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A4162
ASSEMBLY, No. 4162
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 19, 2026
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman� CAROL A. MURPHY
District 7 (Burlington)
SYNOPSIS
���� Requires all elected or appointed municipal and
county officials to complete annual ethics training.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� As introduced.
��
An Act
concerning annual ethics training for local government
officials and supplementing P.L.1991, c.29 (C.40A:9-22.1 et seq.).
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� a.� Each local
government officer serving in the State shall complete an annual training
program regarding the requirements of the "Local Government Ethics
Law," P.L.1991, c.29 (C.40A:9-22.1 et seq.), and any additional
requirements of an applicable municipal or county code of ethics adopted
pursuant thereto.� A newly elected or appointed local government officer shall
complete the training program required pursuant to this section during the
first six months of the officer's first term, or if first elected or appointed
prior to the promulgation of rules and regulations pursuant to section 2 of
P.L. , c. (C. )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill), within six months following the
promulgation of those rules and regulations.� Once a local government officer
completes the initial training program required by this section, that officer
shall repeat the training by December 1 of each subsequent year.�
���� b.��� The Division of Local
Government Services in the Department of Community Affairs shall develop a
standard training program required pursuant to subsection a. of this section,
and a local government agency may develop required supplemental training pertaining
to any additional requirements of an applicable municipal or county code of
ethics.� In developing the standard training program, the division shall
examine similar programs developed by the various public, non-profit, and
private sector entities currently at the forefront of government ethics issues
and training across the country, and shall survey the available training
resources and methods.� The standard training program shall not be limited to
live training venues, but may instead be delivered through online or video
technology when practicable.� The standard and supplemental training may be
provided by employees of the division or local government agency or by any
person, agency, organization or entity contracted by the division or local
government agency for that purpose, and shall be offered on a yearly or more
frequent basis at locations easily accessible to those receiving the training.�
The training program may include a requirement that local government officers
attend updated sessions when there is a significant change to the ethics laws
or regulations.
���� c.���� Upon completion of the
training required pursuant to this section, each local government officer shall
sign a statement certifying that the officer has received the training and
understands the requirements of the "Local Government Ethics Law,"
P.L.1991, c.29 (C.40A:9-22.1 et seq.), and any additional requirements of an
applicable municipal or county code of ethics adopted pursuant thereto.� The
local government officer shall file the statement with the municipal attorney
or county counsel, as applicable.
���� d.��� The municipal attorney
or county counsel, as applicable, shall maintain a file of each local
government officer�s signed statement, required pursuant to subsection c. of
this section, for up to two years subsequent to the expiration of the local
government officer�s status of office.� In the event that the local government
officer is subsequently elected or appointed to any other local governing body
or local government agency, the municipal attorney or county counsel shall
maintain a file of the local government officer�s signed statement for up to
two years subsequent to the expiration of the officer�s status of office.�
���� 2.��� Within 120 days of the
effective date of
P.L. , c. (C. )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Commissioner of Community
Affairs shall, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act,"
P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt and promulgate rules and
regulations necessary for the implementation of P.L.��� , c.��� (C.������� )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill).� The rules and regulations shall
implement, in an escalating schedule from $1,000 to $5,000, personal fines that
shall not be paid or reimbursed by the governing body or local government
agency, for the failure of a local government officer to complete the required
training within the specified time frame.� Fines imposed pursuant to this
section shall be collected in accordance with the "Penalty Enforcement Law
of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).
���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately, except that section 1 shall remain inoperable until the
promulgation of rules and regulations pursuant to section 2.
STATEMENT
����
���� This bill supplements the
"Local Government Ethics Law," P.L.1991, c.29 (C.40A:9-22.1 et seq.),
to require all local government officers to complete training concerning the
requirements of that law and any applicable municipal or county code of ethics
adopted pursuant thereto.� Section 3 of the law (C.40A:9-22.3) currently
defines a "local government officer" as:
any person whether
compensated or not, whether part-time or full-time:� (1) elected to any office
of a local government agency; (2) serving on a local government agency which
has the authority to enact ordinances, approve development applications or grant
zoning variances; (3) who is a member of an independent municipal, county or
regional authority; or (4) who is a managerial executive employee of a local
government agency, as defined in rules and regulations adopted by the Director
of the Division of Local Government Services in the Department of Community
Affairs pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968,
c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), but does not mean any employee of a school district
or member of a school board.
���� Standard training is to be
developed by the Division of Local Government Services in the Department of
Community Affairs, and a local government agency is permitted to develop
required supplemental training pertaining to any additional requirements of an
applicable municipal or county code of ethics.� Training is to be administered
on an annual or more frequent basis by employees of that division or local
government agency or by an individual, agency, organization or entity
contracted by the division or local government agency to do so.� In developing
the training, the bill requires the division to examine similar programs in
this and other states and to survey the available training resources and
methods.��
���� Under the bill, upon
completion of the training, each local government officer is required to sign a
statement certifying that the officer has received the training and understands
the requirements of the "Local Government Ethics Law," P.L.1991, c.29
(C.40A:9-22.1 et seq.), and any additional requirements of an applicable
municipal or county code of ethics adopted pursuant thereto.
���� The bill provides that the
municipal attorney or county counsel, as applicable, is required to receive and
maintain a file of each local government officer�s signed statement for up to
two years subsequent to the expiration of the officer�s status of office.� In
the event that the officer is subsequently elected or appointed to any other
local governing body or local government agency, the municipal attorney or
county counsel is to maintain a file of the officer�s signed statement for up
to two years subsequent to the expiration of the officer�s status of office.
���� Under the bill, the
Commissioner of Community Affairs is required to develop the training program's
rules and regulations, which are to include an escalating fine schedule, from
$1,000 to $5,000, for the failure of a local government officer to receive the
training within the specified time frame.