Sunday, June 25, 2006

Jun 19 - 25, 2006 - COMMUNITY

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Community - Week of June 19 - 25, 2006

Drake House: "Freeholders to see Drake House progress Wednesday"
HERITAGE Choir: "Youth choir wins at McDonald's Gospel Fest in NYC"

Letter, CN: Herb Kaufman: "Patriot Act could abolish trial rights"
Music - Larry Potts: "Saxophonist recalls his Central Jersey roots in book"
..... - Growing up in Plainfield, he went on to play with Chubby Checker, Percy Sledge and Ben E. King
Park-Madison Complex: "County gets award for aid to jobless"
People's Org for Progress: "Plainfield group protests gas prices"

United Way: "United Way certifies Plainfield nonprofit agencies"
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Jun 19 - 25, 2006 - GREEN TEAM PROPOSAL & STATE BUDGET

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Green/Moriarty/Sweeney Proposal & State Budget - Week of June 19 - 25, 2006

MON
---SL: "Budget headaches took shape over a decade; Workers rally for Corzine plan today"
---Bergen Record: "Overtime costs rise sharply for state"

TUE

---SL: "Budget standoff; Corzine orders plans for state government shutdown"
---OpEd, SL: Paul Mulshine: "Corzine gives us the business"
---NYT: "Corzine Gives In on Part of Plan in Trade-Off for His Budget"
---CN: "Corzine, senators push 7% sales tax"
---Green/Moriarty/Sweeney Plan: "Plan to cut state workers' benefits: Local reaction mirrors New Jersey"

WED

---OpEd, SL: Fran Wood: "Clear the streets for Trenton's tax showdown"
---CN: "Lawmakers look to casinos to ease taxpayers' burden"
---Editorial, CN: "Long-term fix needed for pension fund"

THU
---SL: "Democrats, Corzine get deeper into budget fray"
---CN: "Corzine standing by sales tax hike"
---NYT: "Corzine Says He Will Veto Budget With No Tax Rise"
---NJ Policy Perspective: Report: "Making the State Sales Tax Pull its Weight"

FRI
---SL: "Logjam on budget remains unbroken; Assembly cool to Codey compromise"
---CN: "Corzine stands by sales tax hike"
---NYT: "Not a Threat, Just a Possibility, Corzine Says About a Shutdown"
---AP: "Corzine continues to dismiss alternatives to sales tax boost"

SAT

---SL: "Corzine, Assembly tangle over sales tax as deadline nears"
---SL: "Lawmakers against sales tax hike, Cool to Codey compromise"
---CN: "Austere GOP budget plan presented to Corzine"
---CN: "Administration finalizing state shutdown plans"
---NYT: "G.O.P. Plan Offers Cuts, Not Tax Increase, in New Jersey"

SUN
---The Auditor, SL: "Is Norcross behind the tax fight?"
---APP: "Anti-tax activists rally, urge 'Remember in November'"
---APP: "Property taxes part of budget discussions"
---SL: "Democrats detail proposal to avert sales tax increase"
---SL: "Bogota mayor leads fight to kill Corzine plan"
---CN: "Lawmakers gear up for final battles over budget"
---Record: "New try today at ending budget impasse"
---Budget Q&A: "Summer means fun? Not in Trenton"
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Jun 19 - 25, 2006 - CONNECTIONS

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Connections? Food For Thought - Week of June 19 - 25, 2006

Abbott Schools: "Abbott road: How has school funding progressed?"
Accessibility: "Woman sees progress in fight for accessibility with Congress' grant"
Baby Boomer Housing: "Growing Demand for Continuing Care"
Board Independence: "Hillside Planning board chief to council: 'Hands off my board'"
Charlotte's Web Revealed: "Web's origins untangled"
Coaches & Sex Allegations: "Coaches and betrayal of trust"
Code Enforcement/Overcrowding - "Lambertville, Bernardsville tightening real estate rental rules"
Crime: "East Orange police director hails drop in serious crime"
Crime Fighting: "Mississippi Mayor Declares Emergency Over Crime"
Development: "110 Livingston Street: Goodbye Cubicles, Hello Condos"
Development: "Somerville to developers on uses for landfill: Us first!"
Development: "Despite citizen pleas, Hoboken approves redevelopment zone"
Development: "Historic warehouse housing artists demolished for a skyscraper in JC"
Downtowns: "Downtown's image problem"
Eminent Domain: "Eminent domain reform heads to Assembly"
Eminent Domain: "Cases of government land grabs on upswing"
Eminent Domain - OpEd, SL: "Jersey's chance for eminent domain reform"
Eminent Domain - SL: "Eminent domain limits approved by Assembly"
Eminent Domain - CN: "House OKs new eminent domain rules"
Eminent Domain - NYT: "Trenton: New Rules for Property Seizure"
Eminent Domain - AP: "Eminent Domain reform measure advances in Assembly"
Eminent Domain - SL: "Long Branch residents lose eminent domain battle"
Eminent Domain - APP: "Long Branch wins eminent domain suit"
Eminent Domain - Editorial, SL: "Eminent domain bill doesn't go far enough"
Eminent Domain - OpEd, SL: "Jersey's chance for eminent domain reform"
Eminent Domain - "Rally against ruling in Long Branch eminent domain case"
Gay Marriage: "Poll: Residents support civil unions, mixed on gay marriage"
Gov Employee Misconduct: "2 admit roles in the theft of $866K homeless aid"
Gov Employee Theft: "Two in Old Bridge are charged in theft of $91K funds for housing"
Gov Employee Theft: "South Amboy's ex-tax collector gets 6 years; stole more than $542,000"
Guns/Gunplay: "Man slain, boy, 11, injured in North Trenton shooting"
Guns/Gunplay: "Mourning mother's plea: No retaliation"
Immigrant Economic Mobility: "Immigration Math: It's a Long Story"
Immigration: Bob Braun: "Immigration quandary nothing new for U.S."
Job Training: "With a Little Help, Gaining Broader Access to Better-Paying Jobs"
Library Records Privacy: "Hasbrouch Heights library chief draws cops' ire"
Libraries: "Library Phone Answerers Survive the Internet"
Minimum Wage: "GOP senators kill minimum wage increase"
'New Urbanism' comes to NJ: "Where Town Homes May Soon Be Rare"
No-Knock Registries: "Using No-Knock Lists to Deter Solicitors"
Privacy: "AT&T revises privacy policy, says it owns customer data"
Property Taxes - "Tax increase shocks some in Perth Amboy"
Real Estate: "The Teardown Wars"
SCC: "How not to cram: Report card on the state's rush to build schools"
School Dismissals: "Court: School responsible for safe dismissals"
Schools & Free Speech: "Warren Hills must pay $600K legal fees in 'redneck' case"
Schools - Elizabeth HS: "Elizabeth the nation's largest High School" and profiles of students, courses of study and activities -- "Khaseem Greene", "Lillian Hernandez", "Susan Suarez", "Al McConkey", "Bianca Hammonds", "Lavone Lovett" and "Maria Penaranda and Kevin Lopez"
Surveillance Cams: "Long lens of the law"
Surveillance: "Pilotless plane tested by L.A. for cop surveillance"
Verizon & Cable: "Verizon details proposal to offer television service in Montclair"
Vets: "VA will offer credit monitoring in wake of personal data theft"
Voting Districts: "Judge requires consolidation of voting districts after Nov. election"
Jayson Williams - TT: "Williams strives for Trenton rebound"
Jayson Williams - CN: "Jayson Williams, wife opening waffle restaurant"
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State Budget - Record - New try at ending impasse

