7. There is created in the General Fund a dedicated, non-lapsing fund to be known as the “Foreclosure Mediation Fund,” to be held separate and apart from all other funds of the State. The Foreclosure Mediation Fund shall be administered by the Administrative Office of the Courts. In each action for foreclosure, the plaintiff shall pay $155 to the clerk of the court in addition to the fee associated with the filing of the first paper. Of that $155 payment, $60 and all monies collected from each civil penalty imposed for violations of subsection b. of section 5 of P.L.2019, c.64 (C. 2A:50-78), shall be deposited in the Foreclosure Mediation Fund. The monies shall be appropriated annually by the Legislature to the Administrative Office of the Courts for the purposes of the operation of the Foreclosure Mediation Program, including the compensation of mediators, and to enhance the integrity of the mortgage foreclosure review process. All interest or other income earned on monies deposited into the Foreclosure Mediation Fund, and any monies that may be appropriated or otherwise become available for the purpose of the Foreclosure Mediation Fund, shall be credited and deposited into the Foreclosure Mediation Fund. The remaining $95 collected from each filing fee shall be deposited into the New Jersey Foreclosure Counseling Fund on the first day of each calendar quarter.

L.2019, c.64, s.7; amended 2021, c.373, s.3.