JACKSON TOWNSHIP, NJ – The Jackson Township Council is seeking additional oversight on the independent Jackson Township Municipal Utilities Authority by placing an additional member of the public on the six-member commission.
The move comes after rumors began swirling about the commission’s alleged plan to hire Commissioner William Allman to replace Executive Director David Harpell. That move has been questioned by residents claiming the commission did not fairly seek out a replacement for Harpell among other qualified candidates, a claim Harpell refuted.
“While it is a separate entity, the council does make those appointments. During my research, I found that every other MUA commission under our form of government has five members and two alternates.” The township said the addition of an additional MUA member is necessary to allow the municipal council to ensure proper citizen oversight of the MUA commission.
“More residents on that board means move oversight and more transparency,” Burnstein said. “We have recently received a lot of questions about the MUA and the process going on over there and we decided it would be better to make sure the council enables proper resident oversight on that board.”
Councilman Bernstein pointed out the discrepancy in representation, noting that Jackson Township currently has only one MUA alternate commissioner, while other towns have two. The council’s move to add a second MUA alternate aims to bolster the township’s supervisory capacity over the authority.
Potential Conflict of Interest
Councilman Nino Borrelli, whose political campaign was managed by current MUA commissioners Clara Glory and Bill Allman said he does not see the need for more oversight on the commission. He was the lone no-vote on the five-member council.
Borrelli is up for re-election in 2024. Jackson MUA Commissioner Clara Glory served as Borrelli’s political campaign chairperson during his 2020 political campaign. Allman, the current chairman of the MUA, who is lined up for the six-figure salary executive director position served as Borrelli’s political campaign treasurer.
Borrelli said he does not see the need to add the additional member to the commission.
Allman and Glory raised more than $50,000 for Borrelli’s 2020 political campaign according to documents on record with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission.