I. State Issues
a. Minimum Wage Bill Amended to Include Municipalities
Yesterday legislation to eventually increase the minimum wage to $15.00 per hour was amended to specifically include the State, counties, municipalities and school districts as employers.
As a result, the League presented joint testimony with the NJ Association of Counties and the NJ School Boards Association in opposition to the latest version of Assembly, No. 15 (Coughlin D-19/Tucker D-28.) In testimony, the League expressed our general concerns that the measure will force local governments to either raise property taxes, cut services or a combination of both. Specifically, the League noted that the amended bill would increase the minimum wage on entities that are currently subject to the 2% cap and that there was no cap relief in the bill.
The Assembly Labor Committee approved the bill along party lines. The bill is now 2nd referenced to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for a Monday hearing and the Senate companion, S-15, will also be considered by the Senate Budget and Appropriations committee as well. We are working with NJAC and the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) so to provide some data on the potential impact for the Monday committee hearings.
Please note that the current State minimum wage law only applies to private businesses and does not include the State, counties, municipalities, and school districts Allen v. Fauver 327 N.J. Super. 14 (App. Div. 1999). However, all must comply with federal minimum wage requirements.
The bills are likely to be on the January 31 board lists, so please contact your Legislators and ask, at the very least, that governments be taken out of the bill.
Contact: Michael F. Cerra, Assistant Executive Director, mcerra@njslom.org, 609-695-3481 x120.
b. Increase to Maximum Cap on Municipal Appropriations to Volunteer
Fire Companies
P.L. 2015, c. 95 included a statutory adjustment, every two years, to the maximum appropriation a municipality may make to their volunteer fire company. For CY2019/SFY2020 there is a 2.5% adjustment which brings the maximum annual contribution to $154,518.75. In addition, the municipality may appropriate additional funds for the purchase of fire equipment, supplies, and materials used by volunteer fire companies or boards, however, the municipality must retain control, disburse the funds, and retain the title to any equipment purchased. For municipalities with three or more fire companies or boards the option of the additional appropriation of $50,000 remained the same. We suggest you review Local Finance Notice 2019-01 with your Chief Financial officer.
Contact: Lori Buckelew, Senior Legislative Analyst, lbuckelew@njslom.org, 609-695-3481 x112.
c. Goods and Services Prompt Payment Law Guidance
Beginning February 1 all goods and services contracts awarded, regardless of dollar amount, will be subject to goods and services prompt payment law, P.L. 2018, c. 127. Unless otherwise specified in a contract the payment for goods and services will be due no later than 60 calendar days from the receipt of a properly executed invoice or from the date the goods and services were received as certified by an officer or duly designated employee. Otherwise the municipality will have to pay the vendor interest. For SFY 2019 the interest rate is 2%. Local Finance Notice 2019-02 provides detail guidance on this new law. We suggest you review the Local Finance Notice with your Chief Financial Officer and Purchasing Official to ensure compliance with the new law.
Contact: Lori Buckelew, Senior Legislative Analyst, lbuckelew@njslom.org, 609-695-3481 x112.
II. League Conference Follow Up
a. Do Not Forget to Claim Your CEUs from the 2018 NJLM Annual
Conference!
Attention Municipal Officials! Do Not Forget to Claim Your CEUs from the 2018 NJLM Annual Conference! Please go to our website to claim your credits.
b. The Conference App is Still Available!
Misplaced your printed Session or Exhibitor Program Guide? The app can still be downloaded in your app store to reference session details or view contact information for participating consultants and exhibitors. The app will be available for download through the end of this calendar year and remains available for accessing on your device as long as it is installed.
III. Also of Interest
a. League Web and Email Updated to njlm.org
The League is excited to announce its web and email will be updated to www.njlm.org.
To achieve consistency with the very familiar NJLM logo, we are updating our web and email addresses to reflect njlm.org. On Friday, February 1, you will see a change in League staff emails, as new updated addresses are rolled out. Emails you send to njslom.org accounts will still be received by League staff. But to ensure that you continue receiving correspondence from the League, please update your email settings and add njlm.org to your safe lists.
As part of this process, you will notice that the new website address for the League is www.njlm.org. Please update any bookmarks that you may have saved to reflect this change.
The change to www.njlm.org will establish a level of consistency and recognition with our very familiar NJLM logo. Creating a level of consistency is important so that the League membership and partners can easily recognize and rely on our communications.
b. League Publications: Read All About It
The League offers a wide variety of publications to provide extra insights on the hot topics in local government, from Newly Elected guidebooks to the latest editions on OPMA, License Fees, Salaries, and Local Public Contracts. For more information on the full publication list or to order volumes for your reference, see the Publication Order Form.
c. 2019 Campaign Contribution Notice from the Secretary of State
The New Jersey Division of Elections has requested we share the following information with all Municipal Clerks on our mailing list. Questions and inquiries for additional information should be directed to Donna Barber, Elections Manager, Division of Elections, Donna.Barber@sos.nj.gov, 609-292-8337.
No holder of a public office or position shall demand payment or contribution from another holder of a public office or position for the campaign purposes of any candidate or for the use of any political party.
This notice is given by the Secretary of State to all State employees and each county and municipal clerk pursuant to the requirements of New Jersey Elections law, P.L. 1975, c. 70.
d. Promote the EITC to Your Residents
The earned income tax credit (EITC) can be one of the most useful tools in fighting poverty in New Jersey. In 2018 nationally, 25 million eligible workers and families received about $63 billion in EITC. The average amount of EITC received nationwide was about $2,488, which can be a significant boost in the annual income of many families.
These returns could be beneficial, but far too many people are not aware of the financial benefits for which they may be eligible. In New Jersey, more than 576,000 received the EITC which brought back more than $1.4 billion.
We hope that you will help to spread awareness of the EITC, in order to ensure that more of our residents become aware of the incredible financial returns that they could be receiving.
For more tools and ideas visit the IRS EITC page. Or visit the our Social Media Resource Center for sample social media posts to share with your residents.
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