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Although its chairwoman last week said that the Charter Study Commission was ready to recommend a new form of government for Asbury Park voters to approve, the commission failed to do so at its Monday night meeting.

The commission, established by voters last year, is tasked with studying the city’s current form of government. It has the power to recommend changes and submit them for voter approval on this November’s ballot.

The commission may also recommend no change, or give suggestions to the elected officials on a new form of government. The elected officials would then decide whether to submit those changes to the voters for the required approval.

If the commission recommends a change of government, and voters approve it in November, another election to select new representatives would take place next year.

A new council was elected on May 14, and are scheduled to be sworn in on July 1. An unsuccessful candidate filed a lawsuit on Tuesday to open voided vote by mail ballots and uncounted provisional ballots, which could change the election results. [Click here for a Sun story on the ballot lawsuit.]

The study commission’s deadline to finish its work is August 5, chairwoman Pam Lamberton said at the Monday meeting.

Members of the Charter Study Commission are Randy Thompson, Michelle Maguire, Lamberton, Duanne Small and Rita Marano [shown above left to right].

At Monday night’s meeting, the commission grappled with whether to keep a form of government with the city manager as the chief executive, or to directly elect a mayor who will have the executive power. There was not a majority for either proposal.

The city currently uses the 1923 council-manager form of government, with elections for all five council members once every four years in May. The manager has the executive power in the government, and the council is the legislative power. The council hires the manager. Elections are non-partisan, where candidates do not run under a party banner. The Mayor is a member of the council with the main responsibility to preside at council meetings.

The Charter Study Commission was also divided on whether to move the May elections to November, although Lambertson said she was leaning toward joining Marano and Maguire in keeping the elections in May.

The commission also has not yet considered the issue of whether the city should be split into wards, with a council member representing each, Lamberton said at the meeting.

There was a tentative consensus among four of the commission members to keep the elections non-partisan and to implement staggered terms for elected officials. Only Thompson had yet to come to a definitive decision on those two issues.

“Most people want staggered terms. Most people want non-partisan,” Maguire said.

The commission meets every Monday night in different meeting places in the city. It also has a public information session scheduled for Saturday, June 22 in the City Council chambers from noon to 2:00 p.m.

Click here for more information about the Charter Study Commission from the commission’s website.

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