SENATE, No. 195

 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

 

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION

 

 

By Senator CAFIERO

 

 

An Act concerning qualifications for membership on boards of fire commissioners and amending N.J.S.40A:14-70.

 

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

 

    1. N.J.S.40A:14-70 is amended to read as follows:

    40A:14-70. In any municipality not having a paid or part-paid fire department and force, the governing body, upon application of at least 5% of the registered voters or 20 legal voters, whichever is the greater, shall consider the designation of a fire district. Upon receipt of the application, the governing body shall fix a time and place for a hearing thereon. The municipal clerk shall advertise the notice of the hearing in a newspaper circulating in the county wherein the municipality is located at least once and not less than 10 days prior to the hearing. After the hearing the governing body shall determine the question of designation of a fire district. If the governing body decides that the designation of a fire district is appropriate, it, by ordinance, shall designate a territorial location or locations for use as a fire district or fire districts and, by resolution, provide for the election of a board of fire commissioners for the district or each district, to consist of five persons, residents therein, and specify the date, time and place for the election of the first board.

    Notwithstanding any provision of law, regulation, ruling, directive or opinion to the contrary, the elected officers and members of a volunteer fire company, with the exception of chiefs and deputy chiefs, shall be eligible, if otherwise qualified, for election to a board of fire commissioners. However, no more than two members of a board of fire commissioners may be an elected officer or other member of the volunteer fire company.

    The district or each district shall be assigned a number and the commissioners thereof and their successors shall be a body corporate, to be known as "the commissioners of fire district No. ......... in ...........(name of municipality), county of ............(name of county)." The said body corporate shall have the power to acquire, hold, lease, sell or otherwise convey in its corporate name such real and personal property as the purposes of the corporation shall require. All sales and leases of real and personal property shall be in accordance with the provisions of section 13 or 14, as appropriate, of the "Local Lands and Buildings Law," P.L.1971, c.199 (C.40A:12-13 or 40A:12-14). Said body corporate may adopt and use a corporateseal, sue or be sued and shall have such powers, duties and functions as are usual and necessary for said purposes.

    On the date and at the time and place specified for the election of the first board the clerk of the municipality shall conduct the election

and shall preside at the meeting until the board shall have been elected.          At the first meeting of a newly elected board of fire commissioners of a district the board shall choose a chairman and fix the place for the annual election. The members of the board shall divide themselves by lot into three classes: the first to consist of two members whose terms shall expire at 12 o'clock noon on the first Tuesday in March of the year following the year in which the first board is elected; the second, two members whose terms shall expire at 12 o'clock noon on the first Tuesday in March of the second year following that year; and the third, one member whose term shall expire at 12 o'clock noon on the first Tuesday in March of the third year following that year. The terms of fire commissioners in each class, other than members of the first board, shall expire at 12 o'clock noon on the first Tuesday in March of the third year following the year in which they were elected.

    Any vacancy in the membership shall be filled by the remaining members until the next succeeding annual election, at which time a resident of the district shall be elected for the unexpired term.

(cf: P.L.1991, c.223)

 

    2. This act shall take effect immediately.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

    This bill would allow elected officers of volunteer fire companies to serve on boards of fire commissioners. However, a chief or deputy chief of a fire company would be barred from such dual service. This measure is in response to an advisory opinion issued by the State’s Local Finance Board which would preclude the service of elected officers on such local boards based on an interpretation of the “Local Government Ethics Law,” P.L.1991, c.29 (C.40A:9-22.1 et seq.).

    The sponsor believes that such membership will not necessarily impair the commissioner’s objectivity or independence of judgment in the exercise of his official duties. He believes it is preferable to have the Local Finance Board review, as separate ethics complaints, any specific actions or activities of such individuals to determine if, pursuant to the “Local Government Ethics Law,” they have a direct or indirect financial or personal involvement that might reasonably be expected to impair their objectivity or independence of judgment.

    The bill also clarifies that regular members of a fire company, other than a chief or deputy chief, are permitted to serve on a board of fire commissioners. However, the bill limits to two the number of elected officials or members of a fire company who may serve on a board of fire commissioners.

 

 

                             

 

Permits certain members of volunteer fire companies to be local fire commissioners.