N.J. Stat. tit. 40, ch. 49

in effect

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-1 "Ordinance" and "resolution" defined

The term "ordinance" when used in this subtitle means and includes any act or regulation of the governing body of any municipality required to be reduced to writing and read at more than one meeting thereof and published. The term "resolution" when used in this subtitle means and includes any act or regulation of the governing body of any municipality required to be reduced to writing, but which may be finally passed at the meeting at which it is introduced.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-2 Procedure for passage; "governing body" defined

40:49-2. Except as otherwise provided in R.S.40:49-6 and 40:49-12, the procedure for the passage of ordinances shall be as follows: a. Every ordinance after being introduced and having passed a first reading, which first reading may be by title, shall be published in its entirety or by title or by title and summary at least once in a newspaper published and circulated in the municipality, if there be one, and if not, in a newspaper printed in the county and circulating in the municipality, together with a notice of the introduction thereof, the time and place when and where it will be further considered for final passage, a clear and concise statement prepared by the clerk of the governing body setting forth the purpose of the ordinance, and the time and place when and where a copy of the ordinance can be obtained without cost by any member of the general public who wants a copy of the ordinance. If there be only one such publication the same shall be at least one week prior to the time fixed for further consideration for final passage. If there be more than one publication, the first shall be at least one week prior to the time fixed for further consideration for final passage. b. At the time and place so stated in such publication, or at any time and place to which the meeting for the further consideration of the ordinance shall from time to time be adjourned, all persons interested shall be given an opportunity to be heard concerning the ordinance. The opportunity to be heard shall include the right to ask pertinent questions concerning the ordinance by any resident of the municipality or any other person affected by the ordinance. Final passage thereof shall be at least 10 days after the first reading. c. Upon the opening of the hearing, the ordinance shall be given a second reading, which reading may be by title, and thereafter, it may be passed with or without amendments, or rejected. Prior to the said second reading, a copy of the ordinance shall be posted on the bulletin board or other place upon which public notices are customarily posted in the principal municipal building of the municipality, and copies of the ordinance shall be made available to members of the general public of the municipality who shall request such copies. If any amendment be adopted, substantially altering the substance of the ordinance, the ordinance as so amended shall not be finally adopted until at least one week thereafter, and the ordinance as amended shall be read at a meeting of the governing body, which reading may be by title, and shall be published in its entirety or by title or by title and summary, together with a notice of the introduction, the time and place when and where a copy of the amended ordinance can be obtained without any cost by any member of the general public who desires a copy, a clear and concise statement prepared by the clerk of the governing body setting forth the purpose of the ordinance, and the time and place when and where the amended ordinance will be further considered for final passage, at least two days prior to the time so fixed. At the time and place so fixed, or at any other meeting to which the further consideration of the amended ordinance may be adjourned, the governing body may proceed to pass the ordinance, as amended, or again amend it in the same manner. d. Upon passage, every ordinance, or the title, or the title and a summary, together with a notice of the date of passage or approval, or both, shall be published at least once in a newspaper circulating in the municipality, if there be one, and if not, in a newspaper printed in the county and circulating in the municipality. No other notice or procedure with respect to the introduction or passage of any ordinance shall be required. Nothing herein shall be construed to affect the provisions of R.S.40:49-7 to 40:49-12 or R.S.40:49-27. For the purposes of this section, "governing body" shall include any municipal or county agency, board or commission authorized by law to adopt ordinances. Amended 1955, c.121; 1962, c.28, s.1; 1973, c.329; 1995, c.259, s.6; 1996, c.113, s.7.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-2.1 Land use ordinances; publication; transmittal to tax assessor

