Gov. Chris Christie’s administration, in what it says is an effort to control auto insurance costs, proposed Monday to overhaul New Jersey’s rules to limit medical expenses for people injured in car crashes.
Dozens of revisions to the state’s personal injury protection, or PIP, system would change fees paid to same-day surgery centers, reduce costs associated with alternative providers such as chiropractors and clamp down on attorney’s fees in arbitration cases. (Symons, Gannett)
Christie says technology investments a priority for Motor Vehicle Commission
Gov. Chris Christie said Monday he would consider restoring $5.5 million to the budget for technology upgrades after two computer crashes hampered operations at the Motor Vehicle Commission last month.
Christie blamed Democrats for cutting funds for technology upgrades in the current budget but said he’d be open to restoring the money if the Democratic-controlled Legislature sent a supplemental appropriations bill to his desk. (Dellis Santi, The Associated Press)
State Workers Unions joining forces to counter Christie
In an unusual show of collaboration, New Jersey’s public worker unions plan to join together to try to upend Gov. Chris Christie’s signature accomplishment this year: cuts to their pensions and health-care benefits.
Public workers, rather than Democrats, have been the Republican governor’s greatest foil. He gained national attention after calling on teachers to accept salary freezes and blaming the state’s financial woes on workers’ compensation packages, which he mocked in town-hall-style forums across the state. (Fleisher, The Wall Street Journal)
Schools funding plan, Doherty bemoans what he sees as GOP’s failure to engage key political issue
Armed with his schools funding plan he says would defang suburban Democrats where they live, state Sen. Mike Doherty (R-23) said he’s disappointed his party hasn’t more aggressively adopted this issue in time for November elections.
“Under my schools funding plan, 85% of school districts would see an increase in funding,” said Doherty. “The way you win is to focus on a winning issue. We need a coherent beating of the drum on this issue, and there isn’t one.” (Pizarro, PolitickerNJ)
Surgical centers score Win on regulation bill after thousands in campaign donations
Single room surgical centers throughout the state would be exempt from a state assessment charged to larger facilities under a bill passed by the senate in June.
The assessment, which is currently charged to all of the state’s two-room and larger ambulatory surgical centers, was specifically carved out of a bill passed by the senate that would require all centers regardless of size to be licensed with the state and submit to regular inspections. (Isherwood, PolitickerNJ)
>Scott Garrett: Americans Want a Solution to Debt Crisis, Not a “Deal”
WASHINGTON, August 1, 2011 – Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Vice Chairman of the House Budget Committee and Chairman of the Budget and Spending Task Force for the Republican Study Committee (RSC), issued the following statement tonight after voting against the agreement to raise the debt ceiling:
“While a step in the right direction, this is hardly the resolution I was hoping to come out of this process. The American people wanted to see us come up with an actual solution to address our deficit and debt crisis, not another ‘deal’ rushed through Congress at the last minute. Aside from an insufficient amount of spending cuts and the threat of tax hikes on the American people, what is most unfortunate about this bill is the fact that it doesn’t address the exploding costs of our entitlement programs, which are by far the biggest threat to our credit rating.
“Above all else, I am most disappointed in the lack of commitment on the part of negotiators to seeing that a balanced budget amendment was sent to the states for ratification. No matter how much spending we cut, no matter how many blue ribbon commissions we form, a balanced budget amendment is the only solution that will resolve our long-term deficit and debt problem. The American people expected more of us—it’s regrettable we put off the tough decisions once again.”
Supporters describe Sohail Mohammed as ‘a huge help’
As the rubble of Ground Zero smoldered in the months after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, the investigation was just as hot across the Hudson River.
More than 1,100 Arabs and Muslims — most of them from New York and North Jersey — were rounded up and detained as the FBI feverishly hunted for additional terrorists.
In few places was the spotlight as white-hot — and the fear among Muslims as deep — as in Paterson, where as many as six of the 9/11 hijackers lived or spent time in the weeks before the attacks. (Parry, The Associated Press)
Offshore backbone developer foresees huge wind industry along Jersey coast
While New Jersey is moving to develop 1,100 megawatts of offshore wind power, Bob Mitchell envisions a much more audacious industry springing up off the coast of the Eastern Seaboard — one he claims could lower steep energy bills for consumers and create tens of thousands of jobs.
Mitchell is the chief executive officer of Atlantic Wind Connection (AWC), a company seeking to build an offshore electric backbone transmission system capable of supporting up to 7,000 megawatts of offshore wind, a $30 billion industry that would strengthen the reliability of the nation’s largest power grid. (Johnson, NJ Spotlight)
Raymond Martinez is spending his summer on the road and in the belly of the beast.
The chief administrator of the state Motor Vehicle Commission is talking to customers waiting in line, to employees working the counter and the agency managers who try to keep it all moving, as he crisscrosses the state visiting the 39 agencies this summer.
Martinez has a mission beyond the orchestrated meet and greet of an agency head’s visit. He’s collecting information to help chart the MVC’s course, based on customer demand for services. (Higgs, Gannett)
Filming in town next week August 1-3, 2011 (mon, tues, wed). Large section of Chestnut St. and lot spaces 1-10 and 21-28 have been reserved and filming will take place in A Mano. Please plan accordingly. For more info contact the Chamber ati[email protected]or 201-445-2600.
