As I have noted in prior articles, the current legislature has made a determination to be more deliberate in the legislative process, which means that for better or worse, bills are not moving as quickly as they used to. That being said, there are several legal and legislative updates that our members should be aware of:
• CAI’s challenge to the “Radburn Regulations” continues. The State has filed its opposition to CAI’s appeal, and CAI’s counsel is working on its reply.
• Both the Borough of Fort Lee and the Borough of Cliffside Park have adopted municipal resolutions prohibiting bringing or charging e-bikes and e-scooters in multiple dwellings. We are interested to see whether other municipalities will follow this lead or take similar action.
• S1368 was signed by the governor into law over the summer. It requires landlords and “business owners” to maintain at least $500,000 in liability insurance. Starting in February, it also requires that businesses and landlords file their certificates of insurance with the municipality and permits the municipality to adopt an ordinance setting an administrative fee for said filing. Many municipalities have not yet adopted such an ordinance, but you should expect to see the same occurring in the near future.
• S2662 appears like it will soon be approved by the legislature and the governor. This bill makes it illegal for common interest communities (CICs) to prohibit residents and guests of residents from parking police vehicles on the CIC property because they are police vehicles or commercial vehicles. The New Jersey Legislative Action Committee (NJ-LAC) provided significant input to the bill to ensure that the person parking the police vehicle must comply with all other parking rules and regulations.
• S511 is a bill providing rights to temporary laborers. It was previously passed by the legislature but vetoed by the Governor. The bill has been revised and has passed the senate. While we do not have space to fully describe the bill here, if your organization provides or utilizes any temporary employees you should review it.
• S3463 was introduced by Senator Singer. This bill provides that if a CIC owner wishes to transfer his or her apartment to a trust, the CIC cannot charge any kind of fee. We have some objections to the bill and are seeking a meeting with its sponsor.
Finally, we are still working diligently on the structural integrity bill, and hope to have significant updates regarding same in the near future.
MATTHEW Z. EARLE, ESQ. KATES, NUSSMAN, ELLIS, FARHI & EARLE, LLP LEGISLATIVE ACTION COMMITTEE CHAIR
