TRENTON – Senate President Richard J. Codey and Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts Jr. today agreed to honor Gov. Jon S. Corzine’s call for a two-day furlough of employee salaries in the legislative branch to close the mounting gap in the state FY 2009 budget.
Under Gov. Corzine’s plan, employees would be required to take one furlough day in May and one in June to help close the gap in the current budget.
Codey (D-Essex) and Roberts (D-Camden) said they will furlough the Senate and Assembly majority and minority offices in accordance with Corzine’s plan.
They said they will also direct the Office of Legislative Services to do the same, while also directing the clerks of each legislative house to research how Senate and Assembly members can furlough two-days of pay and apply the two-day furlough to their district offices.
“If the Governor is calling for executive branch employees to make sacrifices, then we need to do our part as well,” said Sen. Codey. “We recognize that these are extraordinary times and many employees in the private sector have taken much bigger hits. If this small sacrifice means the difference between some employees losing their jobs altogether, it will be well worth it.”
“These are unprecedented times, so difficult decisions are needed to ensure New Jersey remains fiscally sound and is positioned to emerge strong from this global economic crisis,” Roberts said. “Revenues are falling and we have a legal and moral obligation to balance our budget, so just as families are doing throughout New Jersey, we must find fiscally responsible ways to live within our means. We’re helping lead by example by tightening our belts.”
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