[Added 12-28-2006 by Ord. No. 2150]
It is the express intention of this article to prohibit certain
municipal contracts with persons, firms, corporations and any other
entities who or which have directly or indirectly given substantial
support to the candidacy of an elective municipal official of the
Borough of Hasbrouck Heights whose duty it is to impartially award
and/or ensure the performance of such contracts regardless of the
manner in which such contracts may be awarded and, further, to prohibit
those contractors and others on their behalf from making certain substantial
donations which directly or indirectly support the candidacy of those
elective municipal officials. It is the further express intention
of this article that, in respect to certain contracts, the loophole
in the current state law in respect to indirect or so-called "pass
through" contributions be closed and that the exemption in the current
state law from limitation on contractors whose contracts are awarded
pursuant to the so-called "fair and open" process be eliminated in
the Borough of Hasbrouck Heights.
A.Â
ENTITY
PERSON
POLITICAL CONTRIBUTION
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONTRACTS
For the purposes of the article, the following words and/or phrases
shall be defined as follows:
Any business, proprietorship, company, partnership, firm,
association, corporation, trust, joint venture or any other legal
entity and shall include any subsidiary or parent of any of them,
any partner in any of them, or any "person" as defined herein or other
entity having an ownership interest of 10% in any of them, all of
whom or of which shall be presumed to be acting for the purposes of
this article on behalf of that entity.
Any individual and shall include any spouse, child, parent,
legal guardian or in-law of that person, any individual who cohabits
with that person, any business or professional partner of that person,
any employer or employee of that person, or any entity as herein defined
in which that person has an ownership interest therein of 10% or greater,
all of whom or of which shall be presumed to be acting for the purposes
of this article on behalf of that person.
Any contribution or donation of money or any other thing
of value, including, but not limited to, in-kind contributions, pledges
to contribute, guarantees of repayment, assumptions of liability,
purchases of tickets, advertisements or other things sold for the
purpose of raising campaign funds or any like contribution or donation
which supports the candidacy of a candidate or group of candidates
for elective office in the municipal government of the Borough of
Hasbrouck Heights or supports any fund, committee, political action
committee, political organization or political party committee which
directly supports such candidacy or which indirectly supports such
candidacy by supporting any fund, committee, political action committee,
political organization or political party committee supporting such
candidacy. Any person or entity having made such contribution or donation
shall be responsible to determine and shall be presumed to have known
the purpose of the same.
As defined in the Local Public Contracts Regulations adopted
by the Division of Local Government Services of the New Jersey Department
of Community Affairs then in effect at the time and shall include
contracts for "extraordinary, unspecifiable services" as those services
are then therein defined.
B.Â
All other words and/or phrases in this article shall be defined as
contained in the aforesaid Regulations, the Local Public Contracts
Law and the New Jersey Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Reporting
Act.
The Borough of Hasbrouck Heights and any of its municipal agencies
and/or instrumentalities shall not enter into any professional services
contracts as hereinbefore defined having an anticipated value in excess
of $17,500, as determined in advance by the Chief Financial Officer
of this Borough, regardless of whether pursuant to a fair and open
process, with any person who or business entity which has made a political
contribution or contributions as hereinbefore defined that is or that
totals a reportable contribution pursuant to the New Jersey Campaign
Contributions and Expenditures Reporting Act within one year preceding
the proposed award of contract.
No person who or business which has entered into any professional
services contract as hereinbefore defined with the Borough of Hasbrouck
Heights or any of its municipal agencies and/or instrumentalities
which contract was anticipated by the Chief Financial Officer to have
or which contract has a value in excess of $17,500, regardless of
whether such contract was entered into pursuant to a fair and open
process, shall make a political contribution or contributions as hereinbefore
defined that is or that totals a reportable contribution pursuant
to the New Jersey Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Reporting
Act during the term of that contract.
[Amended 12-14-2010 by Ord. No. 2249]
Any candidate seeking election to the office of Mayor or member
of the Borough Council of the Borough of Hasbrouck Heights shall be
required to file in the office of the Clerk of the Borough of Hasbrouck
Heights a true copy of any report that such candidate is required
to file in accordance with the New Jersey Campaign Contributions and
Expenditures Reporting Act simultaneous to its filing with the New
Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission. The Borough Clerk shall
maintain such copy and make the same available to inspection by the
public during the regular business hours of the Clerk’s office.
Failure to file such copy of any said report in accordance herewith
shall constitute a violation of this article.
For a violation of any provision of this article, unless otherwise
provided by law, any person, firm, association, partnership or corporation
so violating shall, upon conviction, be subject to one or more of
the following: a fine not exceeding $1,250, imprisonment in the county
jail for a term not exceeding 90 days or a period of community service
not exceeding 90 days, all of the aforesaid, however, being in the
discretion of the Judge or other officer having jurisdiction. Any
person who is convicted of violating this article within one year
of the date of a previous violation of the same article and who was
fined for the previous violation shall be sentenced by a court to
an additional penalty or fine as a repeat offender. The additional
penalty or fine imposed by the court upon a person for a repeated
offense shall be calculated separately from the penalty or fine imposed
for the violation of the article.
