Holmdel Charter Study Commission

07/28/2022

Holmdel Charter Study Commission Recognizes the Will of the Voters

While we believe that the recommendations we put forth as the Holmdel Charter Study Commission would have made Holmdel an even better town with more power to the voters, we recognize that our role was only to put forth a recommendation. The voters ultimately have the final decision, and, based on the unofficial results, they chose not to move forward.

We understood that there would be strong opposition driven by the Republican Party Boss and his Holmdel surrogates, and certainly, they pulled out all the stops, even soliciting the recent NJ governor candidate to advocate against our recommendations. Indeed, this supports one of the main reasons we put forth the recommendation for non-partisan elections. We need to have less influence by outside party bosses in our local governance. Unfortunately, machine politics prevailed here.

We believe it was also unfortunate that the opposition chose to campaign on many outright lies and inuendoes, such as that this would bring a king-like mayor with a $100,000 salary or somehow turn our town into a large/poor inner city-like municipality. Our voters deserve better than this.

It was great to see that a large portion of the town came out to vote. Concerns that there would be a dismal turnout were unfounded. We hope that this process has increased voters' understanding of the influence of the party line, which is driven by the county party boss, and that voters will make more open, informed decisions based on the merits of what candidates will do for Holmdel rather than just voting the party line.

We remain confident that Holmdel will continue to flourish as the beautiful town that it has always been.

Kin Gee
Chairman

Janet Berk
Commissioner

Gerald Buffalino
Commissioner

C. Zachary Gilstein
Commissioner

06/27/2022

Watch the video on why you should VOTE YES on July 26th. For more information, see:

https://www.voteyescharterrecommendations.org/

06/06/2022

Star-Ledger Confirms Charter Study Commission Speaker Comments

June 6, 2022 - The Star-Ledger Editorial Board published an Opinion that echoed comments made at the Holmdel Charter Study Commission hearings. The findings of the Commission, the Star-Ledger’s Editorial Board Opinion, the federal lawsuit, along with an increasing body of evidence confirm that the Commission’s recommendation to go non-partisan election at the local level is the best option for Holmdel.

On July 26th, vote YES to the public question to give more power to Holmdel residents!

From the Star-Ledger Editorial Board Opinion:
“No other state tolerates such a corrupt configuration. Most states simply group the names of candidates under the office that they seek, and those names are randomized or alphabetized to ensure fairness, with no attempts at deception.

But in New Jersey, the party chairmen and county committees believe that voters should defer to their wisdom, because they know the best candidates for their turf, they raise the money, and they build the volunteer base -- all true -- and the clerks design the ballots accordingly. The system works very well for them, and candidates throw piles of money at the state and county committees to secure their space in Column 1. The higher the office, the higher the pile.

Remove the party line from the ballot, and that changes. Its elimination restores some sanity and fairness, for starters: Jesse Burns of the League of Women Voters of New Jersey, which filed an amicus brief supporting the suit, does not exaggerate when she calls the line “a voter suppression tactic, used to pre-determine elections outcomes and diminish the voice of voters.”
We cannot expect all party bosses and elected officials to acknowledge the cracks in the existing system and embrace reform, however, because they would rather eat a raw wolverine.”

https://www.nj.com/opinion/2022/06/one-step-closer-to-ending-njs-rigged-primaries-editorial.html

05/19/2022

Residents to Decide Holmdel Form of Government
In a Special Election

Holmdel Charter Study Commission met on May 12, 2022 and unanimously agreed to adopt the formal report with their recommendation to adopt a more modern form of local government called Council-Manager.

This recommendation will be in the form of a public question that Holmdel voters will decide at a special election on Tuesday, July 26, 2022.

The Council-Manager form is very similar to the current Township Committee form with three improvements that will give more power to Holmdel residents.

Just like the current Township Committee form, the Council will consist of five members, including the Mayor, who are elected at large on a staggered basis. The three improvements that will strengthen the local government and make it more responsive and accountable to the people are as follows:

1. The Mayor will be elected directly by Holmdel voters. The Mayor is a member of the Council, presides over Council meetings, has one of the five equal votes, and has no more power than the other Council members.
2. Residents will have the power in a ballot petition process to propose a new law or to repeal a law that was enacted by the Council. This is known as Initiative and Referendum.
3. Elections will be held on a non-partisan basis, similar to elections for the Holmdel Board of Education. This eliminates the inappropriate influence of county political party bosses under current partisan elections and should increase the pool of good candidates to run.

