N.J. Admin. Code § 19:61-3.1
Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 21, November 4, 2024
Section 19:61-3.1 - Allegations; procedure(a) Every allegation received by the Commission shall be reviewed by the Commission's staff for an initial determination as to whether the alleged conduct falls within the jurisdiction of the Commission. 1. It shall be within the discretion of the Commission's staff to transfer those allegations involving the alleged violation of the Uniform Ethics Code or a supplemental ethics code, rule, or regulation promulgated by a State agency, to that agency for disposition in accord with its procedures.2. It shall be within the discretion of the Commission's staff to transfer those allegations involving the alleged violation of another State statute to the appropriate enforcing authority.3. Any preliminary investigation of an alleged ethics violation, whether conducted by Commission staff or a State agency, shall be confidential.4. If during the course of a preliminary investigation Commission staff discovers additional potential ethics violations from the violation alleged in the initial complaint, staff may initiate a new investigation into the additional violations or may join this alleged misconduct with the existing preliminary investigation.(b) In any situation where the Commission has jurisdiction over an allegation, the Commission shall conduct and complete a preliminary investigation of all allegations; such investigation may include interviews of the complainant, the State official involved, and any other individuals who possess knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the alleged conduct.1. An investigation regarding a violation committed by a current State official may be initiated at any time during his or her State service.2. An investigation regarding a violation committed by a former State official during his or her State service shall be initiated by the Commission not later than two years following the termination of his or her State service.3. An investigation shall be considered initiated on the date a letter is sent to the State official advising him or her that he or she is the subject of an open investigation.(c) At the beginning of the preliminary investigation, the Commission shall assign a case number to the allegation. 1. During the course of the preliminary investigation, the allegation shall be identified only by case number, not by the name of the State official involved, except in internal Commission communication and communication with the State official and/or his or her designee.2. Throughout the preliminary investigation, whether conducted by the Commission or a State agency, the allegation shall be considered confidential.3. The contents of the Commission's investigative file are confidential and shall not be released except upon the authorization of the Commission, or pursuant to court order or administrative rule.4. Commission staff may disclose the contents of an investigative file to another State or Federal agency based on a belief that the contents of the file raise issues within that agency's jurisdiction.5. After the final determination of a matter by the Commission and the expiration of any time for appeal, the Commission shall consider requests for information related to the completed matter. The Commission shall consider and determine whether the requester has a particularized need for the contents of the file and has established an inability to obtain the requested information from other sources. In its consideration, the Commission shall balance the requester's need against the public interest to maintain the confidentiality of the files.(d) After the conclusion of the preliminary investigation, the Commission shall notify the State official(s) involved and the head of the State agency employing said State official(s) of the date of the meeting at which the Commission shall consider the preliminary investigation.(e) If a Commission member holds office or employment in the same State agency which employs the State official named in the allegation, he or she shall recuse himself or herself from participation in any decisional process relating to that particular case.(f) The Commission may, after review of the preliminary investigation, refer the allegation to the State agency of the State official(s) involved for appropriate action.(g) If the Commission finds that there has been no violation of 52:13D-12 et seq., or any code, rule, or regulation promulgated pursuant thereto, as alleged, it shall dismiss the allegation in open session at a Commission meeting. The Commission staff shall have the authority to dismiss a complaint that it determines to be frivolous.(h) If the Commission determines that there are indications of a violation meriting further action, a complaint shall be set down for hearing at the Office of Administrative Law pursuant to the requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act, 52:14B-1 et seq., and the Uniform Administrative Procedure Rules, N.J.A.C. 1:1, or the Commission may hold the hearing itself. If the Commission hears the matter, it shall follow the standards of the Administrative Procedure Act.(i) Prior to the issuance of a complaint, Commission staff may engage in settlement negotiations with the State official and/or his or her designee.(j) After the hearing is concluded, a decision shall be issued in accordance with the time frame set forth in the Administrative Procedure Act, 52:14B-10.(k) If the Commission determines that the State official has violated the Uniform Ethics Code, the provisions of 52:13D-12 et seq., or any code, rule, or regulation promulgated by any State agency pursuant thereto, it shall fine said State official in accordance with the provisions of 52:13D-21(i). An assessed penalty may be collected in a summary proceeding pursuant to the Penalty Enforcement Law (N.J.S.A. 2A:58-1). 1. The Commission may further order or direct the State agency employing the State official to demote, censure or reprimand said State official, to obtain restitution from said State official, or to suspend said State official for a period not in excess of one year for each violation.2. Should the Commission find that the conduct of said State official constitutes a willful and continuous disregard of the provisions of the Uniform Ethics Code, 52:13D-12 et seq., or any code, rule or regulation promulgated by any State agency pursuant thereto, it may order or direct the State agency employing the State official to remove the State official from his or her office or employment and may further bar such person from holding any public office or employment in this State in any capacity whatsoever for a period of time not exceeding five years from the date on which he or she was found guilty by the Commission.N.J. Admin. Code § 19:61-3.1
Amended by R.1997 d.88, effective 2/18/1997.
See: 28 N.J.R. 4755(b), 29 N.J.R. 593(a).
In (c)2, amended subsection references and added text "After the final. . .. confidentiality of the files."; (d) and former (e) combined into new (d); former (f) through (k) recodified as (e) through (j); in (f), substituted "after review" for "after consideration of the report"; in (g) and (h), deleted reference to a report of the preliminary investigation; and in (g), deleted reference to the dismissal and report being kept as public record.
Amended by R.2006 d.292, effective 8/21/2006.
See: 38 N.J.R. 1804(a), 38 N.J.R. 3318(a).
Rewrote (a)1, (a)3, (b), (c)1, (d) through (g) and (j).
Amended by R.2012 d.045, effective 2/21/2012.
See: 43 N.J.R. 1515(a), 44 N.J.R. 519(a).
Rewrote (a), (b) and (c); in (e), substituted "recuse" for "disqualify"; in (g), inserted "in open session at a Commission meeting" and the second occurrence of "shall"; in (h), substituted "action" for "investigation" and deleted "promptly" following "down"; added new (i); recodified former (i) and (j) as (j) and (k); in the introductory paragraph of (k) and in (k)2, substituted "Uniform Ethics Code" for "uniform ethics code"; and in (k)2, deleted "direct that the State agency" following "further".