By Art Gallagher
With the county reorganization behind us, the real political season in Monmouth County, and throughout New Jersey is about to heat up. While most voters and the mainstream media will not start paying attention until September, what happens at political clubs, committee meetings and county conventions between now and April will determine who the candidates are in the November elections.
The state legislature will be on the top of the ballot. Due to the pending redistricting, it is too early to speculate who the challengers might be or if Monmouth will continue to be divided into 5 districts. Once the new districts are announced, hopefully before the primary filing deadline of April 12, there will be a mad dash. Until then only anxiety and speculation.
Rosemarie Peters will seek a second term as Monmouth County Surrogate. No primary challengers in the rumor mill, no Democratic challengers in the rumor mill yet either.
The race to watch is for the nomination GOP nomination for Monmouth County Freeholder Lillian Burry’s running mate.
Burry told MMM that she will seek a third term. She and Democratic Freeholder Amy Mallet’s seats are up this year. Mallet told Politickernj that she is running.
Early speculation for Mallet’s running mate includes Long Branch Councilman John Pallone, the congressman’s brother, and Marlboro Councilman Jeff Cantor who ran for Freeholder as a Republican in 2007, losing to John D’Amico.
Among Republicans, Manalapan Mayor Andrew Lucas has made his intentions known to several party leaders that he intends to seek the nomination. Lucas emerged as the nominee from a deeply divided GOP convention in 2006 before losing to Barbara McMorrow in the general election. McMorrow is now a GOP township committee member in Freehold Township.
Lucas will be challenged for the nomination by Spring Lake Councilman Gary Rich, Sr. Rich unsuccessfully sought GOP Freeholder nominations in 2005, 2009 and 2010.
Wall Township Committee member George Newbury is signaling that he will challenge Lucas and Rich for the nomination.
Holmdel Mayor Serena DiMaso, who sought to be nominated in 2005 and 2008 is considering a run but has yet to make a decision. Former Middletown Township Committee member Tom Wilkens is also on the fence, after narrowly losing the nomination to Tom Arnone last year.
Let the games begin.
Posted: January 8th, 2011 | Author: Art Gallagher | Filed under: Monmouth County | Tags: Amy Mallet, Andrew Lucas, Gary Rich, Jeff Cantor, John Pallone, Lillian Burry, Serena DiMaso, Tom Wilkens | 2 Comments »
By Art Gallagher
The Asbury Park Press reported yesterday that the Monmouth County Board of Freeholders balked at appointing Freeholder Director Lillian Burry’s choice to replace Jim Gray as Clerk of the Board.
Gray retired at the end of October. His salary was $109,748. Burry wants to replace Gray with James Stuart of Colts Neck, a semi-retired real estate appraiser, who would start the job at $60,000 if appointed.
Stuart served on the Colts Neck Township Committee with Burry. He served the township for nine years through 2008. He also had a real estate sales license that hung in Burry’s Colts Neck Realty brokerage office.
Freeholder Amy Mallet (D) slammed Burry for political patronage in proposing Stuart. That is ironic coming from Mallet, whose unsuccessful running mate, Glenn Mason, was appointed the county Emergency Management Coordinator shortly after the Democrats took control of the Freeholder Board in 2009.
Freeholder John Curley (R) raised questions about Burry’s business relationship with Stuart which were echoed by Freeholder John D’Amico (D). Freeholder Rob Clifton (R) told the APP that we would wait and see what happens.
Sources tell MMM that Clifton and D’Amico are expected to join Burry in appointing Stuart at the next Freeholder meeting on November 23 over the bi-partisan objections of Mallet and Curley.
In these times of fiscal austerity, I think it is worth questioning this appointment and all appointments. Let me emphasis that I am not taking a position, pro or con, on this appointment, at least not yet. I’m simply raising questions and encouraging others to do the same.
The first question should be “Is the position necessary?” Even if the position is required by legislation, and I don’t know if the clerk of the board position is required, the question should be asked, at all levels of government.
The Monmouth County website describes the Clerk of the Board function as follows:
The Office of the Clerk of the Board of Chosen Freeholders provides the Board with the necessary information and background material on those matters requiring its attention.
The principal activities of the Clerk of the Board are to keep a book of the minutes and a record of the orders and proceedings of the Board. The Clerk of the Board has custody of the official seal of the County and all records, documents and other official papers relating to the property and business of the County.
The functions performed by the Clerk of the Board include:
- recording the official minutes of the Board
- handling Board correspondence
- preparing meeting agendas
- processing, filing and advertising ordinances, resolutions and the county budget
- serving as a liaison between the public and the Board
- administering and recording oaths of office
- signing official documents
- attesting the signatures of officers and officials
- maintaining a receipt of service of legal documents;
- acting as custodian for several county departments with regard to the Open Public Records Act (OPRA)
- directing correspondence and inquiries for action to various county departments
- conducting business with other county departments as directed by the Board
Monmouth County’s Clerk of the Board’s office has a Deputy Clerk and three staffers. When the new clerk is hired that will be five full time people working to fulfill the prescribed functions. Record keeping and correspondence is important, but are all of those people necessary? Would there be a savings by promoting the Deputy Clerk and freezing or reducing the staff? Would the functions suffer? Does technology make record keeping and correspondence more efficient?
Another question, and this is not meant to single out Stuart, but to address widespread abuses. Is Stuart’s appointment a pension pad/grab? Does he have pension credits from his service on the Colts Neck Township Committee that would count towards years of service should he be appointed to this job. I don’t know in Stuart’s case. However such pension padding by part time elected officials has been so rampant over the years that the pension system, and abuse thereof, has obviously been a consideration when making such appointments in the past. It should also be a consideration, on the other side of the equation, going forward. If two people are equally qualified for a necessary position but one would add substantial pension costs if hired, those costs should be carefully considered in a hiring decision.
Posted: November 16th, 2010 | Author: Art Gallagher | Filed under: Monmouth County | Tags: Amy Mallet, Clerk of the Board, John Curley, John D'Amico, Lillian Burry, Monmouth County Board of Freeholders, Pension System, Rob Clifton | 14 Comments »
