HUNTERDON COUNTY
SURROGATE'S COURT
SPRING 2003
UPDATE
Dear Residents:
Welcome to Spring...and the Spring
UPDATE 2003! This edition is chock-full
information, from the hobby-interest of
researching family and local history, to a
newsflash on health, & the latest scams.
Also, what to expect from what we knew as
the “NJ Department of Motor Vehicles.”
Sincerely,
Susan J. Hoffman
Comments or questions, please
ontact me or my staff.
By phone:
(908) 788-1156
By e-mail:
surrogate@co.hunterdon.nj.us
Or Visit On the Internet:
www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/depts/surrog/message.htm
Friendships & Involvement in
Community Key to Well Being
“Staying connected and productive”
help foster good health, the Winter
2002 Senior Care Management
newsletter
notes
(see
www.seniorcaremgt.com).
“The two
strongest predictors of well-being are
frequency of visits with friends &
frequency of attending organizational
meetings.” Hence, the “more often
people
participate
in
social
relationships, the better their overall
health tends to be.”
Genealogy
The Hunterdon County Library
announced its growing collection of
archives in which family & local histories
can be found. The Heritage Quest
Online database contains family & local
histories of towns & counties, & can be
accessed at the library’s web page:
www.hunterdon.lib.nj.us.
Another resource, the Ancestry Plus
database, can only be accessed at the
Route 12 main county library complex.
Ancestry Plus “has a full file on census
images & files on military records,
immigration records, the Social Security
Death Index, many city directories &
Ancestry World Tree” (Hunterdon County
Democrat, January 7, 2003).
Microfilms, year- & phone- books &
other resources can be located in the
main library reference room.
Other resources or places to
find information
Hunterdon Cty. Historical Society:
782-1091
Surrogate’s
Court:
wills
administrations 788-1156 or
www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/depts/surrogate/message.htm
&
Hunterdon County Clerk: mortgages &
deeds: 788-1221 or
The Cure for Cancer
www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/depts/ctyclerk/ctyclrk.htm
According to the January 2003 AARP
Bulletin, “Last year the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC ) turned up hundreds
of web sites touting unproven cures or
treatments for cancer and other serious
diseases.” Consumers are being
warned, “Aside from economic harm . . .
quack cancer products & therapies may
lead people to put off ‘obtaining
legitimate treatment at a time when
intervention may be most helpful.’”
Local Churches: records & gravesites
Vital Records (NJ counties):
birth,
death, & marriage records: (609)
292-4087 or
www.vitalrec.com/njcounties.html
Hunterdon Cty. Cultural & Heritage
Commission: old house searches:
788-1256 or
www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/c&h/c&h.htm
The Internet can be a useful tool to
get ideas or information: see
Hunterdon County local libraries for
access & assistance as needed.
Hear of something suspicious?
Report emergencies and anything out
of the ordinary to the local police.
Police will pass on news of local scams to
the Hunterdon County Office on Aging,
who will share this with the Elder Law
Coalition & the community.
Charitable Gift Annuities
Sounds like a great idea, but are
these solid investments? Just like any
other issue, investigate before any
purchase. To find out if a charity is
registered, has a history of complaints, or
if they utilize professional fundraisers:
> Call the Charities Hotline:
(973) 504-6215, or
> Contact the Division of Consumer
Affairs at:
askconsumeraffairs@lps.state.nj.us
Fast Loans on Tax Refunds
Refund anticipation loans (RALs)–a
loan equal to a tax refund–can add up to
big costs, AARP reports (February 2003
Bulletin). Though not illegal, “RALs carry
huge–critics say outrageous–interest
rates & fees. ‘They run between 67
percent and 774 percent APR (annual
percentage rate).’”
A suit was recently settled in NYC, in
which the Department of Consumer
Affairs (DCA) filed charges against H&R
Block “for violating a city law requiring
lender to disclose alternative ways to get
tax refunds quickly, such as filing returns
online.” The settlement: H&R Block
agreed to “pay the 62,000 New Yorkers
$4.2 million in restitution. (The money will
be paid mostly in the form of vouchers
that can be used for services at H&R
Block or redeemed.) The company,
while not admitting guilt, said in a
statement it would offer taxpayer
education programs as part of the
settlement.”
NJ Department of Motor Vehicle
(DMV) NEWS
Governor McGreevey signed the “The
Motor Vehicle Security & Customer
Service Act” January 28, 2003 that works
to address recent past problems at the
DMV. This law:
1. ABOLISHES the “DMV” as we
know it & establishes the “NJ
Motor
Vehicle
Commission,”
which will still register vehicles,
distribute drivers licenses, etc.
2. Creates a security surcharge of
$7 on all new & re-registering
vehicles. These funds are to help
bring the current system up to
date in terms of technology &
security. This cost is said to
“sunset”
in
10
years.
3. Increases fee $6 for new or
renewed licenses: for digitalized
picture (whether or not one gets a
license with or without a picture).
4. Allows bonds to be issued to pay
for
further
technological
advances.
5. Sets all employees of the current
DMV system into the State
system: pension, pay, titles (&
time
in)
similar
to
the
agencieswhere they have been
employed.
THIS LAW TRANSLATES INTO:

More efficient customer service in office: with new technology the
accessiblity will reduce waits.

Decreased risk of fraud: digitalized pictures & updated computer systems
serve as protections.