Submits Letter to DEP on the First Decision Under the Landmark Environmental Justice Law

Nearly 5 years after the passage of the landmark, first of it’s kind Environmental Justice Law, the NJ Department of Environmental Protection has issued it’s first decision on the Safety-Kleen facility permit application. While we are glad to see these decisions come through, NJEJA and our partners have serious concerns with the components of the decision.

To make our concerns known and to raise our points of conversation with the DEP, NJEJA and our partners penned a letter addressing our thoughts as well as areas of the decision which we did not feel fully enforced the EJ law. This letter has been sent to staff at the NJ DEP. Read the full letter below.

For questions, please reach out to us at info@njeja.org.

Our full letter to NJ DEP regarding the Safety-Kleen decision:

NJEJA-Letter-Safety-Kleen-EJ-DecisionDownload

Read NJEJA’s Comments on the NJ BPU Triennium 3 Stakeholder Meeting

As part of ongoing engagement regarding the New Jersey Board of Public Utility’s Triennium process, the BPU solicited comments on updates to the program. NJEJA offered our support and guidance based on our work, experience, and relationships with community partners to articulate support for community-centered building decarbonization work and horizontal integration of all stakeholder groups including residents, tenants, and community-based organizations.

For questions, please reach out to us at info@njeja.org

Read our full set of comments below:

NJEJA-Triennium-July2025Download

New Jersey Advocates Call on State to Continue Pursuit of Clean Transportation Policy

In a time when climate progress is under attack at the federal level, state leadership is more important now than ever. Many states across the nation are taking bold steps to accelerate their clean transportation goals. For example, programs in California include procurement policies like the Innovative Clean Transit Regulation and the Clean Miles Standard, while Colorado, New York and New Mexico maintain a diversity of electric vehicle (EV) incentive and charging infrastructure programs. This also includes California Governor Newsom’s EO N-27-25, which directs state agencies to submit new policy recommendations to make progress on clean transportation without new federal approvals, as well as to provide state incentives for OEM manufacturers that continue to comply with the original Clean Cars standards.

The transportation sector is New Jersey’s largest source of climate-harming emissions and localized air pollution. Continuing to push for innovative ZEV policies is therefore paramount to achieving New Jersey’s climate targets and cleaning up our air quality. Embracing these policies will reduce harmful emissions and improve public health while fostering economic growth through green jobs in manufacturing, infrastructure development, and technological innovation.

Read the full letter below:

NJ-CleanVehicles-LetterDownload

NJEJA Joins 90 Organizations Calling for EJ Funding in Federal Budget

We are proud to join @WEACT4EJ and over 90 organizations calling on Congress to increase funding levels for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) including environmental justice programs, in fiscal year 2026. After catastrophic and unlawful environmental justice funding cuts from the current administration, this call from organizations across the country emphasizes the need to protect all of our access to clean air, water, and land.

Read the full letter below:

FY26_Funding_SenateLetterDownload

EJ Groups Call on Senate to Protect EPA and EJ Program Funding

In May, we joined our partners at the Equitable and Justice National Climate Platform  and 65 organizations across the country in a letter urging the House of Representatives and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce to protect funding for environmental justice programs like the Clean Ports program and the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program. These funds are crucial for EJ communities, as they help reduce local air pollution and protect public health. 

We urge House Commerce to oppose cuts in the budget reconciliation bill that cancel public health protections.

Programs that improve public health such as Air Pollution Monitoring for schools, the Environmental and Climate Justice Block Grants program, Clean Ports Program and the Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program are not only vital to protecting vulnerable communities from a legacy of greater hazard exposure, they are also needed investments to create opportunity. The grant funds aren’t just a dollar figure. These are real losses—for residents breathing polluted air, for communities threatened by climate risks. It is extremely important that members of Congress oppose any provisions in the budget reconciliation bill that cancel public health protections. We must protect environmental justice programs that are crucial to the health and well being of the most vulnerable communities.  

Read the full letter below:

EJNCP Letter – Protecting Public Health and Defending EJ Programs (3)Download