Shirley K. Turner

TRENTON – State gas price-gouging laws “need more teeth” said Senate President Pro Tempore Shirley K. Turner today as the State and local authorities take on the crisis caused by skyrocketing gas prices.

“New Jersey drivers are at the breaking point,” said Senator Turner, D-Mercer. “While the Bush Administration is paying lip service to the crisis in Washington, New Jersey is taking action and fighting back. Unfortunately right now it’s like taking on a tank with a BB gun. We need to better arm our local officials to win this battle.”

TRENTON – Senator Shirley K. Turner welcomed final approval today by the Senate for the “School District Fiscal Accountability Act” which would set into place a process by which the State would provide loans to school districts running budget deficits, such as Willingboro School District.

“We realize that schools are run by administrators and school board members who occasionally make mistakes. But a mistake of this magnitude must come with consequences and a plan to ensure that the mistake is not repeated,” said Senator Turner, D-Mercer and Chair of the Senate Education Committee. “We are taking a measured approach to addressing local deficits and putting into place monitors and safeguards to provide fiscal stability.”

TRENTON – Senator Shirley K. Turner welcomed approval today by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee of the “School District Fiscal Accountability Act” which would set into place a process by which the State would provide loans to school districts like Willingboro, which are running deficits.

“Every child in the State of New Jersey deserves a quality education, and poor fiscal management by a local school board should not jeopardize that education,” said Senator Turner, D-Mercer and Chair of the Senate Education Committee. “At the same time, it’s not fair to other school districts to simply bail out Willingboro. There must be oversight that comes with the additional aid, so the district will not repeat its mistakes.”

TRENTON – Senator Shirley K. Turner welcomed committee approval today of her legislation that would create a down-payment assistance program for teachers, police officers, firefighters and sanitation workers employed by an Abbott district who purchase a home within that district.

“The salaries of police officers, teachers, firefighters and sanitation workers comprise a significant part of our Abbott districts’ budgets,” said Senator Turner, D-Mercer. “We should encourage those individuals to live within the municipality they serve and become an active participant in the city’s revitalization efforts.”

EWING – Senator Shirley K. Turner, a long-standing supporter of truck restrictions on local roads and highways, announced that she has reintroduced legislation banning all trucks from all roads other than interstate highways, the NJ Turnpike or the Atlantic City Expressway.

“Tractor-trailer trucks simply make our local highways and roads less safe,” said Senator Turner. “In my district alone, I know of state highways that are already packed enough during rush hours without tons of trucks adding to the congestion. Our residents deserve to have safer roads that are truck free.”