N.J. Stat. tit. 19, ch. 44B

in effect

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-1 Definitions.

1. a. "Gift" means any money or thing of value received other than as income, and for which a consideration of equal or greater value is not received, but does not include any political contribution reported as otherwise required by law, any loan made in the ordinary course of business, or any devise, bequest, intestate estate distribution or principal distribution of a trust or gift received from a member of a person's household or from a relative within the third degree of consanguinity of the person or his spouse, or from the spouse of that relative; b. "Income" means any money or thing of value received, or to be received, as a claim on future services, whether in the form of a fee, expense, allowance, forbearance, forgiveness, interest, dividend, royalty, rent, capital gain, or any other form of recompense, or any combination thereof; c. "Member of household" means the spouse of a candidate for the office of Governor or Lieutenant Governor or of a candidate for the Senate or General Assembly residing in the same domicile and any dependent children. L.1981, c.129, s.1; amended 2009, c.66, s.28.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-2 Financial disclosure statement; filing and certification.

2. a. Every candidate for the office of Governor and every candidate for the Senate or General Assembly shall file and certify the correctness of a financial disclosure statement on or before the tenth day following the last day for filing a petition to appear on the ballot, and the financial disclosure statement shall be filed with the Election Law Enforcement Commission in the Department of Law and Public Safety. b. Every candidate for the office of Lieutenant Governor shall file and certify the correctness of a financial disclosure statement on or before the 30th day following the day such candidate is selected by the candidate for the office of Governor of the same political party, and the financial disclosure statement shall be filed with the commission. L.1981, c.129, s.2; amended 2009, c.66, s.29.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-3 Forms; preparation; transmittal to candidates.

3. The commission shall prepare and transmit to each candidate for the office of Governor and the office of Lieutenant Governor and to each candidate for the Senate or General Assembly forms for the filing of financial disclosure statements required by this act. L.1981, c.129, s.3; amended 2009, c.66, s.30.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-4 Contents

Financial disclosure statements shall include the sources of income received from sources other than the State during the preceding calendar year by the candidate and members of his household. Without disclosing the amounts of income, gifts, reimbursements, and holdings, the statements shall include the following: a. Each of the following categories of earned income totalling more than $1,000.00: salaries, bonuses, royalties, fees, commissions and profit sharing received as an officer, employee, partner or consultant of a named corporation, professional association, partnership or sole proprietorship; b. Each of the following categories of unearned income totalling more than $1,000.00: rents, dividends and other income received from named investments, trusts and estates; c. Fees and honorariums totalling more than $100.00 received from named payers for personal appearances, speeches or writings; d. Reimbursements totalling more than $100.00 for travel, subsistence or facilities provided in kind received from named payers or providers other than the State, any political subdivision thereof, a principal employer, or a nonprofit organization; e. Gifts having a value totalling more than $250.00 received from named donors; and f. Ownership, holding, or control of an interest in any land or building in any city in which casino gambling is authorized, which land or building shall be specified. L.1981, c. 129, s. 4, eff. May 1, 1981.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-5 Notice to commission of candidates by Secretary of State.

5. Upon receipt from any person of a declaration of candidacy or a petition to appear on the ballot for election as Governor or as Lieutenant Governor, or as a member of the Legislature, the Secretary of State shall, within 2 days of the receipt, notify the commission of the name and address of the candidate and the date of the receipt. L.1981, c.129, c.5; amended 2009, c.66, s.31.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-6 Willful and knowledgeable failure to file or filing false statement; penalty

a. A candidate who willfully and knowingly fails or refuses to file a financial disclosure statement on a date prior to the election for which he has filed a declaration of candidacy or a petition to appear on the ballot shall be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree. b. A candidate who willfully and knowingly files any financial disclosure statement which is false, inaccurate or incomplete in any substantial and material manner or particular, shall be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree. L.1981, c. 129, s. 6, eff. May 1, 1981.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-7 Powers and duties of commission

It shall be the duty of the commission to investigate and conduct hearings with regard to possible violations and impose penalties, to issue subpenas for the production of documents and the attendance of witnesses, and to enforce the provisions of this act in the manner set forth in "The New Jersey Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Reporting Act," P.L.1973, c. 83 (C. 19:44A-1 et seq.). The commission shall have the authority to initiate a civil action in the Superior Court of New Jersey or in any court of competent jurisdiction for the purpose of enforcing compliance with the provisions of this act or enjoining violations thereof or recovering any penalty prescribed by this act. The commission shall promulgate such regulations and official forms and perform such duties as are necessary to implement the provisions of this act. L.1981, c. 129, s. 7, eff. May 1, 1981.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-8 Candidate with responsibility for filing reports or documents; failure to file or omission in or incorrect statement; penalty; hearings; enforcement

a. Any candidate charged with the responsibility under the terms of this act for the filing of any reports or other documents required to be filed pursuant to this act who fails, neglects or omits to file any such report or document at the time and in the manner prescribed by law, or who omits or incorrectly states any of the information required by law to be included in such report or document, shall, in addition to any other penalty provided by law, be liable to a penalty of not more than $1,000.00 for the first offense and not more than $2,000.00 for the second and each subsequent offense. b. Upon receiving evidence of any violation of this section, the Election Law Enforcement Commission shall have power to hold, or to cause to be held, hearings upon such violation and, upon finding any person to have committed such a violation, to assess such penalty, within the limits prescribed in subsection a. of this section, as it deems proper under the circumstance which penalty shall be paid forthwith into the State Treasury for the general purposes of the State. Such penalty shall be enforceable in a summary proceeding under the "Penalty Enforcement Law" (N.J.S. 2A:58-1 et seq.). c. In assessing any penalty under this section, the Election Law Enforcement Commission may provide for the remission of all or any part of the penalty conditioned upon the prompt correction of any failure, neglect, error or omission constituting the violation for which the penalty was assessed, provided the correction is made on a date prior to the election for which the candidate has filed a declaration of candidacy or petition to appear on the ballot. L.1981, c. 129, s. 8, eff. May 1, 1981.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-9 Financial disclosure statements as public records

Financial disclosure statements required to be filed pursuant to this act shall be public records. The commission shall make the statements available to any person upon written request. The statements shall be available for examination and copying during the normal business hours of the commission. No fee shall be charged for the inspection of the statements, but a fee, equal to the cost of copying, may be charged for the use of equipment to copy the statements and a reasonable charge may be imposed for the performance of copying services by personnel of the commission when the person desiring copies requests that assistance. L.1981, c. 129, s. 9, eff. May 1, 1981.

N.J. Stat. § 19:44B-10 Use in investigations and production in evidence

A financial disclosure statement filed pursuant to this act may be used by the commission in the course of its investigation of any alleged violation of provisions of this act and may be produced as evidence in any hearing conducted by the commission concerning a violation. L.1981, c. 129, s. 10, eff. May 1, 1981.

Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/legislative-activity/statutesFetched: 10/17/2026