Exempts certain surviving spouses and surviving civil union partners of certain disabled veterans from components of the realty transfer fee.

A233

ASSEMBLY, No. 233

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman JOHN V. AZZARITI JR., M.D.

District 39 (Bergen)

Assemblyman� GERRY SCHARFENBERGER

District 13 (Monmouth)

SYNOPSIS

���� Exempts certain surviving spouses and surviving civil
union partners of certain disabled veterans from components of the realty
transfer fee.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act

concerning a realty transfer fee exemption for
certain surviving spouses and surviving civil union partners of certain
disabled veterans, amending P.L.1975, c.176 and P.L.2003, c.113.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� Section 4 of P.L.1975,
c.176 (C.46:15-10.1) is amended to read as follows:

���� 4.��� a.� The following
transfers of title to real property shall be exempt from payment of the State
portion of the basic fee:

���� (1)�� The sale of any one- or
two-family residential premises which are owned and occupied by a senior
citizen, blind person or disabled person who is the seller in such transaction;
provided, however, that except in the instance of a husband and wife no exemption
shall be allowed if the property being sold is jointly owned and one or more of
the owners is not a senior citizen, blind person or disabled person.

���� (2)�� The sale of low and
moderate income housing.

����
(3)�� The sale of a one- or
two-family residential premises owned and occupied by the surviving spouse or
surviving civil union partner of a disabled veteran who, at the time of the
disabled veteran�s death, qualified for the property tax exemption provided
pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259 (C.54:4-3.30) for the residential
premises, during the surviving spouse's or surviving civil union partner�s widowhood
or widowerhood.

���� b.��� Transfers of title to
real property upon which there is new construction shall be exempt from
payment, with respect to all consideration therefor up to $150,000.00, of 80%
of the State portion of the basic fee.

���� c.���� (1)� The director shall
promulgate rules, regulations and forms of certification otherwise necessary to
carry out the provisions of this section.

���� (2)�� No transfer shall be
eligible for more than one exemption under this section.

���� d.��� The balance of the State
portion of the basic fee and the additional fee collected on transfers subject
to exemption under subsection b. of this section shall be remitted to the State
Treasurer and shall be credited to the Neighborhood Preservation Nonlapsing
Revolving Fund established pursuant to P.L.1985, c.222 (C.52:27D-301 et al.),
to be spent in the manner established under section 20 thereof (C.52:27D-320).

���� e.���� Subsections a. through
d. of this section shall be without effect on and after the tenth day following
a certification by the Director of the Division of Budget and Accounting in the
Department of the Treasury pursuant to subsection b. of section 2 of P.L.1992,
c.148 (C.46:15-10.2) or subsubparagraph (ii) of subparagraph (b) of paragraph
(2) of subsection b. of section 1 of P.L.1992, c.148 (C.13:19-16.1) as amended.

(cf: P.L.2008, c.31, s.3)

���� 2.��� Section 2 of P.L.2003,
c.113 (C.46:15-7.1) is amended to read as follows:

���� 2.� a.� For each conveyance or
transfer of property, the grantor shall pay a supplemental fee of:

���� (1)�� (a) $0.25 for each
$500.00 of consideration or fractional part thereof not in excess of
$150,000.00 recited in the deed;

���� (b)�� $0.85 for each $500.00
of consideration or fractional part thereof in excess of $150,000.00 but not in
excess of $200,000.00 recited in the deed; and

���� (c)�� $1.40 for each $500.00
of consideration or fractional part thereof in excess of $200,000.00 recited in
the deed, plus

���� (2)�� for a transfer described
in subsection
[
(b)
]

b.
of
section 4 of P.L.1975, c.176 (C.46:15-10.1), an additional $1.00 for each
$500.00 of consideration or fractional part thereof not in excess of
$150,000.00 recited in the deed which fee shall be collected by the county
recording officer at the time the deed is offered for recording, except as
provided by subsection b. of this section.

