$120K Settlement with Former Tax Collector!

Lawsuit settled

Former tax assessor said mayor overstepped bounds

By Carlo Davis

Weehawken taxpayers will have to pay $120,000 for a legal settlement with the town’s former tax collector, Joseph Fredericks. The township’s agreement with Fredericks closed the book on a federal lawsuit in which he alleged that Mayor Richard Turner overstepped his authority to control every aspect of Weehawken’s daily operations, including the tax assessment of certain luxury properties at “higher than legally permitted rates.”

David Corrigan, Weehawken’s labor attorney, said Fredericks’ lawsuit was “without merit” and denied that any improper actions had been taken by Weehawken or its leadership. In exchange for the settlement, Fredericks retired from the job. Corrigan said the settlement agreement embodied “extraordinarily favorable terms” for the township.

In addition, Corrigan noted that Fredericks’ attorney, Louis Zayas, who is based in North Bergen, has a history of filing exaggerated claims against Hudson County municipalities. Zayas is handling a number of cases of employees of local towns suing mayors.

But according to Zayas, the lawsuit demonstrated that all decision-making power in Weehawken ultimately flows through Turner, in contravention of the town’s charter.

Turner has declined to speak on the record about the case. The mayor is extremely popular in Weehawken. After being appointed township manager by the state to help save the town from near bankruptcy in 1982, he was elected mayor in 1990 and has held the post ever since, running unopposed in the last three elections.

Twenty years

Joseph Fredericks served as the tax collector of Weehawken from 1994 until 2014, when he resigned. In his 2012 complaint filed in federal district court, Fredericks alleged that he regularly complained of unlawful and improper activities undertaken by the township and Mayor Turner during his tenure.

In particular, Fredericks asserted that Turner interfered improperly in Weehawken’s assessment of property taxes. In a sworn certification submitted in support of a lawsuit filed by Weehawken Police Lt. Richard DeCosmis in 2010, Fredericks alleged that Turner had told Tax Assessor Paul Sadlon to assess luxury waterfront properties at a rate roughly 35 percentage points higher than was allowed in the state formula.

Hugh McGuire, Weehawken’s former real estate appraisal expert, also said that Turner had pushed for higher added assessments, in a deposition in the DeCosmis case. (DeCosmis was suing the township for what he said was a longtime pattern of harassment against him).

According to the complaint, Fredericks said he brought his concerns to Director of Finance Richard Barsa and Town Manager James Marchetti numerous times. In response, Fredericks alleged, Marchetti would always shrug and say “It’s not up to me” or “What do you want me to do?”

Corrigan said any allegations of illegally high taxes were plainly false. “The mayor and council play a role in setting the tax rate, and frankly the tax rates in Weehawken are moderate and that’s why [Turner] has been reelected so many times.”

Back pay payback

In the complaint, Fredericks said that when he gave a sworn certification for Richard DeCosmis’s lawsuit against Weehawken in September 2010, this triggered a barrage of retaliatory measures against him.

He said the funding he had been given annually to attend tax collection seminars and conferences was allegedly cut. Barsa allegedly required that all of Fredericks’ future correspondence be approved by him or Weehawken CFO Lisa Toscano.

Fredericks said he was allegedly excluded from across-the-board raises given to Weehawken employees in 2010 and 2012. In addition, Fredericks alleged that he was never paid the extra salary he had been promised for taking over management of Weehawken’s tax abatement program starting in 2009.

Finally, Fredericks said he was told by Marchetti in a meeting that he was overpaid and that his salary should be reduced. All of these actions taken together created a hostile work environment, according to Fredericks.

Zayas said his client had never been disciplined in his decades of service prior to the retaliation that followed his deposition in the DeCosmis suit.

Mayors and managers

Behind the allegations is a broader accusation about the level of influence Turner exerts over the governance of Weehawken. According to Zayas, Turner controls the town’s government in direct violation of Weehawken’s municipal charter.

The township of Weehawken is organized as a council-manager form of local government under New Jersey’s Faulkner Act. The mayor serves concurrently as a councilperson-at-large, but retains relatively few mayoral powers in addition to his legislative responsibilities. A town manager appointed by the Township Council serves as the chief executive of Weehawken, overseeing the day-to-day operations of the government.

The Faulkner Act under which Weehawken’s government is chartered forbids council members from seeking “individually to influence the official acts of the municipal manager, or any other officer… or to interfere in any way with the performance by such officers of their duties.”

Corrigan said Turner has never acted improperly as the mayor of Weehawken. “If he had ever done anything improper, he would not be reelected,” said Corrigan.

Corrigan confirmed that Turner had been involved in discussions with the tax collector and tax assessor regarding the town’s tax rate, but said this activity was not illegal, and directly benefited the city.

“There is nothing that would preclude the council from working with a tax collector to do what’s best for the town,” Corrigan added.

According to Corrigan, Turner “lent his expertise…to ensure that taxes are uniform and productive for all” and should be applauded “rather than to be besmirched for working regarding the tax rate.”

Settlement terms

In his settlement agreement with the city, Fredericks received a $15,000 salary increase back-dated to 2011 and 153 1/2 days of paid terminal leave. Weehawken’s insurance company paid Fredericks $30,000 and Zayas $45,000 in attorney’s fees.

According to Corrigan, Fredericks was making around $117,000 per year prior to his salary increase.

The settlement granted to Fredericks is also notably smaller than the amount of damages requested in the lawsuit. In a 2012 NJ.com article, Zayas said that his client was seeking $1 million in punitive damages and $250,000 in back pay.

In exchange for the payments, Fredericks agreed to retire immediately once the agreement went into effect and give up all future claims against Weehawken. The township admitted no liability for the claims advanced in the lawsuit, which the agreement described as “doubtful and disputed.”

The agreement was approved by the Township Council on May 14, 2014.

Since Fredericks’ departure, said Corrigan, Weehawken’s tax collection has been overseen by a part-time outside contractor at significant cost savings to the town. When the town ultimately hires a new tax collector, Corrigan said he or she would receive a significantly lower salary than Fredericks, in part due to Fredericks’ seniority.

“I think we’re going to recoup the money within a year,” said Corrigan.