Published in the Courier News, Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Subprime mortgage rescue fund: Safety net or disincentive?
By LISA G. RYAN • GANNETT STATE BUREAU • October 14, 2008
TRENTON —A plan to create an estimated $40 million trust fund to help New Jersey residents who have subprime mortgages avoid losing their homes is instead creating a growing controversy.
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Nonprofit housing groups are championing the New Jersey Homeownership Preservation Act as a safety net for homeowners struggling to pay mortgages they can no longer afford, but mortgage lenders are criticizing it as a costly, knee-jerk government reaction that will dissuade lending institutions from doing business in New Jersey.
"Not everybody is going to be able to renegotiate their mortgage and stay in their home. But we want to help as many people as we can," said Staci Berger, advocacy and policy director at the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey, which supports the bill.
"The process being suggested is too costly and too onerous, and it could stop businesses from lending in New Jersey," cautioned E. Robert Levy, executive director of the Mortgage Bankers Association of New Jersey.
The bill is one of 19 economy-related measures that moved forward last week during the Assembly's much publicized session on the global financial crisis. The full Assembly could vote on the bill later this month.
It calls for the state to assess a $2,000 fee on any mortgage lender that forecloses on homeowners who have a subprime mortgage. The money collected would go into a trust fund run by the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, which would distribute it first to nonprofit groups qualified to counsel people facing foreclosure. Remaining money would provide homeowners facing foreclosure with emergency assistance loans and help buy and convert foreclosed homes into affordable housing.
The bill would also require lenders to offer homeowners with subprime mortgages a six-month hold to give them time to renegotiate their loans.
There were more than 134,000 subprime mortgages in New Jersey as of June 30, and 32.5 percent of them were in foreclosure or close to it, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association National Delinquency Survey.
The state's housing and mortgage agency estimates another 10,000 to 20,000 subprime loans will fall into these categories over the next two years if the situation continues unabated. It projects the trust fund would receive between $20 million and $40 million by 2010.
"I don't think the individuals who were trying to secure these loans thought that at some point they were going to lose their jobs to the degree that jobs have been lost, that the values of their homes were going to decrease to the point that they are less than the money that they owe," said Assembly Majority Leader Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-Mercer, before the Assembly Budget Committee last week.
Since March, Watson Coleman and Sen. Ronald Rice, D-Essex, have been leading the effort to get the bill approved in the Legislature and adopted into law. The lawmakers told the budget committee that many homeowners now facing hardship were preyed upon by unscrupulous lenders.
But Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon Jr., R-Monmouth, who opposes the bill, fears it would give mortgage companies, which are now facing their own problems in the credit market, another disincentive to lend to qualified New Jersey consumers.
The lending institutions could also pass the $2,000 state fee along to their customers, said Assemblywoman Alison Littell McHose, R-Sussex, who criticized the program's estimated $675,000 in startup and staffing costs as too high for financially strapped New Jersey.
"For the amount of money this bill could generate, I think it has a lot of holes in it," McHose said.
SKEPTICS: For more criticisms of the bill from lawmakers, who wonder who'd benefit financially and who'd shoulder the load, visit the Gannett State Bureau's new Capitol Quickies blog at http://blogs.app.com/capitolquickies
Lisa G. Ryan: lgryan@gannett.com
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Showing posts with label Legislature. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Legislature. Show all posts
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Cohen replacement - PolitckerNJ - Quijano wins narrowly, 87-82
PolitickerNJ - Wednesday, July 20, 2008
August 19, 2008 - 8:34pm
Quijano narrowly wins Cohen seat
By Matt Friedman
Category: LocalTags: Patricia Perkins-Auguste, Annette Quijano
MOUNTAINSIDE -- Attorney Annette Quijano came to the Union County Democratic Committee’s special election tonight as the party leaders’ favorite to replace former Assemblyman Neil Cohen in District 20, but Elizabeth Councilwoman Patricia Perkins-Auguste put up a serious fight.
Quijano, 46, an assistant counsel to Gov. Corzine, bested Perkins-Auguste 87-82 in a vote by county committee members from the legislative district’s four towns: Elizabeth, Kenilworth, Roselle and Union. It’s the first time a minority will fill a seat in the district, which despite having a minority-majority population, has long been represented by three white men.
Quijano’s term begins immediately. She replaces former Assemblyman Neil Cohen, who resigned from his seat amid allegations that he possessed child pornography on his legislative office computer. She will have to run again against a Republican in November to hold the seat, although the district’s registration breakdown makes her a near shoe-in.
Perkins-Auguste and Quijano both gave speeches in front of the committee members, but although members were voting to send a new legislator to Trenton, the meeting was closed to the press and general public.
The controversy surrounding Cohen made the occasion a little more somber than it otherwise would have been for Quijano.
“I’m excited, but I’m not. I’m saddened because these are the circumstances,” said Quijano, who didn’t let the accusation against Cohen get in the way of what she saw as an altruistic legislative legacy.
“I always admired Neil for being such an advocate for the people, and I have, as I see it, big shoes to try to fill. I used to sit in his Assembly financial institution committee and I saw first-hand how he was an advocate for the people,” she said.
Quijano, whose name did not pop up in the initial field of candidates, said that she was approached by “a few people” about running for the position. Although she’s never run for a legislative seat before, Quijano said that she’s always wanted to fill one.
But with such a whirlwind candidacy, Quijano hadn’t yet outlined much of her legislative agenda.
“I’m going to represent people in my community. We’re going through a tough economic period and I want to make sure that seniors don’t have to decide between groceries and medication. I want to bring jobs back into the district,” she said.
In her speech to the committee members – provided in written form after the meeting – Quijano listed her experience as a past experience as a campaign volunteer, her work as the Clerk of the Union County Freeholder board, and her work in as an assistant counsel during the McGreevey, Codey and Corzine administrations. She said that she would work to improve schools, fight for aid for cities and stabilize property taxes.
There were actually two votes tonight—one to send a legislator to fill part of Cohen’s unexpired term, and one on who should get the party’s nomination for the November election. After her defeat on the first vote, Perkins-Auguste moved to make the second vote unanimous for Quijano.
Despite that gracious move, however, Perkins-Auguste, who’s African-American, was critical of Quijano, accusing her of using her Hispanic heritage as a campaign ploy in a district where Hispanics outnumber blacks.
“She stood up there and said she was Latino… Basically she race-baited, but she’s entitled to that. You use what you have to your advantage.” she said.
Among Perkins-Auguste's allies was Joseph Adair, a reverend and relocation officer from Elizabeth who used to run the local NAACP has long been the councilwoman's political ally.
While not a county committee member himself, Adair bussed in 25 members from Elizabeth to support Perkins-Auguste, who he said had a better record of public service than Quijano.
“I don’t even know who[Quijano] is. I’ve lived in Union County for 46 years. Never heard of her. I have a problem with that," he said.
Although the local party’s heavy hitters like State Sen. Ray Lesniak, Assemblyman/Democratic State Chairman Joe Cryan and County Chairwoman Charlotte DeFilippo remained officially neutral, Perkins-Auguste cast herself as the rebel candidate against the machine. She did, however, have Elizabeth Mayor J. Christian Bollwage – a close Lesniak ally—behind her. Perkins-Auguste also expressed disappointment that committee members from Roselle went with Quijano instead of her.
“I went up against the machine, the political power brokers of the stat eof New Jersey. I lost by five votes. Ray Lesniak, Joe Cryan and Charlotte DeFilippo. People I have great respect for,” she said. “I believe in God and that’s who I get my direction from. I don’t believe in backroom politics. I believe in serving the people.”
Freeholder Director Angel Estrada, who took his name out of the mix for the seat after he found that “the numbers didn’t add up,” was forthright about the importance of the seat being filled by a person of Hispanic heritage.
“The 20th legislative district is a Latino district, no matter what anybody claims,” he said. “The reality is we need to start recognizing Latinos' contribution to our society in terms of the work we do every day.”
Quijano, however, disputed Perkins-Auguste’s claim that her ethnicity is what ultimately won her the seat.
“I can’t say it’s solely because I’m latino. If you saw a number of individuals here, they were from a lot of nationalities, and I want to represent all of the community.
Defilippo, meanwhile, played up the fact that the race for the seat came down to two women, showcasing what she said was an effort to recruit more women into local government.
“I think were both were very articulate, but Annette has a depth of government experience,” she said.
-------------------------------------------
Update: Below is the response from Union County Republican Chairman Phil Morin.
"Tonight, the Union County Democratic machine had an opportunity to fill a disgraced former assemblyman's seat with a fresh face of change. Instead, party insiders have selected someone who represents more of the same. Instead of choosing someone who will change the culture of corruption in Trenton, they have chosen someone who is inextricably linked with the failed policies of the Corzine and McGreevey administrations. Undoubtedly, the newest member of the Trenton aristocracy will be a loyal footsoldier who will blindly vote for higher property taxes, bigger government and sweetheart deals for connected insiders.
It is hard to believe that someone who has served as legal counsel for Governor Corzine and undoubtedly advised him on initiatives such as the ill-fated toll tax plan to the latest COAH tax legislative disaster will be any different than her predecessor, who was more concerned with sparing a vicious dog's life than reducing the financial pressures on the overtaxed citizens of the 20th District.
Address :
Comments
Lesniak? DeFillippo? Cryan?
posted by Mr. Democrat
Was Quijano the candidate of Lesniak? I hadn't seen that reported anywhere.
Very close race. Makes it seem like the Bosses aren't in solid control (unless they just didn't have a preference between the two).
08/19/08 8:46 pm
------------------------------------------------
Phil Morin -A stand up guy offers good insights and interesting
posted by KathyCallahan
analysis of the -same old same old unispired and entirely predictable machine.
08/20/08 7:44 am
----------------------------------------------
They are in control, the bosses
posted by bitaryo
Remember the meeting was closed to the press and the public. What is reported is stage managed.
Still can't figure out why it is a Latino district with only a 24% share of the population.