In the case of any ordinance adopted pursuant to the "Municipal Land Use Law," P.L.1975, c. 291 (C. 40:55D-1 et seq.), including any amendments or supplements thereto, or revisions or codifications thereof, which is in length, six or more octavo pages of ordinary print, the governing body of any municipality may, notwithstanding the provisions of R.S. 40:49-2, satisfy the newspaper publication requirements for the introduction and passage of such ordinance in the following manner: a. The publication of a notice citing such proposed ordinance by title, giving a brief summary of the main objectives or provisions of the ordinance, stating that copies are on file for public examination and acquisition at the office of the municipal clerk, and setting forth the time and place for the further consideration of the proposed ordinance; b. The placing on file, in the office of the clerk, three copies of the proposed ordinance, which copies shall be available for public inspection until final action is taken on said ordinance; and c. The publication or arranging for the publication of the proposed ordinance in pamphlet or other similar form, which may be sold by the municipality at a price not to exceed the cost of publication and distribution. If any amendment be adopted to any such proposed ordinance substantially altering the substance of the proposed ordinance, there shall be caused to be published a notice of the title of the ordinance, the introduction and time and place that the amended ordinance will be further considered and a summary of the objectives or provisions of the amendment or amendments, which notice shall be published at least 2 days prior to the time so fixed therefor in accordance with subsection c. of R.S. 40:49-2. Copies of the amended ordinance shall be on file and available, for public examination and duplication, in the office of the municipal clerk, until final action is taken on said ordinance. If said ordinance is again amended, the same publication requirements herein set forth for amended ordinances shall be followed. Upon passage of any such ordinance, notice of passage or approval shall be published in accordance with subsection d. of R.S. 40:49-2. A copy of the ordinance and of any summary or summaries published in connection with its adoption pursuant to subsection a. or c. of this section, shall be forthwith transmitted to the tax assessor of the municipality. L.1977, c. 395, s. 1, eff. Feb. 23, 1978. Amended by L.1983, c. 513, s. 1, eff. Jan. 17, 1984.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-3 Ordinances in effect in 1917 unaffected

L.1917, c. 152, Art. X, s. 2, p. 345 (1924 Suppl. s. *136-1002), being section 2 of Article X of an act entitled "An act concerning municipalities," approved March twenty-seventh, one thousand nine hundred and seventeen, saved from repeal. [This section provides that all ordinances in effect when the act took effect, except where inconsistent with the provisions of L.1917, c. 152, p. 319, shall remain in effect until altered or repealed.]

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-4 Revision and codification of ordinances

40:49-4. The governing body may provide, from time to time, for the revision and codification of its ordinances. Where there are two or more bodies in any municipality having power to pass ordinances, the body having charge of the finances may provide for the revision and codification of all the ordinances of the municipality. The work of revision and codification shall be done under the direction of the municipal counsel or attorney or some other counsellor-at-law employed by the governing body, which shall have power to provide adequate compensation therefor. Nothing herein shall prevent the governing body from providing that the work of revision and codification be done, under the direction of the municipal counsel or attorney, by any person, partnership or corporation engaged in the business of codifying and revising municipal ordinances. In case the work is done by the counsel or attorney of the municipality, the governing body of the municipality may compensate the counsel or attorney for such work in addition to any salary paid. Such revision and codification of the ordinances when completed shall be submitted to each municipal body having power to pass ordinances. Each such body shall consider the same and make such changes in such revision and codification of its own ordinances, as it shall deem proper, and may then accept and adopt the same. All the provisions of this chapter relating to the adoption, approval and advertising of ordinances, shall apply to the ordinance adopting such compilation and revision, but it shall not be necessary to publish said revised and compiled ordinances prior to or after their adoption as herein provided, or to set forth the same at length in the ordinance by which they are adopted: provided, that such compilation and revision of ordinances is so described in said adopting ordinance as clearly to identify it and the effect of proposed changes be fully explained, and it is stated in said adopting ordinance that a copy of such compilation and revision has been filed in the office of the municipal clerk, there to remain for the use and examination of the public until final action is taken on said adopting ordinance and thereafter while the same shall be in effect, if such ordinance shall be adopted; and provided, that said copy of said compilation and revision of ordinances shall be and remain on file accordingly. Such ordinances, when so revised and codified and finally adopted, shall be reported by the person in charge of the revision to the body in charge of the finances, which shall order the same, or so much thereof as are of a general nature to be published in book form, and when so published and certified to by the seal of the municipality, shall be received in all courts of this State as evidence of the ordinances contained in such compilation and revision as fully as if the original ordinances were produced. Printed copies of such ordinances as so revised and codified shall be made available to citizens. Nothing herein shall operate to repeal any ordinances not included in such revision and codification, except by necessary implication, or those expressly repealed. The governing body may provide for the printing and distribution or sale of its ordinances in book form. There may be included in any printed book of ordinances the charter of the municipality or such of the general laws of the State relating to the municipality as the governing body may direct to be included therein. Amended 1950,c.232; 1991,c.362,s.1.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-5 Penalties for violations of municipal ordinances.

