There is hereby created a Washington Township Open Space Trust
Fund, whose purposes are set forth below.
The purposes of the Washington Township Open Space Trust Fund
are as follows:
A. To acquire/develop lands/properties within the Township for recreation
(active and/or passive) and conservation purposes.
B. To assist in the preservation of farmland within the Township wherein
there is a funding necessity, either through matching grants for farmland
preservation/acquisition or through funding for the reservation of
farming privileges and/or the acquisition of development rights as
established by state law or the Warren County Board of Chosen Freeholders
or their designees.
C. To preserve historic properties, either through direct acquisition
or providing matching funding for grants and/or loans.
D. To provide funding for the payment of debt service related to appropriations in accordance with Subsections
A through
C above.
The funding source for the Township Open Space Trust Fund shall
be the establishment of a separate Township tax line item at an annual
rate not to exceed $0.02 per $100 of ratables for each and every taxable
property located within the Township. The rate shall be set every
year by the Township Committee, by resolution, during the existence
of the Township Open Space Trust Fund, no later than the meeting at
which Township budget shall be introduced. The Township Chief Financial
Officer, the Township Auditor, the Tax Collector and the Township
Tax Assessor shall assist the Township Committee in the annual creation
and collection of this open space tax.
The determination of how the Township Open Space Trust Fund
shall be expended at any time shall be at the sole discretion of the
Township Committee and they shall be the final determiners of the
allocation(s) of the Trust Fund during its existence.
The provisions for taxation to create and fund Open Space Trust
Fund and the existence of the Township Open Space Trust Fund shall
cease to exist at the close of business on December 31, 2024, unless
the Township Committee extends the duration of this chapter by the
close of business on December 31, 2023.