For Immediate Release:
September 24, 2012
(Middletown) - The Middletown Township Committee and the Township of Middletown Sewerage Authority (TOMSA) Board and Executive Director have been using TOMSA as a political patronage pit for many years. The seven-member TOMSA board currently includes the Middletown GOP vice chairperson, the Middletown GOP treasurer, and a former Republican mayor. Four of the seven are current Republican district committeepersons. The Executive Director is also a former Republican mayor, and TOMSA’s attorney is a member of the law firm of our former Township Attorney.
Board members receive an annual salary of $1,750 ($2,150 for the Chairperson), medical benefits, and pension credit. Qualified taxpayer-funded lifetime medical benefits are also extended to spouses. These lucrative benefits are provided even though the board meets for less than one hour per month, and recipients include a member that phones in six months a year because he lives out of state.
In 2008, the State of New Jersey passed a law to eliminate benefits for newly appointed board members, but the Township Committee gets around that law by continuing to re-appoint their friends when their terms expire. The end result today is that two members have been on the TOMSA Board for almost 25 years, another member has been on the Board for almost 15 years, and most of the remaining members have been on the board for over 5 years. That is not just wasteful, it is disrespectful of Township taxpayers.
Middletown should no longer fund a board of this size at this rate, especially since the Middletown Township sewerage system is largely built out; the Board (established in 1966) has served its original purpose of managing the installation of a sewerage system throughout Middletown Township. Middletown taxpayers could save about $100,000 annually in salary and benefits by eliminating the Sewerage Authority Board and reassigning the responsibilities to a department like Public Works.
Political patronage is a serious violation of the public’s trust. In 2008, Republican Governor Chris Christie harshly criticized the largely Democratic Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission for using the board as their “piggy bank” for patronage jobs. He said the commission was, “a remnant of New Jersey that should be part of our embarrassing past.” He stepped in and fired 71 people. Records showed they were funneling money to no-bid contracts with political insiders.
In Middletown, it is hard to determine exactly what TOMSA is doing with our tax dollars because they routinely break laws designed to give the public insight into what they do. Among their violations: failure to announce public hearings, failure to disclose private meetings, refusal to satisfy Open Public Records Act requests for information, and refusal to allow video recordings of public meetings. When citizens ask questions at Board meetings, members remain silent and defer all questions to the Executive Director, who is deliberately vague in his responses. The Executive Director also refuses to respond to phone calls, emails, and in-person inquires for information. TOMSA’s attorney allows the routine disregard of these laws and other blatant conflicts of interest, like when TOMSA’s Executive Director held both that position and a seat on the Township Committee at the same time. Likewise, the TOMSA auditor routinely attends board meetings, which calls into question the independence of his audit.
Taxpayer advocates have been trying to understand how the Township Committee and the TOMSA Board get away with their clear disregard for Middletown taxpayers. Our Township Committee has been advised of all of these taxpayer concerns but they refuse to address the matter and assail those who question them. It is time for our elected officials to break this “piggy bank” and remove the stink of patronage and secrecy from the Township Of Middletown Sewerage Authority.
WHO’S
WHO AT TOMSA-
Patrick
Parkinson- TOMSA Executive Director 15 years
-Middletown mayor (2004)
-Former Township Committeeperson
Thomas
F. Stokes- TOMSA Board 24 years
-Current
Republican Committeeperson
-Former Middletown Township Board of Education member
-Calls in 6 meetings a year
James
Hinckley- TOMSA Board 23 years
-Current Middletown GOP, treasurer
- Current Zoning
Board chairman
Chantal
Bouw- TOMSA Board 14 years
-Current Middletown GOP, Vice Chair
-Current Zoning Board, Vice Chair
-Local Assistance Board
Joan
Smith- TOMSA Board 7 years
-Middletown mayor (2001)
-Current Republican Committeeperson
Charles
W. Rogers- TOMSA Board 5 years
-Emergency
Services Manager
Emil
F. Wrede- TOMSA Board 4 years (alternate)
-Zoning Board
Anthony
DeMarco- TOMSA Board 2012 (alternate)
William
A. Meyler- TOMSA Auditor-
Richard
C. Leahey Jr.- TOMSA Attorney – Law firm of former Township attorney Bernard
Reilly
John
D. Van Dorpe- TOMSA engineer/ Maser Consulting- paid roughly 7% of TOMSA annual
budget
-----------------------
This post has been updated to correct erroneous information pertaining to annual salary of $2,150 for Chairperson, not Executive Director, and to include and correct other offices held by those on the "Who's Who" list at TOMSA.
