Gloucester Township Council Defends Position on Walk-On Resolution

When is Gloucester Township Council required to announce a walk-on resolution?

This has been the focus of a discussion between members of the mostly Democratic council and the Republican leadership for the previous two council meetings.

On July 27, council introduced a walk-on resolution calling for the conversion of existing street light fixtures to LED lighting in Gloucester Township under a pilot program.

Republican leadership, including Republican Party Chairman Ray Polidoro and Camden County GOP Political Director Tom Crone, have criticized Council, saying the resolution should’ve been introduced at the beginning of the meeting, rather than following the first public comment portion.

Gloucester Township Council meetings include two public comment portions. The first is reserved for agenda items, and the other is reserved for anything else residents would like to discuss, and is held following the official action portion of the meeting.

By introducing the resolution after the public comment portion, Polidoro and Crone argue that public input was removed from the process.

Crone spoke on the issue on July 27, in the second public portion. He also attempted to speak on an incident that allegedly took place during a GOP fundraiser last month, in which the Republicans claim a Democrat attempted to videotape their activities at what the Republicans referred to as a “family-friendly event.”

Council Vice President Orlando Mercado previously denied any knowledge of this incident.

When Crone attempted to introduce the topic, council members asked Crone if his comments were relative to governmental operations before voting to close the public comment portion before Crone could speak.

Republicans claim Council was in violation of the Open Public Meetings Act for both introducing the resolution when they did and closing the public comment portion.

On the New Jersey Open Government blog earlier this month, John Paff wrote that council’s actions may have violated the rights of the individuals at the meeting.

On Monday, Crone said he was unsure if he would pursue legal action. He was not in attendance during Monday night’s meeting.

Gloucester Township Solicitor David Carlamere said that wasn’t the case during Monday night’s meeting at the municipal complex.

“The purpose of council is to pass ordinances and resolutions in open session,” Carlamere said. “They have to make their decisions and deliberate before the public. Closing the public comment portion is not a violation because there was no further deliberation.

“The public was not excluded from the conversation because during a public meeting, there is an expectation that any council person can introduce an item that can be voted on during the meeting. If a special meeting is to be held, that meeting must be advertised.”

Council typically posts “yellow sheets” on a side bulletin board in council chambers prior to the start of a council meeting, making the public aware of any walk-on resolutions to be considered.

There was no “yellow sheet” prior to the July 27 meeting.

At the end of that meeting, Council President Glenn Bianchini declared walk-on resolutions would no longer be allowed if they aren’t posted first.

Carlamere said that is the council’s policy, but it isn’t improper or illegal to not post walk-on resolutions prior to a meeting.

Bianchini also said he wouldn’t allow political talk during government council meetings.

This year’s election pits Democrats Mercado, Councilwoman Tracy Trotto, Michael Mignone and Andea L. Stubbs against Republicans Jennifer O’Donnell, Patricia Kline, Peter Heinbaugh and Joseph Habina.

Heinbaugh was in attendance during Monday night’s meeting.

“Technically, it might be fine, but it violated the spirit of the rule,” Heinbaugh said. “We can use legal talk to rationalize anything, but that doesn’t make it right.”

The video from the July 27 meeting is attached to this post.