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Fire Districts

03/07/2024   FAST Fire District Auditor Access
01/24/2024   LOSAP CY 2023 Annual CPI Adjustment - For Use in CY 2024
10/10/2023   LFN 2023-18 Fire District Budgets & FAST
10/05/2023   FAST Reminder for Fire Districts
09/21/2023   New Local Finance Notices 2023-15 and 2023-16
09/08/2023   New Workplace Accountability in Labor List (The WALL)
08/22/2023   N.J.A.C. 5:34-6.1 Amendment - Emergency Adoption & Concurrent Proposal
08/17/2023   Russia-Belarus Law: Temporary Suspension of Enforcement
08/08/2023   LFN 2023-14 Pay-to-Play Law Update (Elections Transparency Act)
07/06/2023   Design Build Procurements - Prime Bidder Requirements
05/09/2023   CY2022 Audit Deadline Extension; GASB 68 & 75 for Municipal and County
12/29/2022   Local Finance Notice 2022-24 Russia-Belarus List & Iran Investment Law
12/28/2022   Final Adoption - NJAC 5:34-10 Design-Build Project Delivery
12/14/2022   Fire District Introduced Budgets in FAST
12/01/2022   FAST Reminder for Fire Districts
08/16/2022   DLGS Certification Update - Recent Rule Changes

FAST Fire District Auditor Access - 03/07/2024

Fire district auditors of record are now able to submit the annual audit and related documents through the Financial Automation Submission & Tracking (FAST) system. Access to the fire district audit module is currently being limited to the auditor of record for each fire district.

Auditors with Existing FAST Access: Fire district auditors of record with existing FAST access to any municipality, county, or authority account can contact Matt Gallello at Matthew.Gallello@dca.nj.gov with a list of the fire districts for which they are auditor of record to add these entities to their account.

Auditors without an Existing FAST Account: Fire district auditors of record that do not have an existing FAST account must register for an account at https://njdca.dynamics365portals.us/Account/Login/Register. Once registered and logged in, click "Request Access" in the upper right corner of the screen and select the option for FAST. On the access request screen, select the name of the fire district for which you are requesting access, check the box for "Fire District Auditor of Record", and submit the request. Requests for access are verified to the auditor listed in the fire district's most recent budget document.

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LOSAP CY 2023 Annual CPI Adjustment - For Use in CY 2024 - 01/24/2024

Local Finance Notice 2024-01, accessible on the DLGS website at https://www.nj.gov/dca/dlgs/lfns/2024/2024-01.pdf, provides municipalities and fire districts administering a Length of Service Awards Program (LOSAP) with information on LOSAP award increases and the annual cost of living adjustment to the maximum LOSAP award amounts.  For LOSAPs with automatic annual cost of living adjustments, the CY2023 CPI adjustment (for use in CY2024) is 3.5% for Municipal LOSAPs with a maximum LOSAP award of $2,023; and 6.9% for Fire District LOSAPs with a maximum LOSAP award of $2,070.

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LFN 2023-18 Fire District Budgets & FAST - 10/10/2023

Local Finance Notice 2023-18, accessible at https://www.nj.gov/dca/dlgs/lfns/2023-18.pdf, explains the CY 2024 fire district budget process and provides other key updates. Fire district officials must review the Notice as part of its budget process. All fire districts are required to enter their budget data into the standardized Excel workbook budget template. Upon completion of the fire district budget workbook, each fire district shall upload and submit the completed and certified document to the Division of Local Government Services (DLGS) through the Financial Automation Submission and Tracking (FAST) system.

Notice Sent to: Fire District Officials; Municipal CFOs; Municipal Clerks; Auditor Listserv

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FAST Reminder for Fire Districts - 10/05/2023

Fire districts are reminded that the 2022 audit and all required supporting documentation were due on September 29, 2023, per LFN 2023-10. The audit and supporting documents are required to be uploaded and submitted through the FAST system to begin the

2024 budget review process. Fire district officials must click the "submit button" in FAST to successfully transmit their audit and budget package to the Division. Uploading the budget and supporting documentation without clicking the "submit button" does not constitute proper submission and may result in delays in the review process and the adoption of the fire district budgets.

Please do not send paper copies of the audit or budget to the Division as they will not be accepted.

Municipal Clerks: please forward this message to any fire districts located within your municipality. 

Auditors: please forward to your fire district clients.

Fire district officials are strongly encouraged to sign up to receive EGG notices by contacting egg@dca.nj.gov.

