Sponsored by:
Senator JAMES BEACH
District 6 (Burlington and Camden)
SYNOPSIS
Increases flexibility, clarity, and available tools of certain municipal consolidation processes.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning municipal consolidation, and amending P.L.2007, c.63 and P.L.1995, c.376.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 25 of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-25) is amended to read as follows:
25. a. The Legislature finds and declares that in order to encourage municipalities to increase efficiency through municipal consolidation for the purpose of reducing expenses borne by their property taxpayers, more flexible options need to be available to the elected municipal officials and voters than are available through the "Municipal Consolidation Act," P.L.1977, c.435 (C.40:43-66.35 et al.).
b. (1) In lieu of the procedures set forth in the "Municipal Consolidation Act," P.L.1977, c.435 (C.40:43-66.35 et al.), the governing bodies from two or more [contiguous] municipalities situated in the same county may apply to the board for either:
(a) approval of a plan to consolidate their municipalities; or
(b) creation of a Municipal Consolidation Study Commission, as described in subsection c. of this section.
(2) A representative committee of registered voters from two or more [contiguous] municipalities, which committee shall contain at least one registered voter from each participating municipality, may petition the board for the creation of a Municipal Consolidation Study Commission, as described in subsection c. of this section. The petition, or each petition paper, as the case may be, shall state the purpose of the petition, and shall name the municipalities for which a Municipal Consolidation Study Commission is proposed. The petition, to be sufficient, shall be signed by the registered and qualified voters of [the municipalities] each municipality in a number at least equal to 10% of the total votes cast in [those municipalities] each municipality at the last preceding general election at which members of the General Assembly were elected. The signatures for a petition shall be obtained within two years of the date of the last preceding general election at which members of the General Assembly were elected. The petition shall be filed with the clerk of each municipality who shall, within 30 days, ascertain and certify the number and validity of the signatures affixed thereto with respect to the municipality served by the clerk.
If the petition is determined to be insufficient, notice shall, within 30 days, be provided to the registered voters constituting the representative committee that filed the petition, which committee shall have 10 days from receipt of the notification of insufficiency to file a supplementary petition designed to rectify such insufficiency, which shall be in the same form and shall be filed in the same manner as the original petition. If no supplementary petition is filed within 10 days after such notification of insufficiency, or if the clerk shall, within five days after such a supplementary petition is filed, examine it and determine it to be still insufficient, the clerk shall execute a certificate of insufficiency and notify the representative committee of the insufficiency. A finding of insufficiency shall not prejudice the filing of a new petition for the same purpose, provided that such new petition otherwise conforms to the requirements of this paragraph.
If the petition is determined to be sufficient, the clerk of each municipality shall so certify, and shall forthwith provide the petition and proposed consolidation plan for public inspection on the Internet website of each participating municipality, if one exists, or, if one does not exist, on the Internet website of the Department of Community Affairs, transmit certified copies to the governing body of the municipality served by the clerk, to the clerk of each of the other municipalities named in the petition, and to the board.
The board shall also accept a combination of applications from [local] municipal governing bodies, pursuant to subparagraph (b) of paragraph (1) of this subsection, and petitions from representative committees of registered voters, pursuant to this paragraph, from two or more [contiguous] municipalities, requesting the creation of a Municipal Consolidation Study Commission [; however, if each municipality submits an application from its governing body, any proposed consolidation plan shall be approved by voter referendum in each of the municipalities].
(3) The board shall provide application forms, model petitions, and technical assistance to any governing bodies or voters desiring to apply to the board for approval of a consolidation plan or the creation of a Municipal Consolidation Study Commission.
(4) [A consolidation commission established pursuant to P.L.1977, c.435 (C.40:43-66.35 et seq.) in the year prior to enactment of sections 1 to 37 of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-1 et al.) may apply to the Local Finance Board for approval to use the provisions of sections 25 through 29 of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-25 through C.40A:65-29).] (Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)
(5) Municipalities that are not contiguous may be consolidated if located within a reasonable distance from each other and situated in the same county. The applicant shall have the burden of proving that a non-contiguous consolidation is reasonable as such.
(6) Upon the approval by the board of a consolidation plan submitted by municipalities or the issuance of a final report by a Municipal Consolidation Study Commission recommending consolidation, the clerk of each participating municipality shall cause the question of consolidation to be submitted to the registered voters of each municipality on the date of the next general or municipal election, whichever shall occur sooner and allows sufficient time to publish all required notices. At that election, the question shall be submitted in the same manner as other public questions in each such municipality, and in the following form or such part thereof as shall be applicable: