No contribution or solicitation of contributions made prior
to the effective date of this chapter shall be considered a violation
of this chapter.
No contract subject to this chapter may be renewed, extended,
or materially modified unless the resulting renewal, extension, or
modification would be allowable under the provisions of this chapter
if it were an initial contract.
A business entity that is a party to a contract for professional services or extraordinary unspecified services may cure a violation of Section
51-1 of this chapter, if, within 30 days after the date on which the applicable ELEC report is published, said business entity notifies the municipality in writing and seeks and receives reimbursement of the contribution from the recipient such contribution.
The contribution limitations prior to entering into a contract in Section
51-1D do not apply to contracts which (i) are awarded to the lowest responsible bidder after public advertising for bids and bidding therefore within the meaning of N.J.S.A. 40A:11-4, or (ii) are awarded in the case of emergency under N.J.S.A. 40A:11-6. There is no exemption for contracts awarded pursuant to a "Fair and Open Process" under N.J.S.A. 19:44A-20 et seq.
In addition to any rights that were heretofore available, or
which may hereafter be available, to citizens, taxpayers, or associations,
to challenge violations of this chapter, every person aggrieved by
a violation of the chapter, or any taxpayer or resident of the Borough
of Lawnside has the right, consistent with the Rules of Court, to
file charges in a court of competent jurisdiction, and/or to pursue
a civil action for a violation of this chapter in a court of competent
jurisdiction and to seek and obtain declaratory, injunctive, or other
legal or equitable relief, including but not limited to attorneys'
fees and costs, arising from or related to a violation of this chapter.
If any provision of this chapter, or the application of any
such provision to any person or circumstances, shall be held invalid,
the remainder of this chapter to the extent it can be given effect,
or the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other
than those to which it is held invalid shall not be affected thereby,
and to this extent the provisions of this chapter are severable. The
drafters of this chapter, the persons signing the petition in support
of this chapter, and the persons who cast votes in favor of this chapter,
declare that they would have supported the chapter and each section,
subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or provision or supported the
chapter and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or
provision or application thereof, irrespective of the fact that any
one or more other sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases,
or provisions or applications thereof may be held invalid.