Clinton Township : Our Court's Making Money
Hunterdon County Democrat

April 23, 2009
BY CURTIS LEEDS and LILLIAN SHUPE

CLINTON TWP. -- Membership in the North Hunterdon Municipal Court used to cost township taxpayers money every year. Since opening their own court, township officials say they're actually making money.

Township Administrator Marvin Joss said it's all a matter of controlling costs.

As far back as 2005, township officials chafed at the rules governing North Hunterdon Municipal Court, to which the township belonged. The costs of running the court were divided among the court's members based on how much each municipality used the court. Clinton Township represented 39% of the court's volume, and so was responsible for 39% of the court's costs.

But costs were rising faster than volume, and township officials couldn't convince the committee that runs the court to reduce costs, Mr. Joss said.

In 2007, Clinton Township 's last year as a member, the regional court cost the township about $330,000. That year, the township earned about $260,000 in revenue from the court, Mr. Joss said, so it was a net loss of about $70,000 to township taxpayers.

Township Chief Financial Officer Kathleen Colognato said the township municipal court generated about $363,000 last year, its first year of operation. Wages totaled $138,000, so the court "earned" township taxpayers about $225,000 last year.

There were other expenses. About $24,000 was spent in office expenses last year, Ms. Colognato said. One-time expenses to convert the Township Council's meeting room into a secure courtroom -- which included bulletproof windows, a buzzer concealed under the dais and a metal detector -- cost about $10,000, said Mr. Joss. "The Department of Public Works did all the work," he said.

There is also additional revenue. The success of the township's court drew the interest of Union Township officials, who had been running their own court. An audit showed Union Township it had a total net loss of $155,000 between 2003 and 2007. Under an agreement effective last October, Union Township is paying Clinton Township for use of its court facilities.

Currently Union Township rents office space near the courtroom for $1,600 a month; it pays another $100 each time it uses the courtroom, which is once or twice a week. Eventually the Union Township is likely to use Clinton Township 's judge or court administrator for an additional fee; or have Clinton Township handle all of Union Township 's court functions. That would cost Union $105,000 a year, Mr. Joss said. The price is locked in for three years.

Mr. Joss is sensitive to critics who point out that adding the court was one rationale for buying a new Municipal Building -- the so-called "red-roofer" on Route 31 -- for about $2 million in 2007. "The debt service on that building is about $90,000 a year," Mr. Joss said. So the new court "hasn't cost the taxpayers anything. In fact, we've made them money," he said.

Mr. Joss said he only expects the outlook to improve for the township's court. Mayor Kevin Cimei said the township would be willing to have other municipalities participate in the court. Mr. Joss said there may be room for three or four more, depending on the size of the municipality, and state caps on municipal spending may help drive more to follow in Union Township 's footsteps.
"If that doesn't happen, we're still doing very well without additional partners," he said.