Cycling in and around town I have picked up a couple of tips I want to pass on PJ Blogger
Ridgewood NJ – Cycling in and around town I have picked up three tips I want to pass on; First cyclists and drivers look at the road from two entirely different perspectives ; the cyclist is connected by every nuance , bump ,lawn sprinkler , pot hole and road condition while the drivers perspective is much farther removed. Cyclist often look to avoid road hazards that drivers hardly notice.
Next a cyclist must be extremely vigilant. No amount of safety gear can stand up to the impact of a 3000 pound automobile.This makes vigilance the single most important safety feature for the cyclist. Always remember it is up the rider to protect themselves. anticipate and be on the defensive.
And finally wear extremely bright clothing. Don’t underestimate how difficult it can be for a driver to see you .The brighter the better . It helps the driver notice you sooner. ,and makes you a more visible target . A couple of seconds can be the difference between a trip to the corner store and a trip to the emergency room .
SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2011 BY SHAWN BOBURG STAFF WRITER THE RECORD
A California couple with a 2-year-old daughter is awakened late at night by heavily armed police storming their home after a false report of a shooting.
A Texas family is stunned when officers with automatic weapons respond to their house expecting a drug-fueled murderer who is demanding $50,000 in exchange for hostages.
And a Wyckoff neighborhood is put on lockdown as the Bergen County SWAT team shoots tear gas into what proves to be a home occupied only by a cat.
In each case, the people who wound up in the crosshairs were actually victims of a dangerous and increasingly common hoax known as “swatting,” so called because a bogus emergency call prompts the response of a SWAT team.
Ridgewood NJ – Park West Tavern is in the old Windberie’s spot. After hearing so many raves about the burgers I had to give this place try. As much as I like dinning alfresco ,it was a bit hot out so I tucked myself into a both in the main dinning room . The interior is a modern ,dark and very masculine . At the suggestion of my waiter I ordered a Kraft summer brew from a Vermont company called Wolavers which turned out to be excellent .
The burger was served on a roll buttered with garlic butter, tomato and lettuce. The medium burger was a bit over cooked for my taste ,so I’ll make it medium rare next time .It came served with homemade pickles , a version of bread and butter pickles to die for and a home made ketchup that was very tasty . Never fear they do have an ample supply of Heinz for the traditionalist. With the burger came with a side of herb fries in a mini frier basket which was a nice touch ,
The herb fries stole the show ,they were done just right , tasty ,not too salty ,pleasing to a traditionalist yet different enough for someone who seeks out side dish culinary pleasures. The burger despite all the raves was mediocre , I liked the whole presentation ,but the meat fell a bit short leaving me the feeling it was reheated .
The service and staff were excellent ,attentive but not over bearing . The place is relatively new and often it takes time to get the kinks out ,however the focus seemed to relay to much on the frills and not enough on the substance for a serious carnivore like myself.
>Scott Garrett : Senator Reid’s Plan Full of Too Many False Savings
As a part of my ongoing effort to keep you updated on what’s going on with the debt ceiling debate in Washington, I wanted to take a moment to fill you in on where we stand and what things look like going forward.
Over the past two weeks, House Republicans have passed two bills – the Cut, Cap and Balance Act and the Budget Control Act – to steer our nation away from default and towards fiscal sustainability. Each of these bills are sensible compromises that satisfy President Obama’s request to raise the debt ceiling while fulfilling our commitment to cut spending now, implement caps to bring down spending in the future and pass a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.
However, Senate Democrats on Friday failed to even bring up the House-passed Budget Control Act for debate, just as they did with the Cut, Cap and Balance Act. Meanwhile, instead of considering one of the solutions passed by the House or negotiating with Republicans to forge a compromise, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has put forth a plan that would give President Obama another blank check to spend American taxpayer dollars. This is merely an extension of the irresponsible practices that led us to the situation we now find ourselves.
While I appreciate Senator Reid’s efforts to actually offer a solution to this crisis, I feel it is not the right prescription to address the root problem of this crisis—Washington’s addiction to spending and borrowing. Not only does it fail to address our spending and debt problem, it won’t even prevent a downgrade of our credit rating. The Reid plan makes false promises of future “savings” of $1 trillion from war spending that is not written into law and no one plans to actually spend. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), even assuming these imaginary war savings, this plan still falls $216 billion short of equal-or-greater spending cuts to a debt ceiling increase. Excluding those phantom war savings, the shortfall skyrockets to nearly $1.5 trillion. Both Senate and House Republicans have made it clear to them that this is unacceptable.
The American people are tired of Washington’s accounting gimmicks and budget smokescreens, they’re tired of out of control spending, and they’re ready for a compromise. House Republicans have now offered two plans that reach a compromise and allow us to get back to the business of creating jobs and reviving our sluggish economy. It is my sincere hope that my colleagues across the aisle recognize this chance and fulfill their duty to their constituents by considering the compromises they have before them.
> President Barack Obama Spams Followers on Twitter
President Barack Obama takes debt battle to Twitter, loses more than 40,000 followers in one day
BY Anjali Mullany DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Originally Published:Friday, July 29th 2011, 4:45 PM Updated: Friday, July 29th 2011, 10:57 PM
President Obama brought his debt battle to Twitter and he lost – more than 40,000 Twitter followers.
Obama asked Americans Friday to call, email, and tweet Congressional leaders to “keep the pressure on” lawmakers in hopes of reaching a bipartisan deal to raise the nation’s $14.3 trillion debt limit ahead of an Aug. 2 deadline.
Obama’s campaign staff used the @BarackObama Twitter account to post the Twitter handles of tweeting GOP leaders – state by state, tweet by tweet.