The public question that Holmdel residents will vote on is as follows:

"Shall the COUNCIL-MANAGER PLAN of the Optional Municipal Charter Law, providing for FIVE (5) Council members to be ELECTED AT LARGE for STAGGERED terms at NON-PARTISAN elections held in NOVEMBER, with the MAYOR ELECTED DIRECTLY BY THE VOTERS, be adopted by the Township of Holmdel?"

See also the two articles by the Asbury Park Press and the Independent/centraljersey.com:

https://www.app.com/story/news/local/red-bank-middletown-area/holmdel/2022/05/16/holmdel-nj-special-july-election-change-local-elections-government/9661267002/

https://centraljersey.com/2022/05/13/holmdel-residents-appear-to-have-approved-proposal-to-create-charter-study-commission-2/

HOLMDEL – The five members of a charter study commission who have been examining Holmdel’s current form of government have unanimously recommended that several changes be made to the township’s current form of municipal government. The decision to accept or to reject the charter study commissi...

05/11/2022

May 11, 2022 – The next meeting for the Holmdel Charter Study Commission is on Thursday, May 12, 2022, at 7 PM, Town Hall, 4 Crawfords Corner Rd, Holmdel.

The Charter Study Commission is expected to discuss the referendum for its recommendations and then adopt the formal report that will be filed.

You can watch prior meetings at the link below.

https://www.holmdelchartercomm.org/videos

04/26/2022

The Thursday, April 28th meeting is canceled.

04/16/2022

Charter Study Commission to Recommend Improvements to Local Government to Give More Power to Residents

April 14, 2022 - As part of Phase III of the 3-phase plan, the Commissioners discussed, and reached a consensus on recommendations for a form of government very similar to the current Holmdel form of government but with modern reforms that give more power to Holmdel residents.

Recommendations

1. Adopt the Council-Manager form of government
2. Five Council members (including the Mayor) will be elected at large and not by wards – similar to the current Township Committee
3. The Mayor will preside over Council meetings, votes with other Council members – again similar to the current Township Committee - but will be directly elected by voters
4. Council members including the Mayor will be elected to serve a 4-year term on a staggered basis every two years
5. A professional Manager will be appointed by the Council that will run the day-to-day administration of the town in accordance with the will and intent of the Council – very similar to the Township Administrator. The Manager can be removed by a simple majority (3 votes) of the Council – unlike the current 2/3 requirement or 4 votes.
6. Elections will be held on a nonpartisan basis, similar to current elections for members of the Holmdel Board of Education. If they wish, candidates can campaign and make known their party affiliation.
7. Residents will have the opportunity to introduce a local ordinance or to reject an ordinance passed by the Council through a petition process known as Initiative and Referendum

The next step will be to draft a written report that will be approved and signed by all five Commissioners and formally filed with the Township Clerk. Holmdel residents will then vote to approve or disapprove the Commission’s recommendations in a referendum.

You can watch the video recording of the meeting in the “Video” tab of the website.

Our meetings are public.  You can watch the video recordings of our meetings on this page or on Holmdel's YouTube channel page.

04/12/2022

April 12, 2022 – The next meeting for the Holmdel Charter Study Commission is on Thursday, April 14, 2022, at 7 PM, Town Hall, 4 Crawfords Corner Rd, Holmdel.

The Charter Study Commission has now completed Phase I (study of the current form of local government) and II (explore alternate forms of governments). It will begin Phase III to deliberate and discuss what the Commission heard in the previous two phases and what recommendations it may want to consider.

You can watch prior meetings at the link below.

https://www.holmdelchartercomm.org/videos

04/03/2022

SECOND PUBLIC HEARING

Our second public hearing is set for April 7, 2022, 7 PM, Town Hall, 4 Crawfords Corner Rd, Holmdel.

In our current form of government: 1. the Mayor is not directly elected by voters, 2. elections are held every year, 3. there is no option for nonpartisan elections, 4. Initiative and Referendum are not allowed, and 5. the Township Committee is limited to 3 or 5 members only.

