TRENTON – Senator Loretta Weinberg began her Senate career today with cheers from more than 250 supporters and with a pledge from Governor-elect Jon Corzine that she would be his “conscience” once he takes office in January.
Senator Weinberg was sworn in by Acting Governor and Senate President Richard J. Codey in a Senate chamber packed with cheering supporters, her former Assembly friends and her new Senate colleagues.
TRENTON – Senator Ronald L. Rice today introduced a measure to help protect New Jersey’s children by expanding the provisions of the 1995 child-protection window guard law to require landlords to inspect window guards at least twice a year, and to direct the Department of Community Affairs to establish window safety training for tenants.
“Just three months ago, five-year old Zahir Atkins fell 15 stories to his death from a Newark apartment that had window guards,” said Senator Rice, D-Essex, who Chairs the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee, and also sits on the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens panel. “Something is terribly wrong if children are still falling from windows equipped with guards.”
TRENTON – Senator Shirley K. Turner introduced a bill today which would place greater restrictions on bounty hunters, following a botched raid this past Monday in Trenton that leaves the effectiveness and legality of the profession in question.
“Bounty hunters say they stand for justice, bringing in fugitives who have skipped on bail, but we have to be careful that they are not employing many of the same tactics used by the fugitives they capture,” said Senator Turner, D-Mercer. “Monday’s case shows that, too often, bounty hunters use barely legal, if not patently illegal, methods to bring in their targets. We need a strong regulatory system to ensure that they do not overstep the law, using justice as a smokescreen for unsafe and reckless activities.”
TRENTON – Democratic Senator-Elect Loretta Weinberg will be sworn in to the State Senate on Thursday (Nov. 10) by Senate President and Acting Governor Richard J. Codey during ceremonies scheduled to begin at noon in the Senate Chamber.
Senator-elect Weinberg of Teaneck won a landslide victory Tuesday to represent the 37th District for the two years remaining on the Senate term of former Senator Byron M. Baer who resigned in September for health reasons.
WOODBRIDGE – Senator Joseph F. Vitale will hold a Senior Town Hall Meeting on Monday, November 7th to inform seniors how the new Medicare D prescription drug benefit will affect their PAAD and Senior Gold benefits.
While Medicare D will provide the added benefit of prescription drug coverage for all
New Jersey seniors, the information and educational outreach on the part of the Federal Government has been fragmented and very confusing. This meeting will clear the air for seniors, answer their questions and provide the information that will help them make the best decisions. Seniors will be able to begin selecting their coverage plans on November 15th, making this meeting both informative and timely.
TRENTON – Senator-Elect Loretta Weinberg will sit on three Senate committees – Judiciary, Commerce and State Government – for the remainder of the current two-year Senate session which ends in January.
She will be sworn in to the Senate as the Senator from the 37th Legislative District on November 10th, replacing former Sen. Byron M. Baer who resigned for health reasons. She is the Democratic candidate on the general election ballot on Tuesday, Nov. 8th, for the 37th District Senate seat which has two years remaining on its term.
BRIDGETON – A new environmental protection law championed by Senators Stephen M. Sweeney and John H. Adler will increase financial penalties by a whopping 800 percent for oil transport and shipping companies that are culpable for spills harming New Jersey waterways.
The measure (S-2311) was signed into law today by Acting Governor Richard J. Codey at a ceremony in Bridgeton.
TRENTON – Senator Bob Smith and Assemblyman John F. McKeon participated in a news conference today in the Statehouse Annex to educate voters on Ballot Question 2, an initiative appearing on the ballot this November which, if approved, would divert millions of dollars over ten years to air pollution control efforts in New Jersey.
“Currently, New Jerseyans are suffering from some of the worst air quality in the nation, and a major source for a lot of the air pollution plaguing our skies is from diesel engines,” said Senator Smith, D-Middlesex and Somerset, the Chairman of the Senate Environment Committee. “Ballot Question 2 gives voters the opportunity to clean up our air, and put our money where our mouths and lungs are, in terms of funding programs which will cut down on the amount of dangerous soot in our skies. The best part is that we can do this without raising taxes that are already burdening our State’s homeowners and businesses.”
NEWARK – Senator Ronald L. Rice, Chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus, today said the death of Assemblyman Donald K. Tucker “marks a tremendous loss to New Jerseys entire Urban population.”