For fire district budget questions, contact Melissa Ford at Melissa.Ford@dca.nj.gov or Zachary.Smith@dca.nj.gov

For technical assistance with the FAST system, contact Matt Gallello at Matthew.Gallello@dca.nj.gov.

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New Local Finance Notices 2023-15 and 2023-16 - 09/21/2023

Local Finance Notice 2023-15, available at https://www.nj.gov/dca/dlgs/lfns/2023-15.pdf, includes certain bidding thresholds recently updated by State Treasury. See pages 2 and 4 of the Notice for updates implemented as of July 1, 2023. In addition to the updated bidding thresholds, the Notice contains an updated link to the State Comptroller's contract submission webpage. Otherwise, the guidance remains identical to that in Local Finance Notice 2020-14R.

Local Finance Notice 2023-16 summarizes U.S. Treasury's new 2023 Interim Final Rule, which expands the types of uses for which ARP LFRF Funds may be used. As with the preexisting eligible uses, LFRF funds for newly eligible uses must be obligated by December 31, 2024. Please review the Notice at https://www.nj.gov/dca/dlgs/lfns/2023-16.pdf for critical details.

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New Workplace Accountability in Labor List (The WALL) - 09/08/2023

P.L. 2019, c. 366 (N.J.S.A. 34:1A-1.16) authorized the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (NJDOL) to create a list on its website, dubbed the Workplace Accountability in Labor List (The WALL), of any person found in violation of any State wage, benefit, and tax laws and against whom a final order has been issued by the NJDOL for such violation.  Any person or business named on The WALL is prohibited from contracting with any contracting unit until the liability for violations of State wage, benefit, and tax laws have been paid in full. 

The WALL is now live at https://www.nj.gov/labor/ea/osec/wall.shtml. A Local Finance Notice will be issued to provide local governments and boards of education with further implementation guidance. Pending further guidance, Local Public Contracts Law and Public School Contracts Law contracting units must cross-check prospective contractor and vendor names against the WALL before awarding any contract over the quote threshold. A contract cannot be awarded to any contractor or vendor appearing on the WALL.

Please note that contracting units must continue to check applicable debarment lists as part of their procurement process. Although a person or business has been removed from The WALL, that there may be other reasons why they remain ineligible for public contracting. For example, a business may be debarred for a period of time under the New Jersey Prevailing Wage Act.

Any questions about The WALL or a given person's status for purposes of The WALL should be directed to the NJDOL Office of Strategic Enforcement and Compliance at OSECInquiries@dol.nj.gov or 609-376-4952.

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N.J.A.C. 5:34-6.1 Amendment - Emergency Adoption & Concurrent Proposal - 08/22/2023

The Director of the Division of Local Government Services ((DLGS) has adopted on an emergency basis and concurrently proposed an amendment to N.J.A.C. 5:34-6.1 permitting municipalities that are under enhanced State oversight to award a multi-year emergency contract for solid waste collection and/or recycling collection, under certain circumstances, subject to Director approval. Pursuant to the amendment, a municipality is deemed subject to enhanced State oversight if the municipality is under the Transitional Aid to Localities Program or any successor discretionary aid programs for municipalities in fiscal distress (N.J.S.A. 52:27D-118.42a), State Supervision Act (N.J.S.A. 52:27BB-54 et seq.), Municipal Rehabilitation and Economic Recovery Act (N.J.S.A. 52:27BBB-1 et seq.), Municipal Stabilization and Recovery Act (N.J.S.A. 52:27BBBB-1 et seq.), or a financial review board instituted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:27D-118.30a. The Notice of Emergency Adoption and Concurrent Proposal is available on the DLGS Rules and Regulations webpage at https://www.nj.gov/dca/dlgs/rules_reg.shtml under the Proposed Rules and Recently Adopted Rules headings.

Please submit written comments by September 20, 2023, via email to Jason.Martucci@dca.nj.gov or by regular mail to:

Jason R. Martucci, Esq.

Department of Community Affairs

PO Box 803

Trenton, New Jersey 08625

If no further action is taken by October 1, 2023, the amendment will expire and N.J.A.C. 5:34-6.1 will revert to its prior form.