In Phase II of our work, we heard from experts on the alternate forms of government that can be considered. Two of the most popular forms of government that the Charter Study Commission can consider are (1) Mayor-Council and (2) Council-Manager.

Common options of these two major forms are:
1. the Mayor can be elected directly by voters
2. elections can be held every 2 years (or every 4 years if on a concurrent basis)
3. elections can be on a partisan or nonpartisan basis
4. Initiative and Referendum are allowed
5. Council members can be elected at-large or by wards
6. the Council can have 5, 7, or 9 members, and
7. both require a Municipal Manager or Administrator

The differences between these two forms are:

Mayor-Council
1. Mayor is not on the Council
2. Mayor has no legislative duties
3. Mayor is Chief Executive and is responsible for day-to-day operations
4. Mayor, with the consent of Council, appoints Business Administrator to assist and runs administration – serves a 4-year term concurrent with the Mayor
5. Business Administrator can be removed by 2/3 votes of the Council

Council-Manager

1. Mayor is part of the Council & presides over Council meetings
2. Mayor has legislative responsibilities along with other Council members
3. Council appoints nonpartisan professional Business Manager, who acts as Chief Executive and runs day-to-day operations
4. Business Manager serves at the pleasure of the Council and can be removed with a simple majority vote


Please attend the next Commission meeting to provide your input and opinion on alternate forms of government including possible options that the Commission may want to consider.
For example:
1. Should the Mayor be directly elected by voters?
2. Should the Mayor (even if directly elected by voters) be part of the Council with legislative responsibilities like in the current Township Committee form of government?
3. Should residents have more power and say in public questions and/or ordinances (Initiative and Referendum)?
4. Should local elections be held every other year or every four years rather than yearly?
5. Should elections be held on a nonpartisan basis?
6. Should we elect Council members on an at-large basis or by wards?
7. Should we have fewer or more elected officials on the governing body?

03/29/2022

The meeting scheduled for Thursday, March 31, 2022, is canceled.

03/22/2022

Mar 22, 2022 – The next meeting for the Holmdel Charter Study Commission is on Thursday, March 24, 2022 at 7 PM on a virtual basis via Zoom. You can join by clicking on the link below:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89122891778?pwd=ZkxYRUlrUjdXQW1qdjhocHdJclBqUT09
Passcode: Charter

Special Guests

1. Fred Tagliarini, Mayor of Aberdeen

Aberdeen Township is governed within the Faulkner Act under the Council-Manager form of government. This form of local government was implemented in 1990 based on voting on a direct petition by Aberdeen’s citizens to change from the traditional Township Committee form of government which had been in force since 1857. The mayor, who is part of the Council, is elected directly by voters along with the other Council members on a staggered basis in partisan elections.

2. Amy Quinn, Deputy Mayor of Asbury Park

Asbury Park is governed within the Faulkner Act under the Council-Manager form of government. Asbury Park chose this form of government based on the final report by their Charter Study Commission in 2013 since it retained a desired aspect of their local government for nonpartisan elections while allowing for the mayor to be elected directly and granting voters the right for initiative and referendum. The mayor, who is part of the Council, is elected directly by voters along with the other Council members on a staggered basis in nonpartisan elections.

You can watch prior meetings at the link below.

https://www.holmdelchartercomm.org/videos

03/14/2022

Mar 14, 2022 – The next meeting for the Holmdel Charter Study Commission is on Wednesday, March 16, 2022 at 7 PM on a virtual basis via Zoom. You can join by clicking on the link below:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89122891778?pwd=ZkxYRUlrUjdXQW1qdjhocHdJclBqUT09
Passcode: Charter

1. There will also be a presentation on New Jersey Ballot Design and the “Line”

Dr. Julia Sass Rubin
Associate Professor
Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Policy
Rutgers University

2. Invited Guest: Jonathan Hornik, Marlboro Mayor

Marlboro Township is governed within the Faulkner Act under the Mayor-Council form of government. The mayor is the chief executive officer of the Township and is directly elected by voters to a four-year term. The five Council members are elected at-large for staggered 4-year terms in partisan elections.

You can watch prior meetings at the link below.

https://www.holmdelchartercomm.org/videos