N.J. Admin. Code § 2:76-17A.3

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 12, June 17, 2024

Section 2:76-17A.3 - Prerequisites for grant eligibility

(a) A municipality seeking to establish its eligibility for a grant under this subchapter shall:

1. Establish an agricultural advisory committee appointed by the mayor with the consent of the municipal governing body. The municipal agricultural advisory committee shall report to the municipal planning board.

i. A municipal agricultural advisory committee shall be composed of at least three, but not more than five, residents of the municipality, with a majority of the members actively engaged in farming and owning a portion of the land they farm; and

ii. A member of the agricultural advisory committee or a member of his or her immediate family, is prohibited from selling or applying to sell a development easement on his or her property or from selling or applying to sell his or her property in fee simple title pursuant to the Agriculture Retention and Development Act, N.J.S.A. 4:1C-11 et seq., and the Garden State Preservation Trust Act, N.J.S. A. 13:8C-1 et seq., if such property is located in the municipality for which the landowner serves as a member of the agricultural advisory committee.

(1) "Member of the immediate family" means a member's spouse, child, parent, or sibling, residing in the same household; and

iii. The agricultural advisory committee shall meet at least two times annually in compliance with the Senator Byron M. Baer Open Public Meetings Act, N.J.S.A. 10:4-6 et seq.

2. Maintain a dedicated source of funding for farmland preservation pursuant to P.L. 1997, c. 24 (40:12-15.1 et seq.), or an alternative means of funding for farmland preservation, such as, but not limited to:

i. A dedicated tax pursuant to P.L. 1997, c. 24 (40:12-15.1 et seq.);

ii. Repeated, continuing annual appropriations; or

iii. Repeated issuance of bonded indebtedness.

(1) The Committee may determine that a funding source, other than those identified in (a)2 above, is, in effect, a dedicated source of funding based upon a demonstrated commitment to farmland preservation by the municipality;

3. Prepare and adopt a farmland preservation plan element pursuant to paragraph 13 of section 19 of P.L. 1975, c. 291 (N.J.S.A. 40:55D-28b(13)) in consultation with the municipal agriculture advisory committee. The plan shall include, at a minimum, the following:

i. An inventory of farm properties in the entire municipality and a map illustrating significant areas of agricultural land;

ii. A detailed statement showing that municipal plans and ordinances support and promote agriculture as a business; and

iii. A plan for preserving as much farmland as possible in the short-term by leveraging monies made available by the Garden State Preservation Trust Act, P.L. 1999, c. 152 (N.J.S.A. 13:8C-1 et seq.), the Preserve New Jersey Act, P.L. 2016, c. 12 (N.J.S.A. 13:8C-43 et seq.), or by any appropriation to the Committee for farmland preservation purposes through a variety of mechanisms including, but not limited to, utilizing:

(1) Option agreements;

(2) Installment purchases; and

(3) Encouraging donations for permanent development easements; and

iv. Additional requirements set forth at N.J.A.C. 2:76-17A.4; and

4. Prepare and adopt a right-to-farm ordinance that is consistent with, or provides greater protections to commercial farm operators and owners than, the Right to Farm Act, 4:1C-1 et seq., as determined by the Committee.

N.J. Admin. Code § 2:76-17A.3

Amended by 52 N.J.R. 1549(a), effective 8/3/2020