Postal Service loses $3.2 billion in Jan-March
By Emily Stephenson
WASHINGTON | Thu May 10, 2012 4:38pm EDT
(Reuters) – The Postal Service said its loss widened to $3.2 billion in the first three months of 2012 and repeated on Thursday its warning that it will likely default on payments to the federal government unless Congress passes legislation offering some relief.
The agency, which does not receive taxpayer funds and has been losing billions each year as Americans communicate online, said it lost $2.2 billion in the same period in 2011.
Postal officials are pressing Congress to pass legislation that would allow the agency to move forward with its five-year business plan, including ending Saturday mail delivery. In the meantime, they have sought ways to cut costs.
The announcement came a day after the cash-strapped mail service said it was walking back a plan to close thousands of money-losing post offices and would instead slash operating hours at 13,000 locations with low traffic.
THURSDAY MAY 10, 2012, 2:58 PM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Paul Aronsohn’s decision to align with two newcomers ruffled some feathers last week, but 66 percent of Ridgewood’s voters thought it was not necessarily a bad thing.
The incumbent easily won another four-year term on the governing body, carrying an election-high 2,479 votes. The electorate also gave nods to first-time candidates Albert Pucciarelli (2,078) and Gwenn Hauck (1,727), both of whom earned Aronsohn’s personal endorsement at a candidates’ forum earlier this month.
By the end of Election Day, Hauck had outgained Mayor Keith Killion by 16 votes for the third vacant council seat, but nine provisional ballots were not included in the total tally. Village Clerk Heather Mailander said the Bergen County Board of Elections has until Wednesday, May 16 to verify all the provisional ballots and absentee votes.
Attempted luring of two eight year old girls in Old Tappan
May 11, 2012
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
( Ridgewood NJ) In a letter dated May 10 2012 Superintendent of School Daniel Fishbien reported that the district had received notice of an attempted luring of two eight year old girls in front of their elementary school in Old Tappan .
The Tappan police are seeking for questioning a tan Caucasian male or possible a dark-skinned Hispanic male in his late 30’s early 40’s driving a dark colored or possible black sedan with Jersey license plates .
Dr. Fishbien went on to emphasize that at this time no similar incidents have been reported in Ridgewood . To steal a phase if you see something say something by calling the Ridgewood Police at 911 or (201)652-3900 and encourage your children to do the same .
Anyone who has had a serious illness or injury is familiar with the dizzying array of medical bills that seem impossible to decipher, replete with codes and charges that are supposed to explain financial liabilities, deductibles, in-network charges, out-of-network fees, and the like. How is a layman expected to figure out what’s really owed, what costs could have been avoided by using in-network care, and whether or not there have been overcharges.
A bill aimed at addressing this problem will be up for discussion today in the legislature. Called the Healthcare Disclosure and Transparency Act, it requires patients to be made aware of potential financial liabilities, before they decide to seek out-of-network care. (Fitzgerald, NJ Spotlight)
Pushing patients from ER to primary care could save $400M in N.J.
More than $400 million could be saved in New Jersey each year by treating nonemergency primary-care ailments in a doctor’s office or medical center, instead of a hospital ER, according to a report released today by the New Jersey Hospital Association.
In the study, funded by a $4.8 million grant from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the NJHA, the state Department of Human Services and the New Jersey Primary Care Association examined the use of emergency departments in Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and Monmouth Medical Center from September 2008 to April 2011. (Eder, NJBIZ)
Governor Christie has vetoed a bill that would have created health care exchanges in New Jersey under Obamcare
May 10.2012
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
(RIDGEWOOD -NJ) Governor Christie has vetoed a bill that would have created health care exchanges in New Jersey under Obamcare .The veto makes Chris Christie the first governor in the nation to veto such a bill, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Christie told reporters ,“I am concerned that a hastily created exchange in New Jersey will impose unnecessary obligations upon the state’s taxpayers,” Christie said in a statement. “The very constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act is cloaked in uncertainty, as both the individual mandate to procure health insurance as well as the jurisdictional mandate to establish an exchange may not survive scrutiny by the Supreme Court.”
