Monroe Township officials delay New Jersey Economic and Fiscal Policy Workgroup recommendation
The work session at the latest Monroe Township Council meeting included a debate on whether the township would support the “Path to Progress” recommendation made by the New Jersey Economic and Fiscal Policy Workgroup.
“I had the opportunity to attend a few of these different session with the Senate president and Assembly Majority Leader Lou Greenwald,” Councilman Cody Miller said. “Basically, the state put together a commission to study ways that New Jersey could address its fiscal responsibilities. Some of these items included pension and benefit reform, education, county and municipal government reform and shared services, state and local tax structure and leveraging assets to stabilize the pension system.”
The commission is bipartisan and made up of legislators and policy professionals to research ways the state could save money. One area is changing health care from platinum-level to something more sustainable.
Miller suggested council pass a resolution supporting the “Path to Progess” recommendation in an effort to relieve the taxpayers.
“If we don’t do something about it and we don’t tell the governor that it needs to be addressed, we as local legislators are going to be tasked with some major challenges that are going to be unsustainable for us,” Miller said. “I was asking for consideration that this would be forwarded to the Senate president saying we support this commission and some of the recommendations; in addition saying to Gov. Murphy that you have to get the state’s fiscal house in order because the way we’re operating is unsustainable and the taxpayers and residents are going to lose at the end of the day.”
The resolution Miller is referring to is a non-binding letter of support.
Council President Ron Garbowski polled the council to move the resolution forward from the work session to the agenda of the regular meeting. During the poll, Mayor Rich DiLucia spoke about the resolution.
“I just can’t agree that we’re going to give carte blanche to a bunch of bureaucrats that aren’t giving up anything,” he said. “They have the best insurance, the best pay and they’re telling us that our workers are overpaid, over compensated.”
DiLucia understood that while he didn’t have a vote on the resolution, he could still speak on the matter.
“Once this thing goes forward how do you stop it? How do you have input in it? This is your opportunity to have input. You’re endorsing something, a plan that we have no input in that our employees are going to have to live with when it passes. I’m not speaking against the fact that something has to be done in order to address some of the issues that confront this state, but I certainly would want to know what it is they’re suggesting to do,” he said.
Councilman Pat O’Reilly voted to have the resolution tabled so the council members could review the material and vote on it at a later meeting.
In other news:
- Sherrie Kennedy was appointed as an alternate member to the Monroe Township Board of Health.
- Garbowski issued an update on the market to affordable housing committee. The township’s vendor, Triad, purchased a house on Balsam Road and hired a contractor to rehabilitate the house. There is a buyer in line once the rehabilitation is complete. The committee is looking at purchasing a house on Forest Court as well as houses in the Newbury Farms neighborhood.
- The next council meeting is March 25. A work session is scheduled for 7 p.m. with the regular meeting at 8 p.m. Both sessions are open to the public and take place in the municipal building.
