Township Officials to Discuss Best Practices at Special Meeting

Members of the Washington Township governing body are scheduled to hold a special meeting Tuesday night to discuss a checklist of best practices that determines if a municipality receives all of its state aid.

According to the state Department of Community Affairs, Washington Township had $339.34 of its state aid withheld for fiscal year 2011 after handing in its responses to the checklist questionnaire last year. The survey asks about a number of areas, including procedures and management.

This is the second year officials in municipalities are filling out questionnaires, with answers of Yes, No, Prospective Implementation or Not Applicable. The goal is to respond Yes to all of the items, but municipalities receive credit for answers of Yes, Prospective Implementation and Not Applicable (if the explanation is satisfactory).

The checklist this year has 50 items instead of 88. Categories include general and financial management with budget preparation and disclosure, health insurance, personnel and public safety.

To receive the full amount of aid, at least 41 questions must have a positive response. Here is the full list of penalties from the New Jersey League of Municipalities website:

• 41-50 questions: 100 percent of final aid payment is disbursed.  (No penalty)
• 33-40 questions: 80 percent of final aid payment. (Lose 20 percent of final 5 percent payment – or 1 percent of aid)
• 25-32 questions: 60 percent of final aid payment is disbursed.  (Lose 40 percent of final 5 percent payment – or 2 percent of aid)
• 17-24 questions: 40 percent of final aid payment is disbursed.  (Lose 60 percent of final 5 percent payment – or 3 percent of aid)
• 9-16 questions:  20 percent of final aid payment is disbursed.  (Lose 80 percent of final 5 percent payment – or 4 percent of aid)
• 0-8 questions: No final aid payment will be disbursed. (Lose 100 percent of final 5 percent payment – or 5 percent of aid)

The special meeting is scheduled to begin Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the courtroom of the , 350 Hudson Ave., Washington Township.