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54:4-1. Property subject to taxation.
54:4-1. All property real and personal within the jurisdiction of this State not expressly exempted from taxation or expressly excluded from the operation of this chapter shall be subject to taxation annually under this chapter. Such property shall be valued and assessed at the taxable value prescribed by law. Land in agricultural or horticultural use which is being taxed under the ~Farmland Assessment Act of 1964,~ P.L.1964, c.48 (C.54:4-23.1 et seq.), shall be valued and assessed as provided by that act. An executory contract for the sale of land, under which the vendee is entitled to or does take possession thereof, shall be deemed, for the purpose of this act, a mortgage of said land for the unpaid balance of purchase price. Personal property taxable under this chapter shall include, however, only the machinery, apparatus or equipment of a petroleum refinery that is directly used to manufacture petroleum products from crude oil in any of the series of petroleum refining processes commencing with the introduction of crude oil and ending with refined petroleum products, but shall exclude items of machinery, apparatus or equipment which are located on the grounds of a petroleum refinery but which are not directly used to refine crude oil into petroleum products and the tangible goods and chattels, exclusive of inventories, used in business of local exchange telephone, telegraph and messenger systems, companies, corporations or associations that were subject to tax as of April 1, 1997 under P.L.1940, c.4 (C.54:30A-16 et seq.) as amended, and shall not include any intangible personal property whatsoever whether or not such personalty is evidenced by a tangible or intangible chose in action except as otherwise provided by R.S.54:4-20. As used in this section, ~local exchange telephone company~ means a telecommunications carrier providing dial tone and access to 51% of a local telephone exchange. Property omitted from any assessment may be assessed by the county board of taxation, or otherwise, within such time and in such manner as shall be provided by law. Real property taxable under this chapter means all land and improvements thereon and includes personal property affixed to the real property or an appurtenance thereto, unless:
a. (1) The personal property so affixed can be removed or severed without material injury to the real property;
(2) The personal property so affixed can be removed or severed without material injury to the personal property itself; and
(3) The personal property so affixed is not ordinarily intended to be affixed permanently to real property; or
b. The personal property so affixed is machinery, apparatus, or equipment used or held for use in business and is neither a structure nor machinery, apparatus or equipment the primary purpose of which is to enable a structure to support, shelter, contain, enclose or house persons or property. For purposes of this subsection, real property shall include pipe racks, and piping and electrical wiring up to the point of connections with the machinery, apparatus, or equipment of a production process as defined in this section.
c. (Deleted by amendment, P.L.2004, c.42).
Real property, as defined herein, shall not be construed to affect any transaction or security interest provided for under the provisions of chapter 9 of Title 12A of the New Jersey Statutes (N.J.S.12A:9-101 et seq.). The provisions of this section shall not be construed to repeal or in any way alter any exemption from, or any exception to, real property taxation or any definition of personal property otherwise provided by statutory law.
The Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury may adopt rules and regulations pursuant to the provisions of the ~Administrative Procedure Act,~ P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) as may be deemed necessary to implement and administer the provisions of this act.
Amended 1942, c.281, s.1; 1943, c.120, s.1; 1945, c.163, s.1; 1946, c.159; 1946, c.242, s.1; 1947, c.413, s.14; 1960, c.51, s.23; 1962, c.238; 1965, c.62, s.1; 1966, c.138, s.1; 1986, c.117, s.1; 1989, c.2, s.4; 1992, c.24, s.3; 1997, c.162, s.60; 2001, c.438; 2004, c.42, s.13.
54:4-1.1. Pending litigation unaffected; effect on existing assessment, lien, or obligation to pay taxes; omitted property
Nothing herein shall be construed to affect any pending litigation, nor to repeal, abate, cancel, cause to lapse, or otherwise affect in any manner, any assessment or the lien or obligation to pay any taxes heretofore assessed to any taxpayer, or the legal authority to collect taxes, interest and penalties which have accrued under any provision of law repealed by this act, or under any other law, except as specifically provided in this act; provided, however, that on and after the effective date of this act no county board of taxation shall by resolution cause to be entered upon the tax duplicate an assessment against any intangible personal property omitted by the assessor, nor entertain any complaint for the adding of omitted intangible personal property, save that any proceeding heretofore actually instituted for the listing and assessment of omitted property may be prosecuted to its final conclusion without respect to the provisions of this section.
L.1945, c. 163, p. 581, s. 9.
54:4-1.2. Short title
This act shall be known and may be cited as the ~Manufactured Home Taxation Act.~
L.1983, c. 400, s. 1, eff. Dec. 22, 1983.
