[HISTORY: Adopted by the Municipal Council of the Borough
of Hawthorne 3-7-2007 by Ord. No. 1893-07. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
The purpose of this chapter is to provide for relocation assistance
to certain eligible persons who are displaced due to illegal occupancy,
fire or other emergency and to create a revolving fund for the making
of such assistance.
Any tenant who receives a notice of eviction pursuant to Section
3 of P.L. 1974, c. 49 (N.J.S.A. 2A: 18-61.2) that results from zoning
or code enforcement activity for an illegal occupancy, as set forth
in Paragraph (3) of Subsection g of Section 2 of P.L. 1974, c. 49
(N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.1), shall be considered a displaced person and
shall be entitled to relocation assistance in an amount equal to six
times the monthly rental paid by the displaced person. The owner-landlord
of the structure shall be liable for the payment of relocation assistance
pursuant to this section.
The municipality may pay relocation assistance to any displaced person who has not received the required payment from the owner-landlord of the structure at the time of eviction pursuant to § 382-2 of this chapter from a revolving relocation assistance fund established pursuant to Section 2 of P.L. 1987, c. 98 (N.J.S.A. 20:4-4.1a). All relocation assistance costs incurred by a municipality pursuant to this section shall be repaid by the owner-landlord of the structure to the municipality in the same manner as relocation costs are billed and collected under Section 1 of P.L. 1983, c. 536 (N.J.S.A. 20:4-4.1) and Section 1 of PL. 1984, c. 30 (N.J.S.A. 20:4-4.2). These repayments shall be deposited into the municipality's revolving relocation assistance fund.
Any person requesting payment of relocation assistance from
the municipality through the revolving relocation assistance fund
shall make such request to the Housing Officer or Construction Official.
No payment may be made absent recommendation from the Housing Officer
or Construction Official and approval of the Administrator. In the
absence of the Administrator, payment may be authorized by the Mayor
or the Chief Financial Officer and is subject to verification by the
Chief Financial Officer that funds are available for such purpose.
In addition to requiring reimbursement from the owner-landlord
of the structure for relocation assistance paid to a displaced tenant,
the owner-landlord may be fined for zoning or housing code violation
for an illegal occupancy, up to an amount equal to six times the monthly
rental paid by the displaced person, to be paid to the municipality
by the owner-landlord of the structure.
A.
In addition to the penalty prescribed in the foregoing section, the
Borough, after affording the owner-landlord an opportunity for a hearing
on the matter, may impose upon the owner-landlord, for a second or
subsequent violation for an illegal occupancy, a fine equal to the
annual tuition cost of any resident of the illegally occupied unit
attending a public school, which fine shall be recovered in a civil
action by a summary proceeding in the name of the municipality pursuant
to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L. 1999. c. 274 (N.J.S.A.
2A:58-10 et seq.). The Municipal Court and the Superior Court shall
have jurisdiction of proceedings for the enforcement of the penalty
provided by this section. The tuition cost shall be determined in
the manner prescribed for nonresident pupils pursuant to N.J.S.A.
18A:38-19, and the payment of the fine shall be remitted to the appropriate
school district.
B.
For the purposes of this section, the owner-landlord of a structure
shall not include mortgagees in possession of a structure through
foreclosure. For the purposes of this section, a "second or subsequent
violation for an illegal occupancy" shall be limited to those violations
that are new and are a result of distinct and separate zoning or code
enforcement activities, and shall not include any continuing violations
for which citations are issued by a zoning or code enforcement agent
during the time period required for summary dispossession proceedings
to conclude if the owner has initiated eviction proceedings in a court
of proper jurisdiction.
The Borough shall create a revolving relocation assistance fund
to be funded in such amount as may be determined by the Borough for
the purposes set forth herein.
Any owner or landlord who has received a notice that an additional
fine for zoning or housing code violation shall be entitled to a hearing
before the Construction Code Official or the Housing Officer, depending
upon which is the applicable fining officer, within 10 days after
receipt of notice that a fine is intended to be imposed.