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Published in the Bergen Record, Sunday, June 256, 2006

New try at ending budget impasse

Sunday, June 25, 2006

By JOHN P. McALPIN
TRENTON BUREAU


Legislators facing a constitutional deadline and a governor dead set on raising the sales tax will meet today to try and end a budget impasse that has raised fears of a state shutdown.

One compromise offered would approve Governor Corzine's call to raise the sales tax, but dedicate at least $600 million of the new money to property tax relief. Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts, D-Camden, was cool to the idea, and questioned the need for the tax increase if legislators can find cuts in the $30.9 billion budget proposal.

"If we can find $500 million in other responsible cuts or revenue raisers, as I believe we can, then is a sales tax hike really necessary in the first place?" Roberts said Saturday. Senate President Richard Codey, who crafted the compromise, could not be reached for comment.

Assembly Democrats are focused on budget cuts as a way to eliminate Corzine's proposal for $1.9 billion in tax increases, the largest of which raises the sales tax from 6 cents to 7 cents on the dollar. Lawmakers must find about $1.1 billion to replace the sales tax increase.

"The governor honestly believes a penny is necessary. We respectfully have a different opinion and we are trying to convince the governor of responsible alternatives for reaching the shared goal of a balanced budget," Roberts said.

Assembly Republicans offered a package of $2.2 billion in budget cuts that many Democrats quickly called unworkable. But some of the GOP alternatives may find their way into the final budget and Democrats have at least $200 million in budget cuts already offered to Corzine.

"Their suggestion to cut commissions and boards by $3.5 million is something new we'll look at," Roberts said. "There may be others, but we've been reluctant to release all of the various ideas that we have been discussing at the negotiating table. Clearly, they understand the public's conclusion that we should try to identify cuts before raising taxes."

Still, both sides remain so far from a final budget deal that Corzine has said that the state will be shutting down parks, road projects and even Atlantic City casinos if a budget is not passed by next Friday, the constitutional deadline. This past Friday his administration made public a series of memos that outlined just how many services could be halted until the deal is done.

"To be honest, the Friday memos were not terribly productive," Roberts said. "But, that said, we are as determined as ever to join hands with our Senate colleagues and work with the governor to work out our differences and hammer out a budget that works best for New Jersey taxpayers."

Corzine spokesman Anthony Coley declined to detail the progress on the budget talks.

"Discussions will continue," Coley said. "The governor is hesitant to have budget negotiations in the newspapers."

Change in style

The last-minute budget tensions between Corzine and the Legislature, reflect in part, Corzine's transition from a CEO-style of fiscal management, where upheaval of a restructuring may take several years to produce a positive result, to a more political style of governing, where upheaval is avoided at all costs.

Corzine bluntly laid out a "hard choices" budget in March. He sternly warned that it may be painful, that it was going to mean cuts and tax increases, but it was necessary to put the state on a sound-footing for the long-term.

"The task must go forward -- no matter how tough the choices -- with a readiness to share the sacrifices," he said in his March 21 speech.

That perspective has put him on a collision course with Roberts, a Camden County Democrat who has been a steadfast opponent of Corzine's most politically dicey budget fix, the 1-cent hike in the sales tax.

In Corzine's view, the sales tax hike as well as a $169 million cut in higher education funding, a freeze in public school and municipal aid and a decision to cut court-mandated aid to 30 of the state's poorest schools, is the bitter medicine New Jersey residents must swallow now in order to restore the state's long-term fiscal health.

But that philosophy frightens some lawmakers worried about their short-term political survival. The hike, with a combination of other cuts, leaves lawmakers with much to defend on the campaign trail, but little to proudly tout in the 2007 legislative elections.

"It's the kind of strategic planning you find in the corporate world," said David Rebovich, a Rider University political scientist and a longtime analyst of New Jersey politics. "You don't find this in the political world."

Meanwhile, public opinion polls show the public has little enthusiasm for the plan. A June 16 poll by the Quinnipiac University found that 60 percent opposed the sales tax hike, with 34 percent approving of it.

Those numbers still send tremors of fear through the ranks of Democrats, who are still haunted by the tax revolt ignited by former Gov. Jim Florio's tax hikes enacted in 1990. That $2.8 billion package, which included also included a sales tax hike from 6 percent to 7 percent, galvanized an unusual coalition of groups, such as the gun lobby, teachers union and public employees, who were angered by other Florio policies. A year later, Democrats lost majority control over both houses of the Legislature; the sales tax was repealed the following year.

Anti-tax rally

Corzine's budget did spark an anti-tax rally in Seaside Heights on Saturday. Organized by Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan, the event drew 100 people despite bad weather.

"The legislators in Trenton have let us down and now it's up to us to take over. That's what a democracy is," said Lonegan, director of Americans for Prosperity, which staged the rally. Lonegan, a staunch conservative who ran for governor last year, led a similar campaign to halt state borrowing.

Mike Bonacci of Cliffside Park said he attended the rally because he is fed up with high taxes.

"Enough is enough. New Jersey is getting so expensive that people have to move out. I've lived here all my life, and I don't want to go anywhere," he said.

Vince Micco, a Rutherford resident who is running for Congress in the 9th District, said the rally was meant to "counter drunken spending in Trenton."

"Working-class people are disappointed in Corzine. We're looking at our paychecks and we want to fight back," he said.