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Russia-Belarus Law: Temporary Suspension of Enforcement - 08/17/2023

P.L. 2022, c. 3, signed into law on March 9, 2022, required the State Department of the Treasury (Treasury) to develop, based on credible information available to the public, a list of persons and entities engaging in prohibited activities in Russia or Belarus (Russia-Belarus list). On August 4, 2023, a company obtained a temporary restraining order (TRO) from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, which enjoins the State from enforcing N.J.S.A. 52:32-60.1 against that company on the ground that the statute is likely inconsistent with federal law. Due to the ongoing litigation, Treasury has removed the Russia-Belarus list from its website, and the State (along with its agencies and instrumentalities) has voluntarily suspended further implementation of the Russia-Belarus law until further order of the Court.

While the State continues to defend the law in court, in light of the Court's decision and the Russia-Belarus list being taken down, contracting units under the Local Public Contracts Law, Public School Contracts Law, and County College Contracts Law are not required to enforce the Russia-Belarus vendor/contractor certification requirement at this time.

At this time, the Russia-Belarus list also does not apply to redeveloper designations under the Local Redevelopment and Housing Law (N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-1 et seq.) and to agreements for payments-in-lieu-of-taxes (PILOTs) or other municipal property tax abatements. This could change based upon future legal developments. Please review the Treasury Notice at https://www.state.nj.us/treasury/administration/pdf/NoticeRussia.pdf for further information. 

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LFN 2023-14 Pay-to-Play Law Update (Elections Transparency Act) - 08/08/2023

The Elections Transparency Act (P.L. 2023, c. 30) made various significant changes to New Jersey's pay-to-play laws. Local Finance Notice 2023-14 explains the law and its impacts on non-fair and open contract awards, along with other areas such as the elimination of local pay-to-play policies. Links to newly updated pay-to-play model forms are also provided. Local Finance Notice 2013-14 is available at https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/dlgs/lfns/23/2023-14.pdf.

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Design Build Procurements - Prime Bidder Requirements - 07/06/2023

There have been reports that some municipalities are allowing Contractors to bid on Design-Build projects who are not DPMC classified in the Design Build trade (C007) and therefore are not approved to perform work as a Design Build Contractor in accordance with P.L. 2021, c. 71. For Design Build projects undertaken by local governments and boards of education, N.J.A.C. 5:34-10.7(5) requires the bidder on a project to be classified with DPMC in the Design-Build trade (C007). No other DPMC trade classifications are allowable or appropriate for the prime contractor/bidder on a Design-Build project. See the DLGS Design-Build regulations at for further details. In the near future, DLGS will be issuing a Local Finance Notice with further guidance on the design build process.

Notice sent to: Procurement Officials; Municipal & County CFOs; Administrators/Managers; Authority Officials; Fire District Officials; Auditor Listserv

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CY2022 Audit Deadline Extension; GASB 68 & 75 for Municipal and County - 05/09/2023

The Director of DLGS has extended to September 29, 2023 the deadline for all local units with a calendar year budget cycle to complete and file their 2022 audits.  This extension applies to counties, calendar year municipalities, and all calendar year authorities, including fire districts. The Order is available on the DLGS Rules and Regulations webpage. 

For the annual audits of counties and calendar year municipalities only, the Division is authorizing inclusion of the GASB 68 and GASB 75 information most recently published by the Division of Pensions and Benefits.

Counties and calendar year municipalities do not need to wait for the 2022 audited GASB 68 & GASB 75 information to be issued before completing and filing their audits. Authorities and fire districts are still required to include the 2022 audited GASB 68 and GASB 75 information in their CY2022 audits.

Please review Local Finance Notice 2023-10 for further details at  https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/dlgs/lfns/23/2023-10.pdf.

 

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Local Finance Notice 2022-24 Russia-Belarus List & Iran Investment Law - 12/29/2022

P.L. 2022, c. 3, signed into law on March 9, 2022, required the State Department of the Treasury (Treasury) to develop, based on credible information available to the public, a list of persons and entities engaging in prohibited activities in Russia or Belarus (Russia-Belarus list). Persons or entities included on the Russia-Belarus list cannot enter into or renew a contract for the provision of goods and services with a State agency, State college or university, a contracting unit as defined in the Local Public Contracts Law, a board of education as defined in the Public School Contracts Law (including charter schools), or a county college as defined in the County College Contracts Law. The Treasury list is now available at  https://www.nj.gov/treasury/administration/pdf/RussiaBelarusEntityList.pdf and will be updated at least once every six months.

A person or entity appearing on the Russia-Belarus list cannot be designated as a redeveloper under the Local Redevelopment and Housing Law (N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-1 et seq.), enter into an agreement for a payment in-lieu of taxes (PILOT) or otherwise be awarded a municipal property tax abatement. Before beginning the application process, the applicant must provide a similar certification and the local unit must confirm that the applicant does not appear on the Russia-Belarus list.

