All legislative power of the Borough shall be
exercised by the Borough Council pursuant to the Charter except as
may be otherwise provided by general law. The Borough Council, in
addition to such other powers and duties as may be conferred upon
it by the Charter or otherwise by general law, may require any municipal
officer to prepare and submit sworn statements regarding his or her
official duties and the performance thereof and may investigate the
conduct of any department, office or agency of the municipal government.
[Amended 12-30-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-15]
The Council shall consist of the Mayor and four
Councilpersons. Members of the Council shall be elected at large by
the voters of the municipality on the Tuesday after the first Monday
in November, or such other day that the general election in November
may be held as provided by law, in the years in which municipal officers
are to be elected, and shall serve for a term of three years beginning
on the first day of January next following their election. The Mayor
shall be elected, however, for a term of four years beginning on the
first day of January next following his or her election.
A.
Presiding officer. The Mayor shall preside over all
meetings of the Borough Council and shall participate and vote as
other Council members.
B.
Council President. The Council annually shall select
from among its members a Council President, who shall serve in the
place of the Mayor in the event of his or her absence, disability
or refusal to act as Acting Mayor.
C.
Quorum. A majority of the whole number of the Borough
Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
D.
Committees. The Mayor may appoint and designate committees
of the Council, including a Finance Committee pursuant to N.J.S.A.
40:69A-123.
[Amended 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
The Borough Clerk shall serve as Clerk of the
Borough Council and shall be appointed by the Mayor with the advice
and consent of Council, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40:69A-122. He or she
shall attend and keep the minutes of all meetings of the Borough Council.
The minutes shall be signed by the Clerk, subject to the approval
of the Borough Council.
A.
The Clerk shall record all ordinances of a permanent
character in books to be provided for that purpose. After each ordinance
he or she shall also record and certify the proof of publication thereof
as required by law. Each ordinance so recorded shall be signed by
the Mayor, and the Clerk, who shall attest that it was duly adopted
upon a date stated, and when so signed, the recorded copy shall be
deemed to be a public record of the ordinance. Any omission by the
Clerk or the Mayor to record, sign or certify as herein required shall
not impair or affect the validity of any ordinance which has been
duly adopted.
B.
At the close of each year, or sooner, the Clerk, with
the advice and assistance of the Borough Attorney, shall bind, compile
or codify all the ordinances, or true copies thereof, which then remain
in force and effect. He or she shall also properly index and certify
the record books, compilation or codification of ordinances. The Borough
Council may arrange for the rendering of the Clerk's services by a
consulting firm.
C.
The Clerk shall maintain custody of and safely keep
all records, books and documents of the Borough, except those committed
by ordinance to any other office or transferred thereto by the Borough
Council. He or she shall, on request and the payment of the fees prescribed
therefor by resolution of the Borough Council or state statute for
the use of the Borough, furnish a certified copy of any such public
document as defined by statute in his or her custody under the Corporate
Seal of the Borough.
D.
The Clerk shall cause the Corporate Seal of the Borough
to be affixed to instruments and writings when authorized by ordinance
or resolution of the Borough Council or when necessary to exemplify
any document on record in his office or to certify any act or paper
which, from the records in his office, shall appear to have been a
public act of the Borough or a public document. He or she shall not
affix the Seal or cause or permit it to be affixed to any other instrument,
writing or other paper unless required by law or ordinance.
E.
The Clerk, subject to the supervision of the Mayor
and Borough Council, shall:
(1)
Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, be the
depository and custodian of all official surety bonds, letters of
credit or negotiable instruments furnished by or on account of any
officer or employee, except his or her own bond, which shall be placed
in the custody of the Treasurer; of all insurance policies upon or
with respect to risks insured for the benefit of the Borough or to
protect it against any claim, demand or liability whatsoever; and
all formal contracts for work, labor, services, supplies, equipment
and materials to which the Borough may be a party.
(2)
Be the depository for and have custody of all performance
bonds running to the Borough as obligee, or any other form of security
given by any contractor, subdivision developer or other persons on
account of work done or to be done in or for the Borough.
(3)
Have custody of all deeds and leases of property owned
by the Borough.
