Is Deputy Mayor Catalan-Culnan a United States Citizen?
Dear Mount Laurel Township,
Please accept this electronic request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form or use a particular software platform to submit my request per NJSA 47:1A-6(f), which states that an email from a requestor including all of the information required on the adopted form shall suffice in place of a completed form as a valid government record request.
I HAVE NOT been convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of New Jersey, any other state, or the United States.
I WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose.
I AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.
Records requested:
1) Copy of the completed Form I-9 of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
2) Copy of the completed Form W-4 of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
3) Copy of the United States passport of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
4) Copy of the New Jersey driver's license of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
5) Copy of the United States Social Security Card of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
6) Copy of the United States Certificate of Naturalization of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
7) Copy of proof of United States citizenship of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
8) Copy(ies) of proof(s) of the United States citizenship of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan presented by Ms. Catalan-Culnan to Mount Laurel Township for purposes of employment and/or receipt of payment or salary.
9) Copy(ies) of proof(s) of the United States citizenship of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan presented by Ms. Catalan-Culnan to Mount Laurel Township for purposes of appearing on the ballot as a candidate the position of councilperson of Mount Laurel Township.
Please do not respond to the above requests collectively - provide a separate response to each of the requests. Do not reject requests that contain non-disclosable information - rather, redact the same and disclose the publicly available portion.
My preferred delivery method for response(s) to this request is by E-mail as attachments. Please confirm you have received this request. If you are not the custodian of records, please forward my request to that person and provide their email address to me for future reference.
Yours faithfully,
A Concerned Citizen
Dear Requestor:
Mount Laurel Township received your January 6, 2026 OPRA and common law right of access request seeking the below categories of materials. The Township provides this timely response.
1) Copy of the completed Form I-9 of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
2) Copy of the completed Form W-4 of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
3) Copy of the United States passport of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
4) Copy of the New Jersey driver's license of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
5) Copy of the United States Social Security Card of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
6) Copy of the United States Certificate of Naturalization of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
7) Copy of proof of United States citizenship of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan.
8) Copy(ies) of proof(s) of the United States citizenship of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan presented by Ms. Catalan-Culnan to Mount Laurel Township for purposes of employment and/or receipt of payment or salary.
9) Copy(ies) of proof(s) of the United States citizenship of deputy mayor/councilwoman Silvia Catalan-Culnan presented by Ms. Catalan-Culnan to Mount Laurel Township for purposes of appearing on the ballot as a candidate the position of councilperson of Mount Laurel Township.
Response. Request denied. Such records in categories 1 through 8 are considered personal records and exempt from disclosure under that exception as well as the right to privacy. No records exist for category 9 as such records are not required to be presented to Mount Laurel Township and are not kept or maintained in the normal course of business.
The purpose of OPRA, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 to -13, is plainly set forth in the statute: "to insure that government records, unless exempted, are readily accessible to citizens of New Jersey for the protection of the public interest." Mason v. City of Hoboken, 196 N.J. 51, 57 (2008) (citing N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1). OPRA mandates "all government records shall be subject to public access unless exempt." N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1. OPRA, at N.J.S.A. 47:1A-10 further limits which portions of a personnel file may be released:
“… the personnel or pension records of any individual in the possession of a public agency, including but not limited to records relating to any grievance filed by or against an individual, shall not be considered a government record and shall not be made available for public access, except that:
an individual's name, title, position, salary, payroll record, length of service, date of separation and the reason therefor, and the amount and type of any pension received shall be a government record;
personnel or pension records of any individual shall be accessible when required to be disclosed by another law, when disclosure is essential to the performance of official duties of a person duly authorized by this State or the United States, or when authorized by an individual in interest; and
data contained in information which disclose conformity with specific experiential, educational or medical qualifications required for government employment or for receipt of a public pension, but not including any detailed medical or psychological information, shall be a government record.”
Based on the above, your request is denied under the Open Public Records Act. Turning then to the common law right of access, your request did not provide a reason for the Clerk’s Office to consider in balancing the right of access against the need for privacy. Therefore, in such a situation, the balancing test, especially considering the above statutory policies and Executive Order 26, weigh strongly in favor of non-disclosure for requests for application materials for non-hired individuals. As such, your request under the common law right of access is similarly denied.
Thank you,
Meredith Riculfy, RMC/CMFO/CMR/QPA
Township Manager/Clerk
750 Centerton Road
Mount Laurel NJ 08054
856.234.0001 ext 1233
856.234.8240 fax