NO RATE INCREASE, NO GAG RULE
Good News for MUA Ratepayer Pocketbooks and First Amendment Rights
The Mount Holly Municipal Utilities Authority (MUA) owns and operates two sewage treatment plants that serve six townships: Mount Holly, Hainesport, Eastampton, Westampton, Lumberton, and a small portion of Moorestown. The plants are permitted by the NJDEP to treat and discharge up to 7.67 million gallons of sewage per day to the Rancocas Creek.
RATE HELD STABLE: At the January 15, 2026 meeting of the MHMUA, there was only 3 of the 5 appointed commissioners present. But all enthusiastically voted for a “rate schedule” that held charges to customers stable. Commissioner Jim Logan congratulated MUA Executive Director, stating: “I believe the stable rate is due to the hard work of Director Mike DeHoff and senior staff” which include Brian Grant, Russel Lingle, Wayne Gaskill and Thomas Koslowski.
GAG RULE RESOLUTION REWORKED: Readers will recall that the December 2025 meeting featured a MUA resolution that went far beyond a baseline of “decorum” by introducing rules that policed the private speech of MUA employees outside of the workplace. Commissioner Jim Logan spoke against that resolution and was pleased that language which encroached on first amendment rights was removed.
COMMISSIONER JONES TO RESIGN: Resident Luis Lopez asked why Commissioner Jason Jones had not resigned from the Board of Commissioners since Jones no longer lives in the area. Chairman DiFolco stated that he had reached out to Jones and asked for his resignation in an expedited fashion.
RESIDENCY RULES FOR COMMISSIONERS: There is disagreement on the Board of Commissioners as to whether there is a residency requirement to be a commissioner. Apparently, the historic documents which created the MUA and would have spoken to the residency requirement were lost in one of the many floods that the municipal building has endured. But a highly placed source stated that it is all but certain that a residency requirement was in place, even if the document stating as much is no longer available. In any case, the township council could settle the issue by passing a resolution or ordinance requiring that any Commissioner have residency in one of the six towns served by the MUA.