Bill Text: NJ A1784 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits certain employment or supervision of relatives of certain members of the Legislature.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-01-12 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly State Government Committee [A1784 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-A1784-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
214th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2010 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman NANCY F. MUNOZ
District 21 (Essex, Morris, Somerset and Union)
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits certain employment or supervision of relatives of certain members of the Legislature.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act concerning certain employment or supervision of certain relatives of members of the Legislature and amending P.L.2003, c.307.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.2003, c.307 (C.52:11-5.1) is amended to read as follows:
1. No member of the Legislature shall gainfully employ his or her relative in any position in the legislative office that the member maintains in his or her legislative district.
If members of the Legislature jointly maintain a legislative district office, no relative of the members who maintain that joint office shall be gainfully employed in any position in that office.
No member of the Senate or General Assembly shall have direct supervisory responsibility over the employment of that member's relative in the Legislative Branch.
No relative of a member of the Senate or General Assembly who holds a leadership position shall be gainfully employed by an office providing staff for the majority or minority party in the House of the Legislature where the leadership position is held.
The Joint Legislative Committee on Ethical Standards may prescribe rules authorizing the temporary employment, in the event of emergencies resulting from natural disasters or similar unforeseen events or circumstances, of individuals whose employment would otherwise be prohibited by this section.
As used in this section, "relative" means the member's spouse or the member's or spouse's parent, child, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, grandparent, grandchild, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, stepparent, stepchild, stepbrother, stepsister, half brother or half sister, whether the individual is related to the member or the member's spouse by blood, marriage or adoption.
(cf: P.L.2003, c.307, s.1)
2. The employment of, or supervisory responsibility over, any relative of a member of the Senate or General Assembly that is prohibited by the amendment to section 1 of P.L.2003, c.307 (C.52:11-5.1) made by P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall be terminated as of the effective date of P.L. , c. (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
Under this bill, no member of the Senate or General Assembly is to have direct supervisory responsibility over the employment of that member's relative in the Legislative Branch. Also, no relative of a member of the Senate or General Assembly who holds a leadership position is to be gainfully employed by an office providing staff for the majority or minority party in the House of the Legislature where the leadership position is held.
Under current law, no member of the Legislature is to gainfully employ his or her relative in any position in the legislative office that the member maintains in his or her legislative district. Also, if members of the Legislature jointly maintain a legislative district office, no relative of the members who maintain that joint office is to be gainfully employed in any position in that office.
The bill provides that the Joint Legislative Committee on Ethical Standards may prescribe rules authorizing the temporary employment, in the event of emergencies resulting from natural disasters or similar unforeseen events or circumstances, of individuals whose employment would otherwise be prohibited.
The employment of, or supervisory responsibility over, any relative of a member of the Senate or General Assembly that is prohibited by this bill is to be terminated as of the effective date of the bill.