The national health care law or Obamacare is currently the subject of a Supreme Court review; a decision from the nation’s high court on the constitutionality of Obamacare is expected at some time in the next few months.
New Jersey’s Legislature passed a bill that would establish health care exchanges that would help implement ACA’s questionable individual and employer mandates. A medical exchange is has been billed as a marketplace for people to purchase health insurance plans.
But critics like Cato Institute’s Michael Cannon over at the Daily Caller ; Obamacare gives federal bureaucrats a chokehold on New Jersey’s health insurance markets no matter who runs the exchange, because it requires state-run exchanges to do everything a federal exchange would do. Obamacare has already stripped New Jersey of its sovereignty. The only question is, should New Jersey also pay for the privilege?
The bill before Christie would also subject the state to a second unnecessary tax: Obamacare’s employer mandate. If employers fail to offer a government-defined package of health benefits, Obamacare whacks them with a tax of up to $3,000 per employee. When you tax hiring, you get fewer jobs.
Due to an odd quirk in Obamacare, however, that tax is only enforceable if a state creates an exchange itself. It disappears in states that don’t create exchanges.
Five Car Motor Vehicle Crash Slows Route 17 South In Ridgewood
Boyd A. Loving
5:10 PM
(RIDGEWOOD-NJ) A five (5) vehicle crash on Route 17 southbound between Paramus Road and Linwood Avenue caused major slowdowns beginning just before 4 PM on Thursday.
Several non-life threatening injuries were reported; 2 persons were transported to The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood by members of the Ridgewood Volunteer Ambulance Corps.
An ambulance responding to the scene was itself involved in a minor accident in which a Gateway Road resident’s vehicle was damaged.
photos by Boyd Loving
Three vehicles were towed from the scene by City Wide Towing Service of Fair Lawn.
Responding were Ridgewood PD, Ridgewood FD, and Ridgewood EMS
This just in.. Village Holiday party will be better than ever!!!
The Village Holiday party for town employees will be bigger and better this year than ever before. This event, which in previous years was completely subsidized by personal donations from Mayor Killion and Deputy Mayor Riche, will now be sponsored by the Democratic Party. After a successful Democratic sweep by Aronsohn, his party cronies, who were major contributors during his campaign, will become major sponsors to Village events. Rumor has it that there will be pony rides, magicians and even a special guest appearance by George Clooney and Sean Penn. Oh boy!!! A grand time will be had by all.
Obamacare : Tax credit won’t get small businesses to offer health insurance
While more than 95,000 small employers in New Jersey are eligible to receive a tax credit from the Affordable Care Act to offset the cost of their workers’ health insurance, according to a report, an employment expert said the credit will not increase small businesses’ participation in providing insurance.
Small businesses with fewer than 25 full-time workers and average wages of less than $50,000 must cover at least 50 percent of each employee’s health insurance premiums to qualify for the tax credit — which covers up to 35 percent of costs of the insurance they provide to their workers, increasing to 50 percent in 2014. (Eder, NJBIZ)
State education officials have announced 26 qualified charter school apply
State education officials have announced 26 qualified charter school applicants for 2012, including five candidates in Camden.
The state this year has sought applications from charter school operators from around the country in an attempt to encourage “successful and replicable” models.
Two of the Camden schools also would serve students from the Pennsauken district, according to a list released by the state Department of Education. (Staff, Gannett)
Sweeney swings ‘big stick’ to push towns to share services or lose state aid
To Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester), nothing underscores the need for the state to take a tough approach to shared services to cut property taxes more than what happened in his home county when Wenonah looked into consolidating police services with neighboring Mantua.
“Wenonah has the highest property taxes in Gloucester County, and residents would have saved $400 a year in property taxes,” Sweeney noted