Jackson municipal officials have appointed Steve Brand + Strategic Communication to assist the township with public communications. The appointment carries a $60,000 annual appropriation, according to municipal officials.
Councilman Alex Sauickie said, “Last year the Township Council asked for and approved a budget for a public relations firm. For too many years this town has been the victim of propaganda and what I call factual inaccuracies against the town.
“The town has been painted in a negative light way too many times and has suffered as a result,” said Sauickie, who added that Jackson’s page on Wikipedia contains inaccuracies “and is written in a way that is disparaging to the town.”
“So the thought of having a public relations firm that can actually rebut some of that and make sure that at least the counterpoint to some of that is put out for the public to consume is a great move,” the councilman said.
Jackson Township Council members have passed a resolution in support of Senate Bill S-48, which proposes the establishment a special state Senate committee to be known as the New Jersey Nursing Home Pandemic Response Investigation Committee.
Councilman Nino Borrelli said municipal officials wanted to support the bipartisan legislation which would, if passed in the Senate and Assembly and signed into law by the Governor, have the special committee investigate the nearly 10,000 COVID-19 deaths that have occurred in the state’s nursing homes.
“And to look at how the pandemic was handled at long-term care facilities, including private nursing homes and state-run veterans’ homes. The committee should leave no stone unturned.
“The families of COVID-19 patients who died in nursing homes in our state deserve compassion and complete transparency and accountability as to what happened to their loved ones,” Borrelli said.
Republican Sen. Sam Thompson, whose legislative district includes Jackson, is a co-sponsor of the bill.
According to the bill, the special committee would have the power to issue subpoenas to compel testimony of certain individuals, and the production of certain documents and materials. The panel would have the power to hold hearings, take testimony under oath, and receive certain evidence relating to the matters it is authorized to investigate.