54:4-1.3. Legislative findings and determinations
The Legislature finds and determines that:
a. It is in the public interest that the Legislature address the difficult questions raised in litigation over the tax status of manufactured homes;
b. Manufactured homes located in mobile home parks receive fewer public services than manufactured homes or other single family dwelling units located on privately owned lots, and thus the former homes occasion a lower level of public expenditures than the latter homes;
c. With respect to purchaser financing, manufactured homes located in mobile home parks are not treated in the same manner as manufactured homes located on private lots owned by the homeowner or other residential property, and thus are not typically financed through mortgage arrangements, but are typically financed through installment credit;
d. Because of the differences in siting between manufactured homes in mobile home parks and manufactured homes otherwise located, it is difficult to equate the two for property title purposes, and thus for the purposes of property tax enforcement;
e. The Legislature has provided that certain property owned by public utilities which would otherwise constitute real property for the purposes of taxation is not real property for such purposes, and has provided an alternate means of ensuring that the owner of such property is responsible for reasonable payment for public services which that owner receives;
f. The factors which distinguish manufactured homes in mobile home parks from other dwelling units warrants a distinction between the former and the latter which is analogous to the distinction drawn in the case of public utilities property;
g. It is necessary to draw that distinction in a fair and equitable manner, which will not penalize the owners of the manufactured homes located in mobile home parks, nor absolve them of their responsibility to pay for the public services they receive;
h. It is further necessary to ensure parity, where taxation is concerned, between manufactured homes situated outside mobile home parks and other similar dwelling units;
i. The land and improvements thereto which together constitute a mobile home park, including those improvements added as part of the private provision of otherwise public services, are subject to taxation as real property, and the revenues derived from the assessment and levy of these real property taxes contribute to the defrayal of the costs of public services provided the owner of the park and lessees of sites in that park; and
j. It is appropriate and necessary to provide a method by which a municipality may receive reasonable payment for services provided the owners of manufactured homes in mobile home parks, the cost of which services is not defrayed by real property tax revenues.
L.1983, c. 400, s. 2, eff. Dec. 22, 1983.
54:4-1.4. Definitions
As used in this act:
a. ~Commissioner~ means the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs;
b. ~Cooperative~ means a housing corporation or association which entitles the holder of a share or membership interest thereof to possess and occupy for dwelling purposes a house, apartment, manufactured home or other unit of housing owned by the corporation or association, or to purchase a unit of housing constructed or erected by the corporation or association;
c. ~Grade~ means a reference plane consisting of the average finished ground level adjacent to a structure, building, or facility at all visible exterior walls;
d. ~Manufactured home~ means a unit of housing which:
(1) Consists of one or more transportable sections which are substantially constructed off site and, if more than one section, are joined together on site;
(2) Is built on a permanent chassis;
(3) Is designed to be used, when connected to utilities, as a dwelling on a permanent or nonpermanent foundation; and
(4) Is manufactured in accordance with the standards promulgated for a manufactured home by the secretary pursuant to the ~National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974,~ Pub.L. 93-383 (42 U.S.C. s. 5401 et seq.) and the standards promulgated for a manufactured or mobile home by the commissioner pursuant to the ~State Uniform Construction Code Act,~ P.L.1975, c. 217 (C. 52:27D-119 et seq.);
~Manufactured home~ also means and includes any unit of housing manufactured before the effective date of the standards promulgated by the secretary or, as appropriate, by the commissioner, but which otherwise meets the criteria set forth in this subsection;
e. ~Mobile home park~ means a parcel of land, or two or more contiguous parcels of land, containing no fewer than 10 sites equipped for the installation of manufactured homes, where these sites are under common ownership and control, other than as a cooperative, for the purpose of leasing each site to the owner of a manufactured home for the installation thereof, and where the owner or owners provide services, which are provided by the municipality in which the park is located for property owners outside the park, which services may include but shall not be limited to:
(1) The construction and maintenance of streets;
(2) Lighting of streets and other common areas;
(3) Garbage removal;
(4) Snow removal; and
(5) Provisions for the drainage of surface water from home sites and common areas.
