New Jersey § 32:36-6

having an identical effect to L.2019, c. 195, § 6 . > Organization of the Commission; meetings. a. The co-chairpersons of the commission shall serve from among the commissioners

appointed by the state of New Jersey and the commissioners appointed by the state

of New York and shall include one co-chairperson from New Jersey and one co-chairperson

from New York. The commissioner who shall serve as co-chairperson from each state shall be decided

in accordance with the laws of each respective state or if the respective state has

no laws related to the selection of a co-chairperson then as elected by the commissioners

appointed from each respective state. b. The commission shall meet regularly as it may determine. Meetings shall be held at such times and places as the co-chairpersons of the commission

deem appropriate. To the maximum extent practicable, meetings shall be held on an alternating basis

in New Jersey and New York. c. The powers of the Commission may be exercised by the commissioners at a meeting

duly called and held where at least two New York commissioners, two New Jersey commissioners,

and the Amtrak commissioner are present. Action may be taken and motions and resolutions adopted by the Commission at any

meeting thereof by the affirmative vote of at least two New York commissioners, two

New Jersey commissioners, and the Amtrak commissioner. The commissioners shall adopt bylaws providing for attendance protocols, voting

procedures, and other matters related to the conduct of the business of the Commission,

including designating officers of the Commission. d. The Commission may request the assistance and services of such employees and agents

as it may require and as may be made available to it for the purpose of carrying out

its duties under this act, which agents may include private consultants and persons

employed by or acting as a consultant for the federal government, the state of New

Jersey, any local government thereof, the state of New York, any local government

thereof, any agency, instrumentality, department, commission or authority of any one

or more of the foregoing, any bi-state agency, or of Amtrak, and each such government

and enumerated party is authorized to provide any such assistance and services to

the Commission. e. The Commission may, within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available

to it for those purposes, employ such professional, technical, clerical staff and

consultants and incur such expenses as it may deem necessary or appropriate in order

to perform its duties. f. The Commission shall: (1) adopt a mission statement that shall include facilitating and completing the Project; (2) adopt a code of conduct applicable to commissioners, officers, employees, and

vendors and other contractors with the Commission that shall, at minimum, include

applicable standards established by law in each state; (3) no later than January thirtieth, two thousand twenty, establish a whistleblower

access and assistance program protecting employees from retaliation for disclosing

information concerning acts of wrongdoing, misconduct, malfeasance, or other inappropriate

conduct based upon the recommendations of the chief ethics and compliance officer; (4) establish a policy requiring all commissioners, officers, and employees with decision-making

authority to maintain records regarding contact with lobbyists. As used in this paragraph, “ contact ” means any conversation, in person or by telephonic or other electronic means, or

correspondence between any lobbyist engaged in the act of lobbying and any person

within the Commission who can make or influence a decision on the subject of the lobbying

on the behalf of the Commission, and shall include, at a minimum, all members of the

board and all officers of the Commission, “ lobbyist ” shall have the same meaning as defined in the laws or, rules or regulations of either

state, and “ lobbying ” shall mean and include any attempt to influence: the adoption or rejection of any

rule or regulation having the force and effect of law by the Commission, the outcome

of any proceeding by the Commission to establish, levy or collect fees, tolls, charges

or fares, the authorization, approval or award of any agreements, contracts or purchase

orders valued at $500,000 or more; and (5) have an efficiency study of the Commission and its operations conducted by an

independent entity upon the request of the governors of New York and New Jersey, and

if no request is made, no longer than every five years from initiation of Project

construction. g. Whistleblower Program. (1) The chief ethics and compliance officer shall recommend to the board a whistleblower

access and assistance program to be administered by the inspector general that shall

include, but not be limited to: (a) establishing an email address and toll-free telephone, facsimile, and text messaging

lines available to employees; (b) offering advice regarding employee rights under applicable state and federal laws

and advice and options available to all persons; and (c) offering an opportunity for employees to identify concerns regarding any issue

at the Commission. (2) Any communication between an employee and the inspector general pursuant to this

subsection shall be held strictly confidential by the inspector general, unless the

employee specifically waives in writing the right to confidentiality, except that

such confidentiality shall not exempt the inspector general from disclosing such information,

