February 2013 Township Committee Meeting Minutes-Walpack Township, NJ

Walpack Township
9 Main Street
Walpack Center, NJ 07881
Phone and Fax: 973-948-6861
Office Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Direct Mail to: 16 Old Mine Road, Walpack NJ 07881

The meeting was called to order by Mayor Maglio who stated this meeting was being held in compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act having been duly advertised.

The minutes of the January 29, 2013 meeting were presented for approval. Committeeman Heigis made a motion to approve the minutes seconded by Mayor Maglio.

The committee reviewed the treasurer’s report and vouchers. Mayor Maglio made a motion to approve the report and vouchers seconded by Committeeman Heigis. The following bills were approved for payment:

2/26/2013	304	Internal Revenue Service	1,170.40
2/25/2013	2017	Beshada, Terry	581.48
2/25/2013	2018	Cuneo, Betsy	1,014.31
2/25/2013	2019	Heigis, James	650.13
2/25/2013	2020	Kaman, Maureen E.	629.16
2/25/2013	2021	LaStarza, M	2,350.00
2/25/2013	2022	Maglio, Victor	882.99
2/25/2013	2023	Maria E. Maglio	323.04
2/25/2013	2024	Pagano, Russell	void
2/26/2013	2025	Century Link	66.89
2/26/2013	2026	JCP&L	23.66
2/26/2013	2027	Kaman, Maureen E.	7.82
2/26/2013	2028	Municipal Clerk's Assoc of NJ	100.00
2/26/2013	2029	New Jersey Herald	28.80
2/27/2013	2030	Pagano, Russell	343.73
2/27/2013	2031	Sandyston Township Vol. Fire Dept.	2,500.00
			10,672.41

Mayor Maglio stated he has been in contact with Blairstown and Blue Ridge Rescue squads for dual services. A representative will attend the March meeting.

Mayor Maglio made a motion to approve the Firefighting Agreement in the amount of $2,500 with Sandyston Township Volunteer Fire Department seconded by Committeeman Heigis. Mayor Maglio signed the agreement.

The committee reviewed the annual contract for township auditors Ferraioli, Wielkotz, Cerullo & Cuva. The agreement is in the amount of $11,180.

Mayor Maglio made a motion to approve the contract seconded by Committeeman Heigis.

Committeeman Pagano submitted a letter of resignation due to relocating to North Carolina. Mayor Maglio made a motion to accept the resignation seconded by Committeeman Heigis. The clerk will notify the Democratic and Republican Parties of the vacancy. Committeeman Pagano’s term ends December 31, 2013.

Chief Finance Officer Michelle LaStarza explained the total budget of $121,620 for the 2013 year. Mayor Maglio made a motion to approve the introduction of the budget seconded by Committeeman Heigis. The budget will be advertised and have a public hearing at the next regularly scheduled meeting to be held March 26, 2013.

The annual resolution endorsing the recycling tonnage grant was read by Mayor Maglio. Committeeman Heigis made a motion to approve the resolution seconded by Mayor Maglio.

RESOLUTION OF THE WALPACK TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE ENDORSING THE SUBMISSION OF THE 2012 RECYCLING TONNAGE GRANT APPLICATION

WHEREAS, the Mandatory Source Separation and Recycling Act, P.L. 1987, c. 102, has established a recycling fund from which tonnage grants may be made to municipalities for the calendar year 2012.

WHEREAS, it is the intent and the spirit of the Mandatory Source Separation and Recycling Act to use the tonnage grants to develop new municipal recycling programs and to continue and to expand existing programs; and

WHEREAS, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is promulgating recycling regulations to implement the Mandatory Source Separation and Recycling Act; and

WHEREAS, the recycling regulations impose on municipalities certain requirements as a condition for applying for tonnage grants, including but not limited to, making and keeping accurate, verifiable records of materials collected and claimed by the municipality; and

WHEREAS, a resolution authorizing this municipality to apply for such tonnage grants will memorialize the commitment of this municipality to recycling and indicate the assent of the Walpack Township Committee to the efforts undertaken by the municipality and the requirements contained in the Recycling Act and recycling regulations; and

WHEREAS, such a resolution should designate the individual authorized to ensure the application is properly completed and timely filed

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Walpack Township Committee of the Township of Walpack that the Township of Walpack hereby endorses the submission of the recycling tonnage grant application to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and that the application is properly filed; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the monies received from the recycling tonnage grant be deposited in a dedicated recycling trust fund to be used solely for the purpose of recycling.

