A newly appointed member of the Reade Township Municipal Authority in Cambria County has said she will likely resign her seat, following board members’ claims that she is legally barred from entering the authority office.

Kate Malon, appointed earlier this month to the authority board by the Reade Township supervisors, said she intends to contact board members with further information. She was one of two new members placed on the board, alongside township Supervisor Tom Hollis.

“I’m probably going to resign it. I don’t see where my presence there is going to be conducive to getting anything done,” Malon said Tuesday. “I’ll send them a letter when I’m sure.”

The authority, which provides water service in part of the northern Cambria County township, has been the subject of on-and-off political squabbling for some time. The latest dispute surrounded Malon, who worked for the authority last year before resigning amid allegations that she had accessed records without permission.

Malon said she didn’t attend the board’s monthly meeting Thursday, the first meeting after her appointment. Board solicitor Tim Burns of Ebensburg had warned earlier that her attendance could provoke a legal battle, as officials had ordered her not to return to the board office after she left her job last year.

“It looks like she didn’t come to the first meeting, so we didn’t have a legal crisis,” Burns said Monday.

Hollis — who has repeatedly clashed with board President Jim Thompson — attended the meeting Thursday, Burns and Thompson said. Hollis also sits on the neighboring Glendale Valley Municipal Authority board, which attempted in 2014 to take over the Reade authority and assume its debt.

If and when the Reade authority board gets written notification of Malon’s resignation, Burns said, members will set about choosing a replacement.

Mirror Staff Writer Ryan Brown is at 946-7457.