As reported by NJ.com, the Hamilton Township firefighters’ unions will start knocking on residents’ doors asking them to sign petitions calling for the consolidation of the Township’s nine fire districts into one force that would provide protection to the entire town.  The resolutions call for the dissolution of the district the taxpayers live in.  It’s part of a process to absorb or dissolve a district, which takes a petition to the Township Council from 5 percent of a district’s voters.

In announcing the plan, the unions gained the support of local politicians, including Assemblymen Wayne D’Angelo and Dan Benson, who live in Hamilton and signed petitions at a public event at the Rusling Fire Company, home of District 3.  The unions’ plan, though, is to have fire District 3 be the surviving district, instead of starting with a brand new district, a move opposed by at least three other districts.  At the event, the presidents of the two locals of the Firefighters’ Mutual Benevolent Association (“FMBA”), Nick Buroczi, who represents officers and Mike Kiernan, who represents rank-and-file firefighters, both reiterated their stances that the Township needs one fire district.  “We believe the residents of Hamilton understand the need for us to move forward,” Buroczi said.  For too long, he said, the issue of consolidation has been stymied by governmental paralysis.  “What we are proposing is uniformity of service throughout Hamilton Township,” Kiernan said.  “Protection from fire should not be dictated by arbitrary lines on a map.”

The issue of consolidation has gained popularity in the past few months, with three fire districts, 5,6, and 9, publicly voting for a consolidated firefighting force that would be governed by one board of five commissioners, instead of 9 boards with 45 commissioners.

Also pledging support for the union’s plans were Mercer County Freeholder John Cimino and State Senator Linda Greenstein, who said consolidation makes fiscal and safety sense, saying “I hope the residents will support consolidation.”  Also on hand for the announcement was Ed Donnelly, president of the State FMBA, who said one firefighting unit a good thing for Hamilton.  “It’s time we get it done.”

Please continue to check this blog periodically to ascertain updates regarding this matter and the potential consolidation going forward.

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Photo of Donald C. Barbati Donald C. Barbati

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues…

Donald C. Barbati is a shareholder of Crivelli, Barbati & DeRose, L.L.C. His primary practice revolves around the representation of numerous public employee labor unions in various capacities to include contract negotiation, unfair labor practice litigation, contract grievance arbitration, and other diverse issues litigated before the courts and administrative tribunals throughout the State of New Jersey. In addition, Mr. Barbati also routinely represents individuals in various types of public pension appeals, real estate transactions, and general litigation matters. He is a frequent contributor to the New Jersey Public Safety Officers Law Blog, a free legal publication designed to keep New Jersey public safety officers up-to-date and informed about legal issues pertinent to their profession. During his years of practice, Mr. Barbati has established a reputation for achieving favorable results for his clients in a cost-efficient manner.

Mr. Barbati has also handled numerous novel legal issues while representing New Jersey Public Safety Officers. Most notably, he served as lead counsel for the Appellants in the published case In re Rodriguez, 423 N.J. Super. 440 (App. Div. 2011). In that case, Mr. Barbati successfully argued on behalf of the Appellants, thereby overturning the Attorney General’s denial of counsel to two prison guards in a civil rights suit arising from an inmate assault. In the process, the Court clarified the standard to be utilized by the Attorney General in assessing whether a public employee is entitled to legal representation and mandated that reliance must be placed on up-to-date information.

Prior to becoming a practicing attorney, Mr. Barbati served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Linda R. Feinberg, Assignment Judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey, Mercer Vicinage. During his clerkship Mr. Barbati handled numerous complex and novel substantive and procedural issues arising from complaints in lieu of prerogative writs, orders to show cause, and motion practice. These include appeals from decisions by planning and zoning boards and local government bodies, bidding challenges under the Local Public Contract Law, Open Public Records Act requests, the taking of private property under the eminent domain statute, and election law disputes. In addition, Mr. Barbati, as a certified mediator, mediated many small claims disputes in the Special Civil Part.

Mr. Barbati received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history, magna cum laude, from Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Upon graduating, Mr. Barbati attended Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Delaware. In 2007, he received his juris doctorate, magna cum laude, graduating in the top five percent of his class. During law school, Mr. Barbati interned for the Honorable Joseph E. Irenas, Senior United States District Court Judge for the District of New Jersey in Camden, New Jersey, assisting on various constitutional, employment, and Third Circuit Court of Appeals litigation, including numerous civil rights, social security, and immigration cases.