Lonegan said the rally is one of a number of his group's efforts, including an online "No Corzine Tax Hike" petition and ongoing TV and radio ad campaigns against the budget proposal.

Trenton Bureau Chief Charles Stile contributed to this article.


http://www.bergenrecord.com/print.php?qstr=ZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTY5NTMzMjEmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXky


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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State Budget - APP - Property taxes part of discussions

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Published in the Asbury Park Press, Sunday, June 256, 2006

Property taxes part of budget discussions

BY JONATHAN TAMARI
GANNETT STATE BUREAU


TRENTON — Lawmakers are planning to focus on reforming property taxes this summer, but the debate over how to handle one of the most politically touchy subjects in New Jersey also may influence the final rounds of debate on the state budget.

Officials wrangling over budget plans have extended property tax reform as an olive branch and wielded the threat of cuts in property tax aid as a stick to try to move negotiations along.

With just six days remaining until the constitutional deadline for approving a state budget, some Assembly Democrats are pinning their opposition to a $1.1 billion sales tax increase — a key element of Gov. Corzine's budget — to their call instead to keep that option as a resource for property tax relief.

In a push back against its opposition, however, Corzine administration memos obtained by Gannett New Jersey show the threat of cuts to municipal and school aid, which would each result in higher property taxes, linger over the budget negotiations as an alternative if Corzine does not believe the budget is properly balanced.

The memos, obtained Friday, following a week of budget haggling among elected officials, incited a sharp response from Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts Jr., D-Camden, a leading advocate for property tax reform and one of the most vocal opponents to the sales tax increase.

Some compromise plans also revolve around property taxes. One of many proposals floated during meetings last week would call for a sales tax hike with a portion set aside for property tax relief.

Sen. Barbara Buono, D-Middlesex, said that proposal has the potential to assuage concerns over raising taxes.

"I will not support the sales tax unless there is some nexus between it and property tax relief," said Buono, a member of the Senate budget committee. "In order for that to be a viable option, we need to tie it to property tax relief, and we could start doing that right now."

Trouble in both houses

With Democrats holding a slim Senate majority and several senators already openly opposing the sales tax increase, any further defections against the plan could seriously damage its chances of passage.

In the Assembly, where opposition to the sales tax is stronger, Democratic Party leaders remain opposed to the tax hike.

"That sales tax must be protected ultimately for property tax reform," said Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, D-Camden, chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee.

Corzine remains committed to his plans. He repeated last week that he sees the increased sales tax as the best way to balance his budget and provide lasting revenues to help eliminate annual budget holes.

"We need to get a real structural change in the underlying finances of the state of New Jersey independent of what we have going on in property tax. We need to do both," Corzine said at a news conference Wednesday. "People trying to place (the sales tax) in an either-or situation — it's convenient at a time when you're trying to negotiate (a) budget, but it isn't convenient when you (recognize) we have an ongoing structural deficit in this state."

The debate about whether to increase the sales tax from six percent to seven is likely to be the central point of contention as lawmakers and the administration try to hammer out a budget plan this week. Midnight Friday is the constitutional deadline for striking a spending plan.

The Corzine administration has warned that missing the deadline could result in closing state parks and casinos and halting ongoing road construction, but past administrations have missed the due date without any impact on operations.

Some progress reported

Despite the division on the tax plan, people involved in the negotiations insisted late last week that they have reached common ground on some issues, such as restoring some funding to colleges and universities and eliminating a proposed tax on hospitals.

The challenge, however, comes in reaching an agreement on how to pay for those restorations or replace the taxes that have been taken off the table.

The level of aid to colleges, for example, remains unclear, and a Corzine administration memo said last week that any additional aid would be unlikely if more cuts become necessary.

Greenwald said lawmakers are focusing first on replacing the money from the sales tax increase with other options, then on restoring the cuts with which they disagree.

"We have to find equally reliable replacement revenue, and then you have to find either additional cuts or new revenues to fill the gap on some of the holes that we'd like to fix," Greenwald said.

Where there is agreement, pieces of the budget plan have begun to slowly trickle through the Legislature. Friday, lawmakers advanced plans to repeal a tax on cosmetic surgery and impose a new tax on commercial real estate sales that exceed $1 million.

Other budget plan elements, such as bills to expand taxes on some tobacco products, transfer $50 million from the disability fund to the operating budget and levy a surcharge on business taxes have begun working their way through the system.

However, another piece of Corzine's proposal, a call to reform some of the tax breaks given to businesses in Urban Enterprise Zones, was held in an Assembly committee. It's scheduled to be considered Monday by a Senate panel.

http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20060625&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=606250444&SectionCat=&Template=printart


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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State Budget - APP - Property taxes part of discussions

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Published in the Asbury Park Press, Sunday, June 256, 2006

Property taxes part of budget discussions

BY JONATHAN TAMARI
GANNETT STATE BUREAU


TRENTON — Lawmakers are planning to focus on reforming property taxes this summer, but the debate over how to handle one of the most politically touchy subjects in New Jersey also may influence the final rounds of debate on the state budget.

Officials wrangling over budget plans have extended property tax reform as an olive branch and wielded the threat of cuts in property tax aid as a stick to try to move negotiations along.

With just six days remaining until the constitutional deadline for approving a state budget, some Assembly Democrats are pinning their opposition to a $1.1 billion sales tax increase — a key element of Gov. Corzine's budget — to their call instead to keep that option as a resource for property tax relief.

In a push back against its opposition, however, Corzine administration memos obtained by Gannett New Jersey show the threat of cuts to municipal and school aid, which would each result in higher property taxes, linger over the budget negotiations as an alternative if Corzine does not believe the budget is properly balanced.

The memos, obtained Friday, following a week of budget haggling among elected officials, incited a sharp response from Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts Jr., D-Camden, a leading advocate for property tax reform and one of the most vocal opponents to the sales tax increase.

Some compromise plans also revolve around property taxes. One of many proposals floated during meetings last week would call for a sales tax hike with a portion set aside for property tax relief.

Sen. Barbara Buono, D-Middlesex, said that proposal has the potential to assuage concerns over raising taxes.

"I will not support the sales tax unless there is some nexus between it and property tax relief," said Buono, a member of the Senate budget committee. "In order for that to be a viable option, we need to tie it to property tax relief, and we could start doing that right now."

Trouble in both houses

With Democrats holding a slim Senate majority and several senators already openly opposing the sales tax increase, any further defections against the plan could seriously damage its chances of passage.

In the Assembly, where opposition to the sales tax is stronger, Democratic Party leaders remain opposed to the tax hike.

"That sales tax must be protected ultimately for property tax reform," said Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, D-Camden, chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee.

Corzine remains committed to his plans. He repeated last week that he sees the increased sales tax as the best way to balance his budget and provide lasting revenues to help eliminate annual budget holes.

"We need to get a real structural change in the underlying finances of the state of New Jersey independent of what we have going on in property tax. We need to do both," Corzine said at a news conference Wednesday. "People trying to place (the sales tax) in an either-or situation — it's convenient at a time when you're trying to negotiate (a) budget, but it isn't convenient when you (recognize) we have an ongoing structural deficit in this state."

The debate about whether to increase the sales tax from six percent to seven is likely to be the central point of contention as lawmakers and the administration try to hammer out a budget plan this week. Midnight Friday is the constitutional deadline for striking a spending plan.

The Corzine administration has warned that missing the deadline could result in closing state parks and casinos and halting ongoing road construction, but past administrations have missed the due date without any impact on operations.

Some progress reported

Despite the division on the tax plan, people involved in the negotiations insisted late last week that they have reached common ground on some issues, such as restoring some funding to colleges and universities and eliminating a proposed tax on hospitals.

The challenge, however, comes in reaching an agreement on how to pay for those restorations or replace the taxes that have been taken off the table.

The level of aid to colleges, for example, remains unclear, and a Corzine administration memo said last week that any additional aid would be unlikely if more cuts become necessary.

Greenwald said lawmakers are focusing first on replacing the money from the sales tax increase with other options, then on restoring the cuts with which they disagree.

"We have to find equally reliable replacement revenue, and then you have to find either additional cuts or new revenues to fill the gap on some of the holes that we'd like to fix," Greenwald said.

Where there is agreement, pieces of the budget plan have begun to slowly trickle through the Legislature. Friday, lawmakers advanced plans to repeal a tax on cosmetic surgery and impose a new tax on commercial real estate sales that exceed $1 million.

Other budget plan elements, such as bills to expand taxes on some tobacco products, transfer $50 million from the disability fund to the operating budget and levy a surcharge on business taxes have begun working their way through the system.

However, another piece of Corzine's proposal, a call to reform some of the tax breaks given to businesses in Urban Enterprise Zones, was held in an Assembly committee. It's scheduled to be considered Monday by a Senate panel.

http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20060625&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=606250444&SectionCat=&Template=printart


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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Saturday, June 24, 2006

Eminent Domain - Courier - Land grab cases on upswing

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Published in the Courier News, Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Cases of government land grabs on upswing

By GREGORY J. VOLPE
Gannett State Bureau


TRENTON -- In the year since the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the government's right to take property for private redevelopment, the number of properties eyed for government grabs has nearly tripled nationally, according to a group of reports released Tuesday.

New Jersey, one of 20 states that had legislative sessions but no eminent domain reform, ranked fourth on the list with 611 properties threatened by condemnation since the June 2005 Supreme Court ruling, known as the Kelo decision.

Nationally, 5,783 properties have been targeted for private redevelopment this year, reports the Institute for Justice, which found there had been an average of 2,056 per year from 1998 to 2002.

"Unbelievable. It's madness, it's absolute madness," said the Rev. Kevin Brown, whose Long Branch church, home and business are threatened by eminent domain. "It violates the Tenth Commandment when you think about it: Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's home."

The numbers didn't surprise Bill Potter, chairman of the New Jersey Coalition Against Eminent Domain Abuse.

"Kelo certainly told the nation that everybody's property is up for grabs," Potter said. "It's past time for the New Jersey Legislature and the governor to protect the property owners and homeowners and farmers of New Jersey."

But those who support eminent domain say the reports' numbers aren't reflective of homes that are actually taken and accuse the institute of being biased against any use of eminent domain for private redevelopment.

"It just annoys me to no end that they just have a knee-jerk reaction that if you use eminent domain you're bad and you must be on the side of the devil," said William Dressel Jr., executive director of the New Jersey State League of Municipalities. "And that's absolutely wrong."

Patrick J. O'Keefe, chief executive officer of the New Jersey Builders Association, said the number of properties included in the study far exceeds those that are actually in danger of being taken. And if the number were accurate, O'Keefe said, it's still 611 in a state with 3.4 million homes.

"It is not a large number in relative terms to the number of properties that are out there," O'Keefe said.

Since the decision, 13 states have passed reform laws the institute called substantive and 12 it deemed "increased," while three more await their governors' signatures. Eleven states have done nothing, while New Jersey and five others have measures pending in the Legislature.

"New Jersey is one of the worst states in the country, and they're not doing anything," said Dana Berliner, an institute senior attorney.

The Assembly is scheduled to vote Thursday -- a day before the Kelo anniversary -- on a measure that aims to place more burdens on towns seeking to redevelop, limits what land can be taken and requires more compensation to those who lose land.

Assemblyman John Burzichelli, D-Paulsboro, the bill's sponsor, said he's pleased with the bill's progress and couldn't compare New Jersey's speed with other states.

The proposal "goes a long way in ensuring people that this process and this very powerful tool of government will not be unleashed in any kind of haphazard fashion," Burzichelli said.

A Senate committee plans summer hearings on its proposal.

Critics say the measure doesn't go far enough in restricting towns from using eminent domain for private projects.

"The bill in the Legislature is not going to change the fact that New Jersey is fourth," New Jersey Sierra Club director Jeff Tittel said. "Eminent domain is still going to be abused if this bill is passed."

http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060621/NEWS/606210306/-1/NEWS06


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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State Budget - Bergen Record - Sales tax held in abeyance for summer?

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Published in the Bergen Record, Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Other role touted for sales tax increase

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

By JOHN P. McALPIN
TRENTON BUREAU


A warning to New Jersey shoppers: Higher sales taxes may be in your future, even if state legislators reject the governor's pleas for a tax hike to balance his new budget.

Some lawmakers are holding that option open as a possible way to lower New Jersey's property tax bills when they meet to overhaul the system this summer, top Democratic sources told The Record on Tuesday.

Although those Assembly Democrats believe a sales tax increase could help reduce the nation's highest per-capita property taxes, they fear they would have a tough time making the case for it if the public is hit with an increase now to help balance Governor Corzine's $30.9 billion budget proposal.

Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts, D-Camden, who has told Corzine that the governor's plan to raise the tax from 6 percent to 7 percent lacks support in the lower house, said again Tuesday that cutting high property taxes is the priority.

"We need to safeguard any new available sources of revenue for property tax relief," Roberts said at a fund-raiser Tuesday near Trenton.

The New Jersey Constitution requires lawmakers to enact a budget by June 30. Democrats in the Assembly and Senate are negotiating with Corzine on several key areas, the biggest being the sales tax increase, which could cost the average family about $250 more a year.

The increase is crucial to Corzine's plans because it would raise an estimated $1.1 billion. Corzine says it would end years of fiscal gimmicks that have left New Jersey's finances on shaky ground. His administration has shown no signs of backing off the proposal despite opposition in the Assembly.

Beyond the deadline

Assembly Democrats are looking beyond next week's deadline to the summer, when both houses are expected to hold a rare summer session on property tax reform. Some believe those sessions could yield sweeping changes to New Jersey's tax structure and have already begun examining efforts in other states. Among these is Michigan, which raised its sales tax by 2 cents on the dollar and earmarked the revenue for public schools. The plan, adopted by voters in 1994, also limited property tax increases to the rate of inflation.

New Jersey property owners pay about $20 billion a year in local taxes, giving New Jersey the highest property taxes in the nation. Lawmakers for years have been under intense pressure to stem the increase, which averages 7 percent a year.

Driving local taxes and state budgets ever higher is the cost of public education. About one third -- $10.5 billion -- of Corzine's budget proposal goes to schools, including more than $4 billion to some of the poorest districts to comply with a state Supreme Court order. New Jersey also subsidizes operations at every other public school and municipal government.

To cut property taxes by 10 percent, some legislators estimate that it may cost nearly $2 billion a year. Some are eyeing the $1.1 billion brought in by raising the sales tax one percentage point as one source of revenue. Expanding the sales tax to services now exempt could also play a role in property tax relief, legislative sources said Tuesday.

Some analysts dispute the suggestion that raising the tax to balance the budget would rob them of the ability to include a sales tax increase as part of a comprehensive overhaul of property taxes.

"I don't think anything that's done to balance this budget means you can't do more of the same for tax reform," said Jon Shure, president of New Jersey Policy Perspective, a liberal think tank that has studied state tax issues.

In lieu of Corzine's sales tax proposal, some Assembly members are exploring the possibility of increasing the unemployment tax and delaying a planned $400 million cut in business taxes, sources familiar with the budget negotiations said. They also plan more cuts in state programs.

"We think the budget can provide the same progressive initiatives without the need for a sales tax increase," said Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-Mercer.

Roberts declined to detail the Assembly plan. Legislative staff members and Treasury officials are reviewing the details.

Corzine's staff also is not talking details.

"We will not be commenting on the step-by-step proposals or lack thereof as we get closer to budget day," spokesman Anthony Coley said.

State Sen. Shirley Turner, D-Mercer, made her plan to tax Atlantic City casinos official Tuesday by drafting a bill that raises the rate from 8 percent to 10 percent and retains taxes on parking and rooms. Her plan would raise $140 million and not hurt the working poor the way the sales tax does, Turner said.

"The casinos continue to thrive. They can afford these taxes more than our working families can," she said in a statement.

Higher casino taxes face stiff bi-partisan opposition in the Legislature and from Corzine, who has refused to consider raising fees there.

"His position has not changed," Coley said. "Economic growth is our best solution over the long run."

If legislators miss the June 30 constitutional deadline, Corzine has asked his Cabinet to prepare for a government shutdown.

In a memo to officials, his staff has asked for lists of essential services that must be provided.

Officials were also asked to identify non-essential government employees and procedures to notify them and others of a shutdown.

Legislators have missed the deadline before, but no state services have been shut down.

E-mail: mcalpin@northjersey.com

http://www.bergenrecord.com/print.php?qstr=ZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTY5NTEyMjcmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXky

(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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2006 Elections - TomPaine.com - How Progressives can win

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Published in TomPaine.com, Thursday, June 22, 2006

How Progressives Can Win

Bernie Horn

Bernie Horn is policy director at the Center for Policy Alternatives , a nonpartisan organization working to strengthen the capacity of state legislators to lead and achieve progressive change. This article was written for The Nation magazine.

It is an exaggeration to say that today's progressives don't have a philosophy. Progressives have a fairly consistent agenda—we know what we stand for. The problem is, we don't have an effective framework to communicate our philosophy to persuadable voters.

Because a crucial election looms before us, progressive thinkers are rightfully focusing on this problem. But in fashioning a solution, we must insure that the language we use speaks to the Americans we are trying to persuade. This is a challenge, because most persuadable voters are not like us—they are normal people. Unlike us, they don't think much about public policy, they don't have a policy checklist for candidates and they don't speak policy or use intellectual jargon.

How do we persuade people who are so different? By assuring them that we share their values. "Values" need not be the anti-choice, anti-gay, anti-science mores of the right wing. In politics, they are ideals that describe the kind of society we are trying to build. There is a set of values that progressives can employ to frame public policy in language that will win over persuadable voters. And to those we are trying to reach, our values will sound very familiar: freedom, opportunity, security and responsibility.

What's so special about these rather moderate-sounding words? First, they resonate with all Americans. When we use these values to describe and defend progressive policies, voters understand that we're on their side. But more important, they summarize a progressive philosophy that voters can grasp and remember. Successful message framing isn't just repetition of preselected words and phrases. (Anybody remember how often Kerry said "values"?) The trick is using those words and phrases to communicate a coherent set of principles—a vision for the future.

We can begin by defining the proper roles of government. Progressive policies fit fairly well into three situations, where: (1) government has no proper role because public action would violate individual rights; (2) government acts as a referee between private, unequal interests; or (3) government acts to protect those who cannot protect themselves, including future generations.

Where government has no proper role, the progressive value we should speak of is "freedom." The idea of freedom is deeply ingrained in American history. It is universally popular. Oddly, progressives rarely talk about freedom, perhaps because we are afraid that defending civil liberties makes us unpopular. But that's the point of values—to help us bridge the gap between popular ideals and policies that truly uphold them.

Where government acts as a referee, the progressive value is "opportunity." Americans believe in a land of opportunity where hard work is rewarded and everyone has equal access to the American Dream. Equal opportunity means a level playing field—fair dealings between the powerful and the less powerful, the elimination of discrimination and a quality education for all.

