There is hereby created a Rent Leveling and Stabilization Board to administer this chapter under the direction and supervision of the Department of Administration of the City of Hoboken. The Board shall consist of seven members appointed by the Mayor with the consent of the Municipal Council. Said members of said Leveling and Stabilization Board shall serve during the term of the Mayor appointing them and shall serve without compensation but shall be allowed reasonable expenses. A quorum for hearing shall consist of at least four members (a majority) of the whole Board and shall be authorized to issue orders relating to the powers and functions of the Rent Leveling and Stabilization Board. Two alternate members shall also be appointed by the Mayor with the consent of the Council.
[Amended 3-2-2011 by Ord. No. Z-88]
The Rent Leveling and Stabilization Board shall have the right to exercise, in addition to other powers herein granted, all powers necessary and appropriate to carry out and execute the purpose of this entire chapter, including the right to the exercise of equitable authority to depart from the strict interpretation of the provisions of this chapter in instances where fairness requires equitable intervention. These powers of equity, however, do not permit the Rent Leveling and Stabilization Board to act in contravention to the purposes of this chapter nor in an arbitrary, capricious or unreasonable manner. Notwithstanding this general power of equity, the Rent Leveling and Stabilization Board shall also have the following powers:
A.
The Rent Leveling Board may consider regulations as it deems necessary to implement the purposes of this chapter. Any such regulations shall be submitted for consideration to the Administration, under its management and supervisory authority over the Board, and for legal review by the Office of the Corporation Counsel prior to being presented for a vote by the Board. In the event any such regulation is approved by the Administration and the Office of the Corporation Counsel, such regulation shall be properly promulgated if the Board chooses to act upon it by a vote of the Board. If such an approved regulation passes by majority vote of a quorum, it shall have the force of law.
[Amended 2-1-2023 by Ord. No. B-532]
B.
To supply information and assistance to landlords and tenants to help them comply with the provision of this chapter.
C.
To hold hearings and adjudicate applications from landlord/tenants pursuant to this chapter.
D.
Said Board shall give both landlord and tenant reasonable opportunity to be heard before making any determination, with or without counsel. All determinations shall be in writing with copies to any parties of record.
E.
Both landlord and tenant may appeal the findings of the Board to a court of competent jurisdiction according to law.
F.
To issue subpoenas for the production of information which the Rent Control Board deems necessary and proper to determine the application.
G.
To require the production of books, records, tax returns, balance sheets, profit and loss statements and such other records as the Board may require and deem necessary for its determination.
[Amended 2-21-1988 by Ord. No. P-27; 2-15-1989 by Ord. No. P-42; 3-16-1994 by Ord. No. R-37; 10-19-2005 by Ord. No. DR-208; 2-1-2023 by Ord. No. B-532; 4-3-2023 by Ord. No. B-549; 7-9-2025 by Ord. No. B-784]
A.
The following fees shall apply to all applications or other proceedings of the Rent Leveling and Stabilization Board and Rent Regulation Officer:
(1)
Capital improvement surcharge: $100.
(2)
(Reserved)
(3)
(Reserved)
(5)
All rent-controlled properties must pay a $50 annual registration fee; those properties with nine or fewer units will pay $10 additional per unit, and properties with 10 or more units will pay $15 additional per unit.
(6)
Inspection and/or issuance of certificates of substantial compliance by the office of the Construction Officer (per apartment unit): $25.
(7)
Building vacant since January 1, 1984: $50.
(8)
Hardship increase application: $50.
(9)
Appeal from Rent Regulation Officer to Board: $50.
(10)
Vacancy decontrol filing: $50.
B.
A single application may be filed for several apartments in the same building for which similar or substantially identical facts are involved. Fees shall be paid only by check or money order, payable to the City of Hoboken. No cash shall be accepted.
[Amended 2-7-2024 by Ord. No. B-637]
A violation of any provisions of this Chapter 155 shall be punishable in accordance with N.J.S.A. 40:49-5, including but not limited to a fine not exceeding $2,000. Each dwelling unit shall constitute a separate and distinct violation. A separate and distinct violation shall be deemed to occur each time that rent or other payment is demanded and/or paid in violation of this chapter per each dwelling unit. Any person or entity convicted of violating this chapter within one year of the date of a previous violation of the same section of this chapter, and who was fined for the previous violation, shall be sentenced by the Hoboken Municipal Court to an additional fine as a repeat offender. The additional fine imposed by the Hoboken Municipal Court upon a person for a repeated offense shall not exceed the maximum fine fixed for a violation of this chapter but shall be calculated separately from the fine imposed for the violation of this chapter.
[Amended 2-7-2024 by Ord. No. B-637]
Alleged violations of this chapter shall be brought by the Rent Regulation Officer to the Hoboken Municipal Court for adjudication.
[Amended 7-9-2025 by Ord. No. B-782]
A.
All determinations made by the Rent Regulation Officer are appealable to the Board. The burden of said appeal is on the appellant, who must demonstrate that the Officer's determination was in error or arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable. Said request for an appeal must be formally initiated with the Rent Control Office within 20 days of the rent Regulation Officer's disseminating a determination so that a hearing can be scheduled before the Board.
(1)
Appeal of a determination. Any appeal challenging a Rent Regulation Officer's determination must include those documents that were originally submitted to the Rent Regulation Officer related to the determination, a written statement explaining the basis for the appeal, and a copy of the Rent Regulation Officer's decision related to the determination. New information that was not provided to the Rent Regulation Officer prior to a determination may be considered in the appeal of the determination, but its probative value should be downgraded based on the availability of the information at the time of the determination and the circumstances surrounding it not being provided at that time. The appellant must fulfill these documentary requirements within 30 days of formally initiating the request for appeal; otherwise, the appeal will be dismissed for lack of prosecution. Standing to challenge a Rent Regulation Officer's determination shall be narrowly construed such that the party must have a sufficient connection to the determination that it will suffer actual harm (e.g., a landlord or a tenant directly related to the determination would have standing).
(2)
Application and submission requirements. The above-described documents submitted by the appellant for a hearing before the Board shall be submitted electronically as one PDF document with a table of contents and sections bookmarked, as well as nine hard copies, each with a table of contents and sections physically bookmarked (e.g., tabs or dividers). Submissions must include all underlying documentation supporting the application or appeal. The appellant is responsible for ensuring that the submission is organized in a manner that allows the Board to efficiently locate and review the relevant information. The appellant.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: So in original.
(3)
Submission deadlines. All applications, supporting documents, and any evidence to be relied upon at the hearing must be submitted to the Rent Control Office no less than two weeks prior to the hearing date. Failure to comply with these timing requirements may result in the submitted documents being excluded from consideration.
(4)
Notice of interested parties. The appellant shall deliver to an interested party with standing (e.g., the tenant or landlord of a unit) involved in the appeal the complete application and supporting documentation at least one week prior to the hearing, either via email (preferred) or by certified mail. Proof of service (such as delivery confirmation) to interested parties with standing must be provided to the Board.