Charles Morgan has filed requests with Attorney General Anne Milgram and Mercer County Prosecutor Joseph Bocchini. The contents of the letter to Milgram are reprinted below:##M:[more]##
Best 4WestWindsor
Charles Morgan for Mayor
Nitin Shah and Anupam Gupta for Council
HAND DELIVERY
May 4, 2009
Honorable Anne Milgram
Attorney General
Hughes Justice Complex
P.O. Box 080
Trenton, NJ 08625
Re:IMMEDIATE CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
Improper Use of Municipal Staff in Furtherance of Political Activity by West Windsor Township Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh And West Windsor Township Council Woman Linda Geevers
Dear Attorney General Milgram:
I am running for the elective office of Mayor in West Windsor and election day is May 12, 2009.
My opponent in the Mayoral race is the current Mayor, Shing-Fu Hsueh. One of the opponents of my running mates, Anupam Gupta and Nitin Shah, is a current Council Woman Linda Geevers.
I am writing to inform you that Mayor Hsueh and Council Woman Geevers have illegally used West Windsor Township administrative staff, and hence the public money, in furtherance of their political campaign to retain his position as Mayor and her position as Council Woman. This is clearly an abuse of power and, given the corruption which has occurred in New Jersey in municipal and state government over the past years and your commitment to seek out and rid our state of such activity in order to restore the public’s confidence in government once again, I am writing to request an immediate criminal investigation into Mayor Hsueh’s and Ms. Geevers’ conduct.
By way of background. West Windsor Township is a Faulkner Act form of local government and, under that law, the Mayor has the legal authority and responsibility to “”[supervise, direct and control all departments of the municipal government.”” N.J.S.A. 40:69A-40 (c). In this regard, he directly supervises the Business Administrator, and the Chief Financial Officer.
Moreover, the Mayor has the legal obligation to “”[prepare and submit to the council for its consideration and adoption of an annual operating budget and a capital budget.”” N.J.S.A. 40:69A-40 (e). Pursuant to this obligation under law. Mayor Hsueh is scheduled for a public hearing on June 22, 2009 following submission of his final budget proposal to the Township Council on May 18, 2009 after a final review of the draft budget with Council on May 4, 2009.
I have made the centerpiece of my campaign the idea that the Township can reduce municipal taxes 12.1% by utilizing the Township’s surplus account while Mayor Hsueh has proposed another tax increase. The details of my proposal have been on my campaign website and in my campaign literature. I have publicly attacked Mayor Hsueh’s excessive use of surplus and increasing taxes during these precarious economic times. I did not use Township staff in furthering my budget proposal. Rather, I used my own personal knowledge and experience with the assistance of my campaign staff.
I have never raised campaign issues, including my campaign ledge to lower taxes by 12.1%, at a Township Council meeting. On the other hand, at the final April 16, 2009 budget review meeting of the Township Council – Budget Work Session #4-1 was asked by Business Administrator Christopher Marion and Chief Financial Officer Joanne Louth whether I had any final comments on the budget. For the first time at any meeting, I stated that the amount of surplus proposed to support the budget was inadequate and should be increased by 4 pennies.
This was my response to a question about the budget and not a campaign pitch. When asked why I would not support the Mayor’s budget without that change, I told them that the cost of the excessive surplus being used to maintain the Township’s Triple A rating was excessive – that the cost to the taxpayer exceeded any savings.
Mayor Hsueh and Council Woman Geevers have made the urported $800,”000 savings from the Triple A rating a major campaign issue. See their campaign literature sent to every home in West Windsor enclosed as Exhibit A. The Township Staff asked how I had determined the cost of the excess surplus was too expensive. Since I had done considerable work on this issue in the course of my campaign and had determined that the cost to the average taxpayer was $214 for a savings of $44,”1 advised them to review my campaign literature.
