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Bill > S116


NJ S116

NJ S116
Requires State aid reduction to municipalities and school districts by amount of accumulated absences paid to employees upon their retirement.


summary

Introduced
01/13/2026
In Committee
01/13/2026
Crossed Over
Passed
Dead

Introduced Session

2026-2027 Regular Session

Bill Summary

This bill would require each municipality to report to the Director of the Division of Local Government Services annually, as part of its budget, the amount paid by a municipality to its employees for accumulated absences upon their retirement in the previous budget year. The bill also would require the State Treasurer to reduce the total amount of financial assistance provided to each municipality in the next succeeding State fiscal year from Consolidated Municipal Property Tax Relief Aid, Energy Tax Receipts Property Tax Relief Aid, Extraordinary Aid or Transitional Aid to Localities, or any combination thereof, by the amount of those unused sick leave payments. Similarly, the bill requires that the Commissioner of Education reduce a school district's State aid by the amount paid to the district's employees for accumulated absences upon retirement, as identified in the district's most recent annual audit. The purpose of this bill is to ensure that a municipality or school district does not use State aid as a means to pay its employees for egregious amounts of accumulated absences accrued over long careers in government. The sponsor believes that if municipalities and districts choose to have policies that require payment for accumulated absences at the end of an employee's career, the property taxpayers of those entities should cover those costs.

AI Summary

This bill requires municipalities and school districts to report the amounts they pay to employees for accumulated absences upon retirement, and then mandates that the State Treasurer reduce future State aid to those municipalities by that amount, while the Commissioner of Education will similarly reduce State aid to school districts based on their reported retirement payments for accumulated absences. Accumulated absences refer to unused sick days or other time off that employees may be compensated for upon leaving their jobs, and this bill aims to prevent municipalities and school districts from using State aid, which is intended for public services, to cover what the bill's sponsor considers excessive payouts for these accumulated absences, suggesting that such costs should be borne by local property taxpayers if local policies allow for them.

Committee Categories

Education

Sponsors (1)

Last Action

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Education Committee (on 01/13/2026)

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