New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 11 - INSURANCE › Chapter 15 - GROUP SELF-INSURANCE › Subchapter 2 - JOINT INSURANCE FUNDS FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENTAL UNITS PROVIDING PROPERTY AND LIABILITY COVERAGES › Section 11:15-2.4 - General requirements

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) Every joint insurance fund shall be subject to and operate in compliance with the provisions of the "Local Fiscal Affairs Law" (40A:5-1 et seq.), the "Local Public Contracts Law" (40A:11-1 et seq.), regulations (including, but not limited to, N.J.A.C. 5:34), the various statutes authorizing the investment of public funds, including but not limited to, 40A:10-10(b), 40A:10-38, 17:12B-241 and 17:16I-1 et seq., and in the case of a joint insurance fund providing environmental impairment liability coverage, the "Local Bond Law" (40A:2-1 et seq.), but shall not be subject to the debt limitation set forth in 40A:2-6.
(b) All monies, assessments, funds and other assets of a joint insurance fund shall be under the exclusive control of its board of insurance fund commissioners or executive committee, as applicable.
(c) A joint insurance fund shall be considered a local unit for purposes of the "Local Public Contracts Law" (40A:11-1 et seq.) and shall be governed by the provisions of that law in the purchase of any goods, materials, supplies and services.
(d) Each joint insurance fund shall utilize as its fiscal year, the calendar year, January 1 through December 31.
(e) Each joint insurance fund shall adopt a resolution designating a public depository or depositories for its monies pursuant to 40A:5-14. Such resolution shall also designate a person to be custodian of funds for the joint insurance fund and shall authorize the custodian to invest the temporarily free balances of any claim/trust or administrative accounts periodically as authorized by law. The custodian of funds shall possess a certified municipal finance officer certificate issued pursuant to 40A:9-140.2, or to the extent the fund is comprised of entities other than municipalities, possess the appropriate professional credentials required by the Department of Community Affairs pursuant to the "Local Fiscal Affairs Law" (40A:5-1 et seq.). The custodian shall report to the fund commissioners at least quarterly on investment and interest income.
(f) The joint insurance fund commissioners shall annually prepare in November of each year the proposed budget for the fund's subsequent fiscal year. The budget shall identify the proposed items and amounts of expenditure for its operations in the aggregate and allocated by member, the anticipated amounts and sources of assessments and other income to be received during the fiscal year, and the status of the self-insurance or loss retention trust accounts maintained by the joint insurance fund. The budget shall be prepared on a basis that does not recognize investment income or discounting of claim reserves, but recognizes all anticipated or forecasted losses and administrative expenses associated with that fiscal year.
1. A copy of the fund's proposed budget or any amendments thereto shall be made available to each member of the joint insurance fund at least two weeks prior to the time scheduled for its adoption. No budget or amendment shall be adopted until a public hearing has been held in accordance with 40A:4-1 et seq. giving all members of the joint insurance fund the opportunity to present comments or objections.
2. Not later than December 31 of each year, the joint insurance fund commissioners, or the executive committee thereof, shall adopt by majority vote the budget for the fund's operations for the subsequent fiscal year.
3. An adopted budget may be amended by majority vote of the membership of the joint insurance fund commissioners, or executive committee thereof.
4. A copy of each adopted budget shall be filed with the governing body of each participating local unit, the Commissioner and the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs within 30 days of its adoption, including a certification by an actuary that the budget is actuarially sound with respect to funding for the claim or loss retention fund accounts.
5. A copy of any amendment to a fund budget shall be filed quarterly with the governing body of each participating local unit.
6. A copy of any amendment to a fund budget shall be filed with the Commissioner and the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs within 30 days of the adoption of any budget amendment which either singly or cumulatively with other adopted budget amendments changes the total budget five percent from the original budget or the latest filed amended budget.