Bill Text: NJ S3569 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced


Bill Title: Revises organization and duties of Pinelands Development Credit Bank and repeals various parts of "Pinelands Development Credit Bank Act"; appropriates $5 million.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-12-04 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee [S3569 Detail]

Download: New_Jersey-2016-S3569-Introduced.html

SENATE, No. 3569

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

217th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED DECEMBER 4, 2017

 


 

Sponsored by:

Senator  JEFF VAN DREW

District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Revises organization and duties of Pinelands Development Credit Bank and repeals various parts of "Pinelands Development Credit Bank Act"; appropriates $5 million.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  


An Act concerning the Pinelands Development Credit Bank, amending P.L.1979, c.111, amending and supplementing P.L.1985, c.310, repealing various sections of the statutory law, and making an appropriation.

 

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

 

     1.    Section 6 of P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-6) is amended to read as follows:

     6.    The Pinelands Commission shall have the following powers:

     a.     To adopt and from time to time amend and repeal suitable bylaws for the  management of its affairs;

     b.    To adopt and use an official seal and alter the same at its pleasure;

     c.     To maintain an office at such place or places in the pinelands area as it may designate;

     d.    To sue and be sued in its own name;

     e.     To appoint, retain and employ, without regard to the provisions of Title  11A of the New Jersey Statutes but within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available for such purposes, such officers, agents, employees  and experts as it may require, and to determine the qualifications, terms of  office, duties, services and compensation therefor;

     f.     To apply for, receive, and accept, from any federal, State, or other public or private source, grants or loans for, or in aid of, the commission's authorized purposes;

     g.    To enter into any and all agreements or contracts, execute any and all instruments, and do and perform any and all acts or things necessary, convenient, or desirable for the purposes of the commission or to carry out any power expressly given in [this act] P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.) ;

     h.    To conduct examinations and investigations, to hear testimony, taken under oath at public or private hearings, on any material matter, and to require attendance of witnesses and the production of books and papers;

     i.     To prepare and transmit to the Commissioner of Environmental Protection  such recommendations for water quality standards for surface and ground waters  in the pinelands area, or in tributaries and watersheds thereof, as the  commission deems appropriate;

     j.     To prepare, promulgate, adopt, amend or repeal, pursuant to the provisions of the  "Administrative Procedure Act,"  P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), such rules and regulations as are necessary in order to implement the provisions of [this act] P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.) ;

     k.    To appoint advisory boards, commissions, or panels to assist in its activities;

     l.     To identify any lands in which the public acquisition of a fee simple or lesser interest therein is necessary or desirable in order to insure the preservation thereof, or to provide sites for public recreation, as well as  any lands the beneficial use of which are so adversely affected by the restrictions imposed pursuant to [this act] P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.) as to require a guarantee of just compensation therefor, and to transmit such identifications to the affected local governments, the Commissioner of Environmental Protection and to the Secretary of the United States Department of Interior;

     m.   To call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of such employees of any State, county or municipal department, board, commission or agency as may be required and made available for such purposes;

     n.    To establish and change, in accordance with a fee schedule to be set forth by regulation adopted pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), reasonable fees for services performed relating to [development review applications filed with the commission as required by] the review of applications for development and other applications filed with the commission, or for other services, as may be required by P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.) or the Comprehensive Management Plan [.] ; and

     o.    To continue the operation of the Pinelands Development Credit Bank, established pursuant to the "Pinelands Development Credit Bank Act," P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.), as part of the Pinelands Commission.

(cf:  P.L.2003, c.117, s.30)

 

     2.    Section 17 of P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-18) is amended to read as follows:

     17.  The [State Auditor] Pinelands Commission shall retain an independent auditor from a certified public accounting firm to conduct an annual audit of the commission's [activities] financial statements pursuant to [the provisions of chapter 24 of Title 52 of the Revised Statutes] generally accepted government auditing standards issued by the Comptroller General of the United States, as may be periodically revised, and in accordance with all applicable federal rules, regulations, and circulars .

(cf:  P.L.1979, c.111, s.17)

 

     3.    Section 2 of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-31) is amended to read as follows:

     2.    The Legislature finds and declares that [, pursuant to the provisions of P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.),] the comprehensive management plan for the pinelands area [has been adopted and is now being implemented; that this plan] includes a program for the allocation and transfer of pinelands development credits; and that the intent of the pinelands development credit program is to provide a mechanism to facilitate both the preservation of the resources of this area and the accommodation of regional growth influences in an orderly fashion.

     The Legislature further finds and declares [that the concept of transferable development credits is innovative and, as yet, unprecedented on a regional scale;] that in order to realize the full measure of the benefits of [such a] the pinelands development credit program, steps must be taken to assure the marketability of these credits; and that the best means of providing this assurance is through [the establishment of] a Pinelands Development Credit Bank [empowered to purchase and sell pinelands development credits and to guarantee loans secured thereby, all as hereinafter provided] within the Pinelands Commission .

