Bill Text: NJ A3617 | 2012-2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes budgetary oversight authority over State government expenditures of private monetary donations and expenditures for advising and consulting services.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-12-17 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Budget Committee [A3617 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2012-A3617-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman VINCENT PRIETO
District 32 (Bergen and Hudson)
Assemblyman PATRICK J. DIEGNAN, JR.
District 18 (Middlesex)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes budgetary oversight authority over State government expenditures of private monetary donations and expenditures for advising and consulting services.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing budget oversight authority over State government expenditures of private monetary donations and private expenditures for advising and consulting services, supplementing P.L.1944, c.112 (C.52:27B-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Within 10 days of the receipt of any private contribution of a monetary donation for a particular State government purpose, other than private contributions made to a specifically designated fund established by law, the head of the State agency or department accepting the monetary donation shall notify the Joint Budget Oversight Committee of the donation, including the name of the donor, the amount of the donation, the intended use of the donation and any specific limits or criteria imposed by the donor on the use of the funds. The head of the State agency or department accepting the donation shall notify the Joint Budget Oversight Committee within 10 days of an encumbrance or pre-encumbrance, and any expenditure, of an amount of 50% or more of the funds of the monetary donation and the use thereof. The head of the State agency or department accepting a monetary donation shall provide a final accounting thereof to the Joint Budget Oversight Committee within 30 days of the end of the fiscal year.
2. The head of a State agency or department shall notify the Presiding Officers of the Legislature in accordance with section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1) if a person provides advising or consulting services on a non-casual basis or discharges the duties or responsibilities of an employee under the direction of the head of a State agency or department, but receives compensation for the services or discharge of responsibilities directly from a private source not appropriated in the annual appropriation act or a supplement thereto. The notice shall identify the person by name and title, the advising or consulting services provided or duties and responsibilities assigned to such person, and the private source of funding from which the person was compensated.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes budgetary oversight authority over State government expenditures of private monetary donations and expenditures for advising and consulting services. The first component of this bill enhances the Legislature's budgetary oversight of State government spending of private contributions of monetary donations. The bill requires agency and department heads to provide notice and an accounting of such spending practices to the Joint Budget Oversight Committee.
The second component of the bill enhances budgetary oversight of spending by State government of private sources of funds used to provide compensation for advising or consulting services provided on a non-casual basis, and spending of private funds to compensate for the discharge of the duties or responsibilities of an agency or department employee. Notices of the spending of private funds for these purposes are to be reported to the Senate President and the Speaker of the General Assembly.
The State government spending of donated or other private funds for these purposes can result in off-budget, non-transparent commitments made for the delivery of government services or government reliance upon secret, private sources of support. If these sources of funds temporarily replace or supplant the expenditure of recurring State revenue, budget planning based upon regular, recurring State revenue sources can be subject to unexpected spending demands. Paying for advising or consulting services with private sources of funds can also lead to a lack of government transparency, an appearance of possible conflicts of interest, and undue influence in acquisition of and performance of such advisory and consultant services.
This bill adds these notice requirements to the existing laws that have governed the form of the preparation and management of the annual State budget since 1944. The provisions of this bill track language proposed to establish these oversight protections for the Fiscal Year 2013 budget that were line-item vetoed by the Governor based upon a need "to promote efficiency and to restore consistency with the Governor's original budget recommendations." Yet the Governor noted that "[t]he Administration is committed to working closely and collaboratively with legislative leadership, members of the Join Budget Oversight Committee, and the Legislative Budget and Finance Officer concerning all matters currently within the Joint Budget Oversight Committee's jurisdiction. Expanding that jurisdiction in the manner proposed by the Legislature, however, cannot be accepted at this time." The passage of these same oversight provisions to be included as part of the general statutes on State budget procedure will provide the Governor with the full 45 day period of time permitted for the executive's review of all other proposed laws.
