04/30/15 Special Township Committee Meeting: Public Hearing For 2015 Municipal Budgets

A special meeting of the Township Committee will be held Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 6:30 in the Main Meeting Room, 1 Kings Highway for the purpose of holding a public hearing on the 2015 Municipal and Solid Waste Budgets. A resolution will be considered for action Authorizing Ratification of the PBA Contract


4-30-15 Revised, Special Meeting Notice.pdf

Public Hearing To Discuss Budget At Tonight's Middletown Workshop Meeting

One of the items on the agenda at tonight's Middletown Township workshop meeting that will be held at Town Hall@ 8PM, will the public hearing on the 2011 proposed Township Budget that was introduced last month.

I am hoping to be at tonight's meeting but I don't know if can will make it. I am curious to know exaclty how much the SOA (Superiors Officers' Association) and PBA union contract settlements have saved Middletown. I would like to know the cost to the Township per individual plan and per family plan of its cadillac employee health plan and then the same for the Township's HMO employees health care plan, so that it can be figured out approximately how much the Township will be saving based on these settled contracts. It has been reported that if union members wish to remain in the Township's health plan, members would have to contribute 25% of the cost, whereas if union members opt out of the cadillac plan into the HMO, members would contribute 1.5% of their salaries for health coverage. So it should be easy enough to figure out savings if the numbers are supplied.

Also based on details about the contracts and information released about the layoffs that effect the Department of Parks and Recreation, I believe several people have decided retired instead of being laid off. I am wondering how these retirements have affected the budget? Seeing how the Township is using $3.5M in surplus funds to pay off tax appeals this year instead of bonding for the funds, this budget is only holding $500K in reserve. These retirements are bound to eat into the remaining surplus which would leave the township dangerously close to running out of money by years end.

Middletown Settles With Police SOA Union; PBA Members Vote Tomorrow To Save 6 From Layoff

I don't have all the facts but according to a friend that attended this afternoon's special Middletown Township Committee meeting a contract settlement was reached with the Middletown Police Senior Officers Association (SOA) and a settlement with the Middletown PBA is pending union vote of approval scheduled for tomorrow morning.

Details of the settlement between Middletown and the SOA are as follows according to what I have been told:

• 4 year contract with salary increase of with 7.5% during length of contract broken down as follows - 1.5% 2% 2% 2%.
• No demotions or reduced pay for current Senior Officers.
• No layoffs of Senior Officers (thanks to 2 retirements instead)
• Members must contribute 25% of the cost of health plan if they stay with Township's current health care plan, otherwise they must switch to a HMO based plan that members must contribute a percentage of salary to participate in (details of this however are a little sketchy and more clarification is needed.

As for the terms of the contract settlement between the Township and the members of the Middletown PBA, terms were not announced officially because the PBA union will be holding a meeting with it's members Saturday morning (tomorrow) for ratification (terms are believed to be similar). Once the contract is ratified details will be released at Monday night's (May 2nd) Township Workshop meeting.

It was stated however, that if this contract between the PBA and the Township is ratified only 4 of the 10 planned police layoffs will take place , saving 6 positions.

More details as they become available over the next few day...

APP: Middletown's layoff plan uncertain until today's deadline

Kevin Penton of the Asbury Park Press has been all over the Middletown layoff story since word of yesterday and today's special Middletown Township Committee meetings were announced. Yesterday there were three articles posted online updating the situation.

According to Penton, no deal had been struck between Middletown and it's Police unions, which was why yestderday's special meeting was cancelled, however further negotiations seem to be ongoing and the Township is hopeful that it will be able to proceede with today's special Committee meeting scheduled for 5 pm.

The spectre of layoffs will hang over the township until today's deadline, as
municipal and police union officials failed to strike a deal on Thursday.

With Middletown's layoff plan scheduled to take effect on Saturday,
officials from the township, the Policemen's Benevolent Association and the
Superior Officers Association have been in talks this week on how to reduce
expenditures, Mayor Anthony Fiore said.

To meet the legal notification requirements in case a deal is struck, the Middletown Township Committee scheduled 5 p.m. meetings for Thursday and today.

As of 4 p.m. Thursday, today's meeting is on, said Cindy Herrschaft, Middletown's public information officer.

Middletown's original layoff plan called for the elimination of 26 positions, including 10 police officers and 13 employees in the township's Parks and Recreation Department.

But with some employees agreeing to retire, the number of positions to be eliminated through layoffs has decreased, Fiore said....

Read more >>> Here

FYI - Special Middletown Township Committee Meeting Scheduled For Today Cancelled

Just an FYI to readers that thought that there may be a special meeting of the Middletown Township Committee this afternoon at 5 pm, the meeting has been cancelled.

No reason was given on the Township's website for the canceling the meeting, but you can be sure that it was cancelled because no agreement was reached with either the SOA or PBA unions on contract givebacks before tomorrow's looming Township lay-off.

As they say, "Tomorrow is another day".

So let's see if tomorrow's meeting goes on as planned.

Breaking News: Special Middletown Township Committee Meetings Scheduled for Thursday and Friday @ 5 PM

Posted shortly ago on the Middletown Township website, two notices for special Committee meetings to be held on Thursday April 28th & Friday April 29th.

It seems that contract settlements with the Township's unions, the SOA and PBA are imminent.

No further details are given.

The question is however, did the unions give enough in concessions to the Township to avoid the planned April 29th lay-off of 16 Park & Recreation workers and 10 Middletown Police officers?

If so, than it would be a sure bet that the Middletown Arts Center will, more than likely, remain open and other doomsday service cuts will not be implemented.

Below are the notices:

Thurs, April 28 Special Meeting 5pm

Notice is hereby given that the “Open Public Meeting” of the Township Committee of the Township of Middletown is scheduled for:

DATE: Thursday, April 28, 2011
TIME: 5:00 PM SPECIAL MEETING
PLACE: Middletown Town Hall, Main Meeting Room, One Kings Highway, Middletown, NJ 07748

at which time the following matters of business will be conducted:

KNOWN ACTION ITEMS:

Possible Adoption of Resolution Ratifying Collective Bargaining Agreements (SOA and/or PBA)

EXECUTIVE SESSION TO FOLLOW

and any other matters that may come before the Township Committee.

Heidi R. Brunt, RMC, CMC
Township Clerk

April 26, 2011
The Independent
Asbury Park Press
Two River Times
The Star Ledger


Fri, April 29 Special Meeting 5 p.m.

posted: April 26, 2011
Notice is hereby given that the “Open Public Meeting” of the Township Committee of the Township of Middletown is scheduled for:

DATE: Friday, April 29, 2011
TIME: 5:00 PM SPECIAL MEETING
PLACE: Middletown Town Hall, Main Meeting Room, One Kings Highway, Middletown, NJ 07748

at which time the following matters of business will be conducted:

KNOWN ACTION ITEMS:

Possible Adoption of Resolution Ratifying Collective Bargaining Agreements (SOA and/or PBA)

EXECUTIVE SESSION TO FOLLOW

and any other matters that may come before the Township Committee.

Heidi R. Brunt, RMC, CMC
Township Clerk

April 26, 2011
The Independent
Asbury Park Press
Two River Times
The Star Ledger