16 comments:
Do you know how many of these TOMSA board members actually take the Medical Benefits that are available to them?
Maybe Linda Baum should submit an OPRA request and ask them.
Mike, you should submit this to the Asbury Park Press for wider circulation. Most voters have no clue about the TOMSA pig trough and this might prove enlightening for more than a few voters.
So let me get this straight. The Township Committee formed TOMSA,they have been appointing their friends and political allies for the past 46 years and they insist that they have no authority over them?
The township committee has had multiple opportunities to reduce what it costs Middletown taxpayers in health care and pension costs by not reappointing prior TOMSA members. An ordinance was passed limiting compensation to TOMSA members to stipend only. The exception was that all existing members at the time that the ordinanced was passed were grandfathered. All that the township committee had to do was NOT reappoint them and tax dollars would have been saved. Hinckley, Smith, Stokes, Bouw, and Rogers are costing the taxpayers money that could be save by not reappointing them. Fiore, Massell, Scharfenberger, Senttembrio and Murray prefer to put patronage first and the taxpayer last.
Again, benefits are available, but I don't know if any take them. I am certain most don't ... but not sure about the others.
Hinckley, Smith, Stokes, Parkinson, Rogers and Bouw are all in the pension system. That is a benefit they are all feeding off of.
Wasn't just talking about pension, was talking about Medical. Who takes the medical benefits ... b/c that is what cost Middletown taxpayers?
This piece is wrong, in that last year Gov. Christie tangled with the Passaic Valley 'shadow gov't." (It wasn't in 2008.)
http://www.northjersey.com/news/021412_Governor_Christie_housecleaning_at_Passaic_Valley_Sewerage_Commission_is_working.html
For us locals, we have "Club Monmouth" as our shadow gov't. That's why we need Kevin Lavan and Bill Shea voted in for Freeholder! And Linda Baum for Mdltn. Twp. Committee!
nickle and diming the taxpayer is a reason why the overall bill is high. that is what people care about. if a little can be reduced here and there the overall will be greatly reduced. that is what people care about.instead of boasting that an increase is only 1.9%, let's see some real savings that will actually produce a reduction.
Re Comment by Anon 8:42 PM:
What you are saying is a little patronage and corruption spread out among all the taxpayers is hardly worth crying about.
Really? That wasn't the mentality of Mayor Fiore and the TC when they went after Gabrielan for some amount of chump change they claim he cost taxpayers. The mantra then was, whether it's a dime or a million dollars, we must punish you! Look up the press release and the article in the Press for the exact language by little lord Fiore.
True, most don't care about 5 bucks. But they do care about blatant hypocrisy and patronage which over the long run is costing us Middletown taxpayers ALOT.
Did you stand up then to call your hypocritical TC "fools"? LMAO!
"refusal to allow video recordings of public meetings"
I am told that Linda Baum actually does video tape Sewer Commission meetings - at least get your stories straight and tell the truth.