where appropriate, to the board and/or any law enforcement authority. (3) The Commission shall not fire, discharge, demote, suspend, threaten, harass, or

discriminate against an employee because of the employee's role as a whistleblower,

insofar as the actions taken by the employee are legal. (4) As used in this subsection: “ Employees ” means those persons employed at the Commission, including but not limited to: full-time

and part-time employees, those employees on probation, temporary employees, officers,

and commissioners. “ Whistleblower ” means any employee of the Commission who discloses information concerning acts of

wrongdoing, misconduct, malfeasance, or other inappropriate behavior by an employee

or board member of the Commission, including, but not limited to, such acts concerning

the Commission's investments, travel, acquisition of real or personal property, the

disposition of real or personal property, or the procurement of goods and services. h. Inspector General. (1) The inspector general shall be responsible for receiving and investigating, where

appropriate, all complaints regarding fraud, waste, and abuse by commissioners, officers,

and employees or third-parties doing business with the Commission. The inspector general shall also be responsible for conducting investigations upon

the inspector general's own initiative, as the inspector general shall deem appropriate. (2) The inspector general shall inform the board and the chief executive officer of

allegations received by the inspector general and the progress of investigations related

thereto, unless special circumstances require confidentiality. (3) The inspector general shall determine with respect to allegations received by

the inspector general whether disciplinary action or civil prosecution by the Commission

is appropriate, and whether the matter should be referred to an appropriate governmental

agency for further action. (4) The inspector general shall prepare and make available to the public written reports

of completed investigations, as appropriate and to the extent permitted by law, subject

to redactions to protect a need for confidentiality. The release of all or portions of reports may be deferred to protect the confidentiality

of ongoing investigations. (5) The inspector general shall have the power to: (a) administer oaths or affirmations and examine witnesses under oath; (b) require the production of any books and papers deemed relevant or material to

any investigation, examination, or review; (c) notwithstanding any law to the contrary, examine and copy or remove documents

or records of any kind prepared, maintained, or held by the Commission and its subsidiaries; (d) interview any officer or employee of the Commission or its subsidiaries on any

matter related to the performance of such officer or employee's official duties. To the extent that the terms and conditions of employment of any employee are established

by collective negotiations, any interview conducted pursuant to this paragraph must

be in accordance with any applicable provisions of the current, or most recent, if

expired, collective negotiations agreement covering the terms and conditions of employment

of the employee; (e) monitor the implementation by the Commission of any recommendations made by the

inspector general; and (f) perform any other functions that are necessary or appropriate to fulfill the duties

and responsibilities of office. i. Open Meetings. (1) All meetings of the Commission shall be open to the public and members of the

news media, individually and collectively, for the purpose of observing the full details

of all phases of the deliberation, policy-making, and decision-making of the board,

except for an executive session initiated upon a majority vote taken in an open meeting

pursuant to a motion. Such motion shall identify the general nature of the subjects to be considered in

the closed, executive session and, if it is not to take place immediately, state,

as closely as possible the time and circumstances for such session and when the matters

discussed or acted upon may be disclosed. The board may exclude the public only from that portion of a meeting at which the

board discusses any: (a) matter in which the release of information would impair a right to receive funds

from the government of the United States; (b) material the disclosure of which would constitute an unwarranted invasion of individual

or personal privacy; (c) collective bargaining agreement, or the terms and conditions which are proposed

for inclusion in any collective bargaining agreement, including the negotiation of

the terms and conditions thereof with employees or representatives of employees of

the Commission; (d) matter involving the purchase, lease, or acquisition of real property with Commission

funds, the proposed acquisition of securities, the sale or exchange of securities

held by the Commission, or the investment of Commission funds, if public discussion

of the matter would adversely affect the public interest; (e) matter which would imperil the public safety if disclosed; (f) pending or anticipated litigation or contract negotiation in which the Commission

is, or may become, a party, or matters falling within the attorney-client privilege,

to the extent that confidentiality is required for the attorney to exercise the attorney's

ethical duties as a lawyer; (g) contract negotiations disclosure of which would imperil the Commission's position

or an outcome in the best interest of the Commission, its mission, and the public; (h) matter involving the employment, appointment, termination of employment, terms

and conditions of employment, evaluation of the performance of, promotion or disciplining