08/20/08 7:52 am
Address :
August 19, 2008 - 8:34pm
Quijano narrowly wins Cohen seat
By Matt Friedman
Category: LocalTags: Patricia Perkins-Auguste, Annette Quijano
MOUNTAINSIDE -- Attorney Annette Quijano came to the Union County Democratic Committee’s special election tonight as the party leaders’ favorite to replace former Assemblyman Neil Cohen in District 20, but Elizabeth Councilwoman Patricia Perkins-Auguste put up a serious fight.
Quijano, 46, an assistant counsel to Gov. Corzine, bested Perkins-Auguste 87-82 in a vote by county committee members from the legislative district’s four towns: Elizabeth, Kenilworth, Roselle and Union. It’s the first time a minority will fill a seat in the district, which despite having a minority-majority population, has long been represented by three white men.
Quijano’s term begins immediately. She replaces former Assemblyman Neil Cohen, who resigned from his seat amid allegations that he possessed child pornography on his legislative office computer. She will have to run again against a Republican in November to hold the seat, although the district’s registration breakdown makes her a near shoe-in.
Perkins-Auguste and Quijano both gave speeches in front of the committee members, but although members were voting to send a new legislator to Trenton, the meeting was closed to the press and general public.
The controversy surrounding Cohen made the occasion a little more somber than it otherwise would have been for Quijano.
“I’m excited, but I’m not. I’m saddened because these are the circumstances,” said Quijano, who didn’t let the accusation against Cohen get in the way of what she saw as an altruistic legislative legacy.
“I always admired Neil for being such an advocate for the people, and I have, as I see it, big shoes to try to fill. I used to sit in his Assembly financial institution committee and I saw first-hand how he was an advocate for the people,” she said.
Quijano, whose name did not pop up in the initial field of candidates, said that she was approached by “a few people” about running for the position. Although she’s never run for a legislative seat before, Quijano said that she’s always wanted to fill one.
But with such a whirlwind candidacy, Quijano hadn’t yet outlined much of her legislative agenda.
“I’m going to represent people in my community. We’re going through a tough economic period and I want to make sure that seniors don’t have to decide between groceries and medication. I want to bring jobs back into the district,” she said.
In her speech to the committee members – provided in written form after the meeting – Quijano listed her experience as a past experience as a campaign volunteer, her work as the Clerk of the Union County Freeholder board, and her work in as an assistant counsel during the McGreevey, Codey and Corzine administrations. She said that she would work to improve schools, fight for aid for cities and stabilize property taxes.
There were actually two votes tonight—one to send a legislator to fill part of Cohen’s unexpired term, and one on who should get the party’s nomination for the November election. After her defeat on the first vote, Perkins-Auguste moved to make the second vote unanimous for Quijano.
Despite that gracious move, however, Perkins-Auguste, who’s African-American, was critical of Quijano, accusing her of using her Hispanic heritage as a campaign ploy in a district where Hispanics outnumber blacks.
“She stood up there and said she was Latino… Basically she race-baited, but she’s entitled to that. You use what you have to your advantage.” she said.
Among Perkins-Auguste's allies was Joseph Adair, a reverend and relocation officer from Elizabeth who used to run the local NAACP has long been the councilwoman's political ally.
While not a county committee member himself, Adair bussed in 25 members from Elizabeth to support Perkins-Auguste, who he said had a better record of public service than Quijano.
“I don’t even know who[Quijano] is. I’ve lived in Union County for 46 years. Never heard of her. I have a problem with that," he said.
Although the local party’s heavy hitters like State Sen. Ray Lesniak, Assemblyman/Democratic State Chairman Joe Cryan and County Chairwoman Charlotte DeFilippo remained officially neutral, Perkins-Auguste cast herself as the rebel candidate against the machine. She did, however, have Elizabeth Mayor J. Christian Bollwage – a close Lesniak ally—behind her. Perkins-Auguste also expressed disappointment that committee members from Roselle went with Quijano instead of her.
“I went up against the machine, the political power brokers of the stat eof New Jersey. I lost by five votes. Ray Lesniak, Joe Cryan and Charlotte DeFilippo. People I have great respect for,” she said. “I believe in God and that’s who I get my direction from. I don’t believe in backroom politics. I believe in serving the people.”
Freeholder Director Angel Estrada, who took his name out of the mix for the seat after he found that “the numbers didn’t add up,” was forthright about the importance of the seat being filled by a person of Hispanic heritage.
“The 20th legislative district is a Latino district, no matter what anybody claims,” he said. “The reality is we need to start recognizing Latinos' contribution to our society in terms of the work we do every day.”
Quijano, however, disputed Perkins-Auguste’s claim that her ethnicity is what ultimately won her the seat.
“I can’t say it’s solely because I’m latino. If you saw a number of individuals here, they were from a lot of nationalities, and I want to represent all of the community.
Defilippo, meanwhile, played up the fact that the race for the seat came down to two women, showcasing what she said was an effort to recruit more women into local government.
“I think were both were very articulate, but Annette has a depth of government experience,” she said.
-------------------------------------------
Update: Below is the response from Union County Republican Chairman Phil Morin.
"Tonight, the Union County Democratic machine had an opportunity to fill a disgraced former assemblyman's seat with a fresh face of change. Instead, party insiders have selected someone who represents more of the same. Instead of choosing someone who will change the culture of corruption in Trenton, they have chosen someone who is inextricably linked with the failed policies of the Corzine and McGreevey administrations. Undoubtedly, the newest member of the Trenton aristocracy will be a loyal footsoldier who will blindly vote for higher property taxes, bigger government and sweetheart deals for connected insiders.
It is hard to believe that someone who has served as legal counsel for Governor Corzine and undoubtedly advised him on initiatives such as the ill-fated toll tax plan to the latest COAH tax legislative disaster will be any different than her predecessor, who was more concerned with sparing a vicious dog's life than reducing the financial pressures on the overtaxed citizens of the 20th District.
Address :
Comments
Lesniak? DeFillippo? Cryan?
posted by Mr. Democrat
Was Quijano the candidate of Lesniak? I hadn't seen that reported anywhere.
Very close race. Makes it seem like the Bosses aren't in solid control (unless they just didn't have a preference between the two).
08/19/08 8:46 pm
------------------------------------------------
Phil Morin -A stand up guy offers good insights and interesting
posted by KathyCallahan
analysis of the -same old same old unispired and entirely predictable machine.
08/20/08 7:44 am
----------------------------------------------
They are in control, the bosses
posted by bitaryo
Remember the meeting was closed to the press and the public. What is reported is stage managed.
Still can't figure out why it is a Latino district with only a 24% share of the population.
08/20/08 7:52 am
Address :
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
Asm Jerry Green - Legislature - Bill to make police chiefs contractual - Courier
Published in the Courier News, Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Bill would monitor Jersey's top cops
By CHAD HEMENWAY
Staff Writer
TRENTON -- Assemblyman Jerry Green introduced legislation Monday that would make make it easier for municipalities to remove police chiefs from their jobs.
In essence, the legislation would make New Jersey police chiefs contractual employees of the municipalities they work for, making it "easier for municipalities to remove police chiefs who are incompetent or who fail to meet performance goals."
"(Police chiefs) really should welcome it," said Green, D-Plainfield. "The challenge is now out there. The ones who are performing well and doing their jobs should have no problem with accountability."
According to Green's legislation, municipalities would hire chiefs of police for a three-to-five-year contract. Once the contract expires, chiefs would immediately be rehired unless the municipality decides on a different term or "determines the chief has failed to adequately address deficiencies highlighted in a performance evaluation."
Bill A-2864 would also establish a Chiefs of Police Performance Evaluation Commission in the state Division of Criminal Justice. The commission's primary function would be to conduct performance evaluations of chiefs.
The 12-member commission would include two people appointed to three-year terms by the governor, with Senate approval; the president or authorized representative of the state Association of Chiefs of Police, the state Police Benevolent Association, the New Jersey State Lodge, the Fraternal Order of Police, the state League of Municipalities and the New Jersey Conference of Mayors; the attorney general; the superintendent of State Police; the state commissioner of Personnel; and the state commissioner of Labor.
The commission would conduct evaluations at least one year prior to the expiration of a contract. Municipalities could also request an evaluation within the first year of the legislation, should it be enacted. After a subsequent meeting between the chief and municipality, the municipality could refuse to renew the contract if the chief fails to address deficiencies described in the evaluation.
Mitchell C. Sklar, executive director of the state Association of Chiefs of Police, said he had not read the legislation but received Green's news release about it.
Sklar said he wonders how a consensus would be reached on what makes a productive or effective police chief, considering the state has 566 municipalities with different circumstances, budgets and populations.
"That panel is very problematic," Sklar said of the proposed commission. "Though some of the proposed members are very valuable to the state, I'm not sure what they can contribute to an evaluation about police chiefs -- all of whom serve in municipalities that are very different."
Sklar added the bill "opens the door wide open" for political leverage.
"It appears you could drive a truck through the hole something like this would create for politics to enter the mix," Sklar said. "Chiefs should have the opportunity to disagree without fear of their opinions impacting whether they remain.
"There are statutes in place to keep these matters separate," he said. "This would take a machete to that system. This is a disincentive to become chief. Why would you want to?"
Green said the bill is simply about accountability, not politics. He said he has spoken to numerous municipalities that have "lost hope" or can't do anything about an ineffective police chief. Green spent six months in Plainfield, he said, interviewing officials to get "a good handle on local government."
In Plainfield, police Chief Edward Santiago is under paid administrative leave until a hearing to decide if he can return to work. Santiago has a lawsuit pending against the city to clear his record of a suspension in 2003.
"Here is a situation where no one is happy with his management," Green said. "Everyone thinks that the police department is not run correctly but they can't remove him because he has tenure. I don't think it's politically motivated. I think people just think he isn't doing a good job."
Santiago's attorney could not be reached for comment.
