The Jan. 15 monthly meeting of the Highlands Council marked a significant milestone as seven new members of the 15-member body were sworn in.

 

This vital state agency, responsible for guiding land use decisions across a 950,000-acre region that supplies drinking water to nearly seven million New Jersey residents, had faced challenges due to retiring or ill members not being replaced.

 

For the first time in recent memory, the Council convened without concerns about meeting quorum. In fact, 11 of the last 24 meetings had been canceled due to the lack of the required eight-member vote to take action.

 

Appointing new Council members is a complex process, akin to a game of 3D chess.

The Highlands Act mandates fair representation from each of the seven Highlands counties, a balance of political parties, seven public members with diverse expertise, and eight members who held municipal or county elected positions at the time of appointment.

 

Thirteen members are appointed by the Governor, subject to senatorial advise and consent, while one member is appointed by the President of the Senate and another by the Assembly Speaker.

 

The hardest nut to crack, however, is Senatorial Courtesy. Neither a rule nor provided in the state Senate’s charter, Senatorial Courtesy is a longstanding tradition that provides each Senator whose Legislative District includes at least one municipality in the nominee’s county, with the ability to block a Governor’s nominee indefinitely and without having to provide a reason.

 

In densely populated counties, such as Essex County, a nominee could have up to six Senators with the power to block the nomination.

 

After eight years of working with the Murphy Administration to fill Council vacancies, Gov. Murphy finally fulfilled a promise made during his candidacy.

While the action came at the 11th hour, it was a welcome development. We extend our gratitude to Gov. Murphy for addressing this critical issue before leaving office.

With a full Council — several of whom have strong environmental values — and with a visionary, committed and very smart Executive Director, we may now have the hands-down best and most active Council ever.

 

However, the Highlands Council still has formidable challenges. It sorely needs additional staff. It needs a budget that will allow it to fulfil the responsibilities of an agency that secures a water supply for 70% of New Jersey’s population.

 

The incoming Governor must require the Highlands Council, the departments of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Community Affairs draft a Memorandum of Understanding to outline how they will work together and to recognize that in the Highlands Region that the Highlands Regional Master Plan is the guidance document for land use decision making.

 

DEP must also release the Highlands Council’s Forestry Best Management Practices for the Highlands, which it curiously embargoed three years ago, so that the Council might adopt the water-resource protective forest stewardship provisions as an amendment to the Highlands Regional Master Plan.

 

Also, the new governor must declare that the need for affordable housing and the protection of the Highlands’ essential resources as equally important, so that housing advocates stop proposing regulations that are unnecessarily on a collision course with the Highlands Act.

 

This is only a short list of the Highlands Council’s significant challenges and the road ahead is not without obstacles.

 

The Highlands Council now has the leadership, expertise, and commitment to make meaningful progress.

 

With adequate resources and support from the new Governor, the Council can ensure a sustainable water supply for the state, even in the face of climate change.