A parcel, or any contiguous parcels, of land which contain, on the effective date of this act, no fewer than three sites equipped for the installation of manufactured homes, and which otherwise conform to the provisions of this subsection, shall qualify as a mobile home park for the purposes of this act;
f. ~Municipal service fee~ means a fee imposed on manufactured homes installed in a mobile home park for the purpose of reasonable payment for services rendered the owners of the manufactured homes by the municipality or any other local taxing authority established pursuant to an ordinance of the municipal governing body, and for the reimbursement of the municipality for payments made thereby to the school district in which the mobile home park is located for educational costs occasioned by pupils residing in that park;
g. ~Nonpermanent foundation~ means any foundation consisting of nonmortared blocks, wheels, a concrete slab, runners, or any combination thereof, or any other system approved by the commissioner for the installation and anchorage of a manufactured home on other than a permanent foundation;
h. ~Off site construction of a manufactured home or section thereof~ means the construction of that home or section at a location other than the location at which the home is to be installed;
i. ~On site joining of sections of a manufactured home~ means the joining of those sections at the location at which the home is to be installed;
j. ~Permanent foundation~ means a system of support installed either partially or entirely below grade, which is:
(1) Capable of transferring all design loads imposed by or upon the structure into soil or bedrock without failure;
(2) Placed at an adequate depth below grade to prevent frost damage; and
(3) Constructed of any material approved by the commissioner;
k. ~Runners~ means a system of support consisting of poured concrete strips running the length of the chassis of a manufactured home under the lengthwise walls of that home;
l. ~Secretary~ means the Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development; and
m. ~Trailer~ means a recreational vehicle, travel trailer, camper or other transportable, temporary dwelling unit, with or without its own motor power, designed and constructed for travel and recreational purposes to be installed on a nonpermanent foundation if installation is required.
L.1983, c. 400, s. 3, eff. Dec. 22, 1983.
54:4-1.5. Manufactured homes subject to taxation as real property
a. Except as otherwise provided for in subsection b. of this section and in P.L.1982, c. 220 (C. 54:4-23a), a manufactured home shall be subject to taxation as real property under chapter 4 of Title 54 of the Revised Statutes when that home:
(1) Is affixed to the land on which it is sited by a permanent foundation; or
(2) Is affixed to that land by a nonpermanent foundation and connected to utility systems in such manner as to render the home habitable as a dwelling unit on a permanent basis.
b. A manufactured home which is installed in a mobile home park shall not be subject to taxation as real property.
L.1983, c. 400, s. 4, eff. Dec. 22, 1983.
54:4-1.6. Municipal service fee; ordinance; imposition on manufactured homes in mobile home park; determination of amount; collection by owner of mobile home park; transmittal; interest on delinquencies; rent surcharge
a. A municipality, by ordinance, shall provide for the imposition of an annual municipal service fee, on manufactured homes installed in a mobile home park within its corporate boundaries. In setting this fee, the municipal governing body shall take into account the extent to which the taxes assessed and levied pursuant to Title 54 of the Revised Statutes against the land and improvements thereto which together constitute the mobile home park in which the homes are installed defray the costs of services provided, or paid for, by the municipality, or provided by any other appropriate taxing authority, for lessees of sites in the park. The ordinance imposing the municipal service fee shall provide for the proration of that fee, as necessary, in order to account for vacancies in the mobile home park.
b. The municipal service fee shall be collected from each owner of a manufactured home on a monthly basis by the owner of the mobile home park in which the home is installed. The park owner shall issue a receipt to the homeowner upon each collection.
The park owner shall transmit the fees collected, in a manner set forth in the ordinance imposing the fee, to the tax collector of the taxing district constituting the municipality in which the fee is imposed, and shall transmit therewith a copy of each receipt issued pursuant to this subsection.
The governing body of the municipality may, by ordinance, fix a rate of interest to be charged a homeowner by the municipality for failure to pay the municipal service fee when due and payable, and to be charged a park owner for failure to transmit fees actually collected when so required. This rate shall be fixed within the limits established for interest charged for delinquent property taxes pursuant to R.S. 54:4-67.
c. An ordinance adopted pursuant to subsection a. of this section shall set forth the manner in which the municipal service fee shall be allocated among the owners of manufactured homes within the mobile home park. To the extent that the respective portion of the municipal service fee allocated to the owner of a manufactured home constitutes a new fee or an increase of any similar fee imposed before the effective date of this act, this new fee or increase, as appropriate, shall in turn constitute a rent surcharge, collectible in addition to any surcharge or increase permitted by any rent control or rent levelling ordinance adopted by the municipality.
d. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary of subsection c. of this section, the respective portion of a municipal service fee allocated to the owner of a manufactured home shall be deemed rent for eviction purposes.
L.1983, c. 400, s. 5, eff. Dec. 22, 1983.
