Pursuant to the Charter, the legislative power of the city will be exercised by the Council.
[Amended 10-7-1980 by Ord. No. 260-80; 6-3-1981 by Ord. No. 273-81; 10-20-1992 by Ord. No. 643-92; 8-6-1996 by Ord. No. 853-96; 7-9-1997 by Ord. No. 901-97; 11-23-1998 by Ord. No. 972-98; 8-9-2000 by Ord. No. 1040-2000; 6-10-2009 by Ord. No. 1468-2009; 9-8-2010 by Ord. No. 1525-2010]
A. 
The regular meetings of the Council will be held on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m., except during July, August and December when regular meetings will be held on the second Wednesday only, provided that, when any such day falls upon a legal holiday, the meeting shall be held at a time pursuant to the Open Public Meetings Act.
B. 
On the Monday of each week during which a regular meeting of the Council is scheduled, or on the same Wednesday that any regular meeting of the Council is scheduled, the Council will hold a caucus meeting commencing at 5:30 p.m. for the purpose of discussing municipal matters. At a caucus meeting, the Council may move into closed session to discuss any matter from which the public may be excluded pursuant to the Open Public Meeting Act. The City Council reserves the right to take action at a caucus meeting in accordance with the terms of the Open Public Meetings should circumstances warrant it.[1] The City Council reserves the right to take action at a caucus meeting in accordance with the terms of the Open Public Meetings Act should circumstances warrant it.
[Amended 1-26-2011 by Ord. No. 1542-2011; 1-25-2021 by Ord. No. 1962-2021; 1-25-2023 by Ord. No. 2072-2022]
[1]
Editor's Note: See N.J.S.A. 10:4-6 et seq.
C. 
(Reserved)
[Repealed 1-26-2011 by Ord. No. 1542-2011]
[Amended 10-20-1992 by Ord. No. 643-92]
As provided by the Charter, the Mayor may, and upon written request of a majority of the Council members shall, call a special meeting of the Council. The President of the Council may also call a special meeting of the Council whenever the President deems it necessary. The call shall designate the purpose of the special meeting, and no other business shall be considered at such meeting. The call for a special meeting by the Mayor, Council members or President of Council shall be filed with the Municipal Clerk during regular business hours at least forty-eight (48) hours before the time for which the meeting is called, and the Clerk shall forthwith serve notice thereof upon each of the Council members by leaving a copy of the call at their respective residences and by telephone communication, if possible, at such place as each Council member may designate in writing. The Clerk shall also forthwith release copies of the call to the press and post at least one (1) copy in a prominent place near the entrance to the Clerk's office.
Regular and special meetings of the Council shall be held either in City Hall or in a public school building as determined by Council by resolution adopted prior to the meeting, except that a meeting may be adjourned from one place to another whenever Council determines that the convenience of the citizens present would be served by such move.
[Amended 12-10-2003 by Ord. No. 1227-2003]
All meetings of the Council shall be open to the public. The Council may also hold informal conferences at such other times and places as it may determine, and attendance at such conferences shall be limited to such persons as the Council may authorize.
[Added 10-13-2010 by Ord. No. 1530-2010]
Every member of the Perth Amboy City Council shall be required to attend training as a member of a municipal governing body in the State of New Jersey, consisting of at least the following:
A. 
Within twelve (12) months of assuming office, or within six (6) months of the effective date of this ordinance, (i) newly elected official training offered by the New Jersey League of Municipalities; (ii) powers and duties of local elected officials training offered by the Center for Government Services of Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, or a comparable program offered by an accredited institution in the State of New Jersey.
B. 
An annual update or seminar for municipal officials offered by the New Jersey League of Municipalities or comparable institution during each subsequent year in office.
[Added 10-13-2010 by Ord. No. 1530-2010]
Each member of the City Council shall annually file with the City Clerk written proof of attendance at the required training.
[Amended 10-20-1992 by Ord. No. 643-92]
A. 
Pursuant to the Charter, the Council, at its organizational meeting after each election for Council members, shall elect a President of the Council from among its members to serve until the election and qualification of a successor. In the absence of the President of the Council, the Council shall elect a temporary presiding officer, who shall have all the functions, powers and duties of the President during the absence.
B. 
