TRENTON – Senator Shirley K. Turner today said New Jersey should respond to the “plague of violence in our society” by placing police officers in every high school and middle school in the State.
“It’s a sad, but necessary response to the plague of violence in our society that police officers should be on the job at every high school and middle school in New Jersey,” said Senator Turner, the Chair of the Senate Education Committee.
TRENTON – The Senate Labor Committee gave unanimous approval today to legislation sponsored by Senator Shirley K. Turner that would deny state and local development subsidies to any business found to employee illegal aliens.
“Development subsidies are only effective if the company receiving those funds reinvests them into the community,” said Senator Turner, D-Mercer. “When companies receive loans, grants and tax breaks it is with the intention of creating more jobs and expanding the local tax base. When illegal aliens are employed instead, our communities lose all of the benefits of these subsidies.”
TRENTON – Legislation sponsored by Senator Ronald L. Rice to allow a municipality to grant short-term tax exemptions for organizations using volunteer labor when rebuilding houses destroyed by fires was approved today by the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee.
“Trying to rebuild a home in the wake of losing so much to a major disaster is devastating,” said Senator Rice, Chairman of the Committee. “We need to do what we can to lessen the burden on homeowners. Without tax exemptions, the owners may no longer be able to afford their homes because of the higher taxes assessed to the now, significantly more valuable home.”
TRENTON – Senator Nia H. Gill today applauded the legislative progress of her bill, S-494, to authorize needle exchange programs which will bring New Jersey closer to containing the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Senator Gill’s measure, which would authorize trial needle exchange programs in six municipalities, was approved today the Senate Budget & Appropriations Committee and now goes to the full Senate. It advanced with a $10 million appropriation that is to be used solely to expand drug treatment programs.
TRENTON – Citing the fact that federal law makes it too easy for financial institutions to sell their clients personal information, Senator Barbara Buono welcomed committee approval of her bill that would require that individuals “opt-in” before their private information could be shared by banks and credit card companies.
“Most people don’t realize that they have to sign a form with their credit card company saying they want to keep their financial information private,” explained Senator Buono. “It makes no sense that by default, financial institutions can sell such sensitive information about an individual. With identity theft the big threat it is these days, we need to make sure every reasonable safeguard is in place to protect consumers.”
EDISON – Senator Barbara Buono, D-Middlesex, announced during her keynote address at yesterday’s Metuchen-Edison, Woodbridge Childhood Obesity Summit that she would introduce legislation today requiring all chain restaurants in New Jersey to display basic nutrition information on their menus. Dr. Marlene Schwartz, also a speaker at the Summit and the Director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy at Yale University, supported Buono’s bill as an effective strategy to respond to the growing obesity epidemic, especially among our children.
“We know that Americans are eating out more and more. In 1970 Americans spent just 26% of their food budget on eating away from home,” said Senator Buono. “Currently, we spend almost half of our food dollars dining out. This bill will give families an effective tool to make informed choices and hopefully reduce the incidence of obesity and its related diseases.”
TRENTON – Senators Paul A. Sarlo an Loretta Weinberg today introduced legislation designed to prevent political opportunists from accepting State matching funds for one election and then using the money to promote themselves for another elective office.
“It’s despicable that some candidates are all too willing to rip off a good system for their own selfish motives,” said Senator Sarlo, D-Bergen, Essex and Passaic.
TRENTON – During roundtable discussions held today, the Joint Legislative Committee on Public Employee Benefits Reform heard from numerous public employee unions and local government advocacy organizations during broad-ranging discussions that covered topics from two-tiered benefits systems to pension system funding to flexibility in choosing health care coverage.
The roundtable discussions took place as part of the panel’s continuing examination of pensions and health benefits provided to state, county, municipal, and school employees. The committee’s co-chairs – Senator Nicholas Scutari (D-Union) and Assemblywoman Nellie Pou (D-Passaic) – invited representatives from 14 groups to provide varying perspectives on the pensions and benefits and their impact on property taxpayers.
TRENTON – Senator Bob Smith, D-Middlesex and Somerset, the co-Chair of the Joint Legislative Committee on Government Consolidation and Shared Services, issued the following statement regarding today’s hearing on Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts’ “CORE” reform package to encourage government consolidation:
“The Speaker’s ‘CORE’ plan for property tax savings is an invaluable part of real, sustained reform, and fits in nicely with the proposals already talked about in this Committee, including Senator Kyrillos’ municipal merger commission, and my effort to consolidate school administrative functions.
TRENTON – Senator Nicholas Sacco, D-Hudson and Bergen, today said he will support meaningful government reforms which produce significant savings for taxpayers.
“I am proud of my career in public education which began in 1968. The voters of North Bergen and the 32nd Legislative District have honored me with their support as Mayor and as their State Senator respectively. I strongly disagree with Senator Gormley if he is suggesting that my professional career and my elective offices represent an abuse of the pension system. I have paid the required maximum pension contributions every year. If voters choose someone else, that person will qualify for a salary and a pension as long as the required contributions are made. If 400 people do the work of the top 200 State pensioners, will there be savings to taxpayers? There are areas where pension abuses can be eliminated and I will support those reforms. As a Mayor and as a State Senator, I am committed to finding significant reforms to provide property tax relief for residents of North Bergen and the 32nd District. I just won’t offer up my professional career and my service to my constituents as fodder for political grandstanding.”