[Adopted 4-20-1978 by Ord. No. 472-78,
amended in its entirety 10-6-2016 by Ord. No. 2075-16]
The City Council may enter into agreements with parties for
tax abatements on residential, commercial and industrial improvements
or projects pursuant to the State Constitution, Article VII, Section
1, Paragraph 6, and the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40A:21-1 et seq. providing
for exemption from real property taxation of improvements or projects
for a period of five years.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
That portion of the assessed value of a property as it existed
prior to construction, improvement or conversion of a building or
structure thereon, which is exempted from taxation pursuant to this
article.
The Assessor of the City of Passaic charged with the duty of assessing real property for the purpose of general taxation and appointed pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 9 of Title 40A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Any structure or part thereof used for manufacturing, processing,
assembling, research, office, industrial, commercial, retail, recreational,
hotel or warehousing purposes.
Substantially ready for the intended use for which a building
or structure is constructed, improved or converted.
A building or part of a building used, to be used, or held
for use as a home or residence, including accessory buildings located
on the same premises, together with the land upon which such building
or buildings are erected and which may be necessary for the fair enjoyment
thereof, but shall not include any building or part of a building
encompassing three or more residential dwellings under the Hotel and
Multiple Dwelling Law (N.J.S.A. 55:13A-1 et seq.). A dwelling shall
include, if they are separately conveyed to individual owners, individual
residences within a cooperative, if purchased separately by the occupants
thereof, and individual residences within a horizontal property regime
or a condominium, but shall not include general common elements or
common elements of such horizontal properties, regime or condominium
or of a cooperative if the residential units are owned separately.
The modernization, rehabilitation, renovation, alteration
or repair of a residential, commercial or industrial structure that
does not increase the volume of the structure by more than 30%.
The construction of a new facility or facilities to be used
or occupied by any person for the manufacturing, processing or assembly
of material or manufactured products or for research, office, industrial,
commercial, retail, recreational or hotel or motel facilities or warehousing
or for any combination thereof and which the governing body determines
will tend to maintain or provide gainful employment within the municipality,
assist in the economic development of the municipality, maintain or
increase the tax base of the municipality and maintain or diversify
and expand commerce within the municipality. "Project" shall also
mean an enlargement of the volume of an existing structure by more
than 30%. "Project" shall not include any facility or facilities which
are the result of a removal of a facility from any other qualifying
municipality.
The following procedures shall govern agreements for tax abatement
entered into by the City Council and developers:
A.
Improvements.
(1)
All improvements, as defined in N.J.S.A. 40A:21-3, shall be eligible
for exemption from local real property taxes, if approved by the Tax
Assessor after proper application has been made. Application shall
be upon the form approved by the Director of the Division of Taxation,
in the Department of the Treasury.
(2)
Application time limits; effective date; tax record; assessment provisions.
(a)
Applicants shall be encouraged to apply for tax exemption on
improvements prior to the commencement of construction of the improvement,
provided that the applicant must file a proper application with the
Tax Assessor within 30 days, including Saturdays and Sundays, following
the completion of the improvement or the effective date of this article,
whichever is later. An abatement that is granted shall take effect
upon the issuance of the Tax Assessor's notice of substantial
completion to the owner, and it shall be recorded and made a permanent
part of the official tax records of the taxing district, which record
shall contain a notice of the termination date of the abatement.
[Amended 12-5-2017 by Ord. No. 2135-17]
(b)
The added assessment provisions of Section 3 of P.L. 1941, c.
397 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-63.3) and the omitted assessment provisions of
Section 9 of P.L. 1947, c. 413 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-63.20) and Section 1
of P.L. 1968, c. 184 (N.J.S.A. 54:4-63.33) shall not be applicable
to any property for which the owner-occupant has been granted a tax
abatement under this article (N.J.S.A. 40A:21-1 et seq.).
(3)
Every properly completed application for exemption of one or more
improvements which is filed within 30 days of the completion of the
improvement shall be allowed by the Assessor not later than 30 days
of its filing.
B.
Projects.
(1)
Applicants for a tax abatement on projects shall provide the City
Council with an application setting forth the following information,
if applicable to that project:
(a)
A general description of the project for which abatement is
sought.
(b)
A legal description of all real estate necessary for the project.
(c)
Plans, drawings and other documents as may be required by the
City Council to demonstrate the structure and design of the project.
(d)
A description of the number, classes and types of employees
to be employed at the project site within two years of completion
of the project.
(e)
A statement of the reasons for seeking tax abatement on the
project and a description of the benefits to be realized by the applicant
if tax abatement is granted.
(f)
Estimates of the cost of completing such project.
(g)
A statement showing the real property taxes currently being
assessed at the project site, the estimated tax payments that would
be made annually by the applicant on the project during the period
of tax abatement and the estimated tax payments that would be made
by the applicant on the project during the first full year following
the termination of the tax abatement agreement.
(h)
A description of any lease agreements between the applicant
and proposed users of the project and the history and description
of the user's business.
(i)
Such other pertinent information as the City Council may require.
(2)
Upon approval of an ordinance authorizing an agreement for tax abatement
for a particular project, the City Council shall enter into a written
agreement with the applicant for the abatement of local real property
taxes. The agreement shall provide for the applicant to pay to the
City of Passaic, in lieu of full property tax payments, an amount
annually to be computed by using either, but not a combination, of
the formulas set out in N.J.S.A. 40A:20-10 et seq. Such agreements
may also provide for tax phase-in pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:20-10 et
seq. All tax abatement agreements hereunder shall be in effect for
a period of not more than five years, starting with the date of completion
of the project, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:21-1 et seq.
(3)
No abatement shall be granted with respect to any property for which
property taxes are delinquent or remain unpaid or for which penalties
for nonpayment of taxes are due (N.J.S.A. 40A:20-1 et seq.). Moreover,
it is the express intention of this article that, if a property owner
files a municipal tax appeal during any time period of the tax abatement
in question, said tax abatement agreement shall become null and void.
Thereafter, the abated property shall be assessed free and clear of
the abatement municipal agreement.