���� b.��� The supplemental fee
imposed by subsection a. of this section shall not be imposed on a conveyance
or transfer that is made by a deed described in section 6 of P.L.1968, c.49
(C.46:15-10) or on a transfer described in paragraph (1)
[
or
]
,

paragraph (2)
, or paragraph (3)
of subsection
[
(a)
]

a.
of section 4 of
P.L.1975, c.176 (C.46:15-10.1).

���� c.���� The proceeds of the
supplemental fees collected by the county recording officer pursuant to
subsection a. of this section shall be accounted for and remitted to the county
treasurer. An amount equal to $0.25 of the supplemental fee for each $500.00 of
consideration or fractional part thereof recited in the deed so collected
pursuant to this section shall be retained by the county treasurer for the
purposes set forth in subsection d. of this section, and the balance shall be
remitted to the State Treasurer for deposit to the Extraordinary Aid Account,
which shall be established as an account in the General Fund.� Payments shall
be made to the State Treasurer on the tenth day of each month following the
month of collection.

���� d.��� From the proceeds of the
supplemental fees collected by the county recording officer pursuant to
subsection a. of this section and retained by the county treasurer pursuant to
subsection c. of this section, a county that received funding in State fiscal year
2003 for the support of public health services pursuant to the provisions of
the Public Health Priority Funding Act of 1977, P.L.1966, c.36 (C.26:2F-1 et
seq.) shall, at a minimum, fund its priority health services under that act in
subsequent years at the same level as the level at which those services were
funded in State fiscal year 2003 pursuant to the annual appropriations act for
that fiscal year as the Commissioner of the Department of Health and Senior
Services shall determine.� In any county, amounts of supplemental fees retained
that are in excess of the amounts required to be used for the funding of the
county's priority health services under this subsection shall be used by the
county for general county purposes.

���� e.���� The Legislature shall
annually appropriate the entire balance of the Extraordinary Aid Account for
the purposes of providing extraordinary special education aid pursuant to
section� 13 of P.L.2007, c.260 (C.18A:7F-55) and "Municipal Property Tax
Relief Act" extraordinary aid pursuant to section 4 of P.L.1991, c.63
(C.52:27D-118.35).

���� f.���� Every deed subject to
the supplemental fee required by this section, which is in fact recorded, shall
be conclusively deemed to have been entitled to recording, notwithstanding that
the amount of the consideration shall have been incorrectly stated, or that the
correct amount of the supplemental fee, if any, shall not have been paid, and
no such defect shall in any way affect or impair the validity of the title
conveyed or render the same unmarketable; but the person or persons required to
pay that supplemental fee at the time of recording shall be and remain liable
to the county recording officer for the payment of the proper amount thereof.

(cf: P.L.2007, c.260, s.80)

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and apply to sales made on or after the first day of the
third month following the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

���� This bill exempts the
surviving spouses and surviving civil union partners of veterans who were
completely disabled in active service in time of war from the basic and
supplemental fee components of the realty transfer fee.�

���� Under current law, senior
citizens and persons with disabilities who sell their one- or two-family
residential home are exempted from the basic fee and the supplemental fee.�
This exemption is not available to the surviving spouse of a senior citizen or the
surviving spouse of a person with a disability unless the surviving spouse is a
senior citizen or a person with a disability.

���� This bill allows the basic and
supplemental realty transfer fee rates to the sale of any one- or two-family
home of the surviving spouse or surviving partner of a disabled veteran who, at
the time of the disabled veteran�s death, qualified for the property tax
exemption for the residential premises allowed to veterans who were 100 percent
disabled in active service in time of war if the sale is made by the survivor
during the survivor�s widowhood or widowerhood.� These surviving spouses and
partners have endured the anxiety of separation experienced by all those who
have had a loved one sent into active military service, and then shared the
sacrifice of the veterans who have bought the destruction of war home with
them.