How to Find Out If Your NJ Home Has an NFA Letter
Before you buy, or before you sell, you can look up whether the state has a record of an oil tank problem at an address. The NJDEP explains how in its homeowner FAQ.
Search by address
The department says you can search its records by street address using its DataMiner report. After the report runs, you reach a screen titled “SRP Site by Address.” Click “Click for Details” under Activity Information, then “Click for Details” under More Info, which opens the “SRP Case Oversight Report.” Look at the Case Status and Case Status Date fields.
If a No Further Action letter was issued, the FAQ says you will see “NFA-A (Unrestricted Use)” in the Case Status field. Otherwise a different status appears.
Getting a copy of the letter
For NFA letters issued in September 2015 or later, the NJDEP says to check its DataMiner reports, which can be searched by incident number, by address, by city and by program interest and activity. For letters issued before September 2015, or if DataMiner does not have it, the FAQ says to submit an Open Public Records Act request to the NJDEP’s Office of Records Access.
Was a tank removed?
Removal of an unregulated heating oil tank falls under New Jersey’s Uniform Construction Code, and permits are typically issued by the municipality. The NJDEP says to contact the municipality and submit an OPRA request for copies of any permits issued for tank removals.
What an empty result means
It does not prove there is no tank. The NJDEP says an NFA is not issued when a tank was closed with no evidence of a discharge and it passed the municipal inspection. And a tank that was abandoned in place may have no state record at all.
What to do next
- Ask the seller or past owners about tanks and paperwork.
- Check the municipality’s permit records.
- If the history is unclear, have the property checked. A sweep searches for a buried tank, and an exploratory dig identifies what a signal is.
Read What Is a No Further Action Letter? for the background. Oil Tank Scan NJ: 732-673-1584.