40:49-5. The governing body may prescribe penalties for the violation of ordinances it may have authority to pass, by one or more of the following: imprisonment in the county jail or in any place provided by the municipality for the detention of prisoners, for any term not exceeding 90 days; or by a fine not exceeding $2,000; or by a period of community service not exceeding 90 days. The governing body may prescribe that for the violation of any particular ordinance at least a minimum penalty shall be imposed which shall consist of a fine which may be fixed at an amount not exceeding $100. The governing body may prescribe that for the violation of an ordinance pertaining to unlawful solid waste disposal at least a minimum penalty shall be imposed which shall consist of a fine which may be fixed at an amount not exceeding $2,500 or a maximum penalty by a fine not exceeding $10,000. The court before which any person is convicted of violating any ordinance of a municipality shall have power to impose any fine, term of imprisonment, or period of community service not less than the minimum and not exceeding the maximum fixed in such ordinance. Any person who is convicted of violating an ordinance within one year of the date of a previous violation of the same ordinance and who was fined for the previous violation, shall be sentenced by a court to an additional fine as a repeat offender. The additional fine imposed by the court upon a person for a repeated offense shall not be less than the minimum or exceed the maximum fine fixed for a violation of the ordinance, but shall be calculated separately from the fine imposed for the violation of the ordinance. Any municipality which chooses not to impose an additional fine upon a person for a repeated violation of any municipal ordinance may waive the additional fine by ordinance or resolution. Any person convicted of the violation of any ordinance may, in the discretion of the court by which he was convicted, and in default of the payment of any fine imposed therefor, be imprisoned in the county jail or place of detention provided by the municipality, for any term not exceeding 90 days, or be required to perform community service for a period not exceeding 90 days. Any municipality that chooses to impose a fine in an amount greater than $1,250 upon an owner for violations of housing or zoning codes shall provide a 30-day period in which the owner shall be afforded the opportunity to cure or abate the condition and shall also be afforded an opportunity for a hearing before a court of competent jurisdiction for an independent determination concerning the violation. Subsequent to the expiration of the 30-day period, a fine greater than $1,250 may be imposed if a court has not determined otherwise or, upon reinspection of the property, it is determined that the abatement has not been substantially completed. Amended 1953, c.37, s.175; 1968, c.30; 1983, c.410, s.1; 1987, c.411, s.1; 1989, c.114, s.1; 2001, c.274; 2003, c.231, s.6; 2005, c.269, s.1.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-5.1 Enactment of code by reference

