S1440

An Act allowing municipalities to designate newly-appointed tax assessors as professional service contractors and amending various sections of statutory law.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. N.J.S.40A:9-146 is amended to read as follows:

40A:9-146. a. The governing body or chief executive, as shall be appropriate to the form of government of the municipality shall provide for the appointment of a tax assessor and such deputy tax assessors as it may determine necessary. The requirement that every municipality shall have a tax assessor and any such deputy tax assessors as it deems necessary may be fulfilled by the sharing of a tax assessor and any necessary deputy tax assessors with another municipality or municipalities under a shared service agreement entered into pursuant to the provisions of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-1 et seq.). Any such shared service agreement shall be subject to the provisions of section 4 of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-4) and, with respect to pilot municipalities, of section 3 of P.L.2013, c.166 (C.40A:65-4.2). The appointing authority may, by resolution or order as appropriate, set the total number of weekly hours of operation of the tax assessor's office and the total number of weekly work hours of the tax assessor, commensurate with the compensation paid to the tax assessor. The appointing authority shall not set the specific work hours of the tax assessor. The governing body, by ordinance, shall determine the amount of compensation of such assessors.

b. (1) As of the effective date of P.L. c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the governing body of a municipality may, by ordinance, provide that all newly-appointed tax assessors and deputy tax assessors shall serve through a contract for professional services as set forth in section 5 of P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-5). Any such municipality may return to the former employment arrangement for tax assessors through adoption of another ordinance.

(2) As of the effective date of P.L. c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill), municipalities that share a tax assessor may, through the adoption of parallel ordinances in each municipality subject to the shared services agreement, provide that all newly-appointed tax assessors and deputy tax assessors shall serve through a contract for professional services as set forth in section 5 of P.L.1971, c.198 (C.40A:11-5). Such municipalities may return to the former employment arrangement for tax assessors through adoption of another parallel ordinance in each municipality subject to the shared services agreement.

(cf: P.L.2013, c.166, s.14)

2. Section 32 of P.L.1981, c.393 (C.40A:9-146.1) is amended to read as follows:

32. a. Boards of assessors created prior to the effective date of this act are abolished.

b. The secretary of, or in the event there is no secretary then the individual having primary responsibility for the discharge of the duties of assessor for, any board of assessors constituted on the effective date of this act shall be the municipal tax assessor and any other members of the board shall be deputy municipal tax assessors.

c. [Nothing] With the exception of subsection b. of N.J.S.40A:9-146, allowing municipalities to designate newly-appointed tax assessors as professional service contractors, nothing in this act shall affect adversely the salary or tenure rights acquired pursuant to section 7 of P.L.1967, c.44 (C.54:1-35.31), or any other law, whether now or previously enacted or in effect of any secretary or other member of a board of assessors who becomes the municipal tax assessor or a deputy municipal tax assessor.

(cf: P.L.1981, c.393, s.32)

3. N.J.S.40A:9-148 is amended to read as follows:

40A:9-148. [Every] Unless otherwise provided by contract in a municipality that has adopted an ordinance pursuant to subsection b. of N.J.S.40A:9-146, every municipal tax assessor and deputy assessor shall hold his office for a term of 4 years from the first day of July next following his appointment.

Vacancies other than due to expiration of term shall be filled by appointment for the unexpired term.

(cf: P.L.1981, c.393, s.2)

4. N.J.S.40A:9-165 is amended to read as follows:

40A:9-165. The governing body of a municipality, by ordinance, unless otherwise provided by law, shall fix and determine the salaries, wages or compensation to be paid to the officers and employees of the municipality, including the members of the governing body and the mayor or other chief executive, who by law are entitled to salaries, wages, or compensation.

Salaries, wages or compensation fixed and determined by ordinance may, from time to time, be increased, decreased or altered by ordinance. No such ordinance shall reduce the salary of, or deny without good cause an increase in salary given to all other municipal officers and employees to, any tenured tax assessor, chief financial officer, tax collector or municipal clerk during the term for which he shall have been appointed. Except with respect to an ordinance or a portion thereof fixing salaries, wages or compensation of elective officials or any managerial, executive or confidential employee as defined in section 3 of the "New Jersey Employer-Employee Relations Act" P.L.1941, c.100 (C.34:13A-3), as amended, the ordinance shall take effect as provided therein. In municipalities wherein the provisions of Title 11 (Civil Service) of the Revised Statutes are in operation, this section shall be subject thereto.