(4)
Report to the Borough Council annually, at such time
as it may require, on the coverage, expiration date and premium of
each surety bond and contract of insurance and the nature and terms
of outstanding public leases, the rent received by each and their
respective expiration dates.
(5)
Perform such other duties as assigned to him or her
by the Mayor and/or the Mayor and Borough Council.
There may be a Deputy Clerk appointed by the
Council, who shall have, exercise and perform the functions, powers
and duties of the Clerk in the absence or upon the direction of the
Clerk.
Vacancies in the office of Mayor and Council
shall be filled in the manner provided by the Municipal Vacancy Law
(N.J.S.A. 40A:16-1 et seq.).
The Borough Council shall at its annual reorganization
meeting as provided for hereinafter select a Council President from
among its members (other than the Mayor). The Mayor shall preside
over all meetings of the Council. In the absence of the Mayor, the
Council President shall preside. In the absence of the Mayor and Council
President, the Borough Council shall select a temporary presiding
officer from among its members.
A.
Reorganization meeting. The Borough Council shall
hold a reorganization meeting January 1 at 12:00 noon or at some other
hour on any day during the first week in January as the Council may
by resolution fix.
[Amended 3-27-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-2]
B.
Regular meetings. At the annual reorganization meeting,
the Borough Council shall, by resolution, designate the time and place
of holding regular meetings, which shall be at least twice a month,
unless cancelled or adjourned.
C.
Special meetings.
(1)
Special meetings may be called by the Mayor at any
time or shall be called by the Mayor upon the written request of a
majority of the Borough Council persons. Such request shall be in
writing and signed by a majority of the members of Council, or through
electronic mail notifications, and shall specify the purpose for which
such meeting is to be called. No business shall be transacted at any
special meeting other than that specified in the request.
[Amended 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
(2)
Upon receipt of any such request, the Mayor shall
promptly direct the Clerk to serve notice, in writing, of such special
meeting upon each member of the Council at least 48 hours prior to
the time for which the meeting is called and to serve all notices
required by the Open Public Meetings Act (N.J.S.A. 10:4-6 et seq.).
The notice shall designate the purpose of the special meeting and
that no other business shall be conducted.
D.
Emergency meetings.
(1)
Should the Mayor or a majority of the Borough Council
determine that a state of emergency exists which is of such urgency
and importance that the delay necessary to call a special meeting
would be likely to result in substantial harm to the public interest,
the Mayor or a majority of the Council may call an emergency meeting.
(2)
The call shall be filed with the Clerk at any time
not less than one hour prior to the time set for the emergency meeting
and shall be signed by the Mayor or a majority of the Council and
shall designate the purpose of the emergency meeting.
(3)
Whenever an emergency meeting is called, the Clerk
shall forthwith cause written notice to be served upon each member
of the Borough Council at his or her place of residence or at his
or her regular place of business by leaving a copy thereof with the
Council person personally or with a responsible adult, said notice
stating the date, time and place of the meeting and the purpose for
which the meeting is called. Such written notice shall not be required
if a written, or electronic mail, waiver of notice is executed by
all members of the Borough Council. The Police Department shall cooperate
fully with the Clerk in serving such notice.
[Amended 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
(4)
At the time and place of the emergency meeting, the
meeting may proceed upon the affirmative vote of 2/3 of the members
present if:
(a)
Such meeting is required in order to deal with matters
of such urgency and importance that a delay for the purpose of providing
adequate notice would be likely to result in substantial harm to the
public interest;
(b)
The meeting is limited to discussion of and acting
with respect to such matters of urgency and importance;
(c)
Notice of such meeting in accordance with N.J.S.A.
10:4-6 et seq. is provided as soon as possible following the calling
of such meeting; and
(d)
Either the Borough Council could not reasonably have
foreseen the need for such meeting at a time when adequate notice
could have been provided or, although the Council could reasonably
have foreseen the need for such meeting at a time when adequate notice
could have been provided, it nevertheless failed to do so.
E.
Executive session. The Borough Council shall not exclude
the public from any meeting or portion thereof unless:
(1)
The matter to be discussed is enumerated in N.J.S.A.