(cf:  P.L.1985, c.310, s.2)

 

     4.    Section 3 of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-32) is amended to read as follows:

     3.    As used in [this act] P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.) :

     a.     "Applicant" means a person applying for, or in receipt of, a loan secured pursuant to the provisions of [this act] P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.) ;

     b.    "Bank" means the Pinelands Development Credit Bank established pursuant to section 4 of [this act] P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-33) ;

     c.     "Board" means the Board of Directors of the Pinelands Development Credit Bank;

     d.    ["County bank" means a public body established pursuant to section 14 of this act;] (Deleted by amendment, P.L.    , c.    ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)

     e.     ["County board" means the board of directors of the county development credit bank;] (Deleted by amendment, P.L.    , c.    ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)

     f.     ["Lender" means any bank or trust company, savings bank, national banking association, savings and loan association, or building and loan association maintaining an office in the State, or any insurance company authorized to transact business in the State;] (Deleted by amendment, P.L.    , c.    ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)

     g.    ["Pinelands development credit guarantee" means a guarantee extended pursuant to section 9 of this act;] (Deleted by amendment, P.L.    , c.    ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)

     h.    "Pinelands development credit" means a transferable development right created pursuant to the comprehensive management plan.

(cf:  P.L.1985, c.310, s.3)

 

     5.    Section 4 of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-33) is amended to read as follows:

     4.  a.  [There is established in the Executive Branch of the State Government a public body corporate and politic, with corporate succession, to be known as the Pinelands Development Credit Bank.  For the purpose of complying with the provisions of Article V, Section IV, paragraph 1 of the New Jersey Constitution, the bank is allocated within the Department of Banking, but notwithstanding that allocation, the bank shall be independent of any supervision or control by the department or by an officer or employee thereof, except as otherwise expressly provided in this act.  The bank is constituted as an instrumentality of the State exercising public and essential governmental functions, and the exercise by the bank of the powers conferred by this act shall be deemed and held to be an essential governmental function of the State.] The Pinelands Development Credit Bank shall be continued within the Pinelands Commission.  The functions, powers, duties, records, and property of the bank are hereby transferred to and vested in the Pinelands Commission to be exercised and performed by the bank.  The bank shall provide the commission with a copy of its annual report and the minutes from each bank meeting.

     b.  The bank shall be governed by a board of directors consisting of [five ex officio members, or the designees thereof, as follows:  the Commissioner of Banking, who shall serve as chairman; the Secretary of Agriculture; the Attorney General; the Commissioner of Environmental Protection; and the Chairman of the Pinelands Commission; and four members, each of whom shall be a resident of counties in the pinelands area, two to be appointed by the Governor upon the recommendation of the President of the Senate, and two to be appointed by the Governor upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the General Assembly.  Designees of the five ex officio members shall have the power to vote in the absence of members.] nine members as follows:

     (1)  Five ex officio members which shall include:

     (a)  the Chairman of the Pinelands Commission;

     (b)  two additional members of the Pinelands Commission to be appointed by the Chairman of the Pinelands Commission;

     (c)  the Executive Director of the State Agriculture Development Committee in but not of the Department of Agriculture; and

     (d)  the chief of the State Land Acquisition Bureau of the Office of Green Acres in the Department of Environmental Protection.

     (2)  (a)  Four members, selected by the chairman of the Pinelands Commission from a list of nominations solicited from the New Jersey Builders Association, the Department of Banking and Insurance, the Department of Agriculture, the New Jersey Farm Bureau, and at least one non-government organization, whose mission includes the protection of the resources of the pinelands area, for appointment with concurrence of a majority of the members of the commission as follows:

     (i)  a State resident with expertise in land development and redevelopment;

     (ii)  a State resident with expertise in land conservation and stewardship;

     (iii)  a State resident with expertise in banking, finance, or land economics; and

     (iv)  a State resident actively engaged in agricultural activity within the pinelands area.

     (b)  The members appointed pursuant to this paragraph shall be chosen with due regard to the individual's knowledge of and interest in the "Pinelands Protection Act," P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.), and rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto, as related to the preservation of the resources of the pinelands area and the orderly accommodation of regional growth in that area. 

