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The city’s charter study commission [CSC] met on Monday and Tuesday nights this week to finalize its budget and talk about hiring a secretary, among other issues.

The CSC is charged with scrutinizing the city’s charter and possibly making recommendations. They have nine months to study the form of government. If they recommend changes or the adoption of a different form of government, the proposed changes will be put to a vote of either the city council or the electorate, depending on the nature of the changes.

MEETING SCHEDULE

The commission has established that it will meet on Mondays from 7 to 9 p.m., with 15 minutes reserved at the beginning and end of each meeting for public comment.

City council chambers are only available on the first Monday of each month. In January, the CSC will meet on Jan. 7 at City Hall; on Jan. 14 at the West Side Community Center; and on Jan. 21 and 28 in the Senior Center at the Springwood Building. Both the West Side Community Center and the Senior Center will cost the CSC $70 per meeting.

The CSC is keeping its options open beyond January in case they find out about other meeting locations, especially if those locations are free of charge. The next meeting will be held on Jan. 7, 2013.

BUDGET

The CSC is entitled to create a budget, which the council will likely vote on at tonight’s meeting. Chair Pam Lamberton will present the budget to the council.

On Monday night, the CSC created its proposed $18,000 budget and unanimously approved it. The budget contains five areas of expenditures — consultant, final report/printing, secretarial services, travel, and miscellaneous.

The CSC slightly overestimated some costs because if they do not spend all of the budget funds, the money goes back to the city.

Under the consultant category, $1,000 is set aside for consulting fees; $500 for speaking fees; and $3,500 for legal fees, totalling $5,000.

Dr. Ernest Reock, an expert on charter study commissions from Rutgers University, provided advice to the CSC at its first meeting and has said he will continue to consult for them free of charge when he is available. The CSC will ask Reock for advice whenever possible before going to paid professionals.

The CSC expects to budget $4,000 for printing costs. This includes $200 in printing, which would create about 500 copies of their final report if it is 100 pages long. $2,000 is set aside for distribution, and $1,800 is set aside for other services. The CSC will also make its final report available on the city’s website.

For secretarial services, the CSC has set aside $5,000. The secretary will keep minutes of meetings; correspondence; recording of interviews; and preparation of the report.

For travel, the CSC has budgeted $500. This will cover gasoline and other costs for when members travel to other towns for research purposes.

Another $3,500 is set aside for miscellaneous fees including $1,000 for a website; $500 for advertising for positions and meetings; $1,900 for rent for the West Side Community Center and Senior Center; and $100 for equipment.

SELECTING A SECRETARY

The CSC decided at its first meeting on Oct. 29 that it would hire a secretary. At Monday’s meeting, two people who were interested in the job were in attendance. CSC member Duanne Small had suggested Earl Young for the job at the Oct. 29 meeting, and he attended Monday night’s meeting.

The CSC is not obligated to put the job out to bid because it will cost less than $17,500, Lamberton said.

Lamberton suggested the CSC advertise in local media outlets for a secretary, while Michelle Maguire said the CSC should hire a secretary as soon as possible. The CSC decided to interview the two candidates in closed executive session following the meeting, with the intention of making a decision on Tuesday.

At Tuesday night’s meeting, the CSC decided not to hire a secretary yet, and to advertise for more secretarial candidates. The CSC is unsure of the legal process for hiring a secretary without the budget being approved, and is opting to widen the pool of candidates in the meantime.

The secretary would be in service from January through August for approximately four hours each Monday. Pay is to be determined. Interested applicants can contact Lamberton at asburyparkcsc@hotmail.com.

PUBLIC STATEMENTS

The CSC approved its bylaws unanimously last night, with one omission. They disagreed over the issue of members making public statements and decided to omit that section of the bylaws until they can think of a solution.

The CSC used the bylaws of South Brunswick’s CSC as a guide. The South Brunswick CSC had a rule saying the chairperson was the only member who could make public statements. On Monday, other CSC members said they’d like to add language saying the chairperson’s public statements had to be approved by a majority of the commission first. Then, members could disseminate statements as they wished.

Last night, member Randy Thompson said he felt the rules were too restrictive and that they amounted to a gag order for CSC members.

“What is the fear?” he said. “Is the fear that someone is going to go off the reservation?”

“That’s one possibility,” Lamberton said. “The other possibility is that selected groups in the city … were receiving information that other people were not privy to and could not get.”

Thompson sent to members of the Asbury Park Homeowners Association, of which he is the president, a newsletter contained information about the CSC and encouraged association members to attend Monday night’s meeting. CSC members Maguire, Lamberton and Rita Marano took issue with the newsletter.

Some members argued that because the CSC is a committee or commission rather than a governing body, its members should not publicly discuss business.

“One of our goals is to be open and transparent,” CSC member Duanne Small said. “What does this say about that? When somebody comes and asks you a question, you have to say, ‘I can’t say it.’ Are we being open and transparent? … If voters come to us with a question, what are we going to do? Say, ‘Go to Pam’?”

After a lengthy discussion, CSC members determined that they should be permitted to have conversations with one or two people about goings-on within the CSC, but that they should not broadcast their opinions about the CSC through the media or to large groups in town. Some members said it should be acceptable for CSC members to promote interest in the commission and encourage public attendance.

In the end, the CSC decided to hold off on voting on this issue. Lamberton will seek the consultant Ernest Reock’s opinion in the time between meetings.

At its next meeting, the CSC will go over the city’s charter and possibly select a secretary. Members received copies of the city’s charter last night and have been instructed to read it over.

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[Commission members are pictured above, from left: Randy Thompson, Michelle Maguire, Duanne Small, Rita Marano and Pam Lamberton.]

[NOTE: In an earlier version of this article, it was erroneously stated that Randy Thompson is president of the Asbury Park Housing Authority. In fact, he is president of the Asbury Park Homeowners Association.]

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