The issue seemed new to some local police chiefs. The first time Bridgewater police Chief Stephen Obal heard about it was when he was reached by the Courier News for comment. South Bound Brook police Chief Robert Verry said he heard something about it on a radio report but was unfamiliar with the details.
"I already have a 10-year contract," said Verry, who has been chief for six years. "It would seem to me that there would be a lot of questions with the legislation. I don't know how chiefs would continue running their departments if their subordinates ultimately have more tenure than the chief."
Sklar said many police chiefs have contracts. In fact, he said the chief's association provides municipalities with models for the contracts.
Green said the bill is not intended to affect tenure rights. If a chief is removed, he can still take a lesser role within the department, he said. But Sklar said that could have [an] effect [on] pay and pension plans.
(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.)
Bill would monitor Jersey's top cops
By CHAD HEMENWAY
Staff Writer
TRENTON -- Assemblyman Jerry Green introduced legislation Monday that would make make it easier for municipalities to remove police chiefs from their jobs.
In essence, the legislation would make New Jersey police chiefs contractual employees of the municipalities they work for, making it "easier for municipalities to remove police chiefs who are incompetent or who fail to meet performance goals."
"(Police chiefs) really should welcome it," said Green, D-Plainfield. "The challenge is now out there. The ones who are performing well and doing their jobs should have no problem with accountability."
According to Green's legislation, municipalities would hire chiefs of police for a three-to-five-year contract. Once the contract expires, chiefs would immediately be rehired unless the municipality decides on a different term or "determines the chief has failed to adequately address deficiencies highlighted in a performance evaluation."
Bill A-2864 would also establish a Chiefs of Police Performance Evaluation Commission in the state Division of Criminal Justice. The commission's primary function would be to conduct performance evaluations of chiefs.
The 12-member commission would include two people appointed to three-year terms by the governor, with Senate approval; the president or authorized representative of the state Association of Chiefs of Police, the state Police Benevolent Association, the New Jersey State Lodge, the Fraternal Order of Police, the state League of Municipalities and the New Jersey Conference of Mayors; the attorney general; the superintendent of State Police; the state commissioner of Personnel; and the state commissioner of Labor.
The commission would conduct evaluations at least one year prior to the expiration of a contract. Municipalities could also request an evaluation within the first year of the legislation, should it be enacted. After a subsequent meeting between the chief and municipality, the municipality could refuse to renew the contract if the chief fails to address deficiencies described in the evaluation.
Mitchell C. Sklar, executive director of the state Association of Chiefs of Police, said he had not read the legislation but received Green's news release about it.
Sklar said he wonders how a consensus would be reached on what makes a productive or effective police chief, considering the state has 566 municipalities with different circumstances, budgets and populations.
"That panel is very problematic," Sklar said of the proposed commission. "Though some of the proposed members are very valuable to the state, I'm not sure what they can contribute to an evaluation about police chiefs -- all of whom serve in municipalities that are very different."
Sklar added the bill "opens the door wide open" for political leverage.
"It appears you could drive a truck through the hole something like this would create for politics to enter the mix," Sklar said. "Chiefs should have the opportunity to disagree without fear of their opinions impacting whether they remain.
"There are statutes in place to keep these matters separate," he said. "This would take a machete to that system. This is a disincentive to become chief. Why would you want to?"
Green said the bill is simply about accountability, not politics. He said he has spoken to numerous municipalities that have "lost hope" or can't do anything about an ineffective police chief. Green spent six months in Plainfield, he said, interviewing officials to get "a good handle on local government."
In Plainfield, police Chief Edward Santiago is under paid administrative leave until a hearing to decide if he can return to work. Santiago has a lawsuit pending against the city to clear his record of a suspension in 2003.
"Here is a situation where no one is happy with his management," Green said. "Everyone thinks that the police department is not run correctly but they can't remove him because he has tenure. I don't think it's politically motivated. I think people just think he isn't doing a good job."
Santiago's attorney could not be reached for comment.
The issue seemed new to some local police chiefs. The first time Bridgewater police Chief Stephen Obal heard about it was when he was reached by the Courier News for comment. South Bound Brook police Chief Robert Verry said he heard something about it on a radio report but was unfamiliar with the details.
"I already have a 10-year contract," said Verry, who has been chief for six years. "It would seem to me that there would be a lot of questions with the legislation. I don't know how chiefs would continue running their departments if their subordinates ultimately have more tenure than the chief."
Sklar said many police chiefs have contracts. In fact, he said the chief's association provides municipalities with models for the contracts.
Green said the bill is not intended to affect tenure rights. If a chief is removed, he can still take a lesser role within the department, he said. But Sklar said that could have [an] effect [on] pay and pension plans.
(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.)
Asm Jerry Green - Legislature - Bill to make police chiefs contractual - Ledger
Published in the Star Ledger, Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Lawmaker wants way to remove top cops
Plainfield's Santiago appears to be target
BY JULIA M. SCOTT
Star-Ledger Staff
A month after his political ally put Plainfield Police Chief Edward Santiago on administrative leave, Assemblyman Jerry Green introduced a bill that would make it easier to remove a sitting police commander.
The bill would make top cops employees with a three- to five-year contract instead of tenured workers. It creates a 12-member state commission to determine if a chief was "satisfactorily performing his duties" near the end of the contract. Those who don't meet the cut could be demoted to a lower rank but would not lose their job, Green said.
The state needs to weed out tenured employees who are performing "unsatisfactorily," starting with police chiefs, Green said. He introduced the six-page bill Monday.
"You can't just go after Santiago, you have to say this system in place is not working," said Green, whose district includes Plainfield. "There is no check and balance when it comes down to the police departments in New Jersey."
The bill comes on the heels of a court fight to reinstate Santiago, whom Mayor Sharon Robinson- Briggs put on paid administrative leave four weeks ago because she does not want her criticism of the department to land her a role in a lawsuit Santiago filed in 2005.
Santiago sued the city in August, claiming his reputation was tarnished after former safety director Michael Lattimore suspended him for a day.
In court Friday, a judge refused to immediately allow Santiago to return, instead putting off a decision until the end of the month.
Santiago's lawyer, Todd Shea of Westfield, declined to comment because he has not seen the bill. Shea added, "I can say Plainfield violated the law in place at the time they put him on leave."
The bill takes "all the politics" out of the process, because an outside commission decides the fate of chiefs, said Green, an adviser to Robinson-Briggs who helped her win the mayoral seat.
Not so, according to Mitchell Sklar, executive director of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police. The bill would oppose a law from the early 1980s that made the chief's position tenured, insulating them from capricious politicians.
"If the police chief was doing something the politicians didn't like, they couldn't simply be removed because they annoyed elected officials," Sklar said. "It happened often enough to enact a law to put a stop to that."
Sklar pointed out the current system of checks and balances. Municipal police chiefs answer to the county prosecutor, who answers to the attorney general.
The 12-member evaluation commission would fall under the department of law and public safety and include union leaders, police association leaders, two people appointed by the governor, and others.
As chair of the housing and local government committee, Green said, he hears many municipalities complain about incompetent police commanders.
"The majority of them feel at a disadvantage because once these chiefs are appointed, they can basically not be removed unless they almost commit murder," Green said.
Julia M. Scott covers Plainfield. She may be reached at jscott@star ledger.com or (908) 302-1505.
(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.)
Lawmaker wants way to remove top cops
Plainfield's Santiago appears to be target
BY JULIA M. SCOTT
Star-Ledger Staff
A month after his political ally put Plainfield Police Chief Edward Santiago on administrative leave, Assemblyman Jerry Green introduced a bill that would make it easier to remove a sitting police commander.
The bill would make top cops employees with a three- to five-year contract instead of tenured workers. It creates a 12-member state commission to determine if a chief was "satisfactorily performing his duties" near the end of the contract. Those who don't meet the cut could be demoted to a lower rank but would not lose their job, Green said.
The state needs to weed out tenured employees who are performing "unsatisfactorily," starting with police chiefs, Green said. He introduced the six-page bill Monday.
"You can't just go after Santiago, you have to say this system in place is not working," said Green, whose district includes Plainfield. "There is no check and balance when it comes down to the police departments in New Jersey."
The bill comes on the heels of a court fight to reinstate Santiago, whom Mayor Sharon Robinson- Briggs put on paid administrative leave four weeks ago because she does not want her criticism of the department to land her a role in a lawsuit Santiago filed in 2005.
Santiago sued the city in August, claiming his reputation was tarnished after former safety director Michael Lattimore suspended him for a day.
In court Friday, a judge refused to immediately allow Santiago to return, instead putting off a decision until the end of the month.
Santiago's lawyer, Todd Shea of Westfield, declined to comment because he has not seen the bill. Shea added, "I can say Plainfield violated the law in place at the time they put him on leave."
The bill takes "all the politics" out of the process, because an outside commission decides the fate of chiefs, said Green, an adviser to Robinson-Briggs who helped her win the mayoral seat.
Not so, according to Mitchell Sklar, executive director of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police. The bill would oppose a law from the early 1980s that made the chief's position tenured, insulating them from capricious politicians.
"If the police chief was doing something the politicians didn't like, they couldn't simply be removed because they annoyed elected officials," Sklar said. "It happened often enough to enact a law to put a stop to that."
Sklar pointed out the current system of checks and balances. Municipal police chiefs answer to the county prosecutor, who answers to the attorney general.
The 12-member evaluation commission would fall under the department of law and public safety and include union leaders, police association leaders, two people appointed by the governor, and others.
As chair of the housing and local government committee, Green said, he hears many municipalities complain about incompetent police commanders.
"The majority of them feel at a disadvantage because once these chiefs are appointed, they can basically not be removed unless they almost commit murder," Green said.
Julia M. Scott covers Plainfield. She may be reached at jscott@star ledger.com or (908) 302-1505.
(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.)