I did not suggest that they review my campaign literature for purposes of fashioning a response to my analysis. I did not request that Township staff review my campaign proposal because, not only am I not permitted to make such a request under law without the Mayor’s permission (N.J.S.A. 40:69A-37.1) but, more importantly, I recognize the inappropriateness of utilizing municipal employees and ublic tax dollars in furtherance of political activity. Apparently, Mayor Hsueh and Council Woman Geevers are of the view that regardless of the law, it is entirely appropriate to utilize West Windsor’s Business Administrator and Chief Financial Officer in furtherance of their campaign.
On April 28, 2009, I received an email from Business Administrator Marion to all Township Council members. Mayor Hsueh and other Township staff “”forwarding the attached documents to everyone for review and consideration. Staff will be prepared to discuss this information and other budget-related issues at the May 4, 2009 Township Council Agenda Session.”” See Exhibit B.
Attached to the email was a document entitled “”Draft Review/Response to 2009 Municipal Operating Budget/Fund Balance Proposal Submitted by Council President Morgan-April 28, 2009.”” See Exhibit C. Putting aside that the BA and CFO should never have prepared the document since they were paid by the tax dollars of West Windsor for this political work, a review of the document itself confirms its political nature.
Firstly, the purported basis of the document is inaccurate because I never submitted a budget proposal to Council at all. Rather, as stated above, I proffered a policy initiative in a political campaign to lower taxes. At this stage in the budget process, the Mayor was fulfilling his obligation by submitting a budget to Council. After the budget is submitted, it is Council’s role to review and amend the budget as it deems fit. An individual Councilperson does not have the power to amend the budget; only a majority of the Council as whole through a vote can adopt a budget. Thus, the fact that the Mayor’s staff is preparing a response to my policy initiative to lower taxes in a campaign is evidence in and of itself that the Mayor’s staff was preparing a political document.
Secondly, a cursory review of the document that the Township Staff prepared reveals a bias further supporting the conclusion it was prepared for political purposes and not proper governmental purposes.
The document attempts (wrongly by the way) to defeat the political arguments I have made in the campaign. For example, it states that “”[t]he proposal is one dimensional in that it does not take into account the impact on the municipal tax rate, fund balance reserve and level of services provided in 2010 and beyond…. This will result in a weaker financial position for the Township, significant tax increases for taxpayers and/or serious service cuts for residents in 2011 and beyond.”” That statement is pure fabrication. The day after receiving the email, I first raised my objection as to the political
nature of the Township staffs political work through a phone conversation with Business Administrator Marion. I then sent a confirmatory email to Mayor Hsueh on April 29, 2009 advising him that since he has not even formally presented his budget to Council, the “”document is a political document. The document clearly suggest that municipal employees and taxpayers are being used to further your campaign”” and that constitutes illegal conduct. I demanded that the document be withdrawn and that all disseminated copies be collected. See Exhibit D. In response to my email. Business Administrator Marion
sent me an email on April 30, 2009 advising me that Joanne Louth and I made several revisions to our draft document in response to your concerns that the cover memo was argumentative.”” See Exhibit E. I responded to the Business Administrator’s email by advising him that the Mayor should not be using Township staff and resources to respond
to a political issue and that I intended to notify your office of this egregious conduct. See Exhibit F.
Mayor Hsueh’s running mate, Councilwoman Linda Geevers, not only condoned the illegal conduct of the Mayor, she herself makes the case as to why it is inappropriate to use township staff and taxpayer money in furtherance of a campaign for office. In response to my emails to Mr. Marion, Ms. Geevers compounded the illegal conduct by involving the Township Attorney.
In an email dated April 30, 2009, Ms. Geevers writes to the Township Attorney that “”Mr. Morgan went public last week with his budget ideas for lowering taxes. *** The public has a right to accurate nformation from our professionals … it is a response to a position that Mr.
Morgan put out publicly . . .When responding to reporters or the general public, I am now in a position to respond with analysis by our Township professionals.”” (emphasis supplied). See Exhibit G. Ms. Geevers has admitted in a written document that in response to my campaign proposal to lower taxes, she will now be able to advise reporters and the general public with information based upon
the use of public resources – – the time the Business Administrator and Chief Financial Officer spent analyzing my proposal.
