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Public commenters press Morris County commissioners on farmland assessment fairness and offer county health-screening partnership
Summary
During the Feb. 26 public-comment period, a Mendham resident urged the county to support state changes to New Jersey's farmland assessment program; a representative of Medical Essential Diagnostics offered countywide cardiac screening services; another resident raised concerns about federal Medicaid cuts affecting local residents.
During the public-comment portion of the Feb. 26 meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of Morris County, several residents raised policy concerns and offered services to county programs.
Jack Curtis of Mendham Township, a retired school principal and former municipal alderman, urged the commissioners to support changes to New Jersey's farmland assessment law, saying the policy has morphed from an aid for struggling farmers into what he described as "a tax shelter for the very wealthy." Curtis told the board that in Mendham Township the number of farmland-assessed properties increased from 20 in 1964 to 158 today and said the countywide total is 1,503 farmland-assessed properties. He said statewide there are about 37,000 farmland-assessed parcels covering nearly a million acres and that the program results in roughly $555 million in foregone taxes he described as being shifted onto other taxpayers.
Curtis said the program should include income limits and stricter inspections; he also suggested local filing fees to fund enforcement. He told commissioners he had discussed the matter with the governor and asked the board to consider a resolution asking the legislature to revise the law. Director Sellen responded, "I can commit to you that we will discuss within the board and see what we end up with," and the director asked the clerk to record Curtis's full name for the record.
Also during the public-comment period, a representative who gave her first name as Maura and identified herself as being with Medical Essential Diagnostics described the company's program offering cardiovascular and cardiopulmonary diagnostic testing to state employees and first responders at no out-of-pocket cost to participants. The presenter said the program operates with a "zero balance billing" approach (the vendor covers any portion not paid by insurance) and that members may bring two adult family members or household members for testing. She asked permission to coordinate with Morris County departments and to present the service to municipalities.
A third commenter, who did not give a name, said recent federal budget votes in the U.S. House of Representatives were troubling because they could affect people who rely on Medicaid. The speaker described a county resident named Anita, who suffered a disabling stroke and depends on programs such as Medicaid, and asked whether the county could act to protect residents in similar situations; no specific county action was proposed.
Nut graf: Public commenters asked the board to consider policy advocacy on farmland assessment, to permit county partnerships with a vendor offering preventive cardiac screening, and flagged federal Medicaid policy as a local concern; the board recorded the comments and the director committed to internal discussion on the farmland issue but made no formal referral or vote during the meeting.
Ending: The public-comment period closed before other agenda items; commissioners acknowledged the comments and the clerk recorded names and contact details for follow up where provided.
