BAYONNE — If the petition signatures are ruled valid by the city clerk, an ordinance gradually eliminating rent control, passed by the Bayonne City Council in November, will be suspended until the council either votes to appeal the ordinance or the matter is put on the ballot for the general public to decide.
Opponents of the changes to rent control managed to get 200 signatures more than the required 845 needed to put the matter to a public vote.
City Clerk Robert Sloan said his office has 20 days to make certain that the petition has the minimum amount of valid signatures, after which the city must either conduct a special meeting with 45 days or put it off to next November’s general election. A special election would cost the city about $250,000, which it could save if it delays the vote until next November.