O’Scanlon: Reinstate Regional Contribution Agreements To Help Sandy Victims

Assemblyman urges Bayshore residents to ask Senate President Sweeney join the bi-partisan effort

Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon, R-Monmouth, issued a statement today welcoming Marlboro Mayor Jon Hornik’s support of Regional Contribution Agreements (RCA) for use in getting Sandy victims back into their homes, and called upon residents of his Bayshore district to question Senate President Sweeney the use of Affordable Housing Funds when Sweeney visits the district for his Town Hall meeting in Keansburg on Thursday afternoon.

“Recently, Marlboro Mayor Jon Hornik suggested that RCAs could be used by towns to help their neighbors continue to rebuild in the devastating wake of Sandy,” O’Scanlon said, “My Republican colleagues and I have been calling for the use of RCAs for years and I am excited to hear that Mayor Hornik is on board. When the Democrat leadership in Trenton killed the RCA program it was bad, short sighted policy that many of us knew would come back to bite us. Its flaws are now magnified by the plight of Sandy victims as many towns struggle with the economic burdening of rebuilding.

“I agree with Mayor Hornik and look forward to working with him to push the Democrat legislative leadership to agree to reinstate RCAs. I intend to introduce legislation which will do just that and I hope I can count on the Mayor to call on Democrats across the state to do the right thing. In fact, I hope folks will attend Seate President Steve Sweeney’s townhall in Keansburg tomorrow and ask him to join our effort.”

Hornik told MMM that he would be happy to work with O’Scanlon, and anyone else to get people back into their homes. “I don’t care how we got here,” Hornik said, “we need to fix it, and address the needs of people of the people who are still without their homes.  This should be a bi-partisan solution.   I’m pleased that Assemblyman O’Scanlon agrees and that momentum is building.”

Hornik pointed out that Govenor Chris Christie attempted to seize unused Affordable Housing funds to plug holes in his budget last year, and that any legislation

O’Scanlon proposes would have to be signed by Christie before it became law.  Hornik said that he hopes O’Scanlon’s legislation will protect Affordable Housing funds for their intended purpose.

RCAs were created in the 1985 Fair Housing Act whereby towns with funds raised from developers fees could transfer up to half of those funds to another community for the purpose of building affordable housing as required by the NJ Supreme Court’s  Mt. Laurel decision.  The legislature and Governor Jon Corzine banned the practice in 2008 when they amended the Fair Housing Act with legislation known as A-500.

Sweeney is having a Town Hall Meeting Thursday at the Bayshore Senior Day Center, 100 Main St, Keansburg, at 1PM.

 

Posted: March 19th, 2014 | Author: Art Gallagher | Filed under: 13th Legislative District, Housing | Tags: COAH, Declan O'Scanlon, Jon Hornik, Keansburg, Marlboro, Mt Laurel, RCA, Regional Contribution Agreements, Steve Sweeney | 4 Comments »

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