of any specific prospective officer or employee or current officer or employee employed

or appointed by the Commission, unless all the individual employees or appointees

whose rights could be adversely affected request in writing that the matter or matters

be discussed at a public meeting; (i) deliberation of the Commission occurring after a public hearing that may result

in the imposition of a specific civil penalty upon the responding party or the suspension

or loss of a license or permit belonging to the responding party as a result of an

act or omission for which the responding party bears responsibility; or (j) information relating to current or future investigation or prosecution of a criminal

offense which would imperil effective law enforcement if disclosed; (2) The Commission shall make meeting agendas available to the public at least seventy-two

hours before each meeting of the board and each meeting of any committee. Public notice of the time and place of a meeting shall be provided to appropriate

media outlets, shall be conspicuously posted in one or more designated areas, and

shall be conspicuously posted via the Commission's official website at least five

business days before the meeting. (3) The Commission shall make available to the public documents in the following manner:

the agenda and public documents pertaining to a board meeting shall be available for

public inspection at least 72 hours before each meeting or as soon as practicable

at an office of the Commission; and the agenda and public documents pertaining to

a board or committee meeting shall be posted on the Commission's website. (4) At each public meeting of the Commission, the public shall be allotted thirty

minutes, or a reasonable time as determined by the Commission, in order to allow any

persons in attendance an opportunity to comment on any topic on the agenda. (5) The Commission shall keep reasonably comprehensible minutes of all its meetings

showing the time and place, the members present, the subjects considered, the actions

taken, and the vote of each member. The minutes shall be available to the public within two weeks from the date of the

meeting to the extent that public disclosure shall not be inconsistent with clause

(a) of paragraph (1) of this subsection. The minutes shall indicate for each item on the agenda the vote or recusal of each

board member in attendance at an open meeting, or an executive session of the board

or a committee of the board. Each item on the agenda shall be voted on separately. (6) Attendance at an executive session shall be permitted to any member of the Commission

and any other persons authorized by the Commission. (7) The Commission shall adopt and promulgate appropriate bylaws, rules, or regulations

concerning the rights of the public to be present at meetings of the Commission. Any rules, regulations, or bylaws adopted hereunder shall become part of the minutes

of the Commission and be posted on the Commission's website. j. Meeting Notice. The board shall, within six months of the effective date of this act, adopt appropriate

policies concerning proper notice to the public and the news media of its meetings

and the right of the public and the news media to be present at meetings of the Commission. The board may incorporate in its policies conditions under which it may exclude

the public from a meeting or a portion thereof consistent with this act. k. Freedom of Information. (1) The Commission shall be deemed an “agency” and treated as such under the laws

of New York, for all purposes under articles 6 and 6-A of the public officers law,

and shall be deemed a “public agency” and treated as such under the law of the State

of New Jersey, P.L.1963, c. 73 ( C.47:1A-1 et seq. ), pertaining to the disclosure of government records. (2) When there is an inconsistency between the law of the state of New York and the

law of the state of New Jersey, the law of the state that provided the greatest rights

of access shall apply. (3) The provisions of article 78 of the civil practice law and rules of the state

of New York or P.L.1963, c. 73 ( C.47:1A-1 et seq. ), of the laws of New Jersey, as applicable, shall apply to enforce the provisions

of this act. (4) The Commission shall adopt and promulgate appropriate bylaws, rules, or regulations

concerning the rights of the public to obtain records of the commissioner's activities

or public business. Any rules, regulations, or bylaws adopted hereunder shall become part of the minutes

of the Commission and be posted on the Commission's website. l . Legislative hearings. (1) The Commission, at the request of the Assembly or Senate of the New York state

legislature or the General Assembly or Senate of the New Jersey state legislature,

may appear before a committee of the requesting state legislative house, upon request

by the presiding officer of that state legislative house, to present testimony on

any topic or subject requested by the committee or to respond to questions by members

of the committee. The Assembly of the New York state legislature, the Senate of the New York state

legislature, the General Assembly of the New Jersey state legislature, and the Senate

of the New Jersey state legislature shall each be entitled to two such requests per

calendar year. (2) The Assembly or Senate of the New York state legislature or the General Assembly

or Senate of the New Jersey legislature may request attendance at such hearing of

any named officer of the Commission.