As for the Passaic Valley Sewer Commission, here are some article exposing Democrat corruption at its best from NJ.com:
Former Passaic Valley sewerage commission administrator admits he had workers fix up his home
(June 21, 2012, 5:13 PM)
• More than 70 Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners employees are terminated
• Top financial officer of Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners resigns, 5 employees are fired
• Wife and brother of Jersey City department head fired from Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission
• Three officials at Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners are accused of misuse of public resources
• Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners employees making more than $100K have salaries cut
• Jersey City pol booted from Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners says he would have paid for Florida trip
• Political contributions from workers at Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners exceed $100K
• Two more members of Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners resign
• Four members of Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners to resign
It's funny how people can rant but actually provide little factual information.
1. How many TOMSA board members actually are members of the State Health Plan? You don't know. Neither do I. I would bet that most of the names bandied about on this blog, are not in the TOMSA State Health Plan.
2. How much of a pension will Board members get based upon their membership on TOMSA? You don't know.
The fact is, that if a Board member had 25 years of service to TOMSA, they would receive a maximum pension of about $795 a year, before taxes (25/55 x $1750); and less if they took another retirement option. And yes, employees have had to contribute money into that public pension system.
Membership in the public pension system has nothing to do with Township Ordinances; it is a matter of state law mandating who must be enrolled in the pension system. Fortunately, that law has finally been updated (but the democrat legislature refused to make that apply to everyone and allowed grandfathering to take place).
I guess only Democrats (Jersey City, Newark, Asbury Park, Passaic Valley SC) should be allowed to be grandfathered.
When you come out and demand that your democrat legislators end all grandfathering there will be many on the other side supporting that issue as well.
Now, as to Linda Baum. Is she a state employee, working for the State Compensation Rating & Insurance Bureau, receiving state Pension Benefits and in the State health Plan? A Linda S. Baum is listed as being a member of PERS and receiving a taxpayer paid salary of $98,414 as of last year.
And if she is a State Employee, is she using state time and resources to campaign?
Oh, and if Linda Baum were to retire after 25 years, assuming no more pay raises, she would be entitled to a maximum pension of $44,734 or 56 times what a TOMSA board member might receive.
Anon 12:57
Yes, if they were only a Sewer Authority member their pension would not amount to much. But they are in the Public Employees Pension System. So if a member of the Sewer Authority landed another political patronage job at a higher salary their pension would be based on their "three best years". Best in this context means highest paying. Case in point, Rosemarie Peters, 17 years on the TC at a rather nominal salary,but this allowed her to build years of time in the pension system. Now that she is the county surrogate her pension will be based on her $90,000+ per year salary. She was elected and re-electd to this position. So after 8 years at a much higher salary her pension will be based on her 3 highest paying years and dramatically increase. This is the problem with the PERS, it permits these political hanger ons to accumulate time in the pension system at a very small stipend then get their golden parachute by either winning an election or being appointed to a well paying job. Just like Scharffenberger is doing, thanks to his "rock star governor". If Schafry only has his state job for 4 years and stays on the TC or goes to the sewer auth. to accumulate enough time in the pension system to collect, his pension will be based on his 3 highest paying years at his state job. I guess Joan Smith is next, she must have enough time in the system now between her TC and Sewer Authority time. I bet she will find her way to a high paying job to feed at the public trough and collect and inflated pension. Why hasn't gov cc done away with this thievery?
Anon 7:57
You are so right. It is the state pension system rules that are the problem - nothing to do with the local township government. And many, of both parties, have followed the rules and benefited. But again, they did follow the rules.
The writer before you, anon 12:57, pointed out that the democrat legislature failed to end grandfathering. I'll bet you the farmhouse that Christie would sign a bill from the democrat legislature ending the ridiculous grandfathering clauses in all the state retirement systems.
Don't you agree that the rules about grandfathering should be changed for all? Or should only one party keep the benefits and the other party lose them?
Anon 11:18
Gov cc had no problem attacking firefighter's, police and teachers pensions but he seems to have left the political faithful of both parties alone on the the pension issue. I am sure he could change it if he wanted to, with all of the bipartisan support he boasts about from sea to shining sea. So why doesn't he?
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