The township’s Civil Rights Commission, the oldest in New Jersey, will see its membership continue to dwindle beginning next year because the Township Committee has not appointed any new members in at least two years.

Carolyn Schwebel As of Jan. 1, only three people will sit on the commission. While more could be added at the township’s Jan. 3 reorganization meeting, Cindy Herrschaft, the township’s public relations officer, did not know if the Human Rights Commission would have any new appointments.

The commission, an 11-seat body, was formed in 1968. It is charged “to foster, through community effort or otherwise, goodwill, cooperation and conciliation among groups and elements of the inhabitants of the community and to make recommendations to the Township Committee for the development of policies and procedures in general and for programs of formal and informal education that will aid to eliminate all types of discrimination based upon race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, or age, marital status, affectional or sexual orientation, familial status, disability, nationality or sex,” according to the township website.

The commission has not had a full roster for much of its existence. Carolyn Schwebel, currently the longest tenured member at 18 years, said the commission did have 11 members and an alternate sometime in the late-1990s. Otherwise, the committee hasn’t been full in recent memory. Even at its creation, only eight people sat on what was then a 12-member commission.

In recent years, the township has looked to reduce or even eliminate the commission. In a July 2008 memo, Tony Mercantante, township administrator, recommended a subcommittee be formed to review the Human Rights Commission and possibly dissolve it. No action ever came from it, and commission members said they were never included in the process.

Phone calls to Mayor Pamela Brightbill, Committeemen Gerard Scharfenberger and Patrick Short regarding the future of the commission were not immediately returned. Brian Nelson, township attorney, declined to comment for this story.

Even without the committee’s action, the Human Rights Commission may die on its own due to attrition. Don Tow, a commissioner for four years, recently announced his retirement effective Dec. 31 because he feels the Township Committee does not support the group.

“For four years, the commission has asked for input and comment on proposals, and basically, we have received no feedback or no support at all. I feel as if this is not the best use of my time,” he said. “Ideally you would like the Township Committee to support it even if they don’t provide a lot of time or resources. In spirit, I don’t think they support it.”

Schwebel was reappointed at the Dec. 7 meeting but only after a protracted legal battle with the township. The Township Committee did not offer her another three-year term in December 2007 because of her involvement in a lawsuit against the township for alleged violations of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act. Scharfenberger, then mayor, said reappointing her created a conflict of interest. The lawsuit was settled in July 2007, but the township contended the settlement was not finalized when her reappointment came up for review.

As a result, Schwebel sued the township again. She claimed the township’s decision not to reappoint her was punishment for bringing legitimate complaints to light, which violates New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination, or LAD, she said.

As part of the settlement for that lawsuit, the township did not admit to any violation but agreed to reappoint her to the commission. The township also agreed to pay her attorney fees of $2,000 and compensated Schwebel $5,000. The $5,000 must be donated to a nonprofit group under the agreement. Her new term expires Dec. 31, 2011.

Despite the township’s original decision not to extend Schwebel’s time on the commission, she never officially left because of a technicality. Commission members hold their seats on a temporary basis until the township chooses a replacement, which the township never did. Schwebel said she rejoined the commission in December 2008 when she learned of the technicality.

Schwebel, who also serves on the county’s Human Relations Commission, said she fought to remain on the commission because she believes in the cause. The committee has made recommendations to the school district to add a policy on bullying and to add minority employees to more closely match the township’s diversity, she said. It is also looking to improve access around the township, help veterans in the area, and change emergency evacuation plans to allow pets to come to shelters.

“I’m not saying these things are always followed up on, but at least we made an effort,” she said.