Mayor Hsueh and Councilwoman Geevers have it all wrong. They should be utilizing their campaign staff and money raised through the campaign to analyze my proposal. They should not be abusing their power by relying upon the professionals paid by West Windsor Township. In response to Ms. Geevers’s use of the Township Attorney (another
individual with a vested interest in the outcome of the campaign since he is appointed by the Mayor), I advised Ms. Geevers that it was wrong to use Township staff and the Township Attorney for campaign advice. See Exhibit H.
The Business Administrator publicly confirmed that he, along with Chief Financial Officer Louth, engaged in political activity engaged in an attempt to assist the Mayor with his re-election campaign. In a recent article in the West Windsor & Plainsboro News (See Exhibit I), it is reported as follows:
However, business Administrator Chris Marion says that there have been some differences in approach and methodology that Morgan has taken in comparison with how township professionals have looked at the budget.
There’s also some policy decisions that need to be made, Marion added. We’ve taken a long-term financial approach.
Marion said he and Chief Financial Officer Joanne Louth spent two days analyzing Morgan’s proposal, including his figures and calculations.
The proposal is one dimensional in that it does not take into account the impact on the municipal tax rate, fund balance reserve, and the level of services provided in 2010 and beyond, Marion said.
Following through with Morgan’s proposal could result in “”total depletion of the fund balance. Louth estimates that there will only $3.6 million in fund balance available to support the 2010 municipal operating budget that is a reduction of 44.8 percent from the proposed $6.65 million to support the 2009 budget.””
It is well established that municipal corporations are not permitted to expend public monies in furtherance of a political party or individual. For instance, in Citizens to Protect Public Funds v. Board of Education of Parsippany-Troy Hills, 13 T)LJ. 172 (1953), former Supreme Court Associate Justice Brennan, then sitting on the New Jersey Supreme Court, found illegal a Board of Education’s use of
public monies to exhort its residents to support a bond issuance for school construction. In finding such conduct unlawful. Justice Brennan found “”[the conduct of a campaign, before an election, for the purpose of exerting an influence upon the voters, is not the exercise of an
authorized municipal function and hence is not a corporate purpose of the municipality.”” Justice Brennan reasoned that “”to use said public funds to advocate the adoption of a proposition which was opposed by a large number of said electors would be manifestly unfair and unjust.””
Here, it is undisputed that I proffered a tax reduction based upon the use of surplus funds as part of my campaign to become the Mayor of West Windsor Township. It also undisputed that in response to my proposal. Mayor Hsueh, who is my opponent, authorized the West Windsor Township Business Administrator and Chief Financial Officer to analyze and critique my proposal in furtherance of Mayor Hsueh’s campaign for re-election (BA Marion and CFO Louth spent over two days analyzing my proposal according to Mr. Marion).
It is now out in the public domain that the Business Administrator and Chief Financial Officer have criticized my proposal so rather than having political discourse with the Mayor over the subject, I am arguing with his appointed officials who have released an “”analysis”” that is full of errors and misrepresentations of fact. This is political campaign material on behalf of Mayor Hsueh and Council Woman Geevers masquerading as an objective and balanced analysis. Nothing could be further from the truth.
That is simply unfair. Mayor Hsueh authorized and Councilwoman Geevers participated in the use of municipal resources, before an election, for the purpose of exerting influence upon the voters of West Windsor. Citizens to Protect Public Funds v. Board of Education of Parsippany-Troy Hills, 13 N.J. 172 (1953). Not only should a criminal investigation be instituted against Mayor Hsueh and Ms. Geevers, they should be compelled to return to the taxpayers the cost of Mr. Marion and Ms. Louth’s time.
Very truly yours,
Charles Morgan
Candidate for West Windsor Mayor
cc:Deborah Gramiccioni, Director
Division of Criminal Justice