Any municipality may enact, amend or supplement ordinances, establishing, amending or supplementing rules and regulations affecting the construction, reconstruction or repair of buildings, ordinances for fire prevention and ordinances establishing fire prevention codes, and health ordinances establishing, amending or supplementing rules and regulations affecting the installation, maintenance, repair and control of the plumbing, ventilation and drainage of buildings and the connection thereof with an outside sewer, cesspool or other receptacle, by reference to such rules and regulations in any such ordinance and without the inclusion of the text thereof therein, if the rules and regulations to be adopted are printed or otherwise reproduced in book form as a code or as a part of a code of such rules and regulations; provided, that a copy of such printed code, so marked as to indicate plainly what portion thereof, if less than the whole, is intended to be adopted, is annexed to such ordinance; that said code or such portion thereof as is intended to be adopted is so described in said ordinance as to identify it and there is indicated in said description the common or trade name, if any, of such code of rules and regulations; and that it is stated in the ordinance that three copies of said code, similarly marked, have been placed on file in the office of the municipal clerk, upon the introduction of said ordinance and will remain on file there until final action is taken on said ordinance, for the use and examination of the public. L. 1946, c. 21, s. 1; amended 1948,c.276; 1987,c.442,s.5.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-5.2 Publication of rules and regulations unnecessary, when

It shall not be necessary to publish any such rules and regulations, so to be adopted, as part of said ordinance, notwithstanding that a printed copy thereof is annexed thereto, either before or after the final passage of such ordinance; provided, that said printed copies are filed as aforesaid, and, if said ordinance is adopted, the said copies shall remain on file in said office so long as said ordinance is in effect, and three copies shall be placed on file, and shall so remain on file, in the office of the body or department having charge of the enforcement of said ordinance, so long as said ordinance is in effect, for the use and examination of the public. L.1946, c. 21, p. 60, s. 2, eff. March 19, 1946.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-5.3 Copy of code annexed to ordinance considered part of ordinance

For the purpose of proof of any such ordinance or the receipt thereof in evidence in all courts and places, such copy of said code, so marked and so annexed to such ordinance, shall be construed to be part of said ordinance as fully as though it had been set forth at length therein. L.1946, c. 21, p. 60, s. 3, eff. March 19, 1946.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-6 Publication and notice

Every ordinance providing for local improvements authorized by articles one and two of chapter fifty-six of this Title (s. 40:56-1 et seq.), or providing that all or a part of the cost of any work, acquisition of property, or improvement shall be assessed upon abutting land or lands specially benefited thereby (except sidewalks); or providing for the establishment or change of grade, or the vacation of any street, highway, lane or alley or portion thereof, or the vacation, as hereinafter defined, of any square, place or park, or any portion thereof, dedicated to the public, but which has not been accepted or opened by the municipality, shall be published in the manner required by section 40:49-2 of article two of this chapter, except that every such ordinance after being introduced and having passed a first reading shall be published at least once not less than ten days instead of one week prior to the time fixed for further consideration for final passage. At least one week prior to such time fixed for further consideration for final passage of such ordinance, a copy thereof, together with a notice of the introduction thereof, and the time and place when and where the ordinance will be further considered for final passage, shall be mailed to every person whose lands may be affected by the ordinance or any assessment which may be made in pursuance thereof, so far as the same may be ascertained, directed to his last known post-office address. The owner of any lands may file with the clerk of the municipality, or other official designated by the governing body by resolution or ordinance, a list of lands owned by him with a post-office address to which notice shall be directed. Failure to mail the notice herein provided for shall not invalidate any ordinance, proceeding or assessment. Amended by L.1945, c. 292, p. 843, s. 1, eff. May 3, 1945.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-7 Objections to improvement; passage over protest

No local improvement shall be undertaken by any municipality where objections thereto in writing are filed with the clerk of the governing body before the final passage of the ordinance providing for such improvement, by the owners of two-thirds in value of lands proposed to be assessed for benefits accruing from such improvement as determined by the governing body which shall use for that purpose the last preceding valuation for the purpose of taxation. If, however, the governing body shall determine that such local improvement is a public necessity, the municipality may undertake such local improvement notwithstanding such objection, subject to the provisions of section 40:49-8 of this title.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-8 Review

The person or persons filing such objections may, however, within ten days after the passage of such ordinance, obtain a review of the determination of the governing body as to the public necessity of such improvement, by a judge of the Superior Court, in the county, by a notice in writing, filed with the municipal clerk. The matter may be brought on by either party on five days' notice or such notice as the judge shall direct, and the determination of the judge as to the public necessity of the improvement shall be final. Amended by L.1953, c. 37, p. 697, s. 176, eff. March 19, 1953.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-9 When operative; objections to passage; referendum and notice thereof