If a person or entity is listed by State Treasury as engaging in investment activities in Iran (Chapter 25 list), a State agency, a contracting unit as defined in the Local Public Contracts Law, a board of education as defined in the Public School Contracts Law, or a county college as defined in the County College Contracts Law cannot award or renew a contract for goods or services with that person or entity.

The Chapter 25 list is available at https://www.state.nj.us/treasury/purchase/pdf/Chapter25List.pdf.

Please review Local Finance Notice 2022-24 at https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/dlgs/lfns/22/2022-24.pdf for further details. A new model form combining the Russia-Belarus and Iran Investment certifications is available at https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/dlgs/programs/lpcl_docs/Russia-Belarus%20and%20Iran%20Combined%20Certification.docx.

Notice sent to: Procurement Officials; Municipal & County CFOs; Administrators/Managers; Municipal Clerks; Clerks - Boards of County Commissioners; Authorities; Fire Districts; LFB Listserv; Auditor Listserv

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Final Adoption - NJAC 5:34-10 Design-Build Project Delivery - 12/28/2022

The Department of Community Affairs has adopted regulations allowing local governments and school districts to utilize the design-build method of project delivery for construction projects equal to or exceeding $5,000,000.  Codified at N.J.A.C. 5:34-10, the final Notice of Adoption has been published in the December 19, 2022 New Jersey Register and can be found on the DLGS Rules and Regulations website at https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/dlgs/resources/rules_reg.html under the Recently Adopted Rules heading. The most current rule text is available at https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/dlgs/resources/rules_docs/NJAC%205_34-10%20Design-Build%20Project%20Delivery%20(as%20of%2012-19-22).pdf. Further guidance will follow.

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Fire District Introduced Budgets in FAST - 12/14/2022

The Division of Local Government Services (DLGS) has been notified that the GASB 75 pension reports as of June 30, 2021 have been posted to the Division of Pensions and Benefits website. DLGS, encourages all Districts to submit their 2023 Introduced Budget along with either a final or draft copy of your 2021 audit schedules to expedite the DLGS budget review process.

If you have any further questions or concerns, please contact Melissa Ford via email at: melissa.ford@dca.nj.gov.

 

Notice sent to: Fire Districts and Auditors

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FAST Reminder for Fire Districts - 12/01/2022

Fire districts are reminded that the budget, audit, and all supporting documentation are required to be uploaded and submitted through the FAST system in order to begin the budget review process.  Fire district officials must click the submit button in FAST to successfully transmit their budget package to the Division.  Uploading the budget and supporting documentation without clicking the submit button does not constitute proper submission and may result in delays in the review process and the adoption of fire district budgets. 

Municipal Clerks, please forward this message to any fire districts located within your municipality.  Auditors, please forward to your fire district clients.

Fire district officials are strongly encouraged to sign up to receive EGG notices by contacting egg@dca.nj.gov.

For fire district budget questions, contact Melissa Ford at Melissa.Ford@dca.nj.gov.  For technical assistance with the FAST system, contact Matt Gallello at Matthew.Gallello@dca.nj.gov.

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DLGS Certification Update - Recent Rule Changes - 08/16/2022

The Director of the Division of Local Government Services has adopted regulatory amendments implementing certain changes relevant to DLGS-licensed positions.  These changes include:

-              The ability to bank up to 50% of surplus continuing education (CEU) contact hours earned during a license renewal cycle extended pursuant to N.J.S.A. 52:27D-18.5 into the next renewal cycle.

                This carry over allowance is effective one time only.

-              Commencing with qualified purchasing agent (QPA) license renewals due by December 31, 2022: 

          -     increasing from 20 to 25 the total number of CEU contact hours a QPA must earn during a license renewal cycle; and

          -     increasing the minimum required number of CEU contact hours for the "procurement procedures" category from two (2) to five (5).

-              Creating a new optional continuing education category for QPAs on compliance with public works contracting laws.

-              Requiring a contracting unit to notify its auditor whenever a QPA vacates the position, unless the auditor makes an annual inquiry on whether a contracting unit has appointed a QPA or temporary QPA.

Local Finance Notice 2022-15, available at https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/dlgs/lfns/22/2022-15.pdf, provides further details on the adopted regulations and links to the updated regulatory text.

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Updated: 03/07/2024