Law would have police report to administrator

BY KATHY BARATTA Staff Writer

MANALAPAN- A public hearing will be held at the March 19 meeting of the Township Committee on an ordinance that will, if adopted, make the township administrator the “appropriate authority” to oversee the police department rather than the Township Committee.

Mayor Michelle Roth said the purpose of the ordinance is to streamline the daily operation of the municipal government.

Roth said given that the police department is the only department not currently reporting directly to the office of the administrator, it made sense to have all the departments in line with the same process of reporting and accountability.

She noted that while the administrator is a daily, full-time employee, “We (the members of the committee) are part-time, it just makes more sense.”

Said Roth, “We are continuing to strive toward greater efficiency in government. To that end and to be consistent with all the other departments at town hall, it makes sense to have the chief of police have a direct reporting line to the township administrator, instead of the members of the governing body, who serve on a part-time basis.”

According to Roth, this proposed change does not reflect a policy change, nor does it dilute the powers of the police chief or interfere with the daily running of the police department.

According to a legal notice which was published by the township in a local daily newspaper to announce theMarch 19 date of the public hearing on the ordinance, the proposed law had been introduced at the committee’s Feb 27 meeting.

However, when a reporter checked the Feb. 27 meeting agenda that was posted on the Manalapan Internet Web site, the agenda did not reflect that the ordinance (No. 2008-03) was on the agenda for the Feb. 27 meeting.

Upon calling the township clerk’s office, an employee in the office checked into the matter and told the News Transcript that the introduction of ordinance No. 2008-03 was a late addition at the Feb. 27 meeting and that is the reason why the on-line agenda did not reflect the action that was taken that evening.

The language of the ordinance reads, “The Township Administrator shall be responsible for the overall performance of the Police Department. The Township Administrator shall, from time to time, adopt and promulgate rules and regulations [by resolution] and amend same, for the governing of the Police Department, for the discipline of its members and any other lawful matters concerning said Police Department. All members of the Police Department shall be subject to such rules and regulations. [The Township Committee may designate and/or delegate to the Township Administrator the power to act on its behalf]. The Chief of Police shall be in charge and have the supervision and control of the Police Department as further defined in (state statute).”