JACKSON – Don’t bring cash into Town Hall if you want to pay most township fees.
The Township Council recently adopted Ordinance 2025-10. This amended the township code regarding methods of payment by residents. Cash handling by various departments were largely removed through this measure.
All payments to the township will now be made by personal check, business check, money orders, or credit card. According to the ordinance, the township won’t accept cash for payment of any obligations owed by any person or entity and in the event that any person or entity remits a payment to Jackson.
A “check, money order, or credit card that is dishonored by the financial institution on which the check was drawn or through which the credit card transaction processed, all future payments to the municipality from the individual or entity will have to be made by certified check, treasurer’s check, or money order for one year,” the ordinance states.
There is one further rub however, residents would pick up an additional service charge for using their credit cards through this system. This is the reason Councilman Nino Borrelli switched his vote to nay on this ordinance stating, “cash should be available to use across the board for any township program or service that we provide in Jackson Township.” He felt that passing along this additional fee onto residents was not fair.
Councilman Giuseppe Palmeri wasn’t happy about the added fee either. He said he wanted to see if “we can absorb that 3.5% charge. I do not feel that is something that should be passed on to the resident. I will not change my vote but I want to see how we can make it an additional fee and if the town has to eat that, I would definitely be for that.”
Councilman Scott Sargent agreed with Palmeri. “I disagree with the approach but I have to vote yes.”
Council Vice President Mordechai Burnstein also voted yes but asked for the council to look into the option “of the township swallowing up the fee.”
Council President Jennifer Kuhn followed suit in regards to the fee. “I’ve been in the clerk’s office and I’ve seen people ask for credit card payments and the minimized fee for the convenience of the three and half (percent) fee then to have a check or cash. I will vote yes and I will look into the fee and collectively see what we can do.”
The fee comes from the finance department and it would be up to each department head as to whether they charge the fee or not according to Kuhn. “The fee came when everything went explosive and the fee was added and it never went away.” She noted a resident’s question about why a fee was charged to use a debit card to pay for something to the township.
“I don’t understand. I don’t even know why it is allowed but anywhere you go if you use your card, you are paying a fee. I don’t feel the residents should have to pay for it so we will look into it,” she added.
During that meeting Councilman Giuseppe Palmeri recognized Brooklyn Square Pizza as the business spotlight of the month.
