governor christie conditionally vetoes a2768

8/6/2019 Governor Christie Conditionally Vetoes A2768

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STATE OF NEW JERSEYEXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT

September 13, 2010

ASSEMBLY BILL NO. 2768

To the General Assembly:Pursuant to Article V, Section I, Paragraph 14 of the New

Jersey Constitution, I am returning Assembly Bill No. 2768 withmy recommendations for reconsideration.

This legislation would establish a statutory filingdeadline of May 15th for financial disclosure statements requiredto be submitted to the State Ethics Commission by law,regulation or Executive Order. Presently, this deadline is notset by statrut.ebut by Executive Order. Historically, the timeframe governing the filing of financial disclosure statementshas been set for a date 120 days following the issuance of theExecutive Order mandating the filing of such statements. Thisbill also would prohibit the extension of the May 15th deadlineby the Governor, the State Ethics Commission, or any otherExecutive Branch official.

I commend the sponsors for their efforts to address thetimely filing of financial disclosure statements. The meresetting of a statutory deadline, however, does not go nearly farenough to effect meaningful reform in this area. This bill doesnothing to address the actual content of the financialdisclosure forms themselves - forms that need to be changed toprovide greater transparency to New Jersey citizens. Publicofficials in the State of New Jersey should be required todisclose the same information as federal officials to give thepublic a more detailed picture of the financial interests oftheir public servants.

Presently, federal elected and appointed officials filedisclosure forms with the federal Office of Government Ethicsthat contain a far clearer picture of their income and assets,

as embodied in Form SF-278. Form SF-278 is filed by the

Printed on recycled paper


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President, Vice-President and other high-level Executive Branchemployees, including the United States Attorneys, among others.Members of Congress file similar forms and these forms arepublically available on the internet. Thus, members of Congressare required to make these meaningful disclosures, but themembers of our State Legislature are not subject to the samerequirements. Our financial disclosure laws must be amended sothat they apply equally to members of the Legislature andmembers of the Executive Branch, as well as to candidates forthese offices, to give the voting public a true picture of theindividuals they are selecting for public service at the Statelevel. Furthermore, the financial disclosure forms themselvesshould be modified to more closely resemble federal Form SF-278in order to provide greater disclosure. This modificationshould be embodied in statute, rather than in an ExecutiveOrder.

Accordingly, I herewith return Assembly Bill No. 2768 andrecommend that it be amended as follows:

Page 5, Section I, Line 42: After "law"regulation ororder"delete ",executive

Page 5, Section I, Line 43: After "commission"insert "or the JointLegislative Committee onEthical Standards"Page 5, Section I, Line 45: After "commission"insert "or the JointLegislative Committee on

Ethical Standards"Page 6, Section I, Line 3: After "commission"insert "nor the JointLegislative Committee onEthical Standards"Page 6, Section 2, Lines 28-32: Delete Section 2 an itsentirety.Page 6, Section 2, Line 28 Insert new sectionsand 3 as follows: 2



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STATE OF NEW JERSEYEXECUTlVE DEPARTMENT

3\\2. (New section) a.Every person holdingstate elective publicoffice, and every publicofficial identified insubsection d. of thissection shall file,after January 1 andbefore May 15 of eachyear, a sworn and dulynotarized financialdisclosure statement forthe preceding calendaryear. Any such personor official whoseoffice, appointment oremployment terminatesshall file a financialdisclosure statement forthe portion of thecalendar year oftermination from January1 to the terminationdate. Any personappointed or employed asa public officialidentified in subsectiond. of this sectionshall, within 120 daysof being so selected,appointed or employed,file a financialdisclosure statement forthe preceding twelvemonths.b. The Governor andpublic officials of theExecutive Branchidentified in subsectiond. of this section shallfile a financialdisclosure statementwith the state EthicsCommission pursuant toP.L.1971, c.182(C.52:13D-12 et seq.).Members of theLegislature and publicofficials of theLegislative Branchidentified in subsectiond. of this section shallfile a financialdisclosure statementwith the JointLegislative Committee onEthical Standardspursuant to P.L.1971,c.182 (C.52:13D-12 etseq.). The State EthicsCommission and the JointLegislative Committee onEthical Standardstogether shall prescribethe form of a financialdisclosure statement forfiling purposes, subjectto the requirements ofthis act, P.L. ,c.



