Evesham didn't file pay-to-play ban till Aug. Contractors therefore could not have violated it, the new solicitor said. Others insist the ban was valid since fall. Evesham solicitor says pay-to-play ban wasn't in effect

In his first major decision as Evesham's solicitor, Arthur Sypek told the township council last week that municipal vendors could not have violated a year-old pay-to-play ban because it was not enforceable at the time.

Evesham's much-touted ordinance restricting the campaign contributions of township contractors to local political candidates did not go into effect until Aug. 20, 2008, when the township finally filed it with the secretary of state's office as required by state law, according to Sypek.

In August, Sypek's predecessor requested a municipal investigation, prompted by an Inquirer report that month. The investigation addressed contributions made earlier in the year.

But not filing the ordinance with the state does not invalidate it, according to interviews with state officials, as well as others familiar with the process.

"Even though they had not filed, the ordinance was still in effect," said Susan Evans, director of communications for the New Jersey Department of State.

Evans later stressed she was not commenting specifically on Evesham, but rather speaking generally about the requirements.

"The township determines the effective date, then they file as required with the secretary of state's office. . . . Our role is merely administrative in terms of the filing," she said.

Sypek said he consulted the secretary of state's office, counsel for the New Jersey League of Municipalities, and other municipal attorneys. Sypek, of the law firm Riker, Danzig, Scherer, Hyland & Perretti, outlined his position in a written legal opinion to the township council on Sept. 16.

"That's my opinion, and absent other direction, I believe that'll be the position the township is taking," Sypek said in an interview.

Evesham is not the only town confronting the matter: A spokesman for neighboring Cherry Hill, which passed a pay-to-play ban in 2007, confirmed yesterday the township's ordinance was also not on file with the secretary of state's office. Officials were not aware of the requirement and sent the papers on Monday, he said.

"It's merely procedural in that respect. . . . In no way, shape or form did this invalidate the ordinance on our end," said the spokesman, Dan Keashen.

Political contributions in New Jersey are mostly regulated by the state's Election Law Enforcement Commission, but legislation that went into effect in 2006 has enabled local governing bodies to enact even tighter restrictions on campaign contributions by local contractors.