Where government acts as a protector, the progressive value is "security." Conservatives want to narrow the definition of security to mean only protection from domestic criminals and foreign terrorists. But Americans understand that protection of our health and well-being is also security. Insuring the sick and vulnerable, safeguarding the food we eat and products we use and preserving our environment are all essential to US security.

While progressives work to extend freedom, opportunity and security to all Americans, conservatives try to limit these rights to a select few. When conservatives restrict basic reproductive rights, authorize warrantless police searches and impose their creationist doctrine on schoolchildren, they are trampling on American freedoms. When they block antidiscrimination laws and traffic in government favors, no-bid contracts and economic development giveaways, they are crushing equal opportunity. When conservatives try to gut Social Security; dismantle programs that protect our health, safety and environment; and grossly mishandle the terrorism threat, they are wrecking our security.

All this brings us to "responsibility," the value that most plainly sets progressives apart from conservatives. We take responsibility for the well-being of our nation by crafting policies to extend freedom, opportunity and security to all. Conservatives cynically turn the word inside out by chanting a mantra of "personal responsibility." They mean that unemployment, hunger and discrimination are the individual's problem, not society's. In this way, conservatives twist the language of responsibility to avoid responsibility. It's downright Orwellian.

So let's talk the talk: When advocating a public policy, let's emphasize freedom if government action would violate individual rights, opportunity if government should act as a referee and security if government should act as a protector. And let's point out that the progressive position takes responsibility for solving the problem, while the conservative position abdicates it. Here's a brief example: "America should truly be a land of opportunity. But the current minimum wage denies workers the opportunity to support a family. We have a responsibility to make the American Dream more than just a fantasy. Those who oppose raising the minimum wage are shirking that responsibility."

Polls consistently demonstrate that our policies are very popular. Americans want fair wages and benefits, consumer protections, quality education, a clean environment and healthcare for all. But many persuadable voters don't trust us to deliver these programs, because they don't understand our philosophy. Let's explain ourselves in language that voters will understand and appreciate. Let's make it clear that, for progressives, "values" is not just a buzzword. And, this time around, let's win.

http://www.tompaine.com/print/how_progressives_can_win.php


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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Jerry Green - Courier - Editorial: Green right to demand asnwers on school hiring

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Published in the Courier News, Saturday, June 24, 2006

[Editorial]
Hit: Green's right to demand some answers

We commend Assemblyman Jerry Green for breaking the official silence on the Plainfield school district's employment of Athletic Director John Ahern, whose job application failed to disclose his dismissal from previous jobs for playing host to parties where alcohol was served for girls on high-school basketball teams. He was also accused of falling asleep in his bed with teenage girls after the parties.

Green wants the Union County superintendent of schools to investigate, asking, "How is it possible that an educator whose license was revoked for misconduct with children is able to have it reinstated?"

A hit for Green. Let's hope it encourages Plainfield school officials to explain the policies and practices they apply to job applications, even if legal considerations restrict what they can say about Ahern's case at this time.

http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060624/OPINION01/606240334/1009


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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Thursday, June 22, 2006

McGreevey - Ledger - Buys 1332 Prospect Avenue in Plainfield

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Published in the Star-Ledger, Thursday, June 22, 2006

A Plainfield mansion for McGreevey and partner
Former governor to share 17-room, $1.4M Georgian Colonial with N.Y. financier

BY ALEXI FRIEDMAN
Star-Ledger Staff


Former Gov. James E. McGreevey and his partner, Mark O'Donnell, are about to purchase a 17-room, $1.4 million home in Plainfield's historic Sleepy Hollow neighborhood, according to two people with direct knowledge of the deal.

The ivy-covered Georgian Colonial boasts eight bedrooms, five fireplaces and four bathrooms. The neighborhood is home to several local politicians, including former Plainfield Mayor Al McWilliams and Assemblyman Jerry Green (D-Union).

McGreevey will live in the 92-year-old home with O'Donnell, a successful Manhattan financier who has been dating the former governor for about a year. The couple is expected to close the deal next week, the sources said.

Green said the neighborhood has been buzzing for several weeks with word that McGreevey would soon be moving in.

"It's good for us to have someone who has been in the circles he's been in," said McWilliams, the former mayor. "It shows there is more to our city than what you read about in the papers sometimes."

Green, who is also the city's Democratic chairman, has known McGreevey, 48, for decades, in part because Green's former legislative district was once dominated by towns in Middlesex County, McGreevey's old power base.

"I have a lot of respect for the former governor," he said. "I've known him for 20 years."

McGreevey retreated from public view after resigning the governor's office in 2004, following his public admission of a gay extramarital affair. But he resurfaced in recent weeks as he prepares to release his memoir, "The Confession," which is due out in the fall.

The palatial home, which includes a solarium, a butler's pantry and in-ground swimming pool, sits on 1.7 acres and was originally built for a founder of the New York Stock Exchange. Its gardens were designed by the firm of noted landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, who created Central Park.

Bernice Swain, 83, who lived in the house for 25 years before moving out in 1998, said the home was a wonderful place to entertain. Her family owns the Swain Galleries, a local institution.

"There was always something going on there," she said. "We enjoyed it thoroughly."

McGreevey and O'Donnell have been looking for a home in the Plainfield area since earlier this year. McGreevey rents an apartment in Rahway, while O'Donnell now lives in Manhattan.

O'Donnell, 42, declined to comment on the pending house purchase when approached Tuesday night in East Brunswick at an event sponsored by the gay-rights organization Garden State Equality.

But a person close to the two men said they decided to buy in New Jersey, so the ex-governor could be near his 4-year-old daughter, Jacqueline. She and the governor's ex-wife, Dina Matos, live in the nearby Union County town of Springfield.

Another daughter lives with McGreevey's first wife in Canada.

McGreevey and Matos have been separated since leaving the governor's mansion in November 2004.

McGreevey and O'Donnell have concentrated their search along the train lines into Manhattan and in close proximity to his former wife's house. Green said another draw of Plainfield may have been the growing gay population, especially in the Sleepy Hollow section.

Green said he doesn't believe the former governor -- whose mother once worked as a nurse for the nearby Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center -- will get involved in local politics.

But Green said he wouldn't turn down an offer.

"Any ideas he would like to share, we would like to hear, as we would from any other resident who moves in," Green said.