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4(C. ) (pendingbefore the Legislatureas this bill) .c. No person shall berequired to file afinancial disclosurestatement for a periodof time for which afinancial disclosurestatement has beenpreviously filed.d. For the purpose ofthis section, "publicofficial" means eachmember of theLegislature, eachprofessional staffmember of theLegislature, as definedby the Joint LegislativeCommittee on EthicalStandards, and eachperson holding any ofthe following offices orpositions of employmentin the Executive Branchof State government,together with anyoffices added to suchlist by executive order:(l) The Governor;(2) The LieutenantGovernori(3) The head of eachprincipal department;(4) The chiefs of staffand assistant or deputyheads of each principaldepartment to includeall assistant and deputycommissioners of suchdepartments;( 5) The head and theassistant heads of adivision of eachprincipal department, orany person exercisingsubstantially similarauthority for any boardor commission which isorganized as in but notof a principaldepartment or anyindependent authority;(6) The executive oradministrative head andassistant heads of:(i) any board orcommission which isorganized in but not ofa principal departmentor(ii) anyauthority;(7) Themembers of thethe Office

independentfollowingstaff ofof theGovernor:

(i) Chief of Staff;



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5(ii) Chief Counsel tothe Governor;(iii) Director ofCommunications;(iv) Deputy Chiefs ofStaff;(v) Deputy ChiefCounsel;(vi) Director of theAuthorities Unit;(vii) AppointmentsCounsel;(viii) Director ofOperations; and(ix) Any deputy orprincipal administrativeassistant to any of theforegoing members of thestaff of the Office ofthe Governor;(8) Chief ExecutiveOfficers and DeputyChief Executive Officersof the psychiatrichospitals anddevelopmental centersadministered by theDepartment of HumanServices;( 9) Members ofState BoardAgriculture;(10) Members ofState BoardEducation;(11) Members of theState Board of PublicUtilities;(12) Members ofstate Parole Board;(13) Presidents of theState Colleges andUniversities; and(14) theComptrollerb. "Publicshall mean:(1) the members of thefollowing boards,commissions, independentauthorities and publiccorporations, togetherwith any otherequivalent offices orbodies and such otheroffices or bodies addedto such list bysubsequent determinationof the Governor:(i) AgriculturalDevelopment Committee;(ii) Atlantic CityConvention CenterAuthority;(iii) CapitalRedevelopmentCorporation;(iv) Casino ReinvestmentDevelopment Authority;

theoftheof

the

Stateofficer"

City



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(v) CatastrophicIllness in ChildrenRelief Fund;(vi) CivilCommission;(vii) CommissionHigher Education;(viii) CommissionSpinal Cord Research;(ix) CouncilAffordable Housing;(x) DevelopmentAuthority for SmallBusiness I Minorities andWomen Enterprises:(xi) EducationalFacilities Authority:(xii) Election LawEnforcement Commission;(xiii) Garden StatePreservation Trust;(xiv) GovernmentRecords Council;(xv) Governor's Councilon Alcoholism and DrugAbuse;(xvi) Health CareAdministration Board;(xvii) Health CareFacilities FinancingAuthority;(xviii) HigherEducation StudentAssistance Authority;(xix) HighlandsWater ProtectionPlanning Council;(xx) IndividualCoverage Board:(xxi) LocalBoard;(xxiL) MotorCommission;(xxiii) New JerseyBuilding Authority;(xxiv) New JerseyCommission on BrainInjury Research;(xxv) NewCommission onand Technology;(xxvi) New JerseyCouncil on DevelopmentalDisabilities;(xxvii) NewCultural Trust;(xxviii) NewEconomicAuthority;(xxix) NewHistoric

STATE OF NEW JERSEYEXECUTiVE DEPARTMENT

6

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JerseyJerseyDevelopmentJerseyTrustCommission;(xxx) New JerseyHousing and MortgageFinancing Agency;(xxxi) NewMarineConsortium;


JerseyScience


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7(xxxii) New JerseyMeadowlands Commission;(xxxiii) New JerseyPublic BroadcastingAuthority;(xxxiv) New JerseyRacing Commission;(xxxv) New JerseyReal Estate Commission;(xxxvi) New JerseyRedevelopment Authority:(xxxvii) New JerseySports and ExpositionAuthority:(xxxviii)New JerseyState Council on theArts:(xxxix)TechnologyBoard:(xl) New Jersey TransitCorporation;(xli) NewTransportationFund Authority:(xlii) New JerseyTurnpike Authority;(xliii) New JerseyUrban Enterprise ZoneAuthority:(xliv) NorthDistrict WaterCommission;(xlv) Office ofInformation TechnologyGoverning Board;(xlvi) Passaic ValleySewerage Commission:(xlvii) Passaic ValleyWater Commission:(xlviii) PinelandsCommission;(xlix) Pub I icEmployment RelationsCommission:(I) SchoolCommission:(Ii) SchoolsConstructionCorporation:(Iii) ShellFisheries Council;(liii) Small EmployerHealth Benefits Program;(liv) South JerseyPort Corporation:(Iv) South JerseyTransportationAuthority:(lvi) State AthleticControl Board:(Ivii) state Board ofMediation;(lviii) State EconomicRecovery Board forCamden;(lix) State EthicsCommission;