10:4-12b(1) through (9); and
(2)
The Council has passed a resolution at a meeting to
which the public shall be admitted:
(a)
Stating the topic and the subject matter or general
nature of the subject to be discussed; the participants in the executive
session; and whether any action will be taken; and
[Amended 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
(b)
Stating as precisely as possible the time when and
the circumstances under which the discussion conducted in closed session
of the Council can be disclosed to the public.
A.
Agenda. The process for the development of the agenda
follows:
[Amended 2-12-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-3; 5-22-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-7; 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
(1)
The preliminary
agenda for each regular meeting of the Borough Council shall be prepared
by the Clerk, and delivered for Council review, at least seven calendar
days (168 hours) prior to the opening of the scheduled meeting.
(2)
The Council
must confirm and approve any proposed modifications to matters of
Council business included in the preliminary agenda at least four
calendar days (96 hours) prior to the opening of the scheduled meeting.
(3)
Approval
must be made by a majority of Council (at least three Council members)
to finalize the agenda for public distribution
(4)
The agenda
for each regular meeting of the Council must be made available to
the public and the Council members at least two business days (48
hours) prior to the opening of the meeting in accordance with N.J.S.A.
10:4-8D.
B.
Items of business, excluding ordinances and as otherwise
provided by law, which the Borough Council has unanimously determined
to be routine and which do not require discussions, shall be included
under a single section of the agenda known as the "consent agenda."
Such items may be adopted or approved, as the case may be, upon a
single motion and approval thereof by vote of a simple majority of
the Borough Council. The consent agenda section of the agenda shall
be preceded by an explanatory note substantially set forth as follows:
"All matters listed under item Consent Agenda are considered routine
by the Borough Council and will be enacted by one motion in the form
listed below. There will be no separate discussion of these items.
If discussion is desired on any item, that item will be considered
separately."
C.
Order of business. All regular and special meetings
of the Borough Council shall commence promptly at the hour designated,
if practicable. Unless otherwise authorized by resolution or motion
of Council, all business coming before the Council shall be heard
and voted on in the following order:
[Amended 7-22-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-9; 1-12-2010 by Ord. No.
2009-20]
(1)
Call to order.
(2)
Pledge of Allegiance.
(3)
Open Public Meetings Act statement.
(4)
Roll call.
(5)
Workshop discussion.
(6)
Presentations; receipt of bids or petitions.
(7)
Approval of minutes.
(8)
Public comments on agenda items. There is a five-minute limit on
public comments on agenda items.
[Amended 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
(9)
Ordinances. There is a five-minute limit on public comments for ordinance
introductions and for ordinance adoptions.
[Amended 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
(10)
Communications.
(11)
Resolutions.
(12)
Announcements.
(13)
Reports of Mayor and Council.
(14)
Public comments: There is a five-minute limit on comments.
(15)
Executive Session (pursuant to N.J.S.A. 10:4-13 et seq., if necessary).
(16)
Adjournment.
D.
Call to order. The Mayor shall call each meeting to
order. In his or her absence, the President of the Council shall call
the meeting to order and shall preside during the absence of the Mayor.
The Mayor shall assume the chair as soon as he or she is in attendance
at any meeting which may have been called to order in his absence,
and the President of the Council shall thereupon relinquish the chair.
F.
Quorum call. At the opening of each meeting of the
Borough Council, the Clerk shall call the roll, and the names of those
present shall be recorded in the minutes. Three members of the Council
shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of business. If a quorum
is not present by 1/2 hour after the appointed time for any meeting,
the meeting shall be deemed adjourned.
G.
Distribution and reading of minutes. The Clerk shall,
insofar as is practicable, prepare and distribute to the Borough Council
the minutes of each meeting within 15 days of the meeting. The minutes
of any meeting may be approved without reading whenever they have
been distributed at least 24 hours prior to the time of approval.
The Clerk shall promptly post a copy of the approved minutes in a
public place in the Municipal Building and shall leave such copy posted
for 30 days.
H.
Committees. The Rules of the Borough Council shall,
insofar as applicable, govern meetings of the committee of the whole
(work session meetings of Council) and other committees of the Council
which may be appointed from time to time. Special committees of the
Council for legislative purposes may be appointed by the Mayor, with
advice and consent of Council, pursuant to resolution. No special
committee shall normally report on a matter referred to it at the
same meeting at which reference is made, except by unanimous consent
of the members of the committee.
