MOUNT OLIVE (12/14/05) – Once again the Mayor Richard DeLaRoche is at odds with all the members of the Township Council, this time over their compensation for services rendered. He’s refusing to take a cut in his $7,000 stipend.

The governing body’s compensation is set by ordinance. The mayor normally receives $7,000; the council president $6,750; and each Councilman $6,000.

Earlier this year, in early budget discussions, the Council, with the mayor sitting in the meeting agreed that as a "gesture of good will" in this period of difficult economic times it was agree that they would only take half of the allotted compensation for $2006. Governing bodies are required to act early on compensation measures to inform the state which needs the figures to set retirement pension allocations.

Under the agreement the mayor would have received $3,500; the council president, 3,375 and $3,000 for the remaining six members.

At last night’s Council meeting when the revised ordinance for $26,625 to cover half of this year’s compensation was introduced DeLaRoche objected strenuously accusing the Council of acting inappropriately, that he never agreed to the cut, that the council members were just grandstanding to embarrass him and once again they were attempting to "usurp his authority."

The net effect of the mayor’s objections and demand to be fully compensated would mean each of the members of the Council would receive a few hundred dollars less than the half they had originally agreed to.

Councilman Jim Buell pointed out that since the agreement the matter of lower compensation had been raised several times and was in budget spreadsheets that every member of the governing body, including the mayor, had received, yet he never said a word until the ordinance was being introduced.

Council President Rob Greenbaum, obviously concealing his anger, said it once again showed the mayor was not a team player, was selecting picayune issues to embarrass all the members of the governing body and being an obstructionist. He added that in the next round of budget deliberations he may well propose that members of the governing body not be compensated at all.