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ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS HERALD |
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A QUESTION OF ETHICS Every so often, politicians are tested regarding their ethical behavior. If there is any doubt, the rule is generally to sit it out. That is why Atlantic Highlands Councilman Steve Noonan’s vote on the Hesse lease was so disturbing to many in our town. After holding a fundraiser at the home of Mr. Hesse’s daughter just days earlier, the Councilman turned around and voted on a lease that directly benefits the family. Even the Councilman acknowledged the “gray area” before the vote. There were warnings about violating the borough’s Pay to Play ordinance that had to be answered. Instead of honoring the spirit of the ordinance and heeding warnings from other governing body members, Councilman Noonan went ahead and paid back his host. Let’s assume that it was a gray area. Maybe the borough attorney who wrote the ordinance should have made the determination about his eligibility. But after spending over $5,000 in taxpayer’s money to write the ordinance, Borough Attorney Janice Miller was unable to render an opinion. Not because she wasn’t in attendance, but because she wasn’t clear about the ordinance. So, the Councilman didn’t step down and the attorney had no clue about the rules of an ordinance she authored. That is not doing right by the public. The Councilman should have known better and it speaks to the competence of our legal advice. In past years, this writer has always recused himself from votes where there is a whiff of conflict, and voters can be assured that practice will continue from Pete Doyle and myself in the future. Atlantic Highlands taxpayers deserve to know that their elected officials will have high ethical standards and keen judgement. We should also expect our legal counsel to know answers to ordinances that they wrote particularly those that involve the public trust. The Democrat party failed this test and has made our pay to play ordinance meaningless.
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