New Jersey bill would free towns' service sharing of tenure rules

When Audubon and Magnolia decided to share services to save money, Audubon fired Nancy Doman, its longtime borough clerk, replacing her and her $70,000 compensation with a part-time clerk at less than $20,000.

That violated state tenure rules protecting municipal clerks, a judge ruled when Doman sued.

With the borough and Doman in negotiations now, State Sen. Donald Norcross is pushing a bill that in the future would make it easier for municipalities to combine services without worrying about tenure restrictions.

The measure would threaten the tenure potentially of hundreds of high-level municipal employees throughout the state, and critics say it is too broad because it does not specify how towns could choose which of the two employees stays.

However, the "Common Sense Shared Services Act," introduced Nov. 21, has been embraced by many mayors who say they need the legal tools to get creative in crafting their budgets.

The bill would allow the dismissal of a tenured municipal clerk, chief financial officer, tax collector, or tax assessor if two townships agree on a shared-services agreement for that position.

"The whole idea is to allow government to save money, be more efficient," Norcross, a Camden County Democrat, said. "It's up to the individual town to decide if it makes sense."

Some question whether the savings would be worth the loss of experience and public trust.

Since 1985, municipal clerks - whose roles include chief administrators of local elections, custodians of all records, and secretary to the governing body - have received statutory tenure in New Jersey after five years of service.

"The argument is that tenure buffers them from politics, so that they are not under pressure to respond to the party in power, making it easier to maintain the neutrality we expect in elections," said David Redlawsk, a professor of political science at Rutgers-New Brunswick. "The other side of the coin is that they are no longer accountable to anyone."

The municipal clerk position is the only one that is appointed by the city council, not mayor. County clerks, who essentially have the same duties as municipal clerks but at the county level, are elected officials with their own political base.

"If there's an employee that's not good for the township, then it gives the governing body another option to act," said Stratford Mayor John Gentless.