Monday, December 17, 2007
County Party Organizations - NY Times - Bill would set rules
Published in the New York Times, Sunday, December 09, 2007
On Politics
Bipartisan Bill Seeks to Open County Primaries
By DAVID W. CHEN
TRENTON
CONVENTIONAL wisdom says that most elections in New Jersey are decided in the primary, because most districts are drawn so that the dominant party doesn’t have to break a financial sweat in the general election. But in practice, the primary is often a fait accompli, too, because the real drama occurs at the county political conventions, thanks to the influence of county political bosses.
So imagine what chaos and suspense might unfold if a proposal offered by two of the most prominent women in the State Legislature becomes a reality.
State Senators Loretta Weinberg, a Democrat from Bergen County, and Diane B. Allen, a Republican from Burlington County, introduced a bill last week that would open up the process by which county parties operate. Senator Allen has complained that the process is rife with back-room deals and is dominated by men.
Under the bill, the parties would be required to adopt constitutions and bylaws; use voting machines when committee members fill vacancies in the Legislature; and keep an updated list of committee members on file with the county clerk.
The bill, called the Party Democracy Act, has a bipartisan group of sponsors in the Assembly, too: Linda R. Greenstein, a Democrat who represents Mercer and Middlesex Counties; Amy H. Handlin, a Republican from Monmouth County; and Ms. Weinberg’s two running mates in Bergen County, Valerie Vainieri Huttle and Gordon M. Johnson.
Guiding the legislators from the outside is Harry S. Pozycki, chairman of the Citizens’ Campaign, a nonpartisan group devoted to government reform.
At its heart, Mr. Pozycki said, the bill is intended to muzzle county political chairmen, who have long been perceived to wield an inordinate amount of power in picking candidates for local, county and statewide offices. Securing the blessing of the county boss has long been crucial to victory in any race, because of the way loyal blocs of voters in low-turnout elections follow the cues of their party leaders.
“We move from tyranny to democracy,” said Mr. Pozycki, a former chairman of the Middlesex County Democratic Party. “We have the rule of law, instead of the clubhouse rule.”
But this being New Jersey, you can bet there is personal animus underpinning the bill as well.
In Bergen County, Senator Weinberg has been engaged in an increasingly bitter battle with Joseph A. Ferriero, the Democratic Party chairman. To get into the whys and whats of their feud would require a master’s thesis worth of paperwork. But some of the bad blood dates back two years, when Senator Weinberg, then an assemblywoman, went to court in a battle over disputed ballots to edge a candidate preferred by Mr. Ferriero to fill a Senate vacancy.
Senator Allen has most recently been engaged in a standoff with Glenn Paulsen, a former Burlington County Republican chairman who still wields a lot of influence. She had wanted the county party’s help in a primary to fill the seat of retiring Representative Jim Saxton, but she quit when she became frustrated with the process.
“We need to get rid of the county bosses,” Senator Allen said. “Back-room deals have been made in New Jersey for years, and only now, when we seem to have a lot more women in the Legislature, are we starting to gain momentum in saying, ‘You can’t do that anymore.’”
Asked about Senator Allen’s remarks, Bill Layton, the new Burlington County Republican chairman, who is not exactly an Allen supporter, declined to comment. But he said that her bill was, in general, a good one.
“I think anytime the Legislature or anyone wants to make the political process for political parties more open and transparent, I think that’s a great thing,” Mr. Layton said. “I think it’s a great piece of legislation.”
But he said he did not like the requirement for voting machines because “to close that process off would be like asking the senators and assemblymen who come up to Trenton every day to go in a back room and vote on bills, so no one really knows how they stood on the issues.”
The fate of the bill is unclear. Gov. Jon S. Corzine said that while he had not looked at the bill, “I’ve tended to support most of the things that Senator Weinberg has been on the side of.”
Legislative leaders have offered lukewarm opinions. And both Tom Wilson, the state Republican Party chairman, and Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, his Democratic counterpart, expressed concern about the constitutionality of such a bill, noting that the United States Supreme Court has ruled that government cannot regulate private political organizations.
So leave it to Charlotte DeFillippo, the Union County Democratic chairwoman, to weigh in, too — on the side of the existing system.
“While Senator Weinberg is certainly prolific as a bill writer, I think that the legislation is gratuitous,” said Ms. DeFillippo, the only woman leading a county party in New Jersey. “Individual political problems should not forge general public policy. I also believe this is constitutional. So I agree with both state chairmen, and that’s a rarity.”
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
On Politics
Bipartisan Bill Seeks to Open County Primaries
By DAVID W. CHEN
TRENTON
CONVENTIONAL wisdom says that most elections in New Jersey are decided in the primary, because most districts are drawn so that the dominant party doesn’t have to break a financial sweat in the general election. But in practice, the primary is often a fait accompli, too, because the real drama occurs at the county political conventions, thanks to the influence of county political bosses.
So imagine what chaos and suspense might unfold if a proposal offered by two of the most prominent women in the State Legislature becomes a reality.
State Senators Loretta Weinberg, a Democrat from Bergen County, and Diane B. Allen, a Republican from Burlington County, introduced a bill last week that would open up the process by which county parties operate. Senator Allen has complained that the process is rife with back-room deals and is dominated by men.
Under the bill, the parties would be required to adopt constitutions and bylaws; use voting machines when committee members fill vacancies in the Legislature; and keep an updated list of committee members on file with the county clerk.
The bill, called the Party Democracy Act, has a bipartisan group of sponsors in the Assembly, too: Linda R. Greenstein, a Democrat who represents Mercer and Middlesex Counties; Amy H. Handlin, a Republican from Monmouth County; and Ms. Weinberg’s two running mates in Bergen County, Valerie Vainieri Huttle and Gordon M. Johnson.
Guiding the legislators from the outside is Harry S. Pozycki, chairman of the Citizens’ Campaign, a nonpartisan group devoted to government reform.
At its heart, Mr. Pozycki said, the bill is intended to muzzle county political chairmen, who have long been perceived to wield an inordinate amount of power in picking candidates for local, county and statewide offices. Securing the blessing of the county boss has long been crucial to victory in any race, because of the way loyal blocs of voters in low-turnout elections follow the cues of their party leaders.
“We move from tyranny to democracy,” said Mr. Pozycki, a former chairman of the Middlesex County Democratic Party. “We have the rule of law, instead of the clubhouse rule.”
But this being New Jersey, you can bet there is personal animus underpinning the bill as well.
In Bergen County, Senator Weinberg has been engaged in an increasingly bitter battle with Joseph A. Ferriero, the Democratic Party chairman. To get into the whys and whats of their feud would require a master’s thesis worth of paperwork. But some of the bad blood dates back two years, when Senator Weinberg, then an assemblywoman, went to court in a battle over disputed ballots to edge a candidate preferred by Mr. Ferriero to fill a Senate vacancy.
Senator Allen has most recently been engaged in a standoff with Glenn Paulsen, a former Burlington County Republican chairman who still wields a lot of influence. She had wanted the county party’s help in a primary to fill the seat of retiring Representative Jim Saxton, but she quit when she became frustrated with the process.
“We need to get rid of the county bosses,” Senator Allen said. “Back-room deals have been made in New Jersey for years, and only now, when we seem to have a lot more women in the Legislature, are we starting to gain momentum in saying, ‘You can’t do that anymore.’”
Asked about Senator Allen’s remarks, Bill Layton, the new Burlington County Republican chairman, who is not exactly an Allen supporter, declined to comment. But he said that her bill was, in general, a good one.
“I think anytime the Legislature or anyone wants to make the political process for political parties more open and transparent, I think that’s a great thing,” Mr. Layton said. “I think it’s a great piece of legislation.”
But he said he did not like the requirement for voting machines because “to close that process off would be like asking the senators and assemblymen who come up to Trenton every day to go in a back room and vote on bills, so no one really knows how they stood on the issues.”
The fate of the bill is unclear. Gov. Jon S. Corzine said that while he had not looked at the bill, “I’ve tended to support most of the things that Senator Weinberg has been on the side of.”
Legislative leaders have offered lukewarm opinions. And both Tom Wilson, the state Republican Party chairman, and Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, his Democratic counterpart, expressed concern about the constitutionality of such a bill, noting that the United States Supreme Court has ruled that government cannot regulate private political organizations.
So leave it to Charlotte DeFillippo, the Union County Democratic chairwoman, to weigh in, too — on the side of the existing system.
“While Senator Weinberg is certainly prolific as a bill writer, I think that the legislation is gratuitous,” said Ms. DeFillippo, the only woman leading a county party in New Jersey. “Individual political problems should not forge general public policy. I also believe this is constitutional. So I agree with both state chairmen, and that’s a rarity.”
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
County Party Organizations - Ledger - Bill would set rules
Published in the Star-Ledger, Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Bill targets power of county bosses
Legislation sets internal rules for parties,
which chairmen say is unconstitutional
BY JOE DONOHUE
Star-Ledger Staff
Several legislators launched a bipartisan drive yesterday to end one of New Jersey's oldest traditions -- the power of county political bosses.
But two state party chairmen said doing so would violate the state constitution.
Led by two women senators who have both recently tangled with their respective county leaders, the legislative contingent wants to curb the influence of county bosses by adopting minimum standards for how county parties operate.
"All it does is make sure our parties run officially in an open manner," said Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen), who has had several high-profile clashes with Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joseph Ferriero.
Under the Party Democracy Act, all county parties would have to adopt party constitutions and bylaws, use voting machines for filling committee vacancies and abide by other rules of operation that would make it harder to manipulate the nominating process. Weinberg and others said some leaders exploit the weakness of their parties to create their own fiefdoms and tend to exclude minorities and women.
"We need to get rid of the county bosses. We need to give power back to the people and do things in a democratic way," said Sen. Diane Allen (R-Burlington), another bill supporter. When Allen recently decided not to run for Congress, she said her decision was influenced in part by a falling out with longtime friend Glenn Paulsen, former Burlington County GOP chairman and still a major force in local politics.
Tom Wilson, chairman of the Republican State Committee, said while there may be good ideas in the legislation, it would be as unconstitutional as telling Chambers of Commerce or the Little League how to run their private affairs.
