Long Term Tax Exemptions and PILOT Payments
Charlie Kratovil made this OPRA request to Old Bridge Township as part of a batch sent to 24 authorities This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.
Dear Old Bridge Township,
Under OPRA and the common law right of access, please provide copies of:
1) all approved applications for long-term tax exemptions (LTTE's), including cover letter, attachments/exhibits, and other accompanying documentation, including receipt/proof of payment for the administrative review fee
2) the ordinances approving each such tax exemption and the financial agreements, including all attachments/exhibits, and other accompanying documentation, for each
3) records sufficient to show the dates and amounts of all payments in lieu of taxes (PILOT's) made in connection with each such tax exemption
4) the most recent financial statement provided by each approved urban renewal entity
5) records sufficient to show the current assessed value of each LTTE property and the date(s) that certificate(s) of occupancy were granted for each
Thank you kindly. Please don't hesitate to contact me at 732-993-9697 if you have any questions about this request.
Yours faithfully,
Charlie Kratovil
Thank you for your request for records pursuant to Open Public Records
Act, N.J.S.A. 47A:1A-1 et seq.. Please be advised that pursuant to
A-3849, during a period declared pursuant to the laws of this State as a
state of emergency,
public health emergency, or state of local disaster emergency, the
deadlines by which to respond to a request for, or grant or deny access
to, a government record shall be within seven business days or receiving
the request or as soon
as possible thereafter. Please be further advised that the response to
your request shall be provided on or before September 23, 2020 or as soon
as possible thereafter.
Old Bridge Township Clerk’s Office
Thomas J. English Administration Building
One Old Bridge Plaza
Old Bridge, NJ 08857
732-721-5600, ext. 2200
Dear Charlie Kratovil,
The Old Bridge Township Records Custodian received your Open Public
Records Act (OPRA) request on September 14, 2020. As such, the seven (7)
business day deadline to respond to your request is September 23, 2020.
This response to your request is being provided to you on the 3^rd
business day after the custodian’s receipt of said request.
Your OPRA request sought access to the following:
• all approved applications for long-term tax exemptions (LTTE's),
including cover letter, attachments/exhibits, and other accompanying
documentation, including receipt/proof of payment for the
administrative review fee
This request is too broad, you must specify which application, the term
“other documentation” is too broad and must specify what document,
• records sufficient to show the dates and amounts of all payments in
lieu of taxes (PILOT's) made in connection with each such tax
exemption
This request does not identify a specific document(s)/ records and we are
not required to analyze research collate or compile data
• the most recent financial statement provided by each approved urban
renewal entity
This request does not specify a document/ financial statement you must
identify which urban renewal entity
• records sufficient to show the current assessed value of each LTTE
property and the date(s) that certificate(s) of occupancy were
granted for each
This request does not specify a particular record and we are not required
to gather data such as dates and create any document(s). Please provide
description of a precise agreement(s), as currently, these portions of
your request fail to specifically identify the documents sought and seeks
information or asks questions.
Your OPRA request also sought:
• the ordinances approving each such tax exemption and the financial
agreements, including all attachments/exhibits, and other accompanying
documentation, for each
Please provide the ordinances numbers or titles for the ordinances
sought. The Old Bridge Township website does contain a vast amount of
information and could be a valuable resource to you in identifying which
records you are seeking. The web address is [1]www.oldbridge.com
Pursuant to NJSA 47:1A-1.1 it has been determined that this request does
not qualify as a document request pursuant to the OPRA laws and the
definition thereof. Governmental custodians are not required to conduct
research, analyze, collate, compile and/or correlate data from existing
government records. A blanket request for all documents is not a document
request pursuant to OPRA and existing case law. Pursuant to MAG
Entertainment, LLC v Div. of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 375 N.J. Super.
534, 868A2d 1067 (App.Div.2005), and Bent 381 NJ Super 30. Under OPRA,
agencies are required to disclose only “identifiable” governmental
documents not otherwise exempt. Wholesale requests for general information
which have to be collated, analyzed and compiled by the entity are not
required. Therefore, I respectfully deny your request at this time.
Sincerely,
Old Bridge Township Clerk’s Office
Thomas J. English Administration Building
One Old Bridge Plaza
Old Bridge, NJ 08857
732-721-5600, ext. 2200
Dear Ms. McCarthy,
I am encouraging to reconsider your denial of this request. A simple inquiry with your tax assessor's office can determine the long-term tax exemptions approved or pending in your community and it should be clear from that information which records should be produced to fulfill my request.
