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ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS HERALD |
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PRIVILIGED AND CONFIDENTIAL ATTORNEY BILLS The tail is wagging the dog. At the last Atlantic Highlands Borough Council meeting, the Democrat Administration of Pete Donoghue officially allowed the borough attorney to make policy. Which wouldn’t be so bad, if the policy had any legal standing and didn’t shut out taxpayers completely. In her attempt to hide the spiraling legal expenditures from the Atlantic Highlands taxpayers, Borough Attorney Janice Miller initiated a new policy by stating that details of her bills would now be considered privileged and confidential. Over Republican objections regarding freedom of information, Miller and the Democrats decided to institute the new policy regarding her billing. To the disbelief of everyone attending, she emphatically stated her professional opinion that details of her vouchers are now off limits for public scrutiny. And not one Democrat on council had the guts to tell her how wrong she was. Council members Carl Nolan, Stephanie Ladiana and Steve Noonan each defended this insane policy. If there was an ounce of courage to go against the lawyer and stand up for open and honest government, this was the time. Unfortunately, the three Democrats as well as the Mayor stood behind Miller and against our resident’s right to know. Once more, Attorney Miller was totally mistaken in her decree. Her entire voucher is part of the public domain and anyone and everyone has the right to inspect the work. If there is nothing to hide, why shield the bills? While the advice might be confidential, the bills surely are not. The Open Public Records Act clearly states that bills and vouchers from professionals must be made available to the public and any lawyer worth their salt knew that. One of the most troubling aspects of this affair is that the Democrats let the Attorney make policy and followed blindly along. It is the council’s job to determine sensible policies and the professional’s jobs to follow our lead. Furthermore, if this borough attorney doesn’t even know the law about open public records, what kind of confidence does that instill in the borough for her advice on larger legal issues?
[editor's note: The AHHerald puchased copies of the attorney's August bill from the Borough Clerk, Dwayne Harris, who said they are public documents as he interprets the Open Public Records Act. Below is the client summary of the August 2005 attorney's bill erroneously marked Privileged and Confidential by Mrs. Miller.]
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