Senator Rice, D-28th District, attended the funeral services here for his Assembly colleague who died on Monday, October 17.
EDISON – With Halloween fast-approaching, Senator Barbara Buono urged consideration in the State Senate of a bill to protect consumers from the health risks associated with using non-prescription contact lenses, and warned parents of the dangers associated with using these contacts as a costume accessory.
“Plano lenses, which are increasingly popular with teenagers during Halloween, are non-prescription contacts used solely to change the color or appearance of one’s eyes,” said Senator Buono, D-Middlesex. “However, considering the only requisite to purchase these lenses is a valid credit card number, many teenagers and other consumers have suffered vision impairment, blindness, corneal ulcers, conjunctivitis, and allergic reactions, caused by this unregulated novelty.
TRENTON – Senator Joseph F. Vitale, today said the subsidy checks of nearly $11,000 being mailed out to doctors under the new medical malpractice insurance reform law represent “real premium assistance” to the 1,200 recipients who applied for them.
“This is real money in any profession, but it shows the law is working to help doctors in the high-risk specialty fields,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex, and Senate sponsor of the medical malpractice reform. The State announced the first checks were mailed out today.
TRENTON – At a news conference today in the Statehouse, State Senator Ellen Karcher revealed a reform plan today for New Jersey’s childhood mental health system, which she said was “in need of major improvements.”
“We’ve really pushed the envelope in terms of our attention to the plight of the mentally ill, and that’s in no small part due to reforms instituted by Governor Codey,” said Senator Karcher, D-Monmouth and Mercer, the Vice Chair of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. “However, there’s one area where we can do so much more, and that’s in the arena of childhood mental illness. By implementing these reforms, we can help our most vulnerable kids and adolescents overcome the specter of mental illness, through early diagnosis, and a coordinated model of support and treatment.”
HOBOKEN — The office of Senate Majority Leader Bernard F. Kenny Jr. today announced that it had served 300 senior citizens at the 14th Annual Columbus Day Senior Luncheon held at the Hoboken Elks Lodge on Washington Street on Wednesday, Oct. 19th.
Senator Kenny’s Chief of Staff, Kathy Perry-Cardino, said Senator Kenny personally served up the luncheon fare of antipasto, macaroni and sausuge along with cannolis for dessert. The Senate Majority Leader received help serving the lunches from Hoboken Mayor and Luncheon Co-Host Dave Roberts while Ms. Cardino and Legislative Assistant Susan Flynn staffed the kitchen.
TRENTON – Senator Joseph F. Vitale, D-Middlesex, the Chairman of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee, issued the following statement today regarding the New Jersey Child Welfare Panel’s release of its most recent Monitoring Report:
“The NJ Child Welfare Panel was created to ensure the success of necessary reforms to the State’s child welfare system, following a series of lapses and tragic missteps that had endangered children in the State’s care. One year out, the report finds that New Jersey is still ranked poorly in many of the key areas in which we needed to improve.
TRENTON – Senator Wayne R. Bryant, D-Camden & Gloucester, Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee Chair and a member of the Senate Education Committee, released the following statement today after a news conference held by the New Jersey Council of Community Colleges discussing the role of community colleges in economic and workforce development now and during the upcoming gubernatorial administration:
“Our local community colleges play a pivotal role in helping to prepare today’s students for tomorrow’s workforce. Workforce training must be a central element of maintaining a progressive and viable economy. I believe in New Jersey’s community colleges and the positive work they are doing for the roughly 350,000 students who are enrolled Statewide. I believe that higher education trains students to be successful members of society, which is why I sponsored the “NJ STARS” law to allow students who finish in the top 20% of their high school graduating class to attend a community college for free. This year I also sponsored the “NJ STARS II” law to extend the provisions of “NJ STARS” and allow students already enrolled in the program with a GPA of 3.0 and above to continue in the program. Our community colleges work, which is why I’ve always made it a point to fight for increased budget funding for these schools. I am now calling on whoever is elected in November to work with legislators to make supporting the State’s community colleges a top priority. It is imperative that the Legislative and Executive branches continue to support the community college system and New Jersey’s exceptional students through both financial and moral support – we owe it to ourselves, our children and the future of New Jersey’s economy.”