Staff writers Gabriel Gluck, Josh Margolin and Steve Chambers contributed to this report.


http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-3/1150951606260560.xml&coll=1


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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McGreevey - Courier - Buys 1332 Prospect Avenue in Plainfield

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Published in the Courier News, Thursday, June 22, 2006

McGreevey, partner set to buy home in Plainfield
$1.5M house has 8 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms.

By ANGELA DELLI SANTI
The Associated Press


Former New Jersey Gov. James E. McGreevey and his partner are about to become homeowners.

The couple is scheduled to close next week on a $1.5 million colonial in Plainfield, several people close to the couple said Wednesday. The people who spoke to the media did so on the condition of anonymity because the transaction has yet to close.

Several longtime residents said the home's address is 1332 Prospect St., across the street and on the same block as the home of former Plainfield Mayor Albert T. McWilliams.

The home, built in 1914, has eight bedrooms, four bathrooms, five fireplaces and gardens by famed landscape architect Frederick Olmsted, who designed New York's Central Park.

The nation's first openly gay governor and his investment-adviser partner had been shopping for a home in Plainfield for months. They previously had tried to buy a home in the city, but that deal fell through.

McGreevey, 48, stunned the nation by revealing himself as "a gay American" in August 2004. He announced his homosexuality and his intent to resign in the same nationally televised speech.

The former governor has a wife from whom he is separated as well as an ex-wife. He has a daughter with each.

His youngest daughter, Jacqueline, 4, lives in nearby Springfield with her mother, Dina Matos McGreevey. People close to the former governor say he sees the child often and that living close by is important to McGreevey and his partner, Mark O'Donnell, 42.

Neither McGreevey nor O'Donnell were available for comment Wednesday.

The couple plans to move from O'Donnell's Manhattan apartment, where they had been living. That property is on the market. When McGreevey moved out of the governor's mansion in Princeton nearly two years ago, he took up residence in a new luxury apartment in Rahway, which he rented.

The couple's new home, in a historic area of the Plainfield, was originally built for a founder of the New York Stock Exchange. It sits on 1.7 acres and is one of a handful of homes in the area insulated with clay tiles designed by Thomas Edison, people close to the couple said.

After leaving office in November 2004, more than a year before his term was up, McGreevey began work on a memoir with writer David France. The book, titled "The Confession," is due in stores Sept. 19. A national book tour, including an interview on the Oprah Winfrey show, will coincide with the release of the book.

The former governor also has said he would return to the New Jersey Statehouse this summer for the hanging of his official gubernatorial portrait.

Courier News reporter Chad Weihrauch contributed to this story.


http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060622/NEWS/606220304


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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DeFilippo - Ledger - Hillside planning chair blasts firing of attorney Nathaniel Davis

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Published in the Star-Ledger, Thursday, June 22, 2006

Planning board chief confronts council
Hillside chairwoman blasts firing of attorney Nathaniel Davis

BY JASON JETT
Star-Ledger Staff


The Hillside planning board chairwoman called an executive meeting last night and essentially told the township council to keep its hands off her panel.

In what is likely her last official act before a July 5 municipal government reorganization, Myrna Weissman charged the township council acted illegally in attempt ing to replace the planning board attorney. That attorney, Nathaniel Davis, has filed notice to sue the township.

Weissman began a prepared statement as if addressing Edward Cooper, the Linden attorney hired by the township council in February to replace Davis. Davis attended the meeting. Cooper did not.

"Mr. Cooper, you are not our board attorney," she said. "I am going on record that the attorney sitting here has not been approved by this board and is in violation of the law."

In March, both Davis and Cooper arrived for the planning board meeting, and that session turned heated.

Two members, Radomir Vlaisavljevic and Leonard Gilbert, charged Davis was being replaced because his hiring last July for a yearly term violated the state "pay to play" law.

Mayor Karen McCoy-Oliver, who sits on the planning board, and the six other board members were unaware of the change in at torneys and protested the council intervention.

Gilbert had only recently joined the planning board, with the township council abruptly appointing him to replace mayoral ally Joseph Pinckney as the governing body's representative on the panel. Vlaisavljevic is the husband of the township clerk.

Weissman charged yesterday the attorney switch stemmed from a power struggle between the mayor and township officials loyal to Hillside Democratic Municipal Chairwoman Charlotte DeFilippo. She called the change an ill-aimed attack on McCoy-Oliver, stressing the planning board, not the mayor, appointed Davis.

DeFilippo has said her involvement in the matter consisted of a phone call to the Union County Bar Association asking for the recommendation of an attorney. She was then given Cooper's name.

Last month, Cooper said he was unknowingly brought into the fray, and was awaiting some resolution.

Davis, whose office is in Newark, filed suit against the officials who alleged his hiring by the planning board was improper.

"I felt someone had slandered me," he said. "I did not violate any pay-to-play law."

Weissman defended the planning board against such an asser tion by two members closely aligned with the Democratic Party.

"This is not a pay-for-play issue," she said. "First of all, we didn't have enough meetings for Mr. Davis to even come close to the realm of making decent fees this year."

Jason Jett reports on Hillside. He may be contacted at jjett@starled ger.com or (908) 302-1509.


http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-1/1150952031260560.xml&coll=1


N.B. Under item II on Plainfield City Council agenda for Monday, June 19, 2006 is the following entry: "Correspondence dated May 25, 2006 addressed to Corporation Counsel Williamson from Nathaniel Davis, Esq., tenderinghis resignation as Municipal Court prosecutor effective immediately. Letter of resignation will remain on file in the City Clerk's office."

(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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Menendez - Ledger - Late shift against Musto in 1982 trial

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Published in the Star-Ledger, Thursday, June 22, 2006

Transcript shows late shift against boss by Menendez
He backed mayor until just before trial

BY DEBORAH HOWLETT
Star-Ledger Staff


At the 1982 corruption trial of Union City Mayor William V. Musto, Robert Menendez acknowledged he remained loyal to his former mentor until just before he took the witness stand against him, according to transcripts from the case that has become an issue in his U.S. Senate race.

Menendez testified that even after 12 appearances before a grand jury that ultimately indicted Musto and six others, he supported Musto's bid for re-election as state senator and mayor, according to a transcript of his cross-examination, a copy of which was obtained by The Star-Ledger.

A spokeswoman for Menendez' opponent, Republican state Sen. Tom Kean Jr., said yesterday the transcript shows Menendez was not the crusading reformer he has portrayed himself to be.

"Menendez's story of his early political history doesn't comport with the facts," said Kean campaign press secretary Jill Hazelbaker.