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JerseyTrust

JerseySupply

Ethics



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8(lx) StateCouncil(lxi) StateCommission;(lxii) State PlanningCommission;(lxiii) TidelandsResource Council;(lxiv) UrbanDevelopment Corporation;(lv) WastewaterTreatment Trust; and(lvi) Water SupplyAuthority.(2 ) The members ofgoverning boardsState CollegesUniversities.(3) Individualsappointed as a NewJersey member to thefollowing agencies:(i) Atlantic InterstateLow-Level RadioactiveWaste Management

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Compact;(ii) AtlanticMarineCommission;(iii) Cleanand ShoreCommittee;(iv) The Delawareand Bay Authority;(v) DelawareBasin Commission;(vi) DelawareJoint Toll

StatesFisheriesOceanTrustRiverRiverRiverBridgeCommission;(vii) Delaware RiverPort Authority;(viii) Delaware

Valley Regional PlanningCommission;(ix) InterstateEnvironmentalCommission;(x) Palisades InterstatePark Commission;(xi) Port Authority ofNew York and New Jersey;(xii) WaterfrontCommission of New YorkHarbor.IIpublic officialll alsomeans a person holdingan office or position ofemployment of theExecutive Branch notspecified above, butwhich is functionallyequivalent to any ofthose offices.Functional equivalenceshall be determined bythe Chief Counsel to theGovernor, the head ofeach principaldepartment, the head of



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each agency, board orcommission in but not ofa principal departmentor the head of eachindependent authority,as appropriate, inconsultation with thestate Ethics Commission.e. For the purpose ofthis act the "immediatefamily" of any personmeans the person'sspouse, child residingin the same household,parent residing in thesame household, orsibling residing an thesame household.3 . (New section) a.The financial disclosurestatements required bysection 2 of this act,P.L. ,c. (C.) (pending before theLegislature as thisbill) , shall disclosefor the individualfiling and for membersof the individual'simmediate family:(1) Occupation, trade,business, profession, oremployment, name ofemployer, and businessaddress.(2) Each asset, bothtangible and intangible,including, but notlimited to, cash inchecking, savings ormoney market accounts,notes receivable,accounts receivable,government bonds,stocks, corporate bonds,pension funds,accumulated value ofcash life insurance,vehicles, in which anysuch individual orpersons owned a directfinancial interest thatexceeded $1,000 at anytime during thereporting period; thename, address, andnature of the entitYiand the nature andhighest value of eachsuch direct financialinterest during thereporting period.(3) The name andaddress of each creditorto whom the value of$1,000 or more was owed;the original amount ofeach debt to each such



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10creditor i the amount ofeach debt owed to eachcreditor as of the dateof filing; the terms ofrepayment of each suchdebt; and the securitygiven, if any, for eachsuch debt; except thatdebts arising out of a"retail installmentcontract" or "retailcharge account, II asdefined in section 1 ofP.L.1960, c.40(C.17:16C-1) f need notbe reported.(4) Every public orprivate office,directorship, andtrustee position held.(5) All persons forwhom any legislation,rule, regulation, rate,or standard wasprepared, promoted oropposed for current ordeferred compensation,except that for thepurposes of thisparagraph,"compensationll does notinclude payments made tothe individual reportingby the governmentalentity for which suchindividual served as anelected or appointedofficial for service inoffice.(6) The name and addressof each governmentalentity, corporation,partnership, jointventure, soleproprietorship,association, union, orother business orcommercial entity fromwhich compensation wasreceived in any form ofa total value of $1,000or more; the value ofthe compensation and theconsideration given orperformed in exchangefor the compensation.(7) The name of anycorporation,partnership, jointventure, association,union or other entity inwhich was held anyoffice, directorship,any general partnershipinterest, or anownership interest of10% or more; the name ortitle of that office,directorship, or



