40A:9-133.7 Reappointment, removal, dismissal.

7. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary, any person who:

a. Shall be reappointed municipal clerk subsequent to having received a registered municipal clerk certificate pursuant to P.L.1985, c.174 and having served as municipal clerk or performed the duties of municipal clerk for not less than three consecutive years immediately prior to such reappointment; or

b. Shall have acquired tenure; shall hold office during good behavior and efficiency, and compliance with the continuing education requirements set forth in section 8 of P.L.1997, c.279 (C.40A:9-133.10), notwithstanding that such reappointment was for a fixed term of years; and shall not be removed therefrom for political reasons but only for good cause shown and after a proper hearing before the director or the director's designee. The removal of a registered municipal clerk shall be only upon a written complaint setting forth with specificity the charge or charges against the clerk. The complaint shall be filed with the director and a certified copy of the complaint shall be served upon the person so charged, with notice of a designated hearing date before the director or the director's designee, which shall be not less than 30 days nor more than 60 days from the date of service of the complaint. Such date may be extended by the Superior Court for good cause shown upon the application of either party. The person so charged and the complainant shall have the right to be represented by counsel and the power to subpoena witnesses and documentary evidence together with discovery proceedings. The provisions of this section shall apply to every person actually in office as registered municipal clerk, whether or not in the classified service under Title 11A of the New Jersey Statutes (Civil Service).

For the purposes of this section, the definition of good cause for removal of a municipal clerk may include the failure of the clerk to meet the continuing education requirements set forth in section 8 of P.L.1997, c.279 (C.40A:9-133.10).

c. In the case of a shared service agreement between pilot municipalities, a tenured municipal clerk may be dismissed to effectuate the sharing of a service entered into pursuant to the provisions of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-1 et seq.) and such dismissal shall be deemed to be in the interest of the economy or efficiency of the participants in the shared service agreement. The removal of a municipal clerk under this subsection shall not require the pilot municipality to fulfill the requirements of section 7 of P.L.1985, c.174 (C.40A:9-133.7). Instead, the pilot municipality shall provide the clerk with a written copy of the shared service agreement entered into by the municipality, and a letter stating that the position of municipal clerk in the pilot municipality is being eliminated for reasons of economy or efficiency as the result of the shared service agreement.

Any such shared service agreement shall be subject to the provisions of section 4 of P.L.2007, c.63 (C.40A:65-4) and of section 3 of P.L.2013, c.166 (C.40A:65-4.2).

L.1985, c.174, s.7; amended 1997, c.279, s.5; 2013, c.166, s.8.