I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution is a true and exact copy of the resolution adopted by the Walpack Township Committee held on February 26, 2013.

Mayor Maglio read the following resolution into the record. Mayor Maglio made a motion to approve the resolution seconded by Committeeman Heigis.

WHEREAS, Assembly Bill A-3553 proposes to expand the opportunities for registered voters to cast their ballots at an election within the State of New Jersey, and

WHEREAS, the goal of accommodating voters in pursuit of greater participation in the democratic process is a worthy goal, but

WHEREAS, The said bill as it is currently drafted involves proposals that would increase workloads, add more costs to the election process, and ultimately serve to confuse voters more than it would accommodate their needs, and

WHEREAS, the opportunity for “Early Voting” already exists in the State of New Jersey through the Vote by Mail ballot process,

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Governing Body of the Township of Walpack in the County of Sussex does hereby oppose Bill A-3553 for the following reasons:

Current State Law provides that the County Clerk shall mail Sample Ballots for Primary Election on or before 12 noon on Wednesday preceding election (N.J.S.A. 19:23-34). The proposed Bill requires polling places to be open beginning 15 days before an election. This bill creates an inherent conflict between the date upon which the County Clerk is required to mail sample ballots and the date upon which sample ballots must be posted in polling places. It creates a situation in which the County Clerk will be obligated to mail sample ballots to voters, inviting them to come vote on Election Day, who will have already cast their votes, creating confusion for the average voter and citizen. It will also pressure county Clerks to have sample ballots available earlier than the statutory date upon which said sample ballots need to be provided to the general public via mail.

The requirement that a single polling place must be kept open ten hours a day, Monday through Saturday, and on Sundays for 8 hours, beginning 15 days before an election up until 2 days before an election will create additional expense on County Boards of Election, who will be required to staff this said polling place with poll workers who will be required to handle voters that come from every voting district within a municipality as opposed to a single voting district at each polling place on election day.

The Sussex County Board of Elections points out that the average age of Poll workers in Sussex County is 72 years. The bill would require complete re-training of poll workers on how to handle paper ballots on the Early voting days as opposed to the electronic voting done on Election day; many current poll workers will not be interested of physically capable of staffing polling places for such extended periods of time for two straight weeks; hiring new poll workers and training them will be required to staff the early voting locations; costs will be incurred in transporting election materials to and from each early voting location every day in order to maintain chain of custody for protecting the integrity of the ballots cast; Overtime costs would be incurred for staffing the Board of Elections offices each day and each evening; all of which adds up to an estimated additional expense exceeding $150,000 per election.

The Bill creates a conflict for Municipal clerks who are required, by law, to be in their offices during the hours that polls are open for an election. Additionally, many municipalities now rely on their Public Works employees to set up and take down polling places. This will create overtime issues on municipalities.

The Bill requires a central location be utilized the early voting polling place. In many instances, this will require the use of the municipal building for seven days a week, for two weeks prior to the election, for up to 12 hours a day. This creates an inherent conflict with already-scheduled court sessions, meetings of governing bodies, meetings of various boards such as Planning Boards, Zoning Boards, Recreation Commissions, and Boards of Health, which will require re-scheduling and postponing hearings on applications before those bodies, in turn creating inconvenience for the general public, and increased costs for the municipality.

The Sussex County Board of Elections estimates that, taking all factors into consideration, the Total cost of setting up and conducting the first early voting election would be $680,000, and the cost of each early voting election thereafter would be $198,000.

This represents an unfunded mandate, creating unnecessary additional burden and expense on the county and local levels of government, and provides no meaningful increase in the opportunity for New Jersey voters to “vote early” because current state law and established procedures allow a voter to download a Vote By Mail Ballot application, mail in that application, receive a Vote by Mail ballot, and cast their ballot, without ever having to leave their own home or business location.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the governing body of the Township of Walpack does hereby call upon its representatives in the State Legislature to oppose the adoption of this bill.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution shall be sent to the Office of the Governor, the Sponsors of Bill A-3553, Senator Oroho and Assemblywoman McHose who represent this District, the Sussex County Board of Elections, and the New Jersey League of Municipalities.

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CERTIFICATION: I hereby certify the foregoing to be a true and correct copy of a resolution duly adopted by the governing body of the Township of Walpack, in the County of Sussex, New Jersey, at a meeting held on February 26, 2013.

There being one in attendance and no further business to discuss, Committeeman Heigis made a motion to adjourn seconded by Mayor Maglio. The meeting was adjourned at 8:27 p.m.