Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 18, September 16, 2024
(a) The Director
shall randomly assign each municipality to one of three reporting year pools.
Each pool shall be assigned the years in which the budget shall be considered
for local examination.
1. Within 30 days after
the start of each fiscal year, the Director shall determine and notify all
municipalities if they are eligible or ineligible for local examination for the
fiscal year.
(b)
Municipalities that meet one or more of the following criteria shall not be
eligible for local examination in a given year and shall have their budgets
examined by the Director:
1. Have outstanding
fiscal year adjustment bonds or refunding obligations of fiscal year adjustment
bonds;
2. Qualify for municipal
(urban) aid pursuant to
N.J.S.A.
52:27D-178 et seq.;
3. Received Supplemental Municipal Property
Tax Relief Discretionary (N.J.S.A.
52:27D-118.35) funds or Transitional Aid to
Localities (N.J.S.A. 53:27S-118.42a) funds in the previous fiscal
year;
4. Were subject to a Division
field audit that produced negative findings in the previous fiscal
year;
5. Are currently or during
the previous year were under any form of Local Finance Board supervision
pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:27BB-1 et seq.;
6. Sold its tax levy if permitted by statute
in the previous year;
7. If, during
the current or prior fiscal year, a private entity is or was temporarily
fulfilling the duties of a chief municipal finance officer pursuant to
N.J.S.A.
40A:9-140.10;
8. If, during the current or prior fiscal
year, an individual who does not hold a municipal finance officer certificate
is or was serving as a temporary municipal finance officer pursuant to
N.J.S.A.
40A:9-140.13.f;
9. If, in the prior fiscal year, voters
approved the sale of a water or sewer system pursuant to
N.J.S.A.
40:62-5;
10. If, in the prior fiscal year, the
municipality has completed the approval process pursuant to the Water
Infrastructure Protection Act (N.J.S.A. 58:30-1 et
seq.) for the sale of a water or sewer system;
11. Failed to submit to the Division a
user-friendly budget section corresponding with the previous year's adopted
budget;
12. The Director's
subsequent review of the previous year's locally examined adopted budget shows
that the budget failed to meet the requirements of local examination. Such a
finding shall disqualify a municipality from local examination for the
following three years; or
13. If,
in the opinion of the Director, the fiscal integrity or solvency of the
municipality will be jeopardized by local examination.
(c) At the initiative of the Director, the
criteria at (b) above may be waived if the Director determines the fiscal
integrity or solvency of the municipality shall not be jeopardized by local
examination. Requests for waivers by a municipality shall not be considered by
the Director.