     (c)  Of the members appointed pursuant to this paragraph, one shall serve an initial term of two years, one shall serve an initial term of three years, one shall serve an initial term of four years, and one shall serve an initial term of five years.  Thereafter, all members appointed pursuant to this paragraph shall serve for a term of five years.  Each of these members shall serve for the term of the appointment and until a successor shall have been appointed and qualified.  An appointed member shall be eligible for reappointment for no more than two consecutive terms.  Any vacancies among the four members appointed pursuant to this paragraph occurring other than by expiration of term shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment except that the replacement shall serve for the remainder of the unexpired term only unless reappointed by the Chairman of the Pinelands Commission for a second term.

     c.  The Pinelands Commission shall appoint one member of the board to serve as Chairperson of the board.

     d.  Any member of the board may be removed by the Pinelands Commission, for cause, after a hearing before the Office of Administrative Law. 

     e.  The members of the board shall serve without compensation, but the Pinelands Commission may, within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available for such purpose, reimburse the members appointed pursuant to paragraph (2) of
subsection b. of this section for necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of their official duties.

(cf:  P.L.1985, c.310, s.4)

 

     6.  Section 5 of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-34) is amended to read as follows:

     5.  The board shall have the following powers:

     a.  To adopt and, from time to time, amend and repeal suitable bylaws for the management of its affairs;

     b.  To adopt and use an official seal and alter the same at its pleasure;

     c.  To apply for, receive, and accept, from any federal, State, or other public or private source, grants or loans for, or in aid of, the board's authorized purposes;

     d.    To enter into any agreement or contract, execute any instrument, and perform any act or thing necessary, convenient, or desirable for the purposes of the board or to carry out any power expressly given in [this act] P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.);

     e.     To adopt, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L. 1968, c. 410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations necessary to implement the provisions of [this act] P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.) ;

     f.     To call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of the employees of any State, county or municipal department, board, commission or agency as may be required and made available for these purposes;

     g.    To purchase , sell, convey, or retire pinelands development credits to further the goals, policies, and objectives of the "Pinelands Protection Act," P.L. 1979, c. 111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.) and the comprehensive management plan, or when necessary to alleviate hardship, as determined pursuant to rules and regulations adopted by the board [.  The purchase price in these cases shall be not less than $10,000.00 per credit, or a fraction of that amount which reflects that portion of a pinelands development credit allocated to the applicant pursuant to the provisions of the comprehensive management plan.  The board may periodically increase the purchase price; provided that its action does not substantially impair the private sale of pinelands development credits.  In no case shall the purchase price be greater than 80% of the market value of pinelands development credits, as determined by the board.] ;

     h.    To appoint, retain, and employ, in conjunction with the Pinelands Commission, and without regard to the provisions of Title 11A of the New Jersey Statutes, but within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available for those purposes, such officers, employees, attorneys, agents, and experts as it may require, and to determine the qualifications, terms of office, duties, services, and compensation therefor; and

     i.     To establish and modify, in accordance with a fee schedule to be set forth by regulation adopted pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act, " P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), reasonable fees for services performed in the furtherance of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.).

(cf:  P.L.1985, c.310, s.5)

 

     7.    Section 7 of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-36) is amended to read as follows:

     7.    a.  The board shall establish and maintain a Registry of Pinelands Development Credits, which shall include:

     (1)  The name and address of every owner to whom a pinelands development credit certificate is issued pursuant to section 6 of [this act] P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-35) , the date of its issuance, the municipal tax lot and block identification of the parcels of land to which the pinelands development credit has been assigned, the number of pinelands development credits or fraction thereof assigned to each parcel, the total number of pinelands development credits assigned, and the total acreage to which pinelands development credits have been assigned;

     (2)  The name and address of every person to whom a pinelands development credit is sold or otherwise conveyed, the date of the conveyance, and the consideration, if any, received therefor;

     (3)  [The name and address of any person who has pledged a pinelands development credit as security on any loan or other obligation, the name and address of the lender, and the date, amount and term of the loan or obligation;] (Deleted by amendment, P.L.    , c.    ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)

     (4)  The name and address of any person who has redeemed a pinelands development credit, the location of the land to which the credit was transferred, and the date this redemption was made; and

     (5)  An annual enumeration of the total number of pinelands development credits purchased and transferred, listing the municipality in which the land for which each pinelands development credit was issued is located, and the municipality to which the pinelands development credit was transferred.

     b.    No person shall purchase or otherwise acquire, encumber, or redeem any pinelands development credit without recording that fact, within 10 business days thereof, with the bank.

     c.     The board shall make the information included in the registry available , in the form of an annual report [the information included in the registry] , to each county and municipality located in whole or in part in the pinelands area [,] and, upon request, [pertinent information] to any other person.  The first annual report shall be submitted to the Governor and Legislature and shall be made available to the public on the first anniversary of the effective
date of [this act] P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.) .