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11partnership; the natureof ownership interest;and with respect to eachsuch entity: (a) withrespect to agovernmental unit inwhich the individualseeks or holds anyoffice or positiont ifthe entity has receivedcompensation in any formduring the preceding 12months from thegovernmental unitt thevalue of thecompensation and theconsideration given orperformed in exchangefor the compensation;(b) the name of eachgovernmental unit,corporationtpartnershiptventure,proprietorshiptassociation, uniont orother business orcommercial entity fromwhich the entityreceived compensation inany form in the amountof $l tOOO or more duringthe preceding 12 monthsand the considerationgiven or performed inexchange for thecompensation.(8) A Li.st, includinglegal or othersufficient descriptionsas prescribed for thefinancial disclosurestatement, of all realproperty in the State ofNew Jersey, the assessedvaluation of whichexceeds $1,000, in whicha direct financialinterest was acquiredduring the precedingcalendar year t and astatement of the amountand nature of thefinancial interest andof the considerationgiven in exchange forthat interest.(9) A list, includinglegal or othersufficient descriptionsas prescribed for thefinancial disclosurestatementt of all realproperty in the State ofNew Jersey, the assessedvaluation of whichexceeds $1,000, in whicha direct financialinterest was divested

jointsole



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12during the precedingcalendar year, and astatement of the amountand nature of theconsideration receivedin exchange for thatinterest, and the nameand address of theperson furnishing theconsideration.(10) A list, includinglegal or othersufficient descriptionsas prescribed for thefinancial disclosurestatement, .of all realproperty in the State ofNew Jersey, the assessedvaluation of whichexceeds $1,000, in whicha direct financialinterest was held;except that if adescription of theproperty was included ina report previouslyfiled, the property maybe listed, for thepurposes of thisparagraph, by referenceto the previously filedreport.(11) A list, includinglegal or othersufficient descriptionsas prescribed for thefinancial disclosurestatement, of all realproperty in the State ofNew Jersey, the assessedvaluation of whichexceeds $1,000, in whicha corporation,partnership, firm,enterprise or otherentity had a directfinancial interest, inwhich corporation,partnership, firm,enterprise or entity a10% or greater ownershipinterest was held.(12) A list of anypurchase. sale orexchange of any realproperty, stocks, bonds,commodity futures orother securities wherethe amount of thetransaction exceeded$1,000.00, includingtransactions thatresulted in a loss.(13) A list of allagreements orarrangements for: 1)continuing participationin an employee benefitplan, e.g. pension,



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401(k), orcompensation;continuation of paymentby a former employer,includingpayments; 3)absence; andemployment.(14) Such otherinformation as the StateEthics Commission andthe Joint LegislativeCommittee on EthicalStandards may deemnecessary in order toproperly carry out thepurposes and policies ofthis act, P.L. , c.(C. ) (now beforethe Legislature as thisbill) , and shallprescribe by regulation.b. When an amount isrequired to be reportedunder paragraphs (1)through (14) ofsubsection a. of thissection, it shall bemandatory to reportwhether the amount isless than $1,001, atleast $1,001 but lessthan $15,000, at least$15,001 but less than$50,000, at least$50,001 but less than$100,000, at least$100,001 but less than$250,000, at least$250,001 but less than$500,000, at least$500,001 but less than$1,000,000, at least$1,000,001 but less than$5,000,000, at least$5,000,001 but less than$25,000,000, at least$25,000,001 but lessthan $50,OOO,OOO,or$50,000,000 or more.No provision of thissubsection shall beinterpreted to preventany individual fromfiling more informationor more detailedinformation thanrequired.c. Items of value givento an elected official'simmediate family memberare attributable to theofficial.d. Nothing herein shallabridge the rights ofMembers of theLegislature pursuant toArticle IV, Section IV,

deferred2)

severanceleaves of4) future



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14Paragraph 9 of the NewJersey Constitution.3. (New section) Nopayment shall be made toa person required tofile a financialdisclosure statementunder section 2 of thisact, P.L. r c. (C.) (now before theLegislature as thisbill), and no paymentshall be accepted by anysuch person, directly orindirectly, in afictitious name,anonymously, or by oneperson through an agent,relative or other personin such a manner as toconceal the identity ofthe source of thepayment or in any othermanner so as to effectconcealment.

Page 6, Section 3, Line 34 Re-number section 2 assection 4.

Respectfully,/s/ Chris ChristieGovernor

[seal]

Attest:/s/ Jeffrey S. ChiesaChief Counsel to the Governor

governor christie conditionally vetoes a2768

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