April 8, 2020 — New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has issued an executive order that halts "non-essential" construction projects, directs retailers to limit store occupancy and more.
Exempt from the order are: pre-K-12 school projects; data center projects; projects underway at individual single-family homes or in individual apartment units, with a crew of five or less; and projects that are required to secure the structural integrity of any buildings.
Points related to construction are listed below. CLICK HERE to view the entire Executive Order 122. Construction exemptions are found on page 8.
The order defines “essential construction projects” as:
a. Projects necessary for the delivery of health care services, including but not limited to hospitals, other health care facilities, and pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities;
b. Transportation projects, including roads, bridges, and mass transit facilities or physical infrastructure, including work done at airports or seaports;
c. Utility projects, including those necessary for energy and electricity production and transmission, and any decommissioning of 8 facilities used for electricity generation;
d. Residential projects that are exclusively designated as affordable housing;
e. Projects involving pre-K-12 schools, including but not limited to projects in Schools Development Authority districts, and projects involving higher education facilities; f. Projects already underway involving individual single-family homes, or an individual apartment unit where an individual already resides, with a construction crew of 5 or fewer individuals. This includes additions to single-family homes such as solar panels;
g. Projects already underway involving a residential unit for which a tenant or buyer has already entered into a legally binding agreement to occupy the unit by a certain date, and construction is necessary to ensure the unit’s availability by that date;
h. Projects involving facilities at which any one or more of the following takes place: the manufacture, distribution, storage, or servicing of goods or products that are sold by online retail businesses or essential retail businesses, as defined by Executive Order No. 107 (2020) and subsequent Administrative Orders adopted pursuant to that Order;
i. Projects involving data centers or facilities that are critical to a business’s ability to function;
j. Projects necessary for the delivery of essential social services, including homeless shelters;
k. Any project necessary to support law enforcement agencies or first responder units in their response to the COVID-19 emergency;
l. Any project that is ordered or contracted for by Federal, State, county, or municipal government, or any project that must be completed to meet a deadline established by the Federal government;
m. Any work on a non-essential construction project that is required to physically secure the site of the project, ensure the structural integrity of any buildings on the site, abate any hazards that would exist on the site if the construction were to remain in its current condition, remediate a site, or otherwise ensure that the site and any buildings therein are appropriately protected and safe during the suspension of the project; and
n. Any emergency repairs necessary to ensure the health and safety of residents.