(cf:  P.L.1985, c.310, s.7)

 

     8.    Section 13 of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-42) is amended to read as follows:

     13.  a.   The board may sell, [exchange, or otherwise] convey , or retire any pinelands development credit which is purchased or otherwise acquired pursuant to the provisions of [this act] P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.)[All sales, exchanges, conveyances or retirements shall be made prior to the expiration of this act.]  The provisions of any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, no such sale, [exchange,] conveyance , or retirement shall be subject to approval of the State House Commission.

     b.    When the board purchases, sells, [exchanges, or otherwise] conveys , or retires a pinelands development credit, it shall do so in a manner which shall not substantially impair the private sale of pinelands development credits. 

     c.     The board may convey a pinelands development credit without remuneration for use in projects that satisfy a compelling public purpose only by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of its members.

     d.  The board may purchase any pinelands development credit allocated by the Pinelands Commission pursuant to the provisions of the comprehensive management plan. 

     e.  The board shall adopt rules and regulations identifying an initial purchase price and sale price for pinelands development credits, and establishing criteria by which the purchase price and sale price of pinelands development credits shall be determined.  Notwithstanding the provisions of the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), the board may, by public notice, annually adjust the purchase price and sale price of pinelands development credits in accordance with the criteria established by the rules and regulations adopted pursuant to this subsection.  At least 30 days prior to the implementation of any price adjustment, the public notice required pursuant to this subsection shall be published in the New Jersey Register and posted on the board's Internet website.

(cf:  P.L.1985, c.310, s.13)

 

     9.  (New section)  a.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Pinelands Commission, to be utilized by the Pinelands Development Credit Bank, the initial sum of $5,000,000.  This sum shall be used for the purchase of pinelands development credits and the operation of the bank.

     b.  Thereafter, the annual appropriation act for each State fiscal year, without other conditions, limitations, or restrictions, shall appropriate from the General Fund to the Pinelands Commission, for use by the Pinelands Development Credit Bank, such sums as the Legislature deems necessary to continue:  (1) the purchase of pinelands development credits; and (2) the operation of the bank in accordance with the provisions of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.).

     c.     The proceeds from the sale of pinelands development credits by the board shall remain available to the board for the purposes of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-30 et seq.).

 

     10.  Sections 8 through 12 of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-37 through C.13:18A-41) and sections 14 through 20 of P.L.1985, c.310 (C.13:18A-43 through C.13:18A-49) are repealed.

 

     11.  This act shall take effect on the 60th day next following the date of enactment.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This bill would transfer the Pinelands Development Credit Bank (PDCB) from the Department of Banking and Insurance to the Pinelands Commission, and amend the governance structure and functions of the PDCB.  The bill would also repeal the provisions of the "Pinelands Development Credit Bank Act" which relate to credit guarantees and the delegation of PDCB authority to county development credit banks.

     This bill would add an additional four members to the PDCB board of directors (the board), each required to be a State resident with a particular area of expertise relevant to the objectives of the PDCB.  The bill would also replace the four ex officio members currently serving on the board with the Chairman of the Pinelands Commission, two additional members of the Pinelands Commission, the Executive Director of the State Agriculture Development Committee in the Department of Agriculture, and the chief of the State Land Acquisition Bureau of the Office of Green Acres in the Department of Environmental Protection.

     The bill would authorize the board to appoint, retain, and employ officers, employees, attorneys, agents, and experts as needed, and to adopt regulations establishing reasonable fees for services performed in furtherance of the objectives of the PDCB.

     Current law requires the State Auditor to conduct an annual audit of the Pinelands Commission's activities.  This bill would instead require the Pinelands Commission to retain an independent auditor from a certified public accounting firm to conduct an annual audit of the Pinelands Commission's financial statements using generally accepted government audition standards, commonly known as "GAGAS," as issued by the Comptroller General of the United States.

     The bill would require the board to adopt rules and regulations identifying an initial purchase price and sale price for pinelands development credits, and establishing criteria by which the purchase price and sale price of pinelands development credits shall be determined.  In accordance with the established criteria, the board would be authorized to annually adjust the purchase price and sale price of pinelands development credits by publishing notice in the New Jersey Register and on the board's Internet website 30 days prior to the implementation of any price change. 

     The bill would appropriate the initial sum of $5 million from the General Fund to the Pinelands Commission to be utilized by the PDCB.  This sum would be used for the purchase of pinelands development credits and the operation of the bank.  Thereafter, the annual appropriation act for each State fiscal year would appropriate from the General Fund to the Pinelands Commission, for use by the Pinelands Development Credit Bank, such sums as the Legislature deems necessary to continue the purchase of pinelands development credits and the operation of the bank.

     The "Pinelands Development Credit Bank Act" currently provides for the issuance of a credit guarantee to the owner of a pinelands development credit for the purpose of using the development credit as security for a loan, and for the delegation of PDCB authority to county development credit banks under certain circumstances.  This bill would repeal the provisions related to credit guarantees and to the delegation of PDCB authority to county development credit banks.

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