"The Supreme Court already has made it clear that government cannot intervene in the workings of private organizations," he said. "For purposes of the constitution, political parties are considered private organizations."
Democratic State Chairman Joe Cryan agreed there are constitutional questions about such a proposal. "If the goals are to increase representation of women and minorities and to give grassroots party activists a voice, we are already succeeding," Cryan said.
Harry Pozycki, chairman of the Citizens' Campaign, a nonpartisan group promoting citizen involvement in government, said the bill was drafted with an eye toward respecting the constitution. Lawmakers cannot micromanage parties but can set broad operating guidelines, he said.
"Party constitutions and voting machines are critical to ensure that county party committee people know the rules of the game and are able to vote their conscience, free from the threat or perception of intimidation from party leaders who in many cases control their livelihood," he said.
Ferriero could not be reached for comment. Paulsen, Burlington County chairman from 1990 to 2004, said no Republican county party in the state nominated more women and minorities during that period.
Brigid Harrison, political science professor at Montclair State University, said the influence of bosses, a New Jersey tradition that dates back at least a century, is too strong to eliminate overnight.
"You have to chip away at their base of power and how they go about conducting their business. This is one step in that direction," she said. "Party chairs need to be responsive to a set of rules that may not necessarily be of their making."
Joe Donohue may be reached at jdonohue@starledger.com or (609) 989-0208.
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Bill targets power of county bosses
Legislation sets internal rules for parties,
which chairmen say is unconstitutional
BY JOE DONOHUE
Star-Ledger Staff
Several legislators launched a bipartisan drive yesterday to end one of New Jersey's oldest traditions -- the power of county political bosses.
But two state party chairmen said doing so would violate the state constitution.
Led by two women senators who have both recently tangled with their respective county leaders, the legislative contingent wants to curb the influence of county bosses by adopting minimum standards for how county parties operate.
"All it does is make sure our parties run officially in an open manner," said Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen), who has had several high-profile clashes with Bergen County Democratic Chairman Joseph Ferriero.
Under the Party Democracy Act, all county parties would have to adopt party constitutions and bylaws, use voting machines for filling committee vacancies and abide by other rules of operation that would make it harder to manipulate the nominating process. Weinberg and others said some leaders exploit the weakness of their parties to create their own fiefdoms and tend to exclude minorities and women.
"We need to get rid of the county bosses. We need to give power back to the people and do things in a democratic way," said Sen. Diane Allen (R-Burlington), another bill supporter. When Allen recently decided not to run for Congress, she said her decision was influenced in part by a falling out with longtime friend Glenn Paulsen, former Burlington County GOP chairman and still a major force in local politics.
Tom Wilson, chairman of the Republican State Committee, said while there may be good ideas in the legislation, it would be as unconstitutional as telling Chambers of Commerce or the Little League how to run their private affairs.
"The Supreme Court already has made it clear that government cannot intervene in the workings of private organizations," he said. "For purposes of the constitution, political parties are considered private organizations."
Democratic State Chairman Joe Cryan agreed there are constitutional questions about such a proposal. "If the goals are to increase representation of women and minorities and to give grassroots party activists a voice, we are already succeeding," Cryan said.
Harry Pozycki, chairman of the Citizens' Campaign, a nonpartisan group promoting citizen involvement in government, said the bill was drafted with an eye toward respecting the constitution. Lawmakers cannot micromanage parties but can set broad operating guidelines, he said.
"Party constitutions and voting machines are critical to ensure that county party committee people know the rules of the game and are able to vote their conscience, free from the threat or perception of intimidation from party leaders who in many cases control their livelihood," he said.
Ferriero could not be reached for comment. Paulsen, Burlington County chairman from 1990 to 2004, said no Republican county party in the state nominated more women and minorities during that period.
Brigid Harrison, political science professor at Montclair State University, said the influence of bosses, a New Jersey tradition that dates back at least a century, is too strong to eliminate overnight.
"You have to chip away at their base of power and how they go about conducting their business. This is one step in that direction," she said. "Party chairs need to be responsive to a set of rules that may not necessarily be of their making."
Joe Donohue may be reached at jdonohue@starledger.com or (609) 989-0208.
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Monday, October 15, 2007
Jerry Green - APP - Alman resignation effective Monday
Published in the Asbury Park Press, Friday, October 12, 2007
Assemblyman giving up job at Westfield lobbying firm
BY MICHAEL DEAK
GANNETT NEW JERSEY
Assemblyman Gerald B. Green, D-Union, will resign Monday from his part-time job with the Alman Group, a Westfield-based lobbying firm, to avoid any possible conflict of interest.
He is the firm's vice president for local affairs.
Green's decision was made Oct. 2, a day after Gannett New Jersey reported on his relationship with the firm as part of an eight-day series on government ethics called "Profiting from Public Service: Four years later."
The eight-term lawmaker from Plainfield said he took the action to "eliminate any gray areas" and because he wants to concentrate on major issues in the Legislature if he is re-elected next month.
"I've done everything above board," Green said.
Green, 68, also said he is in line to assume a leadership role next year in the Assembly as deputy speaker pro tempore.
The legislator said he did not want questions about his employment "to take away" from his work on issues such as health care and housing.
"I don't want there to be questions every time I take a stand," he said.
Green sits on the Assembly's Health Committee. He also heads the committee that oversees housing rules.
Among the Alman Group's clients are at least 18 hospitals. In 1999, Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center in Plainfield hired the firm to help win state approval to perform cardiac surgery.
But Green's support of Muhlenberg started before that and continued even after the hospital and Alman parted ways.
Green told Gannett New Jersey that questions about his involvement with Muhlenberg and the city of Plainfield, where he advises Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs, are two reasons he previously has backed away from projects with Alman.
For the past two years, the assemblyman said he has concentrated full time on government, advising Robinson-Briggs without being reimbursed.
"We hope to move the city in the right direction," he said.
Many of his clients at the Alman Group were nonprofit organizations, Green said.
In the past, Green said he has taken other action to avoid conflicts, such as selling two liquor licenses he said he owned.
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Assemblyman giving up job at Westfield lobbying firm
BY MICHAEL DEAK
GANNETT NEW JERSEY
Assemblyman Gerald B. Green, D-Union, will resign Monday from his part-time job with the Alman Group, a Westfield-based lobbying firm, to avoid any possible conflict of interest.
He is the firm's vice president for local affairs.
Green's decision was made Oct. 2, a day after Gannett New Jersey reported on his relationship with the firm as part of an eight-day series on government ethics called "Profiting from Public Service: Four years later."
The eight-term lawmaker from Plainfield said he took the action to "eliminate any gray areas" and because he wants to concentrate on major issues in the Legislature if he is re-elected next month.
"I've done everything above board," Green said.
Green, 68, also said he is in line to assume a leadership role next year in the Assembly as deputy speaker pro tempore.
The legislator said he did not want questions about his employment "to take away" from his work on issues such as health care and housing.
"I don't want there to be questions every time I take a stand," he said.
Green sits on the Assembly's Health Committee. He also heads the committee that oversees housing rules.
Among the Alman Group's clients are at least 18 hospitals. In 1999, Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center in Plainfield hired the firm to help win state approval to perform cardiac surgery.
But Green's support of Muhlenberg started before that and continued even after the hospital and Alman parted ways.
Green told Gannett New Jersey that questions about his involvement with Muhlenberg and the city of Plainfield, where he advises Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs, are two reasons he previously has backed away from projects with Alman.
For the past two years, the assemblyman said he has concentrated full time on government, advising Robinson-Briggs without being reimbursed.
"We hope to move the city in the right direction," he said.
Many of his clients at the Alman Group were nonprofit organizations, Green said.
In the past, Green said he has taken other action to avoid conflicts, such as selling two liquor licenses he said he owned.
COMMENT
You have to be kidding. How long did it take this idiot to find out that this wasn't right. Or did someone just catch up to him. You know did it get to hot in the frying pan. This guy shouldn't hold an office anywhere let alone here in corrupt New Jersey..
Posted by: shadoh12 on Sat Oct 13, 2007 2:45 pm
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Jerry Green - Courier - Undisclosed work for Alman Group
Published in the Courier News, Monday, October 1, 2007
Lawmakers still finding ways to hide conflicts
Four years ago, New Jersey embarked on a sweeping government ethics reform program. In the second part of an eight-day series, Gannett New Jersey looks at how major conflicts of interest still can be hidden by lawmakers.
By JONATHAN TAMARI
GANNETT NEW JERSEY
TRENTON -- Like many Trenton lobbying firms, the Westfield-based Alman Group offers a staff with years of government experience that can help clients shape laws and win state aid.
But the firm also boasts a seemingly unique quality: a sitting lawmaker on its marquee.
Assembly Deputy Speaker Gerald B. Green, D-Plainfield, also is vice president for local affairs at the Alman Group. In the Legislature, Green chairs the committee that oversees housing rules and sits on the Health Committee. Both panels vet laws that could impact Alman clients, which include major developers and at least 18 hospitals.
Green's job is one example of how Trenton's rules and culture allow lawmakers' public roles and private work to come tantalizingly close.
Even though many lawmakers with private jobs say they painstakingly avoid any direct conflicts, including Green, the Legislature's current financial disclosure requirements allow officials to keep their clients secret.
That gives lawmakers the ability to hide relationships with clients or partners who might have a vested interest in new laws. There is no way to tell if a lawyer or consultant who, for example, helps craft environmental regulations also is working with a major housing developer.
And at least one member of the Legislature's ethics committee believes the existing conflict-of-interest restrictions come with built-in loopholes.
In Green's case, he has received legal opinions that say he is in the clear.
While legislative rules bar lawmakers from accepting gifts, jobs or anything of value worth more than $250 from lobbyists, two ethics opinions issued by the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services in 1998 and 2006 say Green's consulting work at Alman doesn't violate that restriction, as long as his work at the firm is unrelated to his "official duties."
