Bill Text: NJ AR57 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Constitutes Assembly Budget Committee as special committee to investigate management of the "Special Municipal Aid Act" State aid program by DCA; grants committee subpoena power.
Sponsorship: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-02-11 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Budget Committee [AR57 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-AR57-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman NANCY F. MUNOZ
District 21 (Essex, Morris, Somerset and Union)
SYNOPSIS
Constitutes Assembly Budget Committee as special committee to investigate management of the "Special Municipal Aid Act" State aid program by DCA; grants committee subpoena power.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Assembly Resolution constituting the Assembly Budget Committee as a special committee of the General Assembly to investigate the management of the "Special Municipal Aid Act" State aid program by the Department of Community Affairs and prescribing the committee's powers and duties, including the power to compel the production of documents through subpoena.
Whereas, The public has the right to expect transparency and objectivity in the management of State government programs that distribute large sums of State taxpayers' dollars to a few municipalities meeting specialized criteria; and
Whereas, The Governor's Budget Recommendations for State fiscal year 2009 include significant reductions in programs providing State aid to municipalities, the most severe of which are aimed at smaller municipalities that are then expected to develop efficiencies through shared services, while only token reductions are proposed for the long-standing State appropriations of large sums that are allocated by administrative fiat to support only a certain limited number of municipal governments claiming to be facing "short-term," severe fiscal problems; and
Whereas, More than $642 million has been made available by the Legislature to award State aid pursuant to the "Special Municipal Aid Act," P.L.1987, c.75 (C.52:27D-118.24 et seq.), (formerly known as Aid to Distressed Municipalities) during the period from fiscal year 2000 through fiscal year 2008 to municipalities claiming to be struggling to meet immediate budgetary needs and regain financial stability; and
Whereas, The "Special Municipal Aid Act," states that "short-term State assistance, in the form of State grants and loans, may provide the temporary revenue bridge these few municipalities need in order to overcome their current difficulties and regain their financial stability." However, under this program, Camden has been receiving aid for nine years, Paterson and Union City for nine years, Harrison Town for eight years, and Bridgeton for three years, and the greatest concentration of funds that have been awarded on a recurring basis through this program have been consistently awarded to a small number of municipalities without an adequate explanation of, or rationale for, aid amounts; and
Whereas, The Department of Community Affairs has publicly reported that, until recently, no standard applications were ever used to gauge financial needs of municipalities seeking aid pursuant to the "Special Municipal Aid Act"; and
Whereas, The Department of Community Affairs has publicly reported that there exists no written objective standards that guide aid awards pursuant to the "Special Municipal Aid Act"; and
Whereas, The Department of Community Affairs has failed to make publicly available written documentation explaining how amounts of aid were awarded in past years to particular municipalities pursuant to the "Special Municipal Aid Act"; and
Whereas, The failure to provide written documentation explaining why specific amounts were awarded to particular municipalities is troubling, but particularly troubling in cases where certain municipalities, as with Paterson, received an almost $30 million increase in aid; and
Whereas, The "Special Municipal Aid Act" requires hearings to determine if certain repeat recipients of aid, including Union City and Paterson, should be subject to greater State fiscal oversight and such hearings have not occurred; and
Whereas, It is entirely fitting in the exercise by the Legislature of its exclusive constitutional power over appropriations, and to protect the financial interests of the taxpayers of the State, for the General Assembly to authorize a thorough investigation into the management of the Special Municipal Aid program, a review of the criteria employed in making annual awards under the "Special Municipal Aid Act" and a full and complete investigation of the administration of local government oversight mandated by the program; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Assembly Budget Committee is constituted a special committee of the General Assembly. The membership of the committee as previously constituted is reconstituted and continued.
2. The committee shall investigate the management of the Special Municipal Aid program, review the criteria employed in making annual awards under the "Special Municipal Aid Act" and make a full and complete investigation of the administration of local government oversight mandated by that program for municipalities receiving awards of State aid under that program.
3. For the purposes of carrying out its charge under this resolution, the committee shall have all the powers conferred pursuant to chapter 13 of Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.
4. The committee shall be entitled to call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of the employees of the State of New Jersey, or any political subdivision of the State, or any agency thereof, as may be required and as may be available for that purpose, and to employ stenographic and clerical assistants and incur traveling and other miscellaneous expenses as may be deemed necessary, in order to perform the duties provided herein, and within the limit of funds appropriated or otherwise made available for that purpose.
5. The committee shall report its findings and recommendations, including any legislative proposals, to the General Assembly and the people of this State.
STATEMENT
This Assembly Resolution constitutes the Assembly Budget Committee as a special committee to investigate the management of the Special Municipal Aid program, review the criteria employed in making annual awards under the "Special Municipal Aid Act" and make a full and complete investigation of the administration of local government oversight mandated by that program for municipalities receiving awards of State aid under that program. The committee would have the power to subpoena witnesses and documents.
