With a depleting need for a Cable TV Advisory Board, the Township Council is aiming at dissolving it in favor of a smaller staff committee that would handle any policy decisions.
Interest on part of the administration and the board members themselves has been on the decline as the issues needing discussion has decreased, and the suggestion at the June 14 council meeting was to “de-emphasize” the board’s role.
Councilman Charles Morgan proposed ordinance revisions to phase the board out of township code, but council members and the administration were reluctant to spend money to make a substantial ordinance change. Though, Morgan’s suggestion that a small committee consisting mostly of township staff should be appointed to handle any policy issues that arise seemed to gain support.
Morgan said there is reference to the GCC — Government Cable Committee — in the township’s code, but language changes would need to be made accordingly. Council President George Borek volunteered to work with Morgan to revamp the ordinance to save money, but Township Attorney Michael Herbert offered to draft a document for free.
The smaller committee will most likely consist of the business administrator, the mayor, and the council president, who will deal with policy decisions. One example mentioned during the discussion was the issue of “politicking” on the township’s cable channel — which is prohibited — that was debated during the last election season.
Council Advocates for Gulf Coast. In other business during the June 14 meeting, the council discussed whether to put a resolution on the next agenda that would take a position on a larger national issue taking center stage — the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf Coast.
Councilwoman Diane Ciccone suggested the township pass the resolution, as other towns like Edison have done already. The resolution would support the protection of wetlands and support the call to put the onus on BP to take responsibility for cleanup efforts.
Council members debated whether they should take a position on a national issue. Councilman Charles Morgan said he would support the idea, although a few years ago, when the Patriot Act was first proposed, he asked the council to consider passing a resolution in support of the measure but was shot down on the basis that it was not township business.
Most of the draft language was modeled after resolutions from other towns, and township officials would tweak it to make it broader before bringing it back to council on Monday, June 28.