Green said he requested the opinions and makes sure to keep his private job and public role separate, although he declined to say what Alman clients he has worked with.
In addition to lobbying, Alman offers consulting on issues such as development, land use and permitting, according to the firm's Web site.
The 2006 advice to Green notes that the Legislative ethics committee has traditionally interpreted conflict-of-interest rules to allow the "the widest possible participation" in voting by lawmakers -- meaning, essentially, that only the most blatant conflicts are explicitly barred.
The opinion concludes by referring Green to an ethics tutorial on the Legislature's Web page.
When questioned by reporters about potential conflicts, several lawmakers noted their actions are allowed under current rules because they won't directly profit. Lawmakers said their jobs in the Legislature are part time and that they have to be allowed to make livings elsewhere.
Retired Superior Court Judge Herbert Friend, the acting chairman of the Joint Legislative Committee on Ethical Standards, is planning to set up a subcommittee to recommend the first major update to the Legislature's ethics code in 25 years.
"There are holes in the code of ethics that you could drive a truck through," Friend said.
Conflicts seem obvious
The existing conflict rules did not stop Sen. Wayne R. Bryant, D-Camden, from overseeing the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, which steered tens of millions of dollars to two universities that hired him, or getting his law firm work through legislation he crafted to send $175 million to Camden city's economic recovery. Bryant remains on the Senate Education Committee.
They also did not prevent Sen. Sharpe James, D-Essex, from pushing through a law that gave him additional power over land sales in Newark, where he was mayor.
Prosecutors now claim that the law helped James sell city properties to friends at cut-rate prices. James remains on the Senate Community and Urban Affairs and Budget and Appropriations committees.
Sen. Joseph Coniglio, D-Bergen, another member of the budget committee, got a $5,500-per-month job as a plumbing consultant at the Hackensack University Medical Center from 2004 to 2006, while the hospital received more than $1 million in state grants during those years.
Both Bryant and James face federal corruption charges for their actions, although both have proclaimed their innocence. Coniglio is the target of a federal investigation and recently dropped out of a re-election bid. He said he would fight the "false accusations" that his work at the hospital was connected to state grants.
"I am quite confident that my name and reputation -- which has suffered immeasurable damage -- will, with time, be restored," Coniglio said in a statement he issued when he dropped out of the race in mid-September.
[Green] defends consulting work
In Green's case, his position at Alman is described on the firm's Web site, but the arrangement is not apparent on Green's state financial disclosure form, where his income from consulting is listed under a company simply called "Jerry Green Enterprises."
That company, which Green said he uses for his private ventures, earned at least $50,000 in 2006.
Green, who has not been accused of any illegality, would not say what other clients he works with, saying he did not want to draw private firms into a story about his public work.
But Green said he makes sure his outside projects, which he said involve consulting, not lobbying, don't involve state government. He said he has worked with Alman for roughly 10 years but has done little with the firm in the past 18 months, in order to avoid any potential conflicts, though he still is a part of the firm.
"I try to make sure that anything I do does not interfere with what I consider my job as a legislator," Green said. He said he is not salaried at Alman, earning money on only a per-project basis. "There's a whole lot of gray areas there, and I don't want to take a chance."
Ten of Alman's hospital clients split nearly $26 million in state grants in the 2006-07 state budget, for which Green voted yes.
Alman also works with several developers, including housing builder K. Hovnanian Companies in Edison. Green, who made much of his money in real estate, chairs the Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee.
Green also has consistently offered support for a hospital in his hometown, Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center, which in 1999 hired Alman to help win state approval to perform cardiac surgery.
Green's advocacy dates to before that contract and continued even after the hospital and lobbyists parted ways.
Green and Alman's president, George Albanese, said the lawmaker did not help the lobbying firm on either the hospital grants or any other issues involving state government. Green said questions about his involvement with Muhlenberg and the city of Plainfield are two reasons he has backed away from projects with Alman.
"He does nothing with the state of New Jersey," Albanese said. "I wouldn't put him in that position to even suggest or ask him."
"As long as I don't benefit financially, then there's nothing I have done wrong," Green said, referring to the OLS opinions.
Touting technical expertise
Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula, D-Somerset, made a similar argument after recently sponsoring a law that gives Verizon Communications the chance to compete for cable television customers in New Jersey. Verizon also is a client at the consulting firm where Chivukula is chairman, and it is expected to invest $1.5 billion in New Jersey as a result of the law.
As with Green, the association is not apparent on Chivukula's disclosure form, which lists the consulting job but not clients.
Chivukula also has sponsored bills (currently pending before Corzine) to give tax breaks to companies producing digital media, a field he said could lead to more work for his firm, Rangam Consultants, and to forbid the state from regulating services that provide phone calls over the Internet. Rangam's Web site touts its work in the telecommunications field.
Chivukula, chairman of the Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee, said there is no conflict because he doesn't own Rangam. His firm is unlikely to benefit from the cable bill because Verizon's investments involve laying new fiber optic cables, an area in which Rangam is not involved, he said.
"State laws are clear. If you don't have any ownership in a company, you don't have any conflicts. If I had ownership in Rangam, then it's a different story," Chivukula said. "I'm just an employee. Tomorrow they can fire me."
Chivukula, a former engineer for AT&T, said it only makes sense that he would sponsor bills in the area of his expertise.
"The reason I'm in the Legislature is because I have something to offer in the telecommunications field," Chivukula said. "When you are making public policy, you need expertise. If I work in the agricultural committee, I have no expertise. What kind of contribution can I make?"
Verizon and other cable companies waged an expensive advertising and lobbying battle over the cable competition bill. Verizon and its lobbyists have contributed $6,200 to Chivukula's campaigns in the past three years.
Rangam might be hired to produce software for the digital media providers that would benefit from another of his bills, Chivukula said, but it's no sure deal.
In the wake of several scandals and investigations in the Legislature, Senate President Richard J. Codey, D-Essex, has called for a review of the code of ethics. But the work has not yet begun, and Codey has given few details on potential changes. One idea he floated was to require lawmakers to meet with a lawyer once a year, at which time they could request legal opinions on whether their private work created conflicts.
"That accrues to the legislator's benefit. So that when someone raises an issue, you can say, 'Hey, I asked this question, and here's the opinion,' " Codey said.
Gannett New Jersey writers Jason Method, Jean Mikle and Gregory J. Volpe contributed to this report.
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Lawmakers still finding ways to hide conflicts
Four years ago, New Jersey embarked on a sweeping government ethics reform program. In the second part of an eight-day series, Gannett New Jersey looks at how major conflicts of interest still can be hidden by lawmakers.
By JONATHAN TAMARI
GANNETT NEW JERSEY
TRENTON -- Like many Trenton lobbying firms, the Westfield-based Alman Group offers a staff with years of government experience that can help clients shape laws and win state aid.
But the firm also boasts a seemingly unique quality: a sitting lawmaker on its marquee.
Assembly Deputy Speaker Gerald B. Green, D-Plainfield, also is vice president for local affairs at the Alman Group. In the Legislature, Green chairs the committee that oversees housing rules and sits on the Health Committee. Both panels vet laws that could impact Alman clients, which include major developers and at least 18 hospitals.
Green's job is one example of how Trenton's rules and culture allow lawmakers' public roles and private work to come tantalizingly close.
Even though many lawmakers with private jobs say they painstakingly avoid any direct conflicts, including Green, the Legislature's current financial disclosure requirements allow officials to keep their clients secret.
That gives lawmakers the ability to hide relationships with clients or partners who might have a vested interest in new laws. There is no way to tell if a lawyer or consultant who, for example, helps craft environmental regulations also is working with a major housing developer.
And at least one member of the Legislature's ethics committee believes the existing conflict-of-interest restrictions come with built-in loopholes.
In Green's case, he has received legal opinions that say he is in the clear.
While legislative rules bar lawmakers from accepting gifts, jobs or anything of value worth more than $250 from lobbyists, two ethics opinions issued by the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services in 1998 and 2006 say Green's consulting work at Alman doesn't violate that restriction, as long as his work at the firm is unrelated to his "official duties."
Green said he requested the opinions and makes sure to keep his private job and public role separate, although he declined to say what Alman clients he has worked with.
In addition to lobbying, Alman offers consulting on issues such as development, land use and permitting, according to the firm's Web site.
The 2006 advice to Green notes that the Legislative ethics committee has traditionally interpreted conflict-of-interest rules to allow the "the widest possible participation" in voting by lawmakers -- meaning, essentially, that only the most blatant conflicts are explicitly barred.
The opinion concludes by referring Green to an ethics tutorial on the Legislature's Web page.
When questioned by reporters about potential conflicts, several lawmakers noted their actions are allowed under current rules because they won't directly profit. Lawmakers said their jobs in the Legislature are part time and that they have to be allowed to make livings elsewhere.
Retired Superior Court Judge Herbert Friend, the acting chairman of the Joint Legislative Committee on Ethical Standards, is planning to set up a subcommittee to recommend the first major update to the Legislature's ethics code in 25 years.
"There are holes in the code of ethics that you could drive a truck through," Friend said.
Conflicts seem obvious
The existing conflict rules did not stop Sen. Wayne R. Bryant, D-Camden, from overseeing the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, which steered tens of millions of dollars to two universities that hired him, or getting his law firm work through legislation he crafted to send $175 million to Camden city's economic recovery. Bryant remains on the Senate Education Committee.
They also did not prevent Sen. Sharpe James, D-Essex, from pushing through a law that gave him additional power over land sales in Newark, where he was mayor.
Prosecutors now claim that the law helped James sell city properties to friends at cut-rate prices. James remains on the Senate Community and Urban Affairs and Budget and Appropriations committees.
Sen. Joseph Coniglio, D-Bergen, another member of the budget committee, got a $5,500-per-month job as a plumbing consultant at the Hackensack University Medical Center from 2004 to 2006, while the hospital received more than $1 million in state grants during those years.
