As we count down toward the New Year, Plainfield Today will be posting the top ten stories, as measured by the number of views, that readers have found of interest in 2008.
Today, Number 10, from November 17, 2008.
Plainfield Official Using City Vehicle Without Permission?
Word in the street is that a top-ranking Plainfield official is tooling around town at all hours in a city vehicle for which they have no authorization.
I haven't seen it, but if it's true it could be big trouble for the taxpayers, if not the official in question.
Why?
Some city officials are given vehicles on a 24-hour basis because their duties put them 'on call' at a moment's notice -- the fire chief and police chief (when we had one) for example. The Mayor gets a round-the-clock vehicle. And, at times, other have too.
The thing about these vehicle assignments is that they are made annually by a City Council resolution for the calendar year, which is the lifespan of a Council's authority.
And the reason is that the City is taking on the liability if something happens while the person who is assigned the vehicle is driving it.
Those who are not assigned a vehicle may still use one in the performance of an official duty -- the Inspections Division, for instance; or a group such as I was part of once that made a trip to Vineland to investigate a Medical Enterprise Zone setup.
But it is only for the performance of a specific duty, and in the case of the Vineland trip, the vehicle had to be signed out and in.
The whispers I am hearing are that none of these rules are adhered to, and the vehicle is being used at all hours of the day and night.
It would be in the Council's interest to inquire and make sure whether this is a baseless rumor or has some substance to it, and to take appropriate action.
Before something happens that puts Plainfield taxpayers on the hook for big bucks.
And, while we're at it, what about fill-ups at the City gas pump?
A Green Brook DPW employee recently lost his job for taking $16 worth of gas for personal use.
Would the Robinson-Briggs administration be more lenient?
Followup: Since I had not witnessed the person driving the car, I chose not to post a name. Turns out that the rumor I heard was true, and the name was later made public. Whose car was used? That's a secret I will take to my grave.
Posts
2 comments:
To Anonymous 1:22 PM - As I have said before, if you can't stick to the topic your comment won't get posted, though I understand you have sent it around to everyone and may have better luck elsewhere.
On the matter of not-so-well known Republicans, you do know that the word is Mayor Robinson-Briggs was once a registered Republican, don't you?
Thank you Dan. And again, as I explained before, post or not, I just want your scope and opinion on the matters. You can read and respond without posting, be my guest. I just wanted to shoot my opinion over to your monitor.
And to the comment on Mayor Briggs' previous registration.. You do know that ALL African-Americans were at one time, registered republicans, don't you? :-)
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