54:4-1.7. Sales tax; imposition on manufacturer@s invoice price of manufactured home on first sale
The sales tax imposed by the ~Sales and Use Tax Act,~ P.L.1966, c. 30 (C. 54:32B-1 et seq.) shall be applied only against the manufacturer@s invoice price of a manufactured home upon the first sale of that home.
L.1983, c. 400, s. 6, eff. Dec. 22, 1983.
54:4-1.8. Trailers; inapplicability of act
Trailers shall not be subject to the provisions of this act.
L.1983, c. 400, s. 8, eff. Dec. 22, 1983.
54:4-1.9. Transfer inheritance and estate tax; application to manufactured homes
A manufactured home subject to real property taxation pursuant to this act shall be treated as real property for the purposes of imposing the transfer inheritance and estate tax pursuant to R.S. 54:34-1 et seq.
L.1983, c. 400, s. 9, eff. Dec. 22, 1983.
54:4-1.10. Tax exempt real property; activity conducted for profit; tax liability of private party
When real property which is exempt from taxation is used by a private party in connection with an activity conducted for profit, and the use does not render the real property taxable pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1949, c. 177 (C. 54:4-2.3) or otherwise, the real property shall be assessed and taxed as real property of the private party. The private party is subject to liability for taxation to the same extent as though he owned the property or any portion thereof, unless the owner consents to the taxation thereof. For purposes of this act, ~use~ means the right or license, express or implied, to possess and enjoy the benefits from any real property, whether or not that right or license is actually exercised.
L.1984, c. 176, s. 1, eff. Nov. 2, 1984.
54:4-1.11. Procedures for administration of tax
The assessment, collection, apportionment, and payment of the real property tax imposed by section 1, the attachment of the lien for such taxes, the right of appeal, the entitlement to a proportionate cancellation of the assessment, and the authority granted to municipalities to anticipate taxes to be collected shall be governed by the procedures provided for the administration of leasehold estates owned by tax-exempt entities under sections 2 through 8 of P.L. 1949, c. 177 (C. 54:4-2.4 through C. 54:4-2.10).
L.1984, c. 176, s. 2, eff. Nov. 2, 1984.
54:4-1.12. Storage tank deemed real property
3. For the purposes of chapter 4 of Title 54 of the Revised Statutes and notwithstanding the provisions of R.S.54:4-1, a storage tank having a capacity of more than 30,000 gallons is deemed to be real property. The fact that products are mixed, blended, heated or subjected to a similar non-production process within a storage tank shall not in itself render that tank personal property.
L.1986,c.117,s.3; amended 1992,c.24,s.5.
54:4-1.13. Short title
1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the ~Business Retention Act.~
L.1992,c.24,s.1
54:4-1.14. Findings, declarations
2. The Legislature finds and declares that since 1979 New Jersey has lost a major share of its manufacturing jobs and manufacturing plants and this trend has persisted throughout periods of economic recovery and periods of recession. The Legislature also finds that New Jersey@s manufacturing sector, notwithstanding the recent losses, continues to be an important source of relatively high-paying employment for a large portion of the work force and an essential foundation for the rest of the economy, serving as a larger multiplier of jobs in the economy than any other sector. The Legislature further finds that in order to retain manufacturing jobs it is in the interest of the business community, municipalities and the State of New Jersey to maintain a policy regarding the taxation of business personal property which is historically consistent, equitable and competitive with neighboring states and which creates and maintains reasonable incentives for manufacturing interests to exist and thrive in New Jersey. The Legislature, therefore, declares that it is the policy of the State, through this act, to refine the definitions of real property and personal property in order to reaffirm the broad exclusion from local property taxes of business personal property used or held for use in business.
L.1992,c.24,s.2.
54:4-1.15. Definitions
4. As used in R.S.54:4-1 and section 3 of P.L.1986, c.117 (C.54:4-1.12):
~Machinery, apparatus or equipment~ means any machine, device, mechanism, instrument, tool, tank or item of tangible personal property used or held for use in business.
~Production process~ means the process commencing with the introduction of raw materials or components into a systematic series of manufacturing, assembling, refining or processing operations and ceasing when the product is in the form in which it will be sold to the ultimate consumer.
~Structure~ means any assemblage of building or construction materials fixed in place for the primary purpose of supporting, sheltering, containing, enclosing or housing persons or property.
~Used or held for use in business~ means any item of machinery, apparatus or equipment used or held for use in a business transaction, activity, or occupation conducted for profit in New Jersey.
L.1992,c.24,s.4.