Both Bryant and James face federal corruption charges for their actions, although both have proclaimed their innocence. Coniglio is the target of a federal investigation and recently dropped out of a re-election bid. He said he would fight the "false accusations" that his work at the hospital was connected to state grants.
"I am quite confident that my name and reputation -- which has suffered immeasurable damage -- will, with time, be restored," Coniglio said in a statement he issued when he dropped out of the race in mid-September.
[Green] defends consulting work
In Green's case, his position at Alman is described on the firm's Web site, but the arrangement is not apparent on Green's state financial disclosure form, where his income from consulting is listed under a company simply called "Jerry Green Enterprises."
That company, which Green said he uses for his private ventures, earned at least $50,000 in 2006.
Green, who has not been accused of any illegality, would not say what other clients he works with, saying he did not want to draw private firms into a story about his public work.
But Green said he makes sure his outside projects, which he said involve consulting, not lobbying, don't involve state government. He said he has worked with Alman for roughly 10 years but has done little with the firm in the past 18 months, in order to avoid any potential conflicts, though he still is a part of the firm.
"I try to make sure that anything I do does not interfere with what I consider my job as a legislator," Green said. He said he is not salaried at Alman, earning money on only a per-project basis. "There's a whole lot of gray areas there, and I don't want to take a chance."
Ten of Alman's hospital clients split nearly $26 million in state grants in the 2006-07 state budget, for which Green voted yes.
Alman also works with several developers, including housing builder K. Hovnanian Companies in Edison. Green, who made much of his money in real estate, chairs the Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee.
Green also has consistently offered support for a hospital in his hometown, Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center, which in 1999 hired Alman to help win state approval to perform cardiac surgery.
Green's advocacy dates to before that contract and continued even after the hospital and lobbyists parted ways.
Green and Alman's president, George Albanese, said the lawmaker did not help the lobbying firm on either the hospital grants or any other issues involving state government. Green said questions about his involvement with Muhlenberg and the city of Plainfield are two reasons he has backed away from projects with Alman.
"He does nothing with the state of New Jersey," Albanese said. "I wouldn't put him in that position to even suggest or ask him."
"As long as I don't benefit financially, then there's nothing I have done wrong," Green said, referring to the OLS opinions.
Touting technical expertise
Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula, D-Somerset, made a similar argument after recently sponsoring a law that gives Verizon Communications the chance to compete for cable television customers in New Jersey. Verizon also is a client at the consulting firm where Chivukula is chairman, and it is expected to invest $1.5 billion in New Jersey as a result of the law.
As with Green, the association is not apparent on Chivukula's disclosure form, which lists the consulting job but not clients.
Chivukula also has sponsored bills (currently pending before Corzine) to give tax breaks to companies producing digital media, a field he said could lead to more work for his firm, Rangam Consultants, and to forbid the state from regulating services that provide phone calls over the Internet. Rangam's Web site touts its work in the telecommunications field.
Chivukula, chairman of the Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee, said there is no conflict because he doesn't own Rangam. His firm is unlikely to benefit from the cable bill because Verizon's investments involve laying new fiber optic cables, an area in which Rangam is not involved, he said.
"State laws are clear. If you don't have any ownership in a company, you don't have any conflicts. If I had ownership in Rangam, then it's a different story," Chivukula said. "I'm just an employee. Tomorrow they can fire me."
Chivukula, a former engineer for AT&T, said it only makes sense that he would sponsor bills in the area of his expertise.
"The reason I'm in the Legislature is because I have something to offer in the telecommunications field," Chivukula said. "When you are making public policy, you need expertise. If I work in the agricultural committee, I have no expertise. What kind of contribution can I make?"
Verizon and other cable companies waged an expensive advertising and lobbying battle over the cable competition bill. Verizon and its lobbyists have contributed $6,200 to Chivukula's campaigns in the past three years.
Rangam might be hired to produce software for the digital media providers that would benefit from another of his bills, Chivukula said, but it's no sure deal.
In the wake of several scandals and investigations in the Legislature, Senate President Richard J. Codey, D-Essex, has called for a review of the code of ethics. But the work has not yet begun, and Codey has given few details on potential changes. One idea he floated was to require lawmakers to meet with a lawyer once a year, at which time they could request legal opinions on whether their private work created conflicts.
"That accrues to the legislator's benefit. So that when someone raises an issue, you can say, 'Hey, I asked this question, and here's the opinion,' " Codey said.
Gannett New Jersey writers Jason Method, Jean Mikle and Gregory J. Volpe contributed to this report.
COMMENT
Reporter Jonathan Tamari’s October 1 article (“Lawmakers hide conflicts by keeping clients secret”) contained some notable omissions of fact and several distortions of the public record regarding my actions as an Assemblyman and my position with Rangam Consultants, an information technology consulting firm.
Moreover, the article takes alarming liberties with the role I played on telecommunications measures in the state Legislature, most notably the 2006 state law that allows Verizon and other phone service providers to provide cable television services to New Jersey consumers.
Here are the unvarnished facts:
• I earn $2,000 a month by Rangam Consultants. I do not own the company; I am an employee. I am neither directly involved with the company’s clients nor its operations.
• Verizon has not been a client of Rangam for seven years. This includes the time that the Legislature considered and acted upon the 2006 statewide cable television franchising law. Frankly, Rangam is too small by Verizon’s standards to be a preferred vendor for the company.
• Rangam does not stand to reap new business from Verizon because of the new cable franchising law. Rangam’s business is providing information technology programmers. It is not involved in cable services or fiber optics, the fields that stand to gain from Verizon’s entry into the cable television marketplace.
• The statewide cable franchising legislation had been in existence for two years before I even signed onto it. I frequently was accused of slowing down action on that legislation as a member and as chairman of the Telecommunications and Utilities Committee. Your article is the first time anyone ever intimated (and I might add wrongly) that I somehow facilitated that measure’s passage.
• As for my sponsorship of legislation to provide tax breaks for companies producing digital media and to prohibit state regulation of Internet phone companies, there is no direct benefit for Rangam. The company is in the business of providing information technology programmers to other companies. Conceivably, they could be hired to produce software for digital media companies. But this would be a stretch. As Rangam’s chairman, I do not direct how or where company programmers are placed and I do not exercise jurisdiction on the company’s operations.
• On the occasions that arise when my profession in the information technology field intersects with my role as a state legislator, I have made it a policy to seek guidance and counsel from the Legislature’s non-partisan lawyers. I have been advised on multiple occasions that I may work for companies in my field of expertise and that conflicts most often arise when you are an owner of a private company and not when you are an employee – as is the case with me.
I have long sought to conduct myself in an ethical and professional manner. And while I take issue with the treatment I received in Mr. Tamari’s article, I acknowledge that his report does raise some valid questions about the current financial disclosure standards for state legislators.
If there are any shortcomings in the area of financial disclosure requirements, they should be thoroughly examined and addressed. At a time when increasing numbers of New Jerseyans are concerned about corruption in government, it’s imperative that we do all that we can to ensure high ethical standards and maximum public accountability.
Sincerely,
Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula
Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2007 8:07 am"
Online story here. Archived here.
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(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.)
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Jerry Green - Courier - Abruptly resigns from Alman Group
Published in the Courier News, Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Green resigns from lobbying firm to avoid conflict
By MICHAEL DEAK
STAFF WRITER
PLAINFIELD -- Assemblyman Jerry Green announced Tuesday that he is resigning from the the Alman Group, a Westfield-based lobbying firm, to avoid any possible conflict of interest.
His resignation as the firm's vice president for local affairs will be effective Oct. 15, Green said.
Green's decision was announced two days after Gannett New Jersey reported on his relationship with the firm as part of an eight-day series on government ethics.
The eight-term Democratic assemblyman from Plainfield said he is taking the action to "eliminate any gray areas" because he wants to concentrate on major issues in the Legislature if he is re-elected next month.
"I've done everything above board," Green said.
Green also said he is in line to assume a leadership role next year in the Assembly as deputy speaker pro tempe.
Green said he did not want questions about his employment "to take away" from his work on issues such as health care and housing.
"I don't want there to be questions every time I take a stand," he said.
Green sits on the Assembly's Health Committee. He also chairs the committee that oversees housing rules.
Among the Alman's Groups clients are at least 18 hospitals. In 1999, Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center in Plainfield hired the firm to help win state approval to perform cardiac surgery.
But Green's support of Muhlenberg started before that and continued even after the hospital and Alman parted ways.
Green told Gannett New Jersey that questions about his involvement with Muhlenberg and the city of Plainfield, where he advises Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs, are two reasons he previously has backed away from projects with Alman.
For the past two years, the 68-year-old assemblyman said he has concentrated full time on government, advising Robinson-Briggs without being reimbursed.
"We hope to move the city in the right direction," he said.
Many of his clients at the Alman Group were nonprofit organizations, Green said.
In the past, Green said he has taken other action to avoid conflicts, such as selling two liquor licenses he said he owned.
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Green resigns from lobbying firm to avoid conflict
By MICHAEL DEAK
STAFF WRITER
PLAINFIELD -- Assemblyman Jerry Green announced Tuesday that he is resigning from the the Alman Group, a Westfield-based lobbying firm, to avoid any possible conflict of interest.
His resignation as the firm's vice president for local affairs will be effective Oct. 15, Green said.
Green's decision was announced two days after Gannett New Jersey reported on his relationship with the firm as part of an eight-day series on government ethics.
The eight-term Democratic assemblyman from Plainfield said he is taking the action to "eliminate any gray areas" because he wants to concentrate on major issues in the Legislature if he is re-elected next month.
"I've done everything above board," Green said.
Green also said he is in line to assume a leadership role next year in the Assembly as deputy speaker pro tempe.
Green said he did not want questions about his employment "to take away" from his work on issues such as health care and housing.
"I don't want there to be questions every time I take a stand," he said.
Green sits on the Assembly's Health Committee. He also chairs the committee that oversees housing rules.
Among the Alman's Groups clients are at least 18 hospitals. In 1999, Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center in Plainfield hired the firm to help win state approval to perform cardiac surgery.
