The Borough of Haddon Heights hereby established a policy of
the Borough to set maximum dollar amounts that professional business
entities may contribute politically, beyond which they become ineligible
to receive a public professional service contract from the Borough,
as well as the Borough's policy to prohibit professional business
entities which are performing or being paid under existing contracts
with the Borough from making political contributions in amounts that
exceed to Borough's limits on political contributions by professionals.
The Borough also hereby establishes a policy prohibiting the transfer
or wheeling of political contributions by professionals to candidates
of municipal political committees who are not affiliated with the
Borough of Haddon Heights.
For purposes of this article, the terms used herein shall be
given the broadest possible meaning in order to effectuate the policy
objectives stated and adopted. Certain specific terms used shall have
the following meanings:
CONTRIBUTING
The act of giving money or providing in-kind contributions
to aid a municipal political candidate or any of the political party
committees or PACs otherwise referenced in this section.
CONTRIBUTIONS
Shall be given the same meaning and use generally utilized
by the Election Law Enforcement Commission of the State of New Jersey
under the statutes and regulations governing that agency. The term
shall include, but not be limited to, payments or donations of money
and in-kind contributions.
PAC or PACs
The term "PAC" or "PACs" are abbreviations for "political
action committee" or "political action committees," respectively.
The terms refer to organizations that regularly engage in, or whose
primary purpose is, the support of municipal elections and/or municipal
parties in excess of the thresholds specified in this article. The
foregoing shall be limited to organizations and entities which support
or oppose Haddon Heights Borough candidates for Mayor or Council,
or which engage in political activities in support or opposition to
candidates for Haddon Heights Borough Mayor or Council.
PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS ENTITIES
A professional business entity seeking a public contract
means individuals and firms engaged in the rendering of legal services,
engineering services, survey work, architectural services, planning
services, design services, financial consulting and other consulting
work, auditing, accounting, appraisal services, insurance services
and banking. If a professional business entity is an individual, the
definition includes the individual and individual's spouse, if
any, and any child living at home. "Professional business entities"
also include firms, corporations, professional corporations, partnerships,
business organizations, and/or business associations who provide professional
services, where those professional services are exempt from public
bidding for public contracts pursuant to the Local Public Contract
Law.
No contributions of money or any other thing of value, including
in-kind contributions, made by a professional business entity to any
municipal candidate for Mayor or Council Candidate, or Haddon Heights
Borough political party committee or PAC referenced in this article
shall be deemed a violation of this article, nor shall an agreement
for property, goods, or services, of any kind whatsoever, be disqualified
thereby, if that contribution was made by the professional business
entity prior to the effective date of this article.
A professional business entity or Borough candidate or officeholder
or Haddon Heights Borough political party committee or PAC referenced
in this article may cure a violation of this article, if, within 90
days after the date on which the applicable ELEC report is published,
the professional business entity notifies the Borough committee, in
writing, and seeks and receives reimbursement of a contribution from
Haddon Heights Borough candidate or political party committee or PAC
referenced in this article.
A candidate for Mayor or Council shall not make a contribution
to any other candidate committee or municipal party committee not
affiliated with the Borough of Haddon Heights; nor shall any such
candidate accept a contribution from any other candidate committee
or municipal party committee not affiliated with the Borough of Haddon
Heights.
It is the purpose of this article that, notwithstanding that
professional services contracts and certain other contracts for goods
and services are exempt from the competitive bidding requirements
of the Local Public Contracts Law, N.J.S.A. 40A:11-1 et seq., the
Mayor and Council deem it appropriate, and consistent with the provisions
of the New Jersey legislation, now codified at N.J.S.A. 19:44A-20.1
et seq., to award such contracts through a competitive, quality-based,
fair and open process.
The Borough of Haddon Heights, or any agency or instrumentality
thereof, shall not enter into a contract including a professional
services contract, or such other contract, which is exempt from public
bidding requirements, having an anticipated value in excess of $17,500
as determined by the municipality, agency or instrumentality, with
a business entity, except a contract that is awarded pursuant to a
fair and open process if, during the preceding one-year period, that
business entity has made a contribution that is reportable by the
recipient under N.J.S.A. 19:44a-1 et seq., to any municipal committee
of a political party in that municipality if a member of that political
party is serving in an elected public office of that municipality
when the contract is awarded or to any candidate committee of any
person serving in an elected public office of that municipality when
the contract is awarded. The fair and open process shall be quality-based
and shall be as follows:
A. Professional services may be awarded by virtue of a publicly advertised
request for qualification ("RFQ") and/or request for proposal ("RFP")
which will be issued as one document for those appointments which
are made on an annual basis.
B. For said positions, no contract shall be awarded, unless and until
the positions are:
(1) Publicly advertised in newspapers in sufficient time to give notice
in advance of the solicitation for contracts;
(2) Awarded under a process that provides for public solicitation of
proposals and qualifications;
(3) Awarded and disclosed under criteria established, in writing, by
the Borough of Haddon Heights prior to the solicitation of proposals
or qualifications; and
(4) Publicly announces when awarded; and as to those RFQs and RFPs which
prove to be unsuccessful, the Municipal Clerk shall a copy of same
on file for a period of not less than 60 days.
C. For contracts
which arise on an occasional basis, such as appraisers needed or acquisition
of farmland and/or open space, as well as title searches, surveying,
and similar work associated with same; and comparable assignments,
such as planning services needed for Master Plan updates, appraisals,
special counsel, special project engineer contracts, etc., professional
services contracts may be awarded without following the foregoing
provisions, so long as:
(1) The
anticipated value does not exceed the threshold of $17,500 set forth
above; and
(2) The
Borough Clerk or qualified purchasing agent makes every effort to
solicit at least two proposals for said work.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Mayor and Council recognizes
that the New Jersey legislature has provided for the occurrence of
certain emergencies, and further recognizes that, therefore, the procedure
outlined above might not be capable of being achieved in the event
of an emergency or similar time constraints. Thus, should a situation
arise, and time does not permit to resort to this procedure, and the
immediate performance of service is necessary, then an award for same
may be made in accordance with the provisions of the Local Public
Contracts Law relating to emergency contracts, and such rules and regulations
as may be promulgated, from time to time, by the Mayor and Council
with regard to same. No such emergency contracts, however, may be
awarded without submission to the Borough Clerk of a certification
establishing a basis for the deviation from the procedures outlined
herein.