WHEREAS, under the New Jersey Municipal Services Act, N.J.S.A.
40:67-23.2 et seq. (the "Act"), municipalities are required to reimburse
residents of qualified private communities for the cost of snow removal,
trash (solid waste) removal and street lighting; and
WHEREAS, the Act requires that a municipality annually reimburse
a qualified private community in an amount not to exceed the cost
that would be incurred by the municipality for not providing services
required under the municipal services act directly;
WHEREAS, the Board of Commissioners would like to establish
a uniform method of calculating the cost of reimbursement related
to the removal of solid waste and recyclable material from qualified
private communities:
Qualified private communities seeking reimbursement for the
removal and transport of solid waste and recyclable materials under
the terms of the Act shall request such reimbursement, in writing,
from the Municipal Administrator.
The Municipal Administrator is hereby authorized to negotiate
agreements for reimbursement of solid waste and recyclable transportation
and/or removal services with qualified private communities as defined
in the Act, such proposed agreements to contain the following terms:
A. The amount of reimbursement for solid waste and recyclable material
transportation and disposal from the qualified private community shall
be based upon the per-household (dwelling unit) cost that the Town
would incur by providing such service to the qualified association.
It shall be determined by calculating what the percentage the number
of households (dwellings/units) in the qualified association is to
the total number of households in West New York as reported by the
United States Census. The amount of reimbursement shall be the product
of that percentage applied to the actual total costs incurred by the
Town to provide such services to all other households throughout the
Town in the preceding fiscal year, but in no event more than the actual
costs incurred by the qualified association seeking reimbursement.
B. Any qualified association seeking reimbursement shall make its books
and records available to the Town for audit as to the actual costs
that it has incurred for the services for which it seeks or has received
reimbursement. Any excess reimbursement received by any association
shall be returned to the Town upon its demand or credited to future
reimbursement payments, at the sole discretion of the Town.
C. No agreement for reimbursement, nor any provision of this article,
shall be construed to affect or limit the obligation of the Town to
collect solid waste and recyclable materials or the terms, conditions
or manner in which the Town of West New York determines to do so whatsoever,
and all agreements entered shall specifically disclaim and waive the
right of any qualified association to claim anything other than the
calculation of reimbursement provided for under the terms of the agreement.
D. Qualified associations, their members, agents and employees shall
be solely responsible for the manner and conditions under which they
provide for the collection of solid waste and recyclable materials,
and nothing in this article nor any agreement entered into with the
Town shall excuse their full compliance with all laws, rules and regulations
pertaining to such activities.
E. Any qualified association entering into a reimbursement agreement
with the Town shall cease to be eligible for reimbursement in the
event that it fails to:
(1) Continue to provide for the removal of solid waste and recyclables;
(2) Comply with applicable health, safety and recycling laws, rules and
regulations on a persistent basis; and
(3) Take necessary steps to cure, and in the future prevent, any health
or safety violation connected with its solid waste or recyclable operations
for which it receives notice of violation.
F. The obligations of the Town for reimbursement shall not exceed the
requirements for reimbursement under the Act, and any future diminution
of such obligations shall entitle the Town to a prospective reduction
in its obligations under any agreement with a qualifying association.
G. Such agreements as negotiated shall be otherwise in accord with the
terms of the article and shall be reviewed and approved by the Town
Attorney.
A copy of an agreement, once negotiated, as set out above, shall
be presented to the Board of Commissioners for approval.
Once approved, the Municipal Administrator is authorized to
execute the agreement, and modify such agreement from time to time,
but in no event more than once annually, based on the actual costs
of transportation and/or removal of solid waste and recyclable material
incurred by the Town, and any changes in the number of households
within the Town, upon a receipt of such request of modification from
the qualified private community.