ASSEMBLY, No. 2232

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED JUNE 27, 1996

By Assemblymen AUGUSTINE, BATEMAN,

Bagger and Kavanaugh

An Act concerning county prosecutors and amending N.J.S.59:1-3.

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

    1. N.J.S.59:1-3 is amended to read as follows:

    59:1-3 Definitions. As used in this subtitle:

    "Employee" includes an officer, employee, or servant, whether or not compensated or part-time, who is authorized to perform any act or service; provided, however, that the term does not include an independent contractor.

    "Employment" includes office; position; employment; or service, under the supervision of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, in a volunteer program in that part of the Palisades Interstate Park located in New Jersey or as an emergency management volunteer.

    "Enactment" includes a constitutional provision, statute, executive order, ordinance, resolution or regulation.

    "Injury" means death, injury to a person, damage to or loss of property or any other injury that a person may suffer that would be actionable if inflicted by a private person.

    "Law" includes enactments and also the decisional law applicable within this State as determined and declared from time to time by the courts of this State and of the United States.

    "Public employee" means an employee of a public entity and includes a person participating, under the supervision of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, in a volunteer program in that part of the Palisades Interstate Park located in New Jersey and any person retained by the public defender to serve as an arbitrator, mediator, or in such similar capacity. "Public employee" does not include any independent contractors or other individuals, agencies, or entities not established in or employed by the Office of the Public Defender designated to provide protection and advocacy services to indigent mental hospital admittees or persons with a developmental disability as the term is defined in section 3 of P.L.1977, c.82 (C.30:6D-3).

    "Public entity" includes the State, and any county, municipality, district, public authority, public agency, and any other political subdivision or public body in the State. "Public entity" does not include any independent contractors or other individuals, agencies, or entities not established in or employed by the Office of the Public Defender designated to provide protection and advocacy services to indigent mental hospital admittees or persons with a developmental disability as the term is defined in section 3 of P.L.1977, c.82 (C.30:6D-3).

    "State" shall mean the State and any office, department, division, bureau, board, commission or agency of the State, but shall not include any such entity which is statutorily authorized to sue and be sued. "State" also means the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, but only with respect to employees, property and activities within the State of New Jersey. State shall also mean the county prosecutor and his employees.

    "Statute" means an act adopted by the Legislature of this State or by the Congress of the United States.

(cf: P.L.1995, c.383, s.4)

    2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

    This bill would provide that the State would indemnify the county prosecutor and his employees by amending the New Jersey Torts Claims Act to specifically designate the county prosecutor and his employees as state employees.

Clarifying that the prosecutor is a State employee.