Amended 'prompt pay' law may cause snags

BRICK TOWNSHIP - Some township officials here aren't happy with how amendments to the state "prompt pay" law may affect how the township pays its bills.

Council members traditionally like to see the bills list a week ahead of time, before approving any vouchers, said Scott Pezarras, acting township business administrator.

But the new law, which requires that professional service and construction contracts be paid within 30 days of a submitted signed voucher, may not provide enough time to provide the council with the bills, he said at the Nov. 21 council caucus meeting.

"That is ridiculous," Councilwoman Ruthanne Scaturro said. "We have no time to research anything. It doesn't give us enough time to do due diligence. I think I'll be voting no on a lot of bills."

The amendments to the legislation came about after a number of professionals complained to state legislators that they were not being paid on time. Those delays, in turn, led to subcontractors being upset about not being paid by the primary contractor, Pezarras said.

Paying bills on time has not been a problem in Brick, Pezarras said after the meeting. The township has traditionally paid bills within 30 days.

"The only issue I see is that they [council members] want to see the bills list a week ahead of time," he said. "We have a batched system. Once a bill is processed, you can't reopen that batch. To give them a bills list a week ahead of time, the bills list is closed. It could be closed for as much as two weeks. We may not be able to comply with the law."

"Is there anything we can do?" asked Councilman Stephen C. Acropolis.

Pezarras said he plans to discuss the matter with the township purchasing agent to find out "when and if" the township will be in violation of the law.

"Our vendors are very well trained," he said. "They know when our bill resolutions are, when our cutoff dates are. If by chance a vendor misses those dates, then we will not be able to pay them."

- Pat Miller