To My Democratic Friends: Please accept with no obligation, implied or explicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2011 but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere . Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee. To My Republican Friends: Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Trenton, NJ – Fulfilling a critical element of his Reform Agenda, Governor Chris Christie today signed comprehensive arbitration reform legislation as part of a wider set of far-reaching reforms designed to curb property tax costs for hard-working New Jerseyans. The measure is the result of a bipartisan agreement reached on December 9 with legislative leadership to change the long-overdue interest arbitration reform process by providing municipalities with the tools they need to rein in property tax costs and live within their means.
“Today, Trenton is demonstrating what can be done when we work together to find substantive solutions to the issues facing the hard-working taxpayers of our state,” said Governor Christie. “Working with Senate President Steve Sweeney, Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver, Senate Minority Leader Tom Kean and Assembly Minority Leader Alex DeCroce, we are delivering meaningful and substantive reform to New Jerseyans, transforming the interest arbitration process and providing a long-term solution that will help local governments keep property taxes down and costs under control.
“Our work, however, is not done, and I urge the legislative leadership to keep the momentum going by acting on other critical pieces of the tool kit of reforms that will ultimately help to keep property taxes low. New Jerseyans can no longer afford inaction and delay which is why the legislature must move on real, comprehensive civil service reform as I have proposed, not a watered-down version,” concluded Governor Christie.
The civil service bill proposed by the legislature falls short by, among other things, not offering municipalities the option to opt-out of the antiquated and burdensome civil service requirements. As proposed by Governor Christie, arbitration and civil service reform get at the root of the problem faced by many local governments struggling to live within their means – ever-expanding operational costs.
Also awaiting legislative action is Governor Christie’s conditional veto of Senate Bill 2220, which would more effectively stop the abuse of sick and vacation benefits and prevent future use of sick days — meant for employees who are sick — as supplemental cash payouts for employees who already have generous pensions. Among improvements to the original bill, the conditional veto would phase out the practice of distributing cash payouts for sick days by prohibiting supplemental compensation for sick days that accumulate after the effective date of the legislation. It would also suspend supplemental compensation for any employee under indictment for a crime that involves or touches his or her public office and mandate the forfeiture of any supplemental compensation if convicted. The Governor continues to urge the legislature to act quickly to adopt the substantive changes in the conditional veto. The news release outlining the Governor’s conditional veto can be found HERE.
The bipartisan agreement signed into law today mirrors Governor Christie’s call for a meaningful cap that matches the tax levy cap of 2.0. This 2 percent cap will be applied to all salary items, such as across the board and cost of living increases, step increment payments and longevity pay. In addition, there will be no additional exceptions for non-salary economic terms moving forward. The agreement also created a prohibition on allowing non-salary economic issues to be arbitrated above the cap, unless already included in an existing contract. This is an important provision because arbitrators will no longer be able to create new cost items in successor contracts.
The Christie Bipartisan Agreement on Interest Arbitration Reformsigned today:
·Provides a meaningful cap of 2 percent on arbitration awards that will be applied to all salary items, such as the cost of across the board and cost of living increases, step increment payments and longevity pay.
·Has no Exceptions for Additional Non-Salary Economic Terms Moving Forward. The agreement prevents arbitrators from awarding any new economic items moving forward. The agreement creates a prohibition on allowing non-salary economic issues to be arbitrated above the cap, unless already included in an existing contract. All salary items are subject to a maximum 2 percent cap. This is an important provision because arbitrators will no longer be able to create new cost items in successor contracts.
·Eliminates Accruing Labor Costs By Creating a Fast Track Arbitration Process. The agreement transforms the system by putting in place concrete deadlines to help eliminate delays in the arbitration process, from contract negotiation to the receipt of the actual award. Traditionally, once a contract expires, labor costs continue to mount until a new contact is reached. Enforcing deadlines and speeding up the process will ensure timely implementation of new contracts and the cap on interest arbitration awards. Effective January 1, 2011, there will be a concrete deadline of 45 days from the filing of a request for interest arbitration to the date of award, without any extensions. All appeals must be decided within 30 days, if arbitrators do not comply with the 45 day deadline, they will be penalized financially.
·Caps Arbitrator Pay. The agreement will cap arbitrator compensation at $1,000 per day and $7,500 per case. Capping arbitrator pay will further incentivize speedy resolution of arbitration cases.
·Increases Ethical Standards and Training for Interest Arbitrators.
·Randomizes the Selection of Interest Arbitrators.
The legislation also creates a Task Force to examine the impact of interest arbitration reform and the effectiveness of the cap on restricting municipal spending. The taskforce will study the impact of the cap on taxes, services, expenditures, public safety, recruitment, retention and professionalism. The Governor will directly appoint four members and two members will be directly appointed by the Senate President and Assembly Speaker. The Task Force will provide its recommendations no later than December 31, 2013.
Since September, Governor Christie has been traveling the state to talk about the importance of enacting a tool kit of reforms to help local government leaders directly address cost drivers and manage within Cap 2.0 without adversely impacting core government services. Hundreds of mayors and local elected officials across political parties have voiced their support for the tool kit, and underscored the tool kit’s importance in helping them manage their local budgets.
Now that we know for sure that NJ will lose a congressional seat, speculation will run rampant over which two incumbents will be pushed into running against each other when the new district lines are drawn.
Redistricting has historically been an incumbent protection plan. With one incumbent sure to go, barring a retirement or a primary upset, there will be two incumbents facing off against each other in the 2012 general election.
