The furnishing of a performance guarantee in favor of the municipality in an amount not to exceed 120% of the cost of installation of the improvements as estimated by the Municipal Engineer, and as the Approving Authority my deem necessary or appropriate, including but not limited to: streets, grading, pavement, gutters, curbs, sidewalks, streetlighting, shade trees, surveyor's monuments, as shown on the final map and required by the Map Filing Law, N.J.S.A. 46:23-9.9 et seq. water mains, culverts, storm sewers, sanitary sewers or other means of sewage disposal, drainage structures, erosion control and sedimentation control devices, public improvements of open space and, other on-site improvements and landscaping. The municipal engineer shall prepare an itemized cost estimate of the improvements covered by the performance guarantee, which itemized cost estimate shall be appended to each performance guarantee posted by the obliger. Of such performance guarantee a maximum of 10% may be in the form of cash or certified check made payable to the municipality, and the reminder shall be in the form of a corporation surety performance bond issued by an authorized New Jersey corporation. The Municipal Attorney shall approve the performance bond as to form, sufficiency and execution. The Municipal Engineer shall approve the performance guarantee as to size and scope.

Provision for a maintenance guarantee to be posted with the Governing Body for a period not to exceed two years after final acceptance of the improvement, in an amount not to exceed 15% of the cost of the improvement, which cost shall be determined by the Municipal Engineer. In the event that other governmental agencies or public utilities automatically will own the utilities to be installed or the improvements are covered by a performance or maintenance guarantee to another governmental agency, no performance or maintenance guarantee, as the case may be, shall be required by the municipality for such utilities or improvements.

The time allowed for installation of the improvement for which the performance guarantee has been provided may be extended by the Governing Body by resolution. As a condition or as part of any such extension, the amount of any performance guarantee shall be increased or reduced, as the case may be, to an amount not to exceed 120% of the cost of the installation, which cost shall be determined by the municipal engineer as of the time of the passage of the resolution.

If the required improvements are not completed or corrected in accordance with the performance guarantee, the obligor and surety, if any, shall be liable thereon to the municipality for the reasonable cost of the improvements not completed or corrected and the municipality my either prior to or after the receipt of the proceeds thereof complete such improvements. Such completion or correction of improvements shall be subject to the public bidding requirements of the "Local Public Contracts Law."

Upon substantial completion of all required street improvements and appurtenant utility improvements, and the connection of same to the public system, the obligor may request of the Governing Body in writing, by certified mail addressed in care of the Municipal Clerk, that the Municipal Engineer prepare, in accordance with the itemized cost estimate prepared by the Municipal Engineer and appended to the performance guarantee pursuant to paragraph a above, a list of all uncompleted or unsatisfactory completed improvements. If such a request is made, the obligor shall send a copy of the request to the Municipal Engineer. The request shall indicate which improvements have been completed and such improvements remain uncompleted in the judgment of the obligor. Thereupon the Municipal Engineer shall inspect all improvements covered by the obligor's request and shall file a detailed list and report, in writing, with the Governing Body, and shall simultaneously send a copy thereof to the obligor not later 45 days after receipt of the obligor's request.

The list prepared by the Municipal Engineer shall state in detail, with respect to each improvement determined to be incomplete or unsatisfactory, the nature and extent of the incompleteness of each incomplete improvement or the nature and extent of, and remedy for the unsatisfactory state of each completed improvement determined to be unsatisfactory. The report prepared by the Municipal Engineer shall identify each improvement determined to be complete and satisfactory together with a recommendation as to the amount of reduction to be made in the performance guarantee relating to the completed and satisfactory improvement, in accordance with the itemized cost estimate prepared by the Municipal Engineer and appended to the performance guarantee pursuant to paragraph b above.

