NJ A2258

Establishes a three-year Code Red alert pilot program in the five New Jersey counties with the highest documented homeless populations to shelter at-risk individuals during extreme heat events and poor air quality conditions.

Requires county emergency management coordinators to declare a Code Red alert when the National Weather Service issues a heat advisory or reports an Air Quality Index of 151 or higher for their region.

Participating counties must develop plans that include operating cooling centers, outreach to vulnerable populations, coordination with local groups, and transportation to cooling centers.

Appropriates $2.5 million from the General Fund to the Department of Community Affairs, providing $500,000 grants to each of the five participating counties.

Counties must coordinate with municipal emergency management in areas with at least 10 sheltered or unsheltered homeless individuals, and cooling center locations must be reported to the Department of Environmental Protection for inclusion in Heat Hub NJ.