With bi-partisan fanfare, Governor Chris Christie signed the Economic Opportunity Act yesterday afternoon. The new law,which Christie reshaped with his conditional veto, is far-reaching legislation designed to make New Jersey more competitive in economic development and job creation.
Economic incentives for business and development will now be more generous and easier to obtain.
State Senator Joe Kyrillos, a primary sponsor of the bill, celebrated the enactment of the legislation and called for more comprehensive tax reform.
“We got this done to boost New Jersey’s private-sector economy, because many Republicans and Democrats realize that this legislature desperately needs to do more to attract and retain job creators,” said Kyrillos (R-Monmouth). “We came together; we compromised to create more opportunities for New Jersey families. This should be the bridge to comprehensive tax reform that New Jerseyans have been waiting on for far too long.”
“It is encouraging that Democratic prime sponsor Senator Lesniak acknowledged the following during Thursday’s session: ‘We know that New Jersey cannot compete not only with our surrounding states but we can’t compete internationally because of the cost of doing business here we know is high,’” Kyrillos added. “This is a problem that Senate Republicans have tried to permanently address for years. With more Democrats now realizing the issue, the chances that this legislature will finally fix this state’s non-competitive tax structure are much better. When we get this done, residents won’t have fear that our sons and daughters will be forced to flee this costly state to start their families elsewhere, or that they won’t be able to find solid jobs because employers can’t afford to operate here.”
Ed Murray/The Star-Ledger TRENTON — With election day only seven weeks away, Gov. Chris Christie is still enjoying solid approval ratings among New Jerseyans, a new poll indicates. Sixty-one percent of people polled approve of the job Christie is…
Governor Christie: Part of what I want I’m going to be doing this week, is to get out and around the state with two messages. First, is that for those folks who didn’t believe that we could have a summer in 2013 here in New Jersey, through all the hard work of people at local, state, and federal government, individual citizens, we’ve been able to have a really good summer on the Jersey Shore especially here in the southern part of the state. But secondly, to also remind people that because we had a good summer from a business perspective in many parts of the state, doesn’t mean for a second that we’re forgetting the people whose lives are still turned upside down by this storm. There are still thousands of people who are not back in their homes, people who are still trying to grapple with the damage and the loss from Sandy, and we’re continuing everyday through the grant programs that we have to help those folks. And I won’t rest until all those people are able to make their own decision about whether they want to get back in their home or whether they want to move on to something else. And we have to be able to do both at the same time everybody. If we waited for everyone to have their lives return to normal before we started to market our state and help these businesses, these businesses around us wouldn’t be open. People wouldn’t come. If we haven’t had this tourism campaign that we’ve had, if we hadn’t done the things that we needed to do to let people know that we can walk and chew gum at the same time. You know we can promote our businesses, and promote the good things that we’ve done while also acknowledging that there’s more work to do.
It sure sounds like it in the beginning of this video as the Democratic U.S. Senate candidate sings Governor Christie’s praises during an appearance in Newark yesterday, while GOP Senate candidate Steve Lonegan’s campaign manager Rick Shaftan on was hand to video the event.
In the aftermath of the Newtown, Connecticut school massacre in December of 2012, many politicians moved to give the appearance of doing something about gun control. My heart continues to brake for the families who will always feel an emptiness in their life. New Jersey politicians were not immune from the pressure of passing gun control bills. I was opposed to new laws and urged others to join me in opposition. The thirteen bills passed by the New Jersey legislature that landed on Governor Christie’s desk did little to address the real issues and did nothing to prevent a similar massacre from reoccurring.
Last week Governor Christie addressed the last three of the thirteen bills. The first ten bills were signed into law by the republican governor. The National Rifle Association classified 2 of the 10 as a benefit to gun owners and two were opposed by NRA. I remain opposed to the signing of those 2 bills. The remaining six bills had a negligible impact on gun owners and were not opposed. This week Gov. Christie Vetoed and returned the remaining 3 of the 13 bills. Of all thirteen bills the three remaining bills were most intrusive and an offense to the Constitution and violated Liberty. My family and I are proud gun owners and members of the NRA and New Jersey Second Amendment Society (NJ2AS). I urge all good patriots who support the 2nd Amendment by joining either or both organizations.
I want to thank and applaud Governor Christie for vetoing the remaining gun control bills because I truly believe when you take guns away from law abiding citizens; you empower the criminals and embolden the government against the citizenry. Thank you Governor for defending the 2nd amendment and standing with 1 million lawful gun owners in New Jersey who are law abiding citizens, because to punish the innocent along with the guilty is no justice at all.
South Jersey Democratic boss George Norcross invited the “reconfigured power elite” of the state Democratic Party to dinner in Colts Neck last night, according to a report at PolitickerNJ.
Monmouth County Democratic Chairman Vin Gopal was not there; not invited to a high powered Democratic gathering in his county.
Also not present, gubernatorial nominee and head of the party in name only, State Senator Barbara Buono. Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver, not there. U.S. Senate nominee Cory Booker represented Essex County. Essex County Executive Joseph Divencenzo, who has endorsed Governor Chris Christie for reelection, was not invited.
Gopal would not comment on this story. He said via text that he is traveling and would call back Monday.
Justice Helen E. Hoens. photo via NJ Courts website
Governor Christie announced the nomination of Judge Faustino J. Fernandez-Vina to replace Justice Helen Hoens on the State Supreme Court during a press conference at the State House this afternoon.
Hoens, who was up for reappointment after seven years, will not be re-nominated, Christie said, because State Senator Ray Lesniak, a senior Democratic member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, recently said that Hoens would not be reconfirmed as political retribution for Christie not re-nominating Justice John Wallace in 2010. Christie said that Hoens took the news as a professional and thanked him for not putting her through an arduous and fruitless re-confirmation hearing. Hoen’s term expires in late October.
There are currently two vacancies, of seven positions, on the State Supreme Court. Christie nominated Monmouth County Judge David F. Bauman and Board of Public Utilities President Robert Hanna to fill those vacancies in December of last year. The Democratically controlled State Senate has not acted on their nominations, despite the fact that both men have been previously confirmed by the Senate for their current positions.
If all three of Christie’s current nominees are confirmed, a majority of the Court, 4 Justices, will be Christie appointees. Justice Anne M. Patterson was nominated by Christie in May of 2010. She was confirmed by the Senate and sworn in 19 months later in September of 2011.
Judge Fernandez-Vina, a Cuban-American and a Republican, was first nominated to the Superior Court in Camden County by Governor Jim McGreevey in 2004. He was re-nominated by Christie an reconfirmed by the Senate in 2011. In 2012, Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, a Corzine appointee, named Fernandez-Vina the Assignment Judge of the Camden County Vicinage.
Governor Chris Christie said this afternoon that the controversial tweet sent out by a Lonegan for Senate staffer last week during the Democratic Senatorial Debate was inappropriate, and the fact that Lonegan immediately ordered the tweet taken down indicates that Lonegan knows it was inappropriate, despite his protestations since.
“Why take it down if there was nothing wrong with it?” Christie said.
Christie said the would have fired the staffer who posted the tweet, “but its Steve’s campaign. He has a different management style.”
The Governor said he would endorse the winner of tomorrow’s Republican primary to replace the late U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg.
With bi-partisan fanfare, Governor Chris Christie signed the Economic Opportunity Act yesterday afternoon. The new law,which Christie reshaped with his conditional veto, is far-reaching legislation designed to make New Jersey more competitive in economic development and job creation.