The Governing Body by resolution, shall either approve the improvements determined to be complete and satisfactory by the Municipal Engineer, or reject any or all of these improvements upon the establishment in a resolution of cause for rejection, and shall approve and authorize the amount of reduction to be made in the performance guarantee relating to the improvements accepted in accordance with the itemized cost estimate prepared by the Municipal Engineer and appended to the performance guarantee pursuant to paragraph b above. This resolution shall be adopted not later than 45 days after receipt of the list and report prepared by the Municipal Engineer. Upon adoption of the resolution by the Governing Body, the obligor shall be released from all liability pursuant to its performance guarantee, with respect to those approved improvements, except for that portion adequately sufficient to secure completion or correction of the improvements not yet approved; provided that 30% of the amount of the performance guarantee posted may be retained to ensure completion and acceptability of all improvements.

If the Municipal Engineer fails to send or provide the list and report requested by the obligor pursuant to paragraph e above within 45 days from receipt of the request, the obligor may apply to the court in summary manner for an order compelling the Municipal Engineer to provide the list and report within a stated time and the cost of applying to the court, including reasonable attorney's fees, may be awarded to the prevailing party.

If the Governing Body fails to approve or reject the improvements determined by the Municipal Engineer to complete and satisfy or reduce the performance guarantee for the complete and satisfactory improvements within 45 days from the receipt of the Municipal Engineer's list and report, the obligor my apply to the court in a summary manner for an order compelling, within a stated time, approval of the complete and satisfactory improvements and approval of a reduction in the performance guarantee for the approvable complete and satisfactory improvements in accordance with the itemized cost estimate prepared by the Municipal Engineer and appended to the performance guarantee pursuant to paragraph b above, and the cost of applying to the court, including reasonable attorney's fees, may be awarded to the prevailing party.

In the event that the obligor has made a cash deposit with the municipality or Approving Authority as part of the performance guarantee, then any partial reduction granted in the performance guarantee pursuant to this subsection shall be applied to the cash deposit in the same proportion as the original cash deposit bears to the full amount of the performance guarantee.

If any portion of the required improvements is rejected, the Approving Authority may require the obligor to complete or correct such improvements and, upon completion or correction the same procedure of notification, as set forth in this section shall be followed.

Nothing herein, however, shall be construed to limit the right of the obligor to contest by legal proceedings any determination of the Governing Body or the Municipal Engineer.

The obligor shall reimburse the municipality for all reasonable inspection fees paid to the Municipal Engineer for the foregoing inspection of improvements; provided that the municipality may require of the developer a deposit for the inspection fees in an amount not to exceed, except for extraordinary circumstances, the greater of $500 or 5% of the cost of improvements, which cost shall be determined by the Municipal Engineer.

In the event that final approval is by stages or sections of development, the provisions of this section shall be applied by stages or sections.

The municipality shall make all of the payments to professionals for services rendered to the municipality for review of applications for development review and preparation of documents, inspection of improvements or other purposes. If the municipality requires of the developer a deposit toward the anticipated municipal expenses for these professional services, the deposit shall be placed in an escrow account pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53.1. The amount of the deposit required shall be reasonable in regard to the scale and complexity of the development. All payments charged to the deposit shall be pursuant to vouchers from the professionals stating the hours spent, the hourly rate, and the expenses incurred. The municipality shall render a written final accounting to the developer on the uses to which the deposit was put. Thereafter the municipality, shall upon written request, provide copies of the vouchers to the developer. If the salary, staff support and overhead for a professional are provided by the municipality, the charge to the deposit shall not exceed 200% of the sum of the products resulting from multiplying: 1. the hourly base salary of each of the professionals by 2. the number of hours spent by the respective professional on review of the application for development or the developer's improvements, as the case may be. For other professionals the charge to the deposit shall be at the same rate as all other work of the same nature by the professional for the municipality.

A municipality shall not require that a maintenance guarantee required pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:55D-53 be in cash or that more than 10% of a performance guarantee pursuant to that section be in cash. A developer may, however, provide at his option some or all of a maintenance guarantee in cash, or more than 10% of performance guarantee in cash.