Monday here, Monday there
Jennifer Wenson-Maier will face a tough choice Monday (Jan. 9, 2006).
The Rahway councilwoman (and possibly council president - Plaintalker could not get confirmation Friday) will be expected to attend the regular meeting of the Rahway governing body at 7:30 p.m. in that municipality.
But as the new acting head of the Department of Public Works and Urban Development in Plainfield, she will also be expected to appear at a 7:30 agenda session in City Hall.
The Rahway meeting is televised for viewing on Channel 34 in that municipality, so residents there will be able to verify from the comfort of their homes whether Wenson-Maier showed up.
Plainfield is still awaiting local Channel 74 television coverage of City Council meetings, so only those who come to 515 Watchung Avenue Monday will be able to discern her choice.
Plainfield just published its meeting schedule in the Courier News and Rahway put its schedule up on the municipal web site, so anyone can see that this dilemma is likely to recur on every second Monday, except in June. [Rahway City Council web page]
The Plainfield City Council holds regular meetings on the first and third Mondays of every month, except when federal holidays kick the meetings to Tuesdays or elections cause a hiatus. Agenda sessions are held the week before each regular meeting.
The Rahway Municipal Council holds a “pre-meeting conference” the week before its second-Monday regular meetings.
Given that Wenson-Maier heads a department with nine Public Works bureaus as well as the Inspections, Engineering and Recreation divisions, with Economic Development responsibilities previously handled by the deputy city administrator, her presence is all the more important at Plainfield agenda sessions.
Some have asked whether her dual role is in violation of the Plainfield City Charter’s prohibition on dual office holding. For example, Assemblyman Jerry Green cannot also be mayor under the city’s special charter.
But the language is so murky and open to interpretation that only a bevy, clutch, throng or swarm of lawyers could get to the bottom of it.
In a twist on the famous Clinton question on what the meaning of “is” is, let us just say, “Is you is or is you ain’t our PWU&D department head?”
--Bernice Paglia
The Rahway councilwoman (and possibly council president - Plaintalker could not get confirmation Friday) will be expected to attend the regular meeting of the Rahway governing body at 7:30 p.m. in that municipality.
But as the new acting head of the Department of Public Works and Urban Development in Plainfield, she will also be expected to appear at a 7:30 agenda session in City Hall.The Rahway meeting is televised for viewing on Channel 34 in that municipality, so residents there will be able to verify from the comfort of their homes whether Wenson-Maier showed up.
Plainfield is still awaiting local Channel 74 television coverage of City Council meetings, so only those who come to 515 Watchung Avenue Monday will be able to discern her choice.
Plainfield just published its meeting schedule in the Courier News and Rahway put its schedule up on the municipal web site, so anyone can see that this dilemma is likely to recur on every second Monday, except in June. [Rahway City Council web page]
The Plainfield City Council holds regular meetings on the first and third Mondays of every month, except when federal holidays kick the meetings to Tuesdays or elections cause a hiatus. Agenda sessions are held the week before each regular meeting.
The Rahway Municipal Council holds a “pre-meeting conference” the week before its second-Monday regular meetings.
Given that Wenson-Maier heads a department with nine Public Works bureaus as well as the Inspections, Engineering and Recreation divisions, with Economic Development responsibilities previously handled by the deputy city administrator, her presence is all the more important at Plainfield agenda sessions.
Some have asked whether her dual role is in violation of the Plainfield City Charter’s prohibition on dual office holding. For example, Assemblyman Jerry Green cannot also be mayor under the city’s special charter.
But the language is so murky and open to interpretation that only a bevy, clutch, throng or swarm of lawyers could get to the bottom of it.
7.3 Dual office holding.
No officer under the City government shall hold or retain any office under the County government, nor shall any officer under the County government be eligible to hold or retain
office under the City government, except in each case when any such office is held ex officio by virtue of an act by the Legislature. Any person holding City office, whether by election or appointment who shall, during his term to office, accept, hold or retain any other civil office of honor, trust or emolument under the government of the United States, except commission for the taking of bail, or under the government of the State, except the office of notary public or commissioner of deeds or officer of the National Guard, or who shall hold or accept any other office connected with the government of the City, or who shall accept a seat in the Legislature, shall be deemed thereby to have vacated any office previously held by him under the city government; except that the mayor may accept, or may in writing authorize any other person holding office to accept, a specified civil office, in respect to which no salary or other compensation is provided.
In a twist on the famous Clinton question on what the meaning of “is” is, let us just say, “Is you is or is you ain’t our PWU&D department head?”
--Bernice Paglia
KEYWORDS: city charter
posted by Bernice at 5:41 PM
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