>Remember the courts are not political , again tell us when to stop laughing !
By Claire Heininger/Statehouse Bureau
May 07, 2010, 12:59PM
https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/05/court_rejects_christies_order.html
TRENTON — A state appeals court today rejected Gov. Chris Christie’s executive order curbing political donations by public worker unions.
The three-judge panel said Christie’s action infringed on separation of powers with the Legislature, and such donation limits cannot be imposed by a governor unilaterally.
“We do not reach this conclusion lightly. Nor do we otherwise discount or question the Governor’s policy objectives or his considerable and well-established constitutional authority over the Executive Branch and the management of the State workforce,” the judges wrote. “We simply hold that what (the executive order) seeks to achieve must be pursued through legislation.”
• N.J.’s largest state worker union files challenge to Gov. Christie’s ban on political donations
The order, signed by Christie on his first full day in office in January, broadened campaign finance rules to limit donations by labor unions that have public contracts. Christie said he was simply bringing unions in line with other “business entities,” such as law and engineering firms that have state contracts worth more than $17,500. Those businesses are barred from donating more than $300 to statewide campaigns, but freer to give in local races.
Several unions sued, saying the order violates members’ First Amendment rights by barring them from supporting candidates and participating in the legislative process. Organized labor, a traditional Democratic constituency, worked feverishly against the Republican Christie during the gubernatorial campaign.
They also said collective bargaining contracts could not be treated like business deals.
The ruling will take effect July 1, “in the interests of accommodating potential review by the Supreme Court.”
The Communications Workers of America, the largest state workers’ union, said it was “gratified” by the ruling.
“The Court rightly held that the Legislature never intended to restrict the right of labor unions to participate in the political process, and the governor has no power to do so on his own,” said Hetty Rosenstein, CWA New Jersey State Director. “Today’s decision is a valuable reminder of the wisdom of our system of three co-equal branches of government.”
Christie said he was not happy to see the order struck down, and would consider whether to appeal the ruling, seek legislation, or pursue another route to accomplish the same goals.
“We’re going to look at all of our different options,” Christie said at a press conference. “The executive order was about achieving a policy objective, and that is to level the playing field.”
“I don’t think that there is one class of speech that should be regulated, and another class of speech that should not be,” the governor said.
Adding unions to the pay-to-play restrictions had been praised by the Election Law Enforcement Commission, the state’s campaign finance watchdog agency.
https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2010/05/court_rejects_christies_order.html