Some incumbents have more clout than others. Seniority matters, as does money. Newly elected Jon Runyan is the logical odd man out based upon seniority. However, if New Jersey’s population has grown in the southern part of the state as many believe (those census numbers will be released in February) Runyon might be sparred. Runyan could find himself up against Rob Andrews or Chris Smith. Or maybe, if Runyan’s district in combined with Smith’s or Andrews’, the former NFL star will run for U.S. Senate against Robert Menendez.
The next most junior member of the NJ delegation is Leonard Lance of the 7th district who was first elected in 2008. In the 2000 redistricting parts of the 6th (Frank Pallone) and 7th were swapped to protect Pallone and then incumbent Mike Ferguson. That’s how Plainfield in Union County ended up in Pallone’s 6th. There has been some speculation that 6 and 7 will be combined, pitting Lance and Pallone against each other.
Such a scenario could make for an interesting GOP primary, as Anna Little has already announced that she is running against Pallone. Would Little run a primary against Lance? As good as a Lance-Little contest would be for blog traffic, Pallone’s seniority and his war chest will probably keep him safe from an incumbent.
A Rush Holt (12) vs Leonard Lance contest is possible as their districts border each other and parts of Holt’s 12th were moved into Ferguson’s 7th in the 2000 incumbent protection plan.
If northern districts are combined, like Pascrell and Garrett or Pascrell and Frelinghuysen, well that would just be boring for a Central Jersey blog.
As most experts have expected, New Jersey will lose one representative in the House of Representatives as a result of the 2010 U.S. Census. In 2012 New Jersey will elect 12 Members of Congress. Currently NJ has 13 Member of Congress.
As of April 1, 2010 the U.S. population was 308,745,538 people, according to the Census, an increase of 9.7% over the 2000 Census. New Jersey’s population increased 4.5% over the decade from 8.4 million to 8.8 million people. The average population of congressional districts is targeted to be 710,767 people.
A total of 12 seats will shift among 18 states. In addition to New Jersey, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania will lose seats. Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Texas and Utah will gain seats.
NJN has been given a reprieve from going dark on January 1 because people like it. Tens of thousands of people like, “not hundreds of thousands,” as News Director Michael Aron told Politickernj.
What those tens of thousands of people like, and what is important to New Jersey, is the station’s news coverage. In particular its coverage of state government and politics. NJN was not given a reprieve because of reruns from the 60’s and 70’s of Christmas with the King Familyor Hummingbirds: Magic in the Air. If only tens of thousands of people like the station’s news coverage, how many are tuning in for 3 Steps to Piano Success?
Legislation that Governor Christie recently approved empowers the NJ Public Broadcasting Authority to work to transfer NJN from a government entity to the control of a non-profit organization or an existing public broadcasting entity.
Why not a for profit Jersey-centric commercial station with Jersey news and programing? If HBO (The Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire) and MTV (Jersey Shore) can get millions of viewers with Jersey-centric programing, a real Jersey TV station should be able to get the hundreds of thousands that Aron aspires to have.
I realize that that creates red tape and regulatory hurdles with the FCC, but it should be doable.
Aron tells me the annual barebones budget for NJN is about $20 million, which includes “in-kind” contributions from the State for rent and other overhead items. A good Jersey TV station should be able to sell a lot more that $20 million in advertising. Expand the “sponsorships” to more that PSEG and the NJEA.
If we can sell advertising on our school busses, we ought to be able to sell advertising on our TV station.
Let’s find a way to make it happen and have more Jersey news, entertainment and sports.
This afternoon at 4:30 Governor Chris Christie signed a commutation order of Brian Aitken’s prison sentence of seven years for illegal possesion of firearms to time served effective today. The Governor order that Aitken be released from prison as soon as administratively possible.
According to numerous news reports, Aitken had purchased his firearms legally while a resident of Colorado and was transporting them pursuant to instructions he had received from the New Jersey State Police while moving back to his native New Jersey when he was arrested in January of 2009. The judge presiding over Aitken’s trial did not allow the jury to consider the exemption to New Jersey’s firearm carry law for transporting weapons between residences.
It’s official—Governor Christie has commuted Brian’s sentence and he will be home before Christmas!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU everybody. If it wasn’t for your letters, phone calls and support this never would have happened. What a joyous Christmas this will be. Thank again from the bottom of our hearts. Brian Aitken has been freed!
Governor Chris Christie was featured prominently in the 60 MINUTES segment, State Budgets: Day of Reckoning last night. See InTheLobbyfor a synopsis and links to the broadcast and extra footage.
There were two key phrases Christie used that caught my attention when talking about the state’s pension and retiree health care obligations. 1) Christie said that most of the general public is incredulous that there are still people still getting pensions. Most of us have 401K’s that have been hammered and we don’t know how we are going to fund our retirements. 2) Christie said, as I have heard him say before, that while public employees are up in arms now, if he doesn’t take the necessary actions to reform the pension and benefits system, it won’t exist in 10 years.
I hope the second comment is not an indication that Christie is going to try to save the pension and benefits system. It is beyond saving and it is not appropriate to try.
As Christie’s two least favorite conservatives (besides Sarah Palin), Paul Mulshine and Rick Merkt wrote in September, if the state pension system was a private pension system the federal government would have shut it down already.
If the federal government is not going to do the right thing regarding the insolvent state pension systems throughout the county, New Jersey and Chris Christie should lead the way. Scrap the pension system. Distribute the money in the system equitably to its beneficiaries’ retirement accounts and let’s move on. Set up 401K type retirement programs for government workers and retirees.
The private sector has already handled this crisis and have given the states a model for how to do it. It’s not fair and it won’t be pretty, but it has to be done. All we need is a leader with the courage to do it.
I believe Chris Christie is that leader. I hope I am right.