The President of the Council shall preside at its meetings. The President shall preserve order and decorum at all meetings of the Council. The President shall state every question coming before the Council, announce the decisions of the Council and decide all questions of order, subject to appeal to the Council. The President may vote on all questions and shall be called last. The President shall appoint all special committees of the Council and shall sign all ordinances and resolutions adopted by the Council during the President's presence.
[Amended 10-20-1992 by Ord. No. 643-92]
The City Clerk shall serve as Clerk of the Council, keep a journal of Council proceedings and record the minutes of every meeting. The Clerk shall have such other functions, powers and duties as are provided by the code.
There shall be no standing committee of the Council other than the committee of the whole. The President of the Council shall be the presiding officer of the committee of the whole, and the rules of procedure in the Council shall be observed in the committee of the whole as far as the same may be applicable.
A. 
All ordinances shall be prepared by the Department of Law upon direction of the Council or the Mayor. Prior to introduction, each proposed ordinance requiring or permitting administrative action shall be submitted to the Business Administrator and the department head concerned, each of whom shall submit to the Council an opinion as to the administrative implications of the proposed ordinance or resolution.
B. 
An ordinance or resolution may be introduced by any member of the Council. Each ordinance and resolution shall be limited to a single object, which shall be expressed in its title. After the first reading of an ordinance, it shall be referred to the committee of the whole. Each resolution shall also be referred to the committee of the whole upon its introduction unless the Council shall provide for its immediate passage.
C. 
All ordinances shall be introduced, read, heard and enacted in the manner provided by general law. Each ordinance passed by the Council shall be promptly delivered by the Clerk to the Mayor. Each ordinance shall be returned by the Mayor to the Clerk after the Mayor has affixed his signature thereto or after the expiration of 10 days from the date of its delivery to the Mayor in any event.
D. 
No ordinance other than the local budget ordinance shall take effect less than 20 days after its final passage by Council and approval by the Mayor, where such approval is required, unless the Council shall adopt a resolution declaring an emergency and at least four of the Council members vote in favor of such resolution.
[Amended 10-20-1992 by Ord. No. 643-92]
The Council will reconsider any ordinance returned by the Mayor without his approval, pursuant to the charter. Such reconsideration of the ordinance or any item or part thereof from which the Mayor is constrained to withhold his approval shall be at the next meeting of Council which (occurs not less than three (3) nor more than thirty (30) days following the return of the ordinance by the Mayor. Whenever an ordinance has been reconsidered by the Council following a veto by the Mayor, the Clerk shall append to such ordinance a certification of the action of the Council upon such reconsideration in substantially the following form:
I HEREBY CERTIFY that the above ordinance adopted by the Council on the ………. day of .......... 19 ..... was delivered to the Mayor on the …….. day of …………… 19…… and was returned to me on the ……. day of ……………………, together with the Mayor's statement of the reasons for which he was constrained to withhold his approval of such ordinance. item or part thereof. On reconsideration thereof on the ………… day of …………, (the Council duly resolved by the affirmative vote of 4 of its members to enact such ordinance, item or part thereof notwithstanding the Mayor's veto) or (the Mayor's veto was sustained).
Dated:
Clerk
Whenever an ordinance shall take effect without the Mayor's signature by reason of his failure to return it to the Council by filing it with the Clerk within ten (10) days after it has been presented to him, the Clerk shall append to such ordinance as engrossed a certificate in substantially the following form:
I HEREBY CERTIFY that the above ordinance was adopted by the Council on the ……….. day of ……….. 19…... and was presented to the Mayor duly certified on the .............. day of …………………… and upon his failure to sign it or to return and file it with the Clerk within 10 days thereafter, the said ordinance took effect in like manner as if the Mayor had signed it.
Dated:
Clerk
A. 
Nominations submitted by the Mayor will be considered in committee of the whole at an agenda conference and may be reported to the Council at a regular meeting. Any member of the Council may move a nomination.
B. 
With respect to appointments to be made by the Council, any member of the Council may nominate as many candidates as there are offices to be filled. The Council will consider such nominations in committee of the whole, which will report to a regular meeting the Council. Where there is a single office to be filled, the sense of the Council on the appointment shall be taken as to each nominee, and the nominee receiving a majority shall be deemed appointed. Where there is more than one (1) office to be filled, such as on a board, commission or authority, the same procedure shall be followed with respect to each office separately until the total number of appointments to be made has been completed. In the discretion of the chair, a group of nominations may be considered at once where there is no apparent division in the Council as the nominees included in the group.