[Amended 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
I.
Nominations and appointment.
[Amended 6-28-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-7]
(1)
Nominations submitted by the Mayor will be considered
at the work session meetings of the Borough Council and may be confirmed
by Council resolution at the next regular meeting. In the alternative,
Mayoral nominations may be acted upon at the next regular meeting
thereafter, the timing of which is at the sole discretion of the Mayor.
(2)
With respect to appointments to be made by the Borough
Council, any member of the Council may nominate as many candidates
as there are offices to be filled. The Council will consider such
nominations in the committee of the whole, which will report to a
regular meeting of Council. Where there is a single office to be filled,
the opinions of the Council and the appointment shall be taken as
to each nominee in alphabetical order, and the first nominee to receive
a majority shall be deemed appointed. Where there is more than one
office to be filled, such as a board, commission or authority, the
same procedure shall be followed with respect to each office separately
until the total number of appointments to be made has been completed.
In the discretion of the Chair, a group of nominations may be considered
at once where there is no apparent division in the Council as to the
nominees included in the group.
J.
Addressing Council.
(1)
Persons other than Council persons may be permitted
to address the Borough Council in the proper order of business. A
person present may, upon recognition by the Chair, be heard in the
order of petitions of citizens and public discussion. A person present
may, upon recognition by the Chair and with the consent of a majority
of the Council persons present, be heard at any other time. No person
shall address any remark or question to any specific Council person
nor to any other person present except by permission of the majority
of the Council. A Council person may, through the Chair, respond to
any communication or address received pursuant to this section.
(2)
Except upon consent of the Borough Council, each person
addressing the Council pursuant to this section shall be required
to limit his or her remarks to five minutes and shall at no time engage
in any personally offensive or abusive remarks. The Chair shall call
any speaker to order who violates any provision of this rule.
K.
Decorum.
(1)
Each member of the Borough Council shall cooperate
with the Chair in preserving order and decorum, and no member shall,
by conversation or otherwise, delay or interrupt the proceedings of
the Council, disturb any member while speaking or fail to abide by
the orders of the Council or its presiding officer, except as specifically
permitted by these rules.
(2)
Any person who shall disturb the peace of the Borough
Council, make impertinent or slanderous remarks or conduct himself
in a boisterous manner while addressing the Council shall be forthwith
barred by the presiding officer from further remarks before the Council,
except that if the speaker shall submit to proper order under theses
rules, permission for him to continue may be granted by majority vote
of the Council.
L.
Filing of reports, petitions and resolutions. All
reports to the Borough Council and all resolutions and all petitions
shall be filed with the Clerk and referenced in the minutes of the
Council.
M.
Adjournment. A motion to adjourn shall always be in
order and shall be decided without debate.
N.
Roll call votes; minutes. The vote upon every motion,
resolution or ordinance shall be taken by roll call. The vote shall
be "aye" or "nay," or words to that effect, of affirmative or negative
by each member, and there shall be no further discussion following
the commencement of the roll call. The vote of each member shall be
entered on the minutes. Any member of the Borough Council may abstain
from voting at any time. When the roll is called on any question,
the silence of a Council person present shall constitute an affirmative
vote, unless he or she states that he or she abstains, in which event
the abstention shall not count as a vote, "aye" or "nay." The question
shall be determined by a majority of those members voting unless otherwise
provided by law. The minutes of each meeting shall be signed by the
officer presiding and by the Borough Clerk.
O.
Rules.
(1)
Except as otherwise provided by this article or other
provisions of the chapter or state statute, all meetings of the Borough
Council shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the
most recent edition of Robert's Rules of Order, Revised. The Borough
Attorney, or his or her representative, shall serve as parliamentarian
for all such meetings.
(2)
No rule or general regulation made by any department,
board, officer, agency or authority of the Borough shall take effect
until it is approved by the Mayor and filed with the Borough Clerk.
The Borough Clerk shall maintain a current compilation of all such
rules and regulations, which shall be available for public inspection
in his or her office during business hours.