Any ordinance authorizing any improvement shall become operative ten days after the publication thereof after its final passage, unless within said ten days a protest against making the improvement shall be filed in the office of the municipal clerk signed by taxpayers representing ten per cent in amount of the assessed valuation of such municipality, whose names appear on the last preceding assessment roll thereof, in which case the ordinance shall remain inoperative until a proposition for the ratification thereof shall be adopted, at an election to be held for that purpose, by a majority of the qualified voters of the municipality voting on the proposition. The certificate of the municipal clerk filed in his office as to the filing or sufficiency of any protest shall be conclusive for the purposes of this section. At least ten days before the election notice thereof shall be published once in a newspaper published in the municipality, or if there be no such newspaper, then in a newspaper published in the county and circulating in the municipality.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-10 Time of election; special election; ballot

Any proposition submitted to the voters of any municipality under the provisions of section 40:49-9 or of section 40:49-27 of this title shall be voted upon at the next general election held in the municipality at least thirty days after the filing of the protest or protests herein provided for, unless the governing body thereof shall call a special election therefor. Such special election shall be conducted and canvassed by the same officers and in the same manner as nearly as may be as prescribed by the laws regulating general elections. The proposition to be voted upon shall be stated on the ballots in substantially the following form: "To vote upon the public question printed below if in favor thereof mark a cross (X) or plus (+) in the square at the left of the word YES, and if opposed thereto mark a cross (X) or plus (+) in the square at the left of the word NO. "Shall an ordinance of the ................. [ ] YES (name of governing body) of the ........ of ........ (name of municipality) [ ] NO entitled .................. (title of ordinance and date of passage) be ratified?"

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-11 Result of election; resolution; publication

The governing body shall adopt a resolution declaring the result of the election, which resolution shall be published once in the manner provided above for the notice of election. No action, suit or proceeding to contest the validity of the election shall be instituted after the expiration of twenty days from the date of publication of the resolution declaring the result thereof.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-12 Referendum unnecessary in certain cases

Sections 40:49-9 to 40:49-11 of this title shall not apply where the legal voters of any municipality shall have authorized the making of any improvement or the establishment of any public utility by a referendum vote thereon.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-13 Alternative procedure

The procedure for the passage of ordinances for the laying out, opening, straightening, establishing, widening, extending, altering, or changing in any manner the location of any street, road, alley or public highway or portion thereof may, in the discretion of the governing body of any municipality, which exercise of discretion shall be evidenced by the passage of a preliminary resolution, and in lieu of any other procedure, be as hereinafter in this article provided.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-14 Reference to officer making assessments; map prepared

Every such ordinance, after being introduced and having passed a first reading, shall be referred to the officer or board in the municipality charged with the duty of making assessments for benefits for local improvements, who, or a majority of whom, shall thereupon cause a map of such improvement to be made by the municipal engineer or surveyor, showing the real estate and improvements to be taken therefor, and the property which, in the judgment of the assessing officer or board, will be specially benefited thereby, designating each lot and parcel on the map by a letter or number.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-15 Estimate of damages and expenses

The officer or board shall also ascertain, so far as practicable, the names of the owners of the real estate to be taken and of the property to be benefited by the proposed improvement, the interest, in the real estate so to be taken, of each owner thereof, and when the names or estates are not known, they shall so report. They shall further appraise the value of the interest of each known owner of real estate to be taken and the damage which will be done to such owner by the taking. Where the estates in any plot of land are unknown, they shall appraise the value of or the damage done to the fee simple. They shall estimate all other expenses likely, in their judgment, to attend the completion of the improvement, shall estimate the amount likely to be realized from the sale of any buildings, or parts of buildings, required to be taken on account of the improvement, and shall so determine the probable net cost of making the improvement.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-16 Hearing and notice; assessments proportionate to benefits