54:4-1.16. Schedule for reducing assessment
6. If a determination shall be made, either by an assessor or in a judicial proceeding, that a taxpayer is entitled to a reduction in assessment on the grounds that a municipality, on the date of this enactment, was taxing as real property items of machinery, apparatus, and equipment excluded from taxation by this enactment, the municipality shall be entitled to assess that property as personal property and to tax that property in decreasing amounts over a period of five years, at the municipality@s general tax rate, in accordance with all laws and procedures established for taxing real property, and in accordance with the following schedule:
First year of reduction: 20% of the total reduction that the taxpayer would otherwise be entitled to;
Second year of reduction: 40% of the total reduction that the taxpayer would otherwise be entitled to;
Third year of reduction: 60% of the total reduction that the taxpayer would otherwise be entitled to;
Fourth year of reduction: 80% of the total reduction that the taxpayer would otherwise be entitled to;
Fifth year of reduction and all years thereafter: 100% of the total reduction;
Provided, however, that the taxpayer may challenge an assessor@s determination under this section in a judicial proceeding, and that in such a proceeding the municipality shall bear the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence (a) that the item or items had previously been assessed and (b) the assessed value of the item or items.
L.1992,c.24,s.6.
54:4-1.17 Construction of 1997 utility tax act.
70. a. Nothing in this act shall be construed to limit municipal taxation of real estate pursuant to R.S.54:4-1 of current or former remitters of the transitional energy facility assessment, or of a corporate or non-corporate legal successor or assignee of a current or former remitter of the transitional energy facility assessment whether through any reorganization, sale, bankruptcy, consolidation, merger or other transaction or occurrence of any kind without limitation. As used in this section, ~real estate~ means lands and buildings, but shall not include items of the type as set forth in the list of scheduled property for gas systems and electric light, heat and power systems in section 10 of P.L.1940, c.5 (C.54:30A-58) prior to January 1, 1998. As provided in that list, railways, tracks, ties, lines, wires, cables, poles, pipes, conduits, bridges, viaducts, dams and reservoirs (except that the lands upon which dams and reservoirs are situated shall be included as real estate), machinery, apparatus or equipment, notwithstanding any attachment thereof to lands or buildings owned by current or former remitters of the transitional energy facility assessment, or of a corporate or non-corporate legal successor or assignee of a current or former remitter of the transitional energy facility assessment whether through any reorganization, sale, bankruptcy, consolidation, merger or other transaction or occurrence of any kind without limitation, are not real estate.
b. No municipality, regional or county governmental agency shall directly or indirectly tax as real property, or include within the assessment of real property, the public utility owned electrical interconnect, water lines or gas lines, or any value thereof, which were set forth in the list of scheduled property for gas systems and electric light, heat and power systems in section 10 of P.L.1940, c.5 (C.54:30A-58), prior to enactment of this act whether or not on the real estate of current or former remitters of the transitional energy facility assessment.
L.1997,c.162,s.70.
54:4-1.18 Definitions relative to taxation of recreational vehicles.
1. As used in this act:
~Campsite~ means any parcel of land, or contiguous parcels of land under common ownership, designed and used for the purpose of camping and associated recreational uses.
~Nonpermanent foundation~ means any foundation consisting of nonmortared blocks, wheels, a concrete slab, runners, or any combination thereof, or any other system for the installation and anchorage of a recreational vehicle on other than a permanent foundation.
~Recreational vehicle~ means a unit which:
a. Consists of one or more transportable sections which are substantially constructed off-site and, if the unit consists of more than one section, is joined together on-site;
b. Is built on a permanent chassis;
c. Is designed to be used, when connected to utilities, as a temporary dwelling on a nonpermanent foundation and is not, in fact, used as a dwelling unit on a permanent basis; and
d. Is not a ~manufactured home~ as defined in section 3 of P.L.1983, c.400 (C.54:4-1.4).
L.1999,c.284,s.1.
54:4-1.19 Exemption from taxation as real property for certain recreational vehicles.
2. A recreational vehicle which is installed in a campsite shall not be subject to taxation as real property.
L.1999,c.284,s.2.
54:4-1.20 Outdoor advertising sign, structure deemed real property.
14. For the purposes of chapter 4 of Title 54 of the Revised Statutes and notwithstanding the provisions of R.S.54:4-1, an outdoor advertising sign required to be permitted pursuant to the ~Roadside Sign Control and Outdoor Advertising Act,~ P.L.1991, c.413 (C.27:5-5 et seq.), the sign@s supporting structure having the primary purpose of supporting the outdoor advertising sign, its other constituent parts, and the foundation if any to which the supporting structure is attached, are deemed to be real property.
L.2004,c.42,s.14.
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