A5332

An Act concerning property tax relief programs and supplementing Titles 52 and 54 of the Revised Statutes.

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

1. In any fiscal year in which the amount appropriated for the Affordable New Jersey Communities for Homeowners and Renters (ANCHOR) Property Tax Relief Program, or any successor program, is not sufficient to pay the full amount of property tax credits and rebates required pursuant to sections 1 through 10 of P.L.1990, c.61 (C.54:4-8.57 through 54:4-8.66) and sections 3, 14 through 16, and 18 and 19 of P.L.1999, c.63 (C.54:4-8.58a and C.54:4-8.66a through 54:4-8.66e), there shall be appropriated from the Property Tax Relief Fund to the Department of the Treasury such additional amounts as are necessary for that purpose.

2. a. On or before January 1 of the year next following the enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and each year thereafter, the Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury shall prepare and submit to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the Legislature, a report showing the total amount of property tax credits and rebates distributed to residents of this State through the ANCHOR Property Tax Relief Program, the homestead property tax reimbursement program, and the Stay NJ property tax credit program respectively, or any successor programs thereto, including, but not limited to:

(1) the total number of property tax credits, rebates, and reimbursements distributed under each program;

(2) the total dollar amount of property tax credits, rebates, and reimbursements distributed under each program;

(3) the total number of homeowners and tenants, respectively, eligible to receive a property tax credit, rebate, or reimbursement under each program;

(4) the total number of homeowners and tenants, respectively, that received a property tax credit, rebate, or reimbursement under each program; and

(5) the percentage of eligible homeowners and tenants, respectively, that received a property tax credit, rebate, or reimbursement under each program.

b. The report shall also include information regarding the distribution of property tax credits, rebates and reimbursements to homeowners and tenants under age 65 and homeowners and renters age 65 and over and the distribution of property tax credits, rebates, and reimbursements by income brackets and by credit and rebate amounts. The report shall include an analysis of the efficacy of the ANCHOR Property Tax Relief Program, the homestead property tax reimbursement program, and the Stay NJ property tax credit program, or any successor program thereto in reducing the property tax burdens of eligible claimants.

3. a. There is established in, but not of, the Department of the Treasury, the Property Tax Relief Program Oversight Committee. The committee shall engage in continuous monitoring and oversight of the State’s property tax relief programs, including, but not limited to, the Affordable New Jersey Communities for Homeowners and Renters (ANCHOR) Property Tax Relief Program, the homestead property tax reimbursement program, and the Stay NJ property tax credit program, and any other similar or successor programs.

b. The committee shall issue reports regarding the efficacy of New Jersey’s property tax relief programs in reducing the property tax burden of homeowners and renters in the State and make recommendations to improve the effectiveness of the State’s property tax relief programs and shall recommend improvements to enhance the administration of the State’s property tax relief programs by the State and local governments.

c. The committee shall issue such reports at such intervals as it deems necessary. The committee’s reports shall be submitted to the Governor, and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), the Legislature. The committee shall make its reports available to the public electronically through the official website of the Department of the Treasury.

4. a. The Property Tax Relief Program Oversight Committee shall consist of five members. The members of the committee shall be appointed as follows:

(1) three public members appointed by the Governor;

(2) one public member who shall be appointed by the President of the Senate; and

(3) one public member who shall be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly.

b. In appointing members of the committee, the appointing authority shall consider academic, business, and other professionals who have knowledge, expertise, and practical experience in State and local government, economic analysis, governmental finance and fiscal management, real property assessment and valuation, and tax policy practice, implementation, practice, administration, and regulation. No member shall be a nominee for, or hold, an elective office.

c. Members of the committee shall be appointed for a term of four years. Members shall serve until the appointment and qualification of their successors. Any vacancy in the membership of the committee shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment was made. Any member of the committee may be removed for cause by the appointing authority. The members shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties, subject to the availability of funds therefor.

d. The committee shall organize as soon as practicable after the appointment of a majority of its members, and shall select a chairperson from among its members. The members of the committee shall select a secretary who need not be a member of the committee. A majority of the membership of the committee shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of committee business. The committee may meet at the call of its chairperson at the times and in the places as it deems necessary to fulfill its duties. The committee may consult with and receive testimony from independent experts, other qualified individuals, and members of the general public.

e. The Department of the Treasury shall provide professional and clerical staff to the committee as may be necessary for the committee’s purposes. The committee shall also be entitled to call its assistance and avail itself of the services or employees of any State agency or county or municipal department, board, bureau, commission, or agency as it may require and as may be available for its purpose.

f. The committee may make use of existing studies, surveys, data and other materials in the possess of any State agency and such materials in the possession of any county, municipality, or political subdivision of the State, other than the records and files of the Director of the Division of Taxation that are deemed confidential under R.S.54:50-8.

5. This act shall take effect immediately, provided however that section 1 shall apply to the fiscal years beginning on or after the July 1 next following the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill requires the State to appropriate full funding for the Affordable New Jersey Communities for Homeowners and Renters (ANCHOR) Property Tax Relief Program and provide for additional oversight of the State’s property tax relief programs.

The ANCHOR Property Tax Relief Program provides rebates to offset property tax bills for eligible homeowners and tenants who are residents of New Jersey. The bill requires the State to appropriate additional State moneys from the Property Tax Relief Fund to the Department of the Treasury in any fiscal year in which the amount appropriated for the ANCHOR Property Tax Relief Program is not sufficient to provide the full amount of property tax relief prescribed for this program in accordance with current law.

The bill also requires the Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury to submit annual reports to the Governor and the Legislature regarding the total amount expended, and the number of homeowners who receive property tax relief credits, rebates, and reimbursements through the State’s property tax relief programs. The report would also include information on the distribution of property tax credits and rebates to senior citizen and non-senior citizen homeowners and tenants and by income bracket.

The bill establishes a five-member Property Tax Relief Program Oversight Committee in, but not of, the Department of the Treasury. The bill requires the committee to conduct ongoing monitoring of the State’s property tax relief programs. The bill directs the committee to issue reports regarding the efficacy of the State’s property tax relief programs in reducing the property tax burden of homeowners in the State and make recommendations to improve the administrative efficiency of the State’s property tax relief programs.