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Atlantic County commissioners sworn in, approve reorganization resolutions and temporary budget
Summary
At its 2026 reorganization meeting, the Atlantic County Board of County Commissioners sworn in elected officials, named John Risley chair and Andrew Parker vice chair, and approved routine reorganization resolutions including a temporary budget and appointments to the New Jersey Association of Counties.
John Risley was re-elected chairman of the Atlantic County Board of County Commissioners and Andrew Parker was named vice chairman during the board’s 2026 reorganization meeting, where commissioners also swore in officials and approved a series of routine reorganization resolutions.
The meeting, convened at the Atlantic County Office Building, opened with an invocation from Reverend Lou Strugula and the reading of public-notice compliance. County Surrogate James Curcio was administered the oath of office by Commissioner John Risley; Curcio thanked county staff and his wife and pledged to run the surrogate’s office efficiently.
On leadership, Commissioner Andrew Parker nominated John Risley for chairman; the nomination was seconded and carried. Parker was then nominated and approved as vice chairman. Parker told colleagues he would support the chair, keep meetings on schedule and ensure decorum, saying, “If you call me, I will call you back. I don't promise you that I have the answer.”
The board moved through a series of routine resolutions by motion and roll call. Among the items adopted were posting notice of regular meetings on the Atlantic County website; appointments to the New Jersey Association of Counties (NJAC) — naming John Risley as the county representative and Maureen Kern and June Burns as first and second alternates; and annual commissioner appointments to county advisory boards under NJSA 40:41A-37. The board also approved a 2026 temporary budget and a repositories and cash management plan for the county. The transcript does not specify dollar amounts for the temporary budget.
Commissioners approved establishing petty cash funds for various departments and adopted a certification of compliance related to equal employment opportunity enforcement guidance on consideration of arrest and conviction records under federal EEOC guidance. The board also adopted a resolution acknowledging and agreeing to abide by the state budgetary deadline referenced in the transcript as NJSA 48:4-5.1.
In brief remarks, Chair John Risley thanked colleagues and staff and said the board would use a consent-agenda approach to free meeting time for deeper discussion of major county issues. He listed priorities for 2026 that include centralized dispatch, the county nursing home, tax assessment, the county jail and addressing what he described as a “health insurance crisis.”
The meeting was opened for public comment but none was recorded. After a benediction from Reverend Lou Strugula, the board adjourned.
The board did not provide detailed vote tallies or budget dollar amounts in the transcript; those details were not specified in the record provided.
