Pressure is mounting for New Jersey lawmakers to pass the Climate Superfund Act. The landmark bill would hold fossil fuel companies financially accountable for climate change damages. Floods, heatwaves, and wildfires are escalating across the state.
Last Thursday, the Climate Revolution Action Network (CRAN) and Assemblyman John Allen (D-Hudson) rallied supporters at Hoboken’s Pier A, urging swift legislative action on the New Jersey Climate Superfund Act (CSA). While the bill has advanced in the Legislature, advocates stress its necessity amid declining federal protections and growing environmental threats.
The act would make polluters pay for climate adaptation infrastructure. This includes projects like community-supported agriculture. It aims to help residents recover from future crises without using taxpayer funds. The bill is being driven by youth activists who say their futures are on the line due to climate change.
“We’ve assembled the broadest coalition of over 35 sponsors of advocacy, grassroots, and labor organizations that any legislation environmentally has had in years to bring everyone here to say we need to pass the Climate Superfund Act and make polluters pay. This is a national movement, right? New Jersey is next,” Dziobek said.
A recent National Wildlife Federation poll shows broad public support: two-thirds of New Jersey voters favor the Climate Superfund Act, including nearly half of Republican respondents. Many are also more likely to vote for lawmakers who champion the legislation.
The campaign’s momentum reflects a nationwide trend. Vermont became the first state to pass Climate Superfund laws in the U.S in 2024, with New York following suit in January. States such as New Jersey, California, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island are now considering similar measures.
During the strike, several speakers took to the podium to address the bill and its potential impact on New Jersey. Among them was Hudson County Executive Craig Guy. He highlighted how New Jersey residents experienced the devastation of Hurricane Sandy firsthand. He noted that ongoing events in recent years have raised awareness of the damage polluters have caused. This impact extends beyond cities to towns and communities across the country.
Antoinette Miles, the state director for New Jersey Working Families Party, stressed the importance of the Climate Superfund Act for working class residents and communities of color, noting how climate impacts worsen the cost of living and infrastructure failures hit vulnerable residents hardest.“One of the speakers here today talked about how the city of Paterson is going through a water main break, and so many people in the region do not have access to water, and that’s a failure of our government. That’s a failure of the system. And so it should be that we are able to invest and make sure that these types of things don’t happen,” Miles said.
Dziobek noted the strong turnout at the strike. The presence of leaders, including the Hudson County Executive and Essex County Commissioners, showed broad-based support for the bill.
However, he emphasized that one obstacle remained. Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin (D-Middlesex) has the power to move the bill into its final committees.
“It’s clear what we have to do here, and I want to emphasize that in this moment, Democrats need to show that they support justice and accountability, not just in words, but with actions, and that’s what we have the opportunity here to do, to say the worst of the worst common sense,” Dziobek said.
Coughlin’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.