[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of the City of Union City by Ord. No. 1999-22 as § 13-18 of the 1996 Revised General Ordinances, as amended through Ord. No. 2001-14. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
A. 
The City, pursuant to law, recognizes that there are residential tenancies which constitute illegal occupancies due to building conditions, which violate zoning and/or housing codes of the state and/or City, causing relocation of tenants as well as demolition of premises which are caused by substantial violations of state and City law.
B. 
The existence of such issues requires the displacement of the building tenants.
C. 
In the event that displacement of the tenants results for any reason, the building owner/landlord is liable to the tenants for relocation costs.
D. 
The City is authorized, pursuant to law, to establish a revolving relocation assistance fund, out of which relocation assistance may be paid to the displaced tenants in the event the owner fails to provide same.
E. 
All relocation assistance costs incurred by the City, pursuant to law, shall be repaid by the owner/landlord of the building to the City, and such repayments shall be deposited into the City's revolving relocation assistance fund.
F. 
In addition to requiring reimbursement for relocation assistance paid to the displaced tenants from the building owner, the City shall require that an additional fine for zoning and housing code violations for illegal occupancies shall be imposed against the building owner/landlord in an amount not to exceed six times the monthly rental paid by each of the displaced persons, and such amount shall be deposited into the City's revolving relocation assistance fund.
The City does hereby require that any tenant who receives a notice of eviction, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.2, as may be amended and supplemented from time to time, that results from a zoning or code enforcement activity for an illegal occupancy which the landlord must correct, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1g, or as a result of being cited by local or state housing inspectors or zoning officers, and it is unfeasible to correct such illegal occupancy without removing the tenant, shall be considered a displaced person and entitled to relocation assistance in an amount equal to six times the monthly rental paid by the displaced person. The owner/landlord of the structure/building shall be liable for the payment of such relocation assistance.
A. 
The City may pay relocation assistance from the City's relocation assistance fund to any displaced person who has not received the required payment from the owner/landlord of the structure at the time of eviction.
B. 
All relocation assistance costs incurred by a municipality pursuant to this chapter shall be repaid by the owner/landlord of the structure to the municipality in the same manner as relocation costs are billed pursuant to N.J.S.A. 20:4-4.1 and 20:4-4.2.
C. 
All repayments shall be deposited into the City's relocation assistance fund.
D. 
The Community Development Agency pays for relocation expenses if there is a fire or building code violation. Repayment shall be made to the Community Development Agency for costs it pays.
[Added 5-21-2013]
A. 
The City does hereby establish a relocation assistance fund into which shall be deposited the following sums less any money required to be repaid to the state. The sums to be deposited are:
(1) 
Any relocation costs and the interest thereon paid by an owner of real property who has been liable for a civil or criminal penalty in the case of any displacement of persons by housing or construction code enforcement pursuant to law.
(2) 
Any sums realized by the City upon enforcement of the City's liens or liquidation of any property acquired by virtue of enforcement pursuant to law.
(3) 
Any sums realized by the City relating to any relocation cost and interest thereon upon enforcement or liquidation of any property acquired by virtue of enforcement and collected pursuant to law.
B. 
Money appropriated from this section shall be used by the City to provide relocation assistance pursuant to law.
A. 
The City, in addition to requiring reimbursement from the owner/landlord of the structure for relocation assistance paid to a displaced tenant, shall require that an additional fine for zoning or housing code violations for an illegal occupancy, up to an amount to six times the monthly rental paid by the displaced person, be paid to the City by the owner of the structure.
B. 
The City, after a hearing, may impose upon the owner/landlord, for a second or subsequent violation for an illegal occupancy, a fine equal to the annual tuition cost of any resident of the illegally occupied unit attending a public school, which fine shall be recovered in a civil action by a summary proceeding in the name of the City, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:58-10 et seq.
C. 
The Municipal Court and the Superior Court shall have jurisdiction of proceedings for the enforcement of the penalty provided by this section, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1g.
For the purposes of this chapter only, the owner of a structure shall exclude mortgagees in possession of a structure through foreclosure.