TOMS RIVER – Ocean County Clerk Scott M. Colabella has been elected as President of the Constitutional Officers Association of New Jersey (COANJ). Colabella was appointed as COANJ President on Sept. 19 by The Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders.
“I am honored to have been selected by my peers for this position,” Colabella said. “I look forward to serving the Association as its president for this one year term.”
Colabella will be officially appointed on Sept. 27 at a conference in Atlantic City held by the Sheriffs, County Clerks, Registers and Surrogates of New Jersey.
“Scott has done great work in the County Clerk’s Office for Ocean County and its residents over the years,” said Ocean County Freeholder John P. Kelly, who serves as liaison to the County Clerk. “As County Clerk, he has implemented many new programs and services to our citizens, including our veterans and makes certain the services of his office are easily accessible to all residents of the County.”
Established in 1920, COANJ brings together Sheriffs, County Clerks, Surrogates, and Registers of Deeds and Mortgages of all 21 counties to improve their services. Colabella follows in the footsteps of former Ocean County Clerks M. Dean Haines, who served as President in 1998, and Carl W. Block, who served in 2007.
“All of the Constitutional Officers are responsible for providing various services to the public within their respective counties and work together to promote shared services to better serve our constituents,” Colabella said. “COANJ is a vital bipartisan organization that works with State Legislators and other elected officials to ensure that legislation affecting counties has a positive impact on the residents represented in each County.”
Colabella got his start in 1982 as assistant to Governor Thomas H. Kean. He then moved on to Deputy Director and Acting Director of the Governor’s Office of Constituent Relations. By 1993 he was the Executive Assistant to Ocean County Clerk M. Dean Haines. Colabella was appointed Deputy County Clerk in 2004, where he served for seven years before becoming County Clerk.
“The Ocean County Clerk’s Office has always been forward thinking and one of the most technologically advanced Clerk’s Office in New Jersey,” said Ocean County Freeholder Director Gerry P. Little. “Scott has continued the outstanding work of his predecessors and continues to make the Ocean County Clerk’s office the best in the state. We congratulate him on becoming the president of the Association.”
Colabella has won no shortage of recognition for his public service over the years. In 2006, he received the Rita M. Rosenberg Memorial Award from COANJ for his dedicated service and hard work to COANJ ideals. In 2013, he was also presented with the “Hurricane Heroes Award” by The League of Women Voters of New Jersey.
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