Five-year term for bankrupted business owner Phil Brilliant deepens political divide over mayor’s plan to abolish utilities authority
TOMS RIVER, NJ – Toms River Mayor Dan Rodrick today reaffirmed his commitment to dissolve the Municipal Utilities Authority (MUA) and eliminate free healthcare benefits for part-time political appointees, stating that these individuals only work between 30 minutes and one hour per month. The mayor emphasized that this action is a key component of his broader strategy to reduce unnecessary spending in Toms River and alleviate the tax burden on residents.
Update: Mayor Rodrick has announced his new plan to abolish taxpayer funded benefits (See Below)
Last week, despite the mayor’s attempts to dissolve what he terms a ‘patronage pit,’ the township council majority acted against him, reappointing a controversial member of the authority, Phillip Brilliant. Mayor Rodrick had advocated for the dissolution of the agency and the termination of free healthcare plans for its one-hour-per-month commissioners.
The ongoing feud between Toms River Mayor Dan Rodrick and the Mo-Hill aligned Township Council intensified Wednesday night after council members voted to reappoint embattled MUA commissioner Phil Brilliant to a new five-year term as commissioner of the Toms River Municipal Utilities Authority (MUA)—a position that includes taxpayer-funded healthcare benefits worth up to $40,000 per year. In return, Brilliant attends one short meeting each month, lasting between 30 minutes and 1 hour. This decision highlights the growing political divide over Mayor Rodrick’s plan to abolish the utilities authority, a move met with strong resistance from oppoisition council members. The reappointment ensures Brilliant will continue to receive these benefits while fulfilling minimal duties, fueling the mayor’s concerns about wasteful spending and political patronage within the MUA.
Key Points
- Council members aligned against Mayor Rodrick reappointed MUA Chairman Phil Brilliant to a five-year term.
- MUA commissioners receive taxpayer-funded healthcare worth as much as $40,000 annually for attending monthly meetings.
- Mayor Rodrick says abolishing the MUA could save $2 million per year in taxes and eliminate “redundant legal and professional services.”
Letter from Mayor Rodrick
As Mayor of Toms River, I am again calling on the Township Council to pass an ordinance eliminating taxpayer-funded healthcare benefits for political appointees who serve only a few hours per year. Commissioners who meet for approximately 30 minutes per month are receiving family healthcare plans that cost taxpayers more than $40,000 annually.
At the Council’s most recent meeting, Phil Brilliant was appointed to a five-year term. Over those five years, taxpayers are projected to spend more than $200,000 on healthcare benefits tied to that position. The numbers are straightforward:
- About six hours of meetings per year
- Roughly 30 hours over five years
- More than $200,000 in healthcare benefits
That equals approximately $6,666 per hour in taxpayer-funded benefits. There is no justification for providing that level of compensation for what amounts to six hours of annual service. Our residents are working families struggling with inflation every day. They deserve better stewardship of their money.
My Effort to Dissolve The MUA — And the Vote That Stopped It
At the end of last year, I introduced a plan to dissolve the Township’s Municipal Utilities Authority (MUA). The MUA no longer treats sewage; it maintains sewer lines. The Township already maintains storm water sewer infrastructure. This creates overlapping government functions. My proposal would have immediately saved $2 million a year and created a path toward eliminating MUA sewer bills entirely, saving residents more than $500 per household annually.
Despite those projected savings, the Council voted against dissolving the MUA. Among those voting against it was former Councilman Justin Lamb. During the period leading up to that vote, public reporting by the Asbury Park Press covered statements involving George Gilmore — Chairman of the Ocean County Republican Organization — and discussions regarding potential county employment considerations for Mr. Lamb’s wife, School Board Member Ashley Lamb.
According to reporting at the time, Mr. Gilmore publicly stated he offered to submit Ashley Lamb’s name for consideration as Deputy County Clerk. Shortly thereafter, Ashley Lamb landed that position, a role that carried an annual salary of approximately $150,000. Her husband councilman Justin Lamb had always said he was in favor of dissolving the MUA, but ultimately voted against my plan. I don’t think that was a coincidence.
It is also important to note that Mr. Gilmore is a partner in an engineering firm that serves as lead engineer for the MUA. The continued existence of the authority directly benefits firms performing professional services for it. That relationship further underscores why transparency and public trust are so critical in these matters. Taxpayers deserve confidence that major financial decisions are being made solely on the merits — not influenced by political relationships or outside considerations.
At the Very Least — Stop the Wasteful Benefits for Commissioners
Even if the Council refuses to revisit dissolution of the MUA and the millions in potential savings, the least we can do is eliminate $40,000-per-year healthcare packages for political appointees who attend one 30-minute meeting per month. Providing platinum-level healthcare benefits for minimal service is an outrageous example of government waste. Our residents deserve accountability. They deserve fiscal responsibility. And they deserve leadership that protects taxpayers — not political insiders.
I am calling on the Council to immediately introduce and pass an ordinance eliminating these healthcare benefits. The people of Toms River deserve better.
Council defies mayor’s push to abolish MUA
The reappointment came despite Mayor Rodrick’s ongoing effort to abolish the MUA entirely and merge its functions into the township’s sewer department. Rodrick argues that dissolving the authority would save taxpayers “$2,000,000 per year in taxes including the elimination of redundant legal and professional services, plus the abolishment of the MUA commission.”
Brilliant’s reappointment ensures he will continue to receive healthcare and stipends for attending the authority’s twelve short meetings each year—meetings that typically last between 30 and 45 minutes. The MUA handles the township’s sewer system and its abolishment has been part of Rodrick’s campaign to streamline government and reduce wasteful spending.
Rodrick has long criticized the system, saying that abolishing the authority would reduce unnecessary expenses and remove politically appointed positions that come with taxpayer-funded perks.
Brilliant, a vocal critic of Rodrick was the leader of the failed effort to recall the mayor. He was appointed to the MUA by former Mayor Maurice “Mo” Hill shortly after declaring bankruptcy at his company, Brilliant Environmental Services. Brilliant later thanked Hill for the appointment in a letter written to the Toms River Times where he credited Hill for extending the lifeline at a much needed time in his troubled business career.
Mayor’s argument: saving taxpayers millions
Rodrick has repeatedly argued that eliminating the MUA would deliver major savings by streamlining services under one department. He claims the township could save “$2,000,000 per year in taxes” by cutting overlapping professional services and ending healthcare benefits for commissioners.
Rodrick has described the MUA as being a haven for political appointees and redundant spending. He maintains that residents are “paying twice for the same work” through both township and authority budgets.
The MUA’s commissioners, including Brilliant, receive full taxpayer- and ratepayer-funded healthcare plans “worth as much as $40,000 per year for showing up to just one meeting per month.”
Rodrick has called those benefits “a perfect example of government waste.”
Despite overwhelming public opposition to the free benefits plan for MUA commissioners, Councilmembers Ciccozzi, Nivison, Bianchini, and Bradley voted to re-appoint Brilliant. Councilmembers O’Toole, Aber, and Coleman voted against the appointment.
The future of the MUA remains in question as Rodrick continues to pursue options for its dissolution.
For now, the reappointment of Phil Brilliant to another five-year term signals that Rodrick’s efforts to reform or dismantle the MUA face strong resistance from opposition council members.
Tags: Toms River, Dan Rodrick, Phil Brilliant