After hearings held upon notice, in the manner provided in chapter 56 of this title (s. 40:56-1 et seq.), in case of assessment for benefits and awards for incidental damages where no lands are taken, they shall make an award to the owner for the real estate or right or interest therein to be taken and the damage done to the remaining property, if any. They shall then assess the probable net cost upon the land to be specially benefited in proportion to the benefit to be received.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-17 Assessors' report; filing

Thereupon they shall, under their hands, make a report to the governing body of the municipality, certifying the facts ascertained as above required, the appraisements, estimates, determinations, awards and assessments made by them concerning the improvement, and shall thereupon file such report and map with the clerk of the municipality, who shall present it to the governing body.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-18 Filing of report; hearing; notice of hearing

40:49-18. Upon the receipt of the report by the governing body, the same shall be filed by it, and it shall then, or at a subsequent regular meeting, fix a time and place when and where it will meet to consider all objections to the report or improvement which are presented in writing, and it shall cause the ordinance to be published in its entirety or by its title together with a notice of introduction, the time and place when and where a copy of the ordinance can be obtained without cost by any member of the general public who desires a copy, and a clear and concise statement prepared by the clerk of the governing body setting forth the purpose of the ordinance, once in a newspaper published and circulating in the municipality, if there be one, and if not, in a newspaper printed in the county and circulating in the municipality, together with a notice of the introduction thereof, and of the filing of the map and report. The notice shall contain a general description of the improvement intended, of the land to be taken, of the land to be assessed for the improvement, and of the awards made, and shall state the time and place when and where the governing body will meet to hear and consider any objections, to the report or to the improvement, which are presented in writing. Amended 1995,c.259,s.7.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-19 Publication; notice mailed to owners

The publication of the ordinance and notice shall be at least ten days prior to the time fixed for the consideration of said report and the further consideration of the said ordinance for final passage. At least one week prior to the time so fixed, a copy of the ordinance, together with a notice of the introduction thereof, of the filing of the map and report, and of the time and place when and where the governing body will meet to hear and consider any objections to said report or improvement, shall be mailed to every person whose lands may be affected by such ordinance or any assessment which may be made in pursuance thereof, so far as the same may be ascertained, directed to his last known address. Failure to mail such notice shall not invalidate any ordinance, proceeding or assessment.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-20 Hearing to persons interested

At the time and place so stated in such publication, or at any time and place to which the meeting or the further consideration of the ordinance, map and report, shall from time to time be adjourned, all persons interested shall be given an opportunity to be heard concerning the ordinance, map and report, and to file objections in writing to any of them.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-21 Awards for damages readjusted; ordinance amended

At the time and place so stated, or at any adjourned meeting thereof, the governing body shall consider and adjudicate upon all objections filed in writing as hereinbefore in this article provided, and may proceed to correct, increase or diminish any award accordingly, without further or other notice to the person or persons interested, or if no corrections are made, or if the governing body shall then determine to make the improvement notwithstanding any objections to the same, it shall by resolution confirm the awards as certified to it or with corrections, if any, and give such ordinance a second reading or amend it, and thereupon pass or reject it with or without amendment. Whenever any amendment shall be adopted, substantially altering the substance of the ordinance, the ordinance as so amended shall not be finally adopted until the amended ordinance, and the report and map theretofore submitted, shall be referred to the officer or board of the municipality charged with the duty of making assessments for local improvements, for the purpose of making any alteration or correction in the map or report as may be rendered necessary by reason of the amendment. Such officer or board and the governing body shall proceed in all respects, on the amended ordinance being referred, as is herein in this article provided for him or them in the case of a new or original ordinance.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-22 Corrections to report; entry on minutes; certification

Any corrections made to the report shall be entered in full on the minutes of the governing body and a copy thereof, certified to by the clerk of the governing body, shall be appended to the report of the officer or board making the report of the awards or assessments.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-23 Republication of ordinance

