SENATE LAW AND PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE
STATEMENT TO
SENATE, No. 3506
with committee amendments
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
DATED: FEBRUARY 13, 2025
The Senate Law and Public Safety Committee reports favorably
and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 3506.
As amended and reported by the committee, this bill requires the
Attorney General to establish a crowd management training
program and provide resources to municipal police departments or
forces for large-scale gatherings and flash mobs under certain
circumstances.
Under the amended bill, the Attorney General, in consultation
with the Superintendent of State Police, the New Jersey Office of
Emergency Management, and the New Jersey State Association of
Chiefs of Police, is required to establish a training program for any
municipal police department or force located within a municipality
that, within the preceding twelve months, hosted two or more large-
scale social gatherings or where a flash mob occurred.
The amended bill defines a “flash mob” as a gathering or pop-up
party of 50 or more persons, typically organized through social
media or other electronic communication, that occurs without
advance notice to the municipality or other local governmental unit
and impacts public safety. “Large-scale gathering” is defined as
any public or private gathering with greater than 500 attendees.
The training program is required to include, but is not limited to:
(1) general crowd management techniques;
(2) crowd management techniques applicable to juveniles;
(3) strategies for responding to social media activity related to
large-scale gatherings or flash mobs;
(4) best practices for coordination and resource sharing with
neighboring law enforcement agencies; and
(5) best practices for ensuring the safety of attendees, the public,
and law enforcement during a large-scale gathering or flash mob.
In addition, the amended bill requires the Attorney General to
make the following resources available to any municipal police
department or force that has participated in the training program
established pursuant to the provisions of this amended bill:
(1) access to social media monitoring tools;
(2) mobile command units that may be deployed during a large-
scale gathering or, if practicable, during a flash mob; and 2
(3) personnel from the New Jersey State Police to provide
support, as needed.
Under the amended bill, the Attorney General is required to
establish a process for municipal police departments or forces to
request immediate support during a flash mob.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:
The committee amended the bill to make clarifying and technical
changes.