Where any such ordinance shall provide for increases in salaries, wages or compensation of elective officials or any managerial, executive or confidential employee, the ordinance or that portion thereof which provides an increase for such elective or appointive officials shall become operative in 20 days after the publication thereof, after final passage, unless within said 20 days, a petition signed by voters of such municipality, equal in number to at least 5% of the registered voters of the municipality, protesting against the passage of such ordinance, be presented to the governing body, in which case such ordinance shall remain inoperative unless and until a proposition for the ratification thereof shall be adopted at an election by a majority of the voters voting on said proposition. The question shall be submitted at the next general election, occurring not less than 40 days from the date of the certification of the petition. The submission of the question to the voters shall be governed by the provisions of Title 19 (Elections) of the Revised Statutes, as in the case of public questions to be voted upon in a single municipality.

(cf: P.L.1991, c.175, s.14)

5. Section 7 of P.L.1967, c.44 (C.54:1-35.31) is amended to read as follows:

7. a. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary, with the exception of subsection c. of this section, every person

(1) who, upon reappointment or re-election subsequent to having received a tax assessor certificate and having served as tax assessor or performed the duties of assessor for not less than four consecutive years immediately prior to such reappointment or re-election, or

(2) who, on or before June 30, 1969, shall have received a tax assessor certificate while actually in office as assessor or performing the duties of an assessor, and who, on or before June 30, 1969, shall have served as assessor or performed the duties of assessor for not less than four consecutive years,

shall hold his position during good behavior and efficiency and compliance with requirements for continuing education pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1999, c.278 (C.54:1-35.25b), notwithstanding that such reappointment or re-election was for a fixed term of years, and he shall not be removed therefrom for political reasons but only for good cause shown and after a proper hearing before the director or his designee after due notice. A person who was formerly an assessor, a secretary of a board of assessors or a member of a board of assessors who shall have become by virtue of this amendatory and supplementary act, P.L.1981, c.393, a deputy tax assessor or an assessor, and who has not met the requirements of (1) or (2) above shall not be removed during his term in office for political reasons, but only for good cause shown and after a proper hearing before the director or his designee after due notice. In municipalities operating under forms of government where the assessor served at the pleasure of the appointing authority for an unlimited term of office, receipt of a tax assessor certificate and continuance in service as assessor after completion of 4 consecutive years of service shall be deemed the equivalent of reappointment. The provisions of this section shall apply to every person actually in office as assessor or performing the duties of an assessor whether in the classified service under Title 11A, Civil Service, or in a municipality which has not adopted Title 11A, Civil Service. For the purpose of this section, "good cause" shall include the failure of a tax assessor to meet the continuing education requirement required by section 1 of P.L.1999, c.278 (C.54:1-35.25b), and such failure shall render a tax assessor ineligible for service as a tax assessor.

b. In the case of a pilot municipality, a tenured tax assessor may be dismissed to effectuate the sharing of a service entered into pursuant to the provisions of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-1 et seq.) and such dismissal shall be deemed to be in the interest of the economy or efficiency of the participants in the shared service agreement. The removal of a tax assessor under this subsection shall not require the pilot municipality to fulfill the requirements of subsection a. of this section. Instead, the pilot municipality shall provide the tax assessor with a written copy of the shared service agreement entered into by the pilot municipality, and a letter stating that the position of tax assessor in the pilot municipality is being eliminated for reasons of economy or efficiency as the result of the shared service agreement.

c. Pursuant to subsection b. of N.J.S.40A:9-146, municipalities may designate newly-appointed tax assessors as professional service contractors.

(cf: P.L.2013, c.166, s.15)

6. Section 8 of P.L.1967, c.44 (C.54:1-35.32) is amended to read as follows:

8. On and after July 1, 1969 no assessor shall acquire tenure of office under any law of this State unless he shall have received a tax assessor certificate. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to affect tenure of office theretofore acquired nor to affect in any way the unexpired term of office of any assessor theretofore appointed or elected, nor shall any provision herein make void or change any provision of Title 11, Civil Service, nor any of the provisions of any other tenure of office act, except with respect to the acquisition of tenure by an assessor subsequent to June 30, 1969. However, pursuant to subsection b. of N.J.S.40A:9-146, municipalities may designate newly-appointed tax assessors as professional service contractors.

(cf: P.L.1967, c.44, s.8)

7. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill permits municipalities to designate newly-appointed tax assessors as professional service contractors.

Under current law, the ability of tax assessors to obtain tenure makes it difficult for municipalities to replace ineffective tax assessors with stronger employees. This bill permits municipalities, by ordinance, to designate all tax assessors who are hired after the ordinance’s effective date as professional service contractors pursuant to N.J.S.A.40A:11-5. This action would not impact the employment terms of any tax assessor hired prior to that date who has attained tenure. This bill also permits the municipality to contract with a tax assessor for a term of employment different than the four years required by current law. Under N.J.S.A.40A:11-15, contracts for professional services cannot exceed 12 consecutive months.