§ 15-5.3. Hearings; witnesses; evidence; decisions.

The appropriate municipal agency, i.e. Township Council, Planning Board, or Board of Adjustment shall hold a hearing on each application for development and/or adoption, revision or amendment of the Master Plan; and the municipal agency shall make the rules governing such hearings.

A.

Any maps or documents for which approval is sought at a hearing shall be on file and available for public inspection at least 10 days before the date of the hearing, during normal business hours in the office of the administrative officer. The applicant may produce other documents, records, or testimony at the hearing to substantiate, clarify or supplement the previously filed maps and documents.

B.

The officer presiding at the hearing or such person as he may designate shall have the power to administer oaths and issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of relevant evidence, including witnesses and documents presented by the parties, pursuant to statute [N.J.S.A. 2A:67A-1 et seq.].

C.

Testimony of all witnesses relating to an application for development shall be taken under oath or affirmation by the presiding officer, and the right of cross-examination shall be permitted to all interested parties, through their Attorney, if represented, or directly, if not represented, subject to the discretion of the presiding officer and to reasonable limitations as to time and number of witnesses.

D.

The municipal agency shall provide for the verbatim recording of the proceedings by either stenographic, mechanical or electronic means. The municipal agency shall furnish a transcript, or duplicate recording in lieu thereof, on request to any interested party at his expense. The charge for a transcript shall be $1.00 per page for the original and $0.25 per page for each copy. The charge for a duplicate recording tape shall be $5.00 per hour plus the cost of duplicating the material.

E.

Technical rules of evidence shall not be applicable to the hearing but the agency may exclude irrelevant, immaterial or unduly repetitious evidence.

F.

Each decision on any application for development shall be reduced to writing as provided in this subsection and shall include findings of fact and conclusions based thereon. Failure of a motion to approve an application for development to receive the number of votes required for approval, shall be deemed an action denying the application. The municipal agency may provide such written decision and findings and conclusions either on the date of the meeting at which the municipal agency takes action to grant or deny approval or, if the meeting at which such action is taken occurs within the final 45 days of the applicable time period for rendering a decision on the application for development, within 45 days of such meeting by the adoption of a resolution of memorialization setting forth the decision and the findings and conclusions of the municipal agency thereon. An action resulting from the failure of a motion to approve an application shall be memorialized by resolution as provided above, notwithstanding the time at which such action occurs within the applicable time period for rendering a decision on the application.

The adoption of a resolution of memorialization pursuant to this subsection shall not be construed to alter the applicable time period for rendering a decision on the application for development. Such resolution shall be adopted by the vote of a majority of the members of the municipal agency who voted for the action previously taken or in the case of a failed approval motion, by the vote of a majority of those members voting against the approval and no other member shall vote thereon. The vote on such resolution shall be deemed to be a memorialization of an action of the municipal agency and not to be an action of the municipal agency; except that failure to adopt such a resolution within the 45 day period shall allow the opportunity for an interested party to apply to the Superior Court in a summary manner for an order compelling the municipal agency to reduce its findings and conclusions to writing within the stated time.

Whenever a resolution of memorialization is adopted in accordance with this subsection, the date of such adoption shall constitute the date of the decision for the purposes of the mailings, filings, and publications required by subsections (G) and (H) below.

G.

A copy of the decision shall be mailed by the municipal agency within 10 days of the date of decision to the applicant or his Attorney, without separate charge, and to all who request a copy of the decision at the fee prescribed in paragraph (D) above. A copy of the decision shall also be filed by the municipal agency in the office of the administrative officer. The administrative officer shall make a copy of such filed decision available to any interested party for the prescribed fee and the decision shall be available for public inspection at the office of the administrative officer during the normal business day.

H.

A brief notice of the decision shall be published in the official newspaper of the municipality by the Township Clerk within 10 days of the decision. The period of time in which an appeal of the decision may be made shall run from the date of the publication of the decision.