Aides to Menendez, however, contend the trial transcript shows exactly the opposite -- that when it became clear to him Musto had put his personal interest ahead of the public interest, Menendez stood up to the Hudson County political boss.

"It's outrageous that someone like Tom Kean Jr., who never faced a tough decision in his life, would smear the reputation of someone who stood up at great personal risk and helped put a corrupt public official in jail," said Menendez spokesman Matt Miller. "It's pretty amazing that Tom Kean Jr. is siding with convicted felons and their defenders."

Menendez' account has been bolstered in recent days by comments from the lead prosecutor in the case.

James Plaisted, a former assistant U.S. attorney now in private practice, praised Menendez in a campaign press release Tuesday, saying he "courageously testified" and that he "stood up and demonstrated a commitment to cleaning up corruption." Plaisted, who is involved in a current trial, has declined to make himself available for interviews.

Hazelbaker said the transcript, along with Menendez' statement during a news conference shortly after he testified ("I had no choice but to testify. I did not go running to Newark.") are more reliable than the recollections of the prosecutor and the senator. They also point out that Plaisted, a Democrat, was a fundraiser and supporter of Gov. Jon Corzine's campaign in 2005. Corzine appointed Menendez to fill his Senate seat.

The transcript covers an often contentious cross-examination by Musto's lawyer, Irving Anolik, the last of the defense attorneys to question Menendez.

At the time, Menendez was secretary to the Union City Board of Education. He helped prosecutors sift through books and documents that showed Musto and others were taking kickbacks from a mob-connected construction firm doing work on local schools.

In direct testimony, Menendez said that before his first grand jury appearance Musto had advised him to invoke his rights under the Fifth Amendment and decline to testify -- a suggestion Menendez said he found "distasteful."

He also testified that Musto tried to pressure him by saying the government had a tape-recording of its informant saying Menendez had taken a bribe along with Musto and others.

Under cross-examination, Menendez admitted that he never told the grand jury about that conversation with Musto, and that he told prosecutors only after he found out from newspaper accounts that the secretly recorded tapes did not implicate him.

"In December 1981 there was proof positive to me that in fact that story that I had been told by the mayor was untrue, and at that time that assisted me in my recollection of not only that conversation but what else transpired with that conversation," Menendez said in the transcript from his January 1982 testimony.

Menendez also acknowledged that he had written two checks to the construction contractor for the same invoice, but said that it was nothing more than an error in bookkeeping.

Deborah Howlett covers politics. She may be reached at (609) 989-0273 or dhowlett@starledger.com.

http://www.nj.com/printer/printer.ssf?/base/news-3/1150951659260560.xml&coll=1


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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Development - Courier - UCIA picked as redevelopment entity for 4 projects

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Published in the Courier News, Thursday, June 22, 2006

Agency to oversee Plainfield projects
City Council vote allows Improvement Authority to handle redevelopment.

By CHAD WEIHRAUCH
Staff Writer


PLAINFIELD -- The City Council voted unanimously Wednesday night to put four redevelopment sites in the hands of the Union County Improvement Authority, the agency that managed construction on the Park-Madison tract downtown.

Officials said the move will allow the authority to take care of details that normally would be handled by the city or a private developer and added that the City Council will have final approval of all potential new projects arising from the deal.

"What we're trying to do is, let's move the city forward; here's an organization that has considerable experience in doing this," Councilman Rashid Burney said Wednesday.

The city for several years has considered improvements on the four sites the authority would be in charge of redeveloping. They are:

# A parcel of properties along North Avenue and East Second Street, roughly from Watchung Avenue to Park Avenue.

# An area near the intersection of Richmond and East Third streets.

# The so-called Marino's tract, named for a former auto dealer, on the corner of Plainfield Avenue and West Front Street.

# The former Macy's site, north of East Front Street between Watchung and Roosevelt avenues.

The resolution passed by the council essentially designates the improvement authority as the city's redevelopment vehicle.

Democratic Assemblyman Jerry Green, who lives in Plainfield and advised Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs on talks to bring in the agency, said it would allow the county to pay for professional property studies.

"We don't lose control, we don't put any money out up front," he said about the arrangement.

The authority likely will be in charge of performing the studies and then seeking developers for projects on each site. However, many of the properties within the redevelopment areas are privately owned, meaning negotiations would have to be undertaken -- with eminent domain seizures a possible last resort.

Officials voted on the measure just two days after the resolution was abruptly brought up during Monday night's City Council agenda session. It had not been on the evening's advertised agenda but was included at the last minute by attorneys from the city and the improvement authority.

Some council members were cautious in responding to the deal with the authority, saying they wished they had been given more time to consider the full ramifications. Several members of the public voiced similar concerns at Wednesday's meeting.

Councilman Cory Storch said he believes giving the agency jurisdiction in Plainfield is a good idea, within limits.

"The devil is in the details. I just want to make sure the city has protection and has a full voice in what happens," he said.

Green said Plainfield officials would have full power to reject any plans they find objectionable.

Still, there were some initial questions because of the scope of the areas being handed over to the authority for management and the quick move to push the resolution through the council.

All elected officials in Plainfield are Democrats. The Union County Improvement Authority is headed by Charlotte DeFilippo, who also is the county's Democratic chairwoman.

Former Mayor Albert T. McWilliams negotiated with her and the authority when the Park-Madison office building was being considered several years ago, but he later fell out of favor with the regular Democrats and was pushed off the party line. He left office in December after he was defeated by Robinson-Briggs, who was chosen by DeFilippo and other party leaders to run for office.

McWilliams said that "to turn over such a broad swath to the authority doesn't seem prudent." He added it would have been wiser for the city to begin with one area and then move on if the results were satisfactory.

"It's hasty for them to designate the UCIA as the city's redevelopment agency when they don't have experience with the UCIA in that capacity," he said.

http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060622/NEWS/606220305


(In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff and Clippings have no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of these articles nor are Plainfield Today, Plainfield Stuff or Clippings endorsed or sponsored by the originator.)
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Blog Archive

About Me

Plainfield resident since 1983. Retired as the city's Public Information Officer in 2006; prior to that Community Programs Coordinator for the Plainfield Public Library. Founding member and past president of: Faith, Bricks & Mortar; Residents Supporting Victorian Plainfield; and PCO (the outreach nonprofit of Grace Episcopal Church). Supporter of the Library, Symphony and Historic Society as well as other community groups, and active in Democratic politics.