Page 4 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • October 19, 2011 Ho-Ho-Kus Elected officials required to take educational courses by Jennifer Crusco At its last public meeting, the Ho-Ho-Kus Council voted to approve Ordinance 996, which formally requires local elected government officials to attend courses related to the workings of municipal government. Prior to the council’s action on this matter, resident Anne O’Neill addressed the governing body. O’Neill recently wrote a letter to Ho-Ho-Kus Borough Administrator Don Cirulli expressing her concerns regarding the proposal. At the meeting, the resident noted that she has no argument with having the courses. Her main issue, O’Neill emphasized, is that the ordinance seemed to be unenforceable. She further asserted that this requirement should come from the state level rather than the local level, and those who attend the courses should be obligated to demonstrate competence in the areas they have studied. “This seemed to be a knee-jerk reaction to fulfill the survey,” O’Neill said, referring to the state’s Best Practices questionnaire. “Thank you for coming,” Mayor Thomas Randall said, addressing the resident. “We’re glad you’re here and welcome your input.” The mayor discussed the borough’s rationale for pursuing an ordinance and added that there would be some enforceability in relation to the ordinance. The borough’s chief financial officer, Randall said, must swear to the fact that the borough’s responses to the Best Practices survey are true. At a previous meeting, Mayor Randall pointed out that the borough’s officials, including council members and the appointed volunteers who serve on the zoning and planning boards, already take educational classes. The question on the Best Practices survey, which inspired Ordinance 996, asks if the borough has an ordinance that requires local officials to take those classes. There is something to be gained by taking the courses, Mayor Randall previously noted, particularly since municipal government has become more complex. As an example, he pointed to the dos and don’ts associated with correspondence – particularly e-mail, which tends to be casual in nature. Randall said council members must be aware of situations in which they might unintentionally jeopardize attorney/client privileges. His view is that formal educational courses help protect the borough and the council members and could keep local officials from inadvertently divulging confidential information. Borough Administrator Cirulli also pointed out that, when an individual is elected to public office, he or she often has no knowledge of government finance and budgeting, risk management, policy setting, the bidding process, government ethics, government contracting, or compliance with OPRA, COAH, or PEOSHA regulations. He said many elected officials already have fulltime jobs and most of the course requirements, including the related testing, can be fulfilled in a single day at little or no charge to the attendees. The newly-approved ordinance officially requires the borough’s elected officials to annually attend at least one basic course concerning the responsibilities and obligations of local government. Appropriate courses would cover budgeting, policy setting, local government contracting, risk management, ethics, compliance with the Open Public Records Act and the Open Public Meetings Act, and other relevant topics. The ordinance states that it is in the borough’s interest to have its elected officials attend basic courses about local government responsibilities and obligations so those officials will be properly informed. In addition, the ordinance acknowledges that the state’s Best Practices questionnaire recommends that municipalities require elected officials to attend such courses. Commander Stanley A. Kober of the Washington Elm Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 192 (Ho-Ho-Kus-Ridgewood), recently announced the launch of this year’s National VFW and its Ladies Auxiliary Voice of Democracy Scholarship Competition for high school students; the Patriot’s Pen Essay Competition for students in grades six through eight; the National Citizenship Education Teacher Award contest for teachers of kindergarten through grade five, grades six through eight, and grades Local VFW hosts multiple contests nine through 12; and the National Public Law Enforcement, Firefighter, and Emergency Medical Technician Citation and Gold Medal Award program. The deadline for entries in each of these competitions is Nov. 1, 2011. For additional information, contact the Washington Elm VFW Post 192 at (201) 445-1121 or immediately write to the Washington Elm VFW Post 192 (Ho-HoKus--Ridgewood) at 620 Cliff Street, Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ 07423 for an application.