At least two days prior to the time fixed for the further consideration for final passage of the ordinance, it shall be again published.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-24 Objections to street improvement; passage over objections

No such local improvement shall be undertaken by any municipality where objections thereto in writing are filed with the municipal clerk, before the final passage of the ordinance, by the owners of two-thirds in value of the lands proposed to be assessed for benefit as determined by the governing body, who shall use for that purpose the last preceding valuation for the purpose of taxation. If, however, the governing body shall determine such local improvement to be a public necessity they may undertake the same notwithstanding such objections, subject to the provisions of section 40:49-25 of this title.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-25 Review

Within ten days after the final passage of such ordinance the persons filing the objection provided in section 40:49-24 of this Title may obtain a review of the determination of the governing body, as to the public necessity of such improvement, by a judge of the Superior Court by a notice in writing, filed with the municipal clerk. The matter may be brought on by either party on five days' notice or such notice as the judge shall direct and the determination of the judge as to the public necessity of the improvement shall be final. Amended by L.1953, c. 37, p. 697, s. 177, eff. March 19, 1953.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-26 Procedure after passage of ordinance

When the procedure of this article shall have been adopted, all benefits shall be assessed, appeals taken, and other procedure had in accordance with the provisions of sections 40:56-43 to 40:56-47 of this title.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-27 Debt-authorization referendum procedure

Any ordinance authorizing the incurring of any indebtedness, except for current expenses, shall become operative 20 days after the publication thereof after its final passage, unless within those 20 days a protest against the incurring of such indebtedness shall be filed in the office of the municipal clerk, by a petition signed by registered voters of the municipality equal in number to at least 15% of the number of votes cast in the municipality at the most recent general election at which members of the General Assembly were elected, in which case such ordinance shall remain inoperative until a proposition for the ratification thereof shall be adopted, at an election to be held for that purpose, by a majority of the qualified voters of the municipality voting on the proposition, subject to the provisions of R.S. 40:49-10 to 40:49-12. A petition circulated pursuant to this section shall be subject to the provisions of sections 2 through 5 of P.L. 1986, c. 69 (C. 40:49-27a to 40:49-27c). Amended by L. 1986, c. 69, s. 1, eff. July 30, 1986.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-27a Signatures

The signatures to a petition circulated pursuant to R.S. 40:49-27 need not all be appended to one paper, but each signer shall add after his signature his place of residence, giving the street and number. One of the signers of each paper shall make an oath before an officer competent to administer the same that the statement made therein is true as he believes, and that each signature on the paper is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be. L. 1986, c. 69, s. 2, eff. July 30, 1986.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-27b Certification of petition

Within 10 days after the filing of the petition, the municipal clerk shall examine the same and ascertain whether or not it is signed by the requisite number of qualified voters, and shall attach its certificate showing the result of the examination. If the petition is insufficient, the clerk shall return the petition to the person filing it. The petition may be amended and refiled within 10 days after the receipt thereof from the clerk. Within 10 days after receiving an amended petition, the clerk shall examine the petition. If the petition is sufficient, the clerk shall submit it to the governing body of the municipality without delay, and shall take all necessary steps required by R.S. 40:49-10 and this amendatory and supplementary act for the scheduling of an election on the ordinance. If the petition is not sufficient, the clerk shall return it to the person filing it, and the ordinance shall become operative immediately or on the 20th day following publication of the ordinance after final passage, as appropriate. L. 1986, c. 69, s. 3, eff. July 30, 1986.

N.J. Stat. § 40:49-27c Notice of election.

If the ordinance is to be submitted to the voters, notice of the election shall be published at least once in a newspaper published in the municipality or, if there is no such newspaper, in a newspaper published in the county and circulating in the municipality. The notice shall be published at least 10 days before the date of the election. L. 1986, c. 69, s. 4, eff. July 30, 1986.

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