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Turner Statement On The State Of The State

TRENTON – Senator Shirley K. Turner, who was today reelected to serve as Senate President Pro Tempore, made the following statement after Governor Richard J. Codey’s final State of the State Address:

“Governor Codey reminded us today of the progress that New Jersey has made over the last year in creating a state that protects the interests of all residents and looks to leave no person behind.

“We have passed the most comprehensive pay-to-play ban in the nation, making sure that local municipalities have the ability to pass even stricter limits and restored the Office of the Public Advocate to root out corruption and waste at all levels of government.

“We have raised the minimum wage and guaranteed that every person working in a state building, whether they are a Supreme Court Justice or a night-shift janitor, makes the prevailing wage – helping more than 200,000 New Jersey residents make a better living and start to bring themselves out of poverty.

“We provided $25 million in affordable housing vouchers, so that an additional 2,000 New Jersey families can get off the streets and into a safe, warm home.

“We have fought the practice of corporations sending jobs overseas, by requiring that all state contracts be performed in the United States, helping to protect the hundreds of thousands of New Jerseyans whose jobs are threatened by off-shoring.

“And we have pledged an additional $13 million to helping our needy pay their heating bills as home heating costs skyrocket this winter, making sure that no New Jersey family is forced to choose between a warm home and a full stomach.

“And we have done all of this in a fiscally responsible manner, by passing a budget that cut spending and did not raise taxes. The leadership that Governor Codey has shown over the last 14 months should serve as a model for all those men and women who follow him in that office.”