N.J. Admin. Code § 4A:3-4.13
Except as otherwise provided by the Chairperson, an employee whose base salary is not on a step in his or her salary range shall remain at his or her current base salary. That part of an employee's salary that is above the nearest lower step in the salary range will be carried as extra salary until the employee's anniversary date, at which time the employee's salary shall be moved to the next higher step, if warranted by performance, in lieu of the normal performance increment. If the employee's base salary is above the maximum step, the employee will be red circled, that is, remain at that salary until the maximum step of the range is increased to a level at or above the employee's base salary, at which time the employee's salary shall be moved to that maximum step of the range.
N.J. Admin. Code § 4A:3-4.13