According to your current user friendly budget, there is only one property with a LTTE: Kennedy International (http://www.oldbridge.com/filestorage/528...). Please confirm if there are any others and provide the requested records for each. Thank you kindly.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Kratovil
Mr. Kratovil,
Inquiry was made with the Tax Assessor's office and did not result in any responsive documents to your original request. If you would like to amend your request for the Kennedy International property, kindly narrow your request to specify which documents you are seeking for that property.
Thank you,
Old Bridge Township Clerk’s Office
Thomas J. English Administration Building
One Old Bridge Plaza
Old Bridge, NJ 08857
732-721-5600, ext. 2200
Dear Ms. McCarthy,
I am confused by your response. Are you saying that the property located at block 6303/lot 3.15 was not approved for a long-term tax exemption? The most recent "user friendly budget" for the Township lists this property under the section "Prior Budget Year's Payments in Lieu of Tax (PILOT) - Long Term Tax Exemptions."
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Kratovil
Dear Ms. McCarthy,
Following up on this. When can I expect a response?
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Kratovil
Mr. Kratovil,
Inquiry was made with the Tax Assessor's office and did not result in any responsive documents to your original request. If you would like to amend your request for the Kennedy International property, kindly narrow your request to specify which documents you are seeking for that property.
Thank you,
Old Bridge Township Clerk’s Office
Thomas J. English Administration Building One Old Bridge Plaza Old Bridge, NJ 08857 732-721-5600, ext. 2200
Dear Ms. McCarthy,
My original requests identified the documents I was seeking (LTTE application/attachments, enabling ordinance, financial agreement, records to show PILOTs made, the most recent financial statement from the exempt property owner, and records to show the assessed value and the date(s) of C.O.'s).
If the "Kennedy International" property is the only property in the Township approved for a long term tax exemption, then please provide the requested records for that property. If there are others, please provide the documentation for those as well.
Once again, the requested documents are as follows:
1) all approved applications for long-term tax exemptions (LTTE's), including cover letter, attachments/exhibits, and other accompanying documentation, including receipt/proof of payment for the administrative review fee
2) the ordinances approving each such tax exemption and the financial agreements, including all attachments/exhibits, and other accompanying documentation, for each
3) records sufficient to show the dates and amounts of all payments in lieu of taxes (PILOT's) made in connection with each such tax exemption
4) the most recent financial statement provided by each approved urban renewal entity
5) records sufficient to show the current assessed value of each LTTE property and the date(s) that certificate(s) of occupancy were granted for each
Thank you kindly. Please don't hesitate to call or email if you have any questions about this request. Enjoy your weekend.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Kratovil
Dear Old Bridge Township,
I am following up on this request. Please advise.
Yours faithfully,
Charlie Kratovil
Dear Ms. McCarthy,
I am confused as to who is in charge of the Clerk's Office and what is going on with my request. Are you still the Deputy Clerk? Is someone going to provide a response? I have made identical requests to two dozen municipalities and Old Bridge is the only municipality that has not cooperated with me.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Kratovil
Mr. Kratovil,
This OPRA was denied on September 17 based on the determination that the request was too broad and that clarification was needed.
This was prior to my appointment as the Municipal Clerk and I have been made privy to the request and subsequent request for clarification. I am currently reviewing the request and am asking for additional time to respond as I am learning the filing system here as well. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.
Sincerely,
Gabriella Siboni
Township of Old Bridge
Township Clerk’s Office
One Old Bridge Plaza
Old Bridge, NJ 08857
(732)721-5600
Mr. Kratovil,
I appreciate your patience in this matter and I apologize for the delay.
Please find attached the information related to the only PILOT the township had on file.
If your request for access to a government record has been denied or unfilled within the seven (7) business days required by law, you have a right to challenge the decision by the Township of Old Bridge to deny access. At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the Superior Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government Records Council (GRC) by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form. You may contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at P.O. Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email address], or at their web site at www.state.nj.us/grc. The GRC can also answer other questions about the law. All questions regarding complaints filed in Superior Court should be directed to the Court Clerk in your County.
Sincerely,
Gabriella Siboni
Township of Old Bridge
Township Clerk’s Office
One Old Bridge Plaza
Old Bridge, NJ 08857
(732)721-5600