But Green's support of Muhlenberg started before that and continued even after the hospital and Alman parted ways.
Green told Gannett New Jersey that questions about his involvement with Muhlenberg and the city of Plainfield, where he advises Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs, are two reasons he previously has backed away from projects with Alman.
For the past two years, the 68-year-old assemblyman said he has concentrated full time on government, advising Robinson-Briggs without being reimbursed.
"We hope to move the city in the right direction," he said.
Many of his clients at the Alman Group were nonprofit organizations, Green said.
In the past, Green said he has taken other action to avoid conflicts, such as selling two liquor licenses he said he owned.
Online story here. Archived here.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Jerry Green - Ledger - Editorial: Chair's lame excuse
Published in the Star-Ledger, Saturday, June 2, 2007
[Editorial]
The chairman's lame excuse
Don't blame me, says Assemblyman Jerry Green, a Union County Democrat. He's not blocking a bill that would save taxpayers a cool $1 million annually by cutting a few unneeded patronage jobs at county tax boards.
Oh no, Green wants us to believe the stall is the fault of the bill's Republican sponsors. Green says they haven't pushed him hard enough to get the measure on the schedule for consideration by his Assembly Housing and Local Government Commit tee.
Ridiculous. Last we checked, legislative committee chairmen can bring up any bill they want. And Green and Assembly Speaker Joe Roberts (D-Camden) and every other lawmaker should want this bill. It reverses the Legislature's wasteful creation of new tax board jobs three years ago, at the very time the volume of tax appeals and other work of the boards was dropping to 15-year lows.
As Green himself says, this is a good-government bill. But if he and his colleagues don't stop pussyfooting and start chopping these pension-padding positions for political hacks, their idea of good government will be clear.
Link to online story.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
[Editorial]
The chairman's lame excuse
Don't blame me, says Assemblyman Jerry Green, a Union County Democrat. He's not blocking a bill that would save taxpayers a cool $1 million annually by cutting a few unneeded patronage jobs at county tax boards.
Oh no, Green wants us to believe the stall is the fault of the bill's Republican sponsors. Green says they haven't pushed him hard enough to get the measure on the schedule for consideration by his Assembly Housing and Local Government Commit tee.
Ridiculous. Last we checked, legislative committee chairmen can bring up any bill they want. And Green and Assembly Speaker Joe Roberts (D-Camden) and every other lawmaker should want this bill. It reverses the Legislature's wasteful creation of new tax board jobs three years ago, at the very time the volume of tax appeals and other work of the boards was dropping to 15-year lows.
As Green himself says, this is a good-government bill. But if he and his colleagues don't stop pussyfooting and start chopping these pension-padding positions for political hacks, their idea of good government will be clear.
Link to online story.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Jerry Green - Ledger - Tax Board bill bottled up
Published in the Star-Ledger, Friday, June 1, 2007
Parties both want to trim tax boards
BY LAWRENCE RAGONESE
Star-Ledger Staff
The Democratic chair of an Assembly committee says he is not blocking a bill to cut the size of politically bloated county tax boards to 2004 levels, putting blame on Republican sponsors for not aggressively pursuing it.
Assemblyman Jerry Green (D-Union) said the bill that would save an estimated $1 million annually was not heard this month by his Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee because he did not get calls or letters from Republican sponsors.
"I don't want anyone to think I'm holding this bill up," Green said. "The sponsors have to call me and ask me to post the bill, take some action to let me know they want it to be heard. Then I speak to leadership about it.
"I don't want anybody to think I won't post this bill. I favor this bill."
Assemblyman Michael Doherty (R-Warren) and Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth) said they were surprised by Green's comments, but called and sent letters to Green's office to reaffirm their commitment to the bill.
"I spoke to Green and he said he would move it along," said Doherty, who in 2004 was the only member of the Assembly to vote against the tax board bill.
Beck urged Green to have the bill heard on June 14 if Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts (D-Camden) calls the Assembly into a post-primary election session. She also will ask Green to co-sponsor the legislation.
The Legislature in 2004 passed a bill to increase tax boards from three to five members or five to seven members, at a time tax appeals were at 15-year lows, as shown in a Star-Ledger report. Tax appeals had diminished statewide from 93,340 in 1992 to just 13,883 in 2005 when the bill took effect.
Many of the state's 21 counties promptly added new tax board members. Most of the jobs went to people with political connections, paid $16,000 to $22,000 a year, with health and pension benefits, for the part-time tax job.
Some legislators said privately there has been pressure from both sides of the political aisle to kill the tax board reduction bill. But Green said he has not felt that pressure.
"This is not a political bill, it's a good government bill," said Green. "It's up to Joe Roberts to deal with any pressure."
Roberts, who co-sponsored the 2004 Assembly version of the bill to expand tax boards, did not respond to phone calls.
The bipartisan 2004 tax bill was sponsored in the Senate by state Sens. Anthony Bucco (R-Morris) and John Adler (D-Camden). Bucco said he felt there was a need to bolster tax boards to deal with rising workloads. After seeing data showing appeals dropped substantially, the two senators earlier this year sponsored a bill to cut tax boards back to 2004 levels.
State Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Essex), who chairs the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee, which must approve the bill, said he supports the measure. But Rice said other "more important" matters had pushed the tax board bill to the back of the line in his committee.
Lawrence Ragonese may be reached at lragonese@starledger.com or (973) 539-7910.
Link to online story.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Parties both want to trim tax boards
BY LAWRENCE RAGONESE
Star-Ledger Staff
The Democratic chair of an Assembly committee says he is not blocking a bill to cut the size of politically bloated county tax boards to 2004 levels, putting blame on Republican sponsors for not aggressively pursuing it.
Assemblyman Jerry Green (D-Union) said the bill that would save an estimated $1 million annually was not heard this month by his Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee because he did not get calls or letters from Republican sponsors.
"I don't want anyone to think I'm holding this bill up," Green said. "The sponsors have to call me and ask me to post the bill, take some action to let me know they want it to be heard. Then I speak to leadership about it.
"I don't want anybody to think I won't post this bill. I favor this bill."
Assemblyman Michael Doherty (R-Warren) and Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth) said they were surprised by Green's comments, but called and sent letters to Green's office to reaffirm their commitment to the bill.
"I spoke to Green and he said he would move it along," said Doherty, who in 2004 was the only member of the Assembly to vote against the tax board bill.
Beck urged Green to have the bill heard on June 14 if Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts (D-Camden) calls the Assembly into a post-primary election session. She also will ask Green to co-sponsor the legislation.
The Legislature in 2004 passed a bill to increase tax boards from three to five members or five to seven members, at a time tax appeals were at 15-year lows, as shown in a Star-Ledger report. Tax appeals had diminished statewide from 93,340 in 1992 to just 13,883 in 2005 when the bill took effect.
Many of the state's 21 counties promptly added new tax board members. Most of the jobs went to people with political connections, paid $16,000 to $22,000 a year, with health and pension benefits, for the part-time tax job.
Some legislators said privately there has been pressure from both sides of the political aisle to kill the tax board reduction bill. But Green said he has not felt that pressure.
"This is not a political bill, it's a good government bill," said Green. "It's up to Joe Roberts to deal with any pressure."
Roberts, who co-sponsored the 2004 Assembly version of the bill to expand tax boards, did not respond to phone calls.
The bipartisan 2004 tax bill was sponsored in the Senate by state Sens. Anthony Bucco (R-Morris) and John Adler (D-Camden). Bucco said he felt there was a need to bolster tax boards to deal with rising workloads. After seeing data showing appeals dropped substantially, the two senators earlier this year sponsored a bill to cut tax boards back to 2004 levels.
State Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Essex), who chairs the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee, which must approve the bill, said he supports the measure. But Rice said other "more important" matters had pushed the tax board bill to the back of the line in his committee.
Lawrence Ragonese may be reached at lragonese@starledger.com or (973) 539-7910.
Link to online story.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Monday, May 14, 2007
Legislature - Jerry Green - Bill supports very-low-income housing
*
Published in the Star Ledger, Friday, May 11, 2007
Bill advances to earmark very-low-income housing
Legislation that would set aside at least 25 percent of affordable housing built in New Jersey for families attempting to live on very low incomes was approved by the Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee yesterday.
"More than 1 million New Jersey families don't earn enough to afford the rent on an average two-bedroom apartment in the state," said Assemblyman Wilfredo Caraballo (D-Essex), a co-sponsor. "This bill will ensure that we set aside enough quality housing for New Jersey's most vulnerable families."
About 75 affordable housing activists lobbied legislators at the Statehouse to approve the measure. The legislation (A1343), which would amend the state's "Fair Housing Act," moves to the full Assembly for consideration.
According to a 2006 study by the nonprofit Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey, the average cost to rent a two-bedroom apartment is $1,058, requiring a family to earn more than $43,000 to meet the standard that the cost of their rent does not exceed one-third of their income.
Link to online story.
(Note: Online stories may be taken down by their publisher after a period of time or made available for a fee. Links posted here is from the original online publication of this piece.)
(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.)
Published in the Star Ledger, Friday, May 11, 2007
Bill advances to earmark very-low-income housing
Legislation that would set aside at least 25 percent of affordable housing built in New Jersey for families attempting to live on very low incomes was approved by the Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee yesterday.
"More than 1 million New Jersey families don't earn enough to afford the rent on an average two-bedroom apartment in the state," said Assemblyman Wilfredo Caraballo (D-Essex), a co-sponsor. "This bill will ensure that we set aside enough quality housing for New Jersey's most vulnerable families."
About 75 affordable housing activists lobbied legislators at the Statehouse to approve the measure. The legislation (A1343), which would amend the state's "Fair Housing Act," moves to the full Assembly for consideration.
According to a 2006 study by the nonprofit Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey, the average cost to rent a two-bedroom apartment is $1,058, requiring a family to earn more than $43,000 to meet the standard that the cost of their rent does not exceed one-third of their income.
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