40A:9-145.8 Tenure; removal from office; dismissal; procedure.

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

a. Shall be reappointed tax collector subsequent to having received a tax collector certificate pursuant to section 3 or 4 of P.L.1979, c.384, or holds a tax collector certificate issued pursuant to N.J.S.40A:9-141, section 2 of P.L.1979, c.384 (C.40A:9-145.2), and section 6 of P.L.1993, c.25 (C.40A:9-145.3a), and having served as tax collector or performed the duties of tax collector for not less than four consecutive years immediately prior to such reappointment; or,

b. shall have acquired tenure; shall hold his office during good behavior, efficiency, and compliance with requirements for continuing education pursuant to sections 6 and 7 of P.L.1993, c.25 (C.40A:9-145.3a and C.40A:9-145.3b), notwithstanding that such reappointment was for a fixed term of years; and he shall not be removed therefrom for political reasons but only for good cause shown and after a proper hearing before the director or his designee.

c. The removal of a municipal tax collector shall be only upon a written complaint setting forth with specificity the charge or charges against him. The complaint shall be filed with the municipal clerk and the director and a certified copy thereof shall be served upon the person so charged, with notice of a designated hearing date before the director or his 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 subpena witnesses and documentary evidence together with discovery proceedings. The provisions of this section shall apply to every person actually in office as tax collector or performing the duties of tax collector whether or not in the classified service under Title 11A, Civil Service, of the New Jersey Statutes.

d. For the purposes of this section, the definition of good cause for removal of a tax collector may include the failure of a tax collector to meet the continuing education requirement set forth in sections 6 and 7 of P.L.1993, c.25 (C.40A:9-145.3a and C.40A:9-145.3b).

e. In the case of a pilot municipality, a tenured tax collector 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 tax collector under this subsection shall not require the pilot municipality to fulfill the requirements of section 8 of P.L.1979, c.384 (C.40A:9-145.8). Instead, the pilot municipality shall provide the tax collector with a written copy of the shared service agreement entered into by the pilot municipality, and a letter stating that the position of tax collector 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.1979, c.384, s.8; amended 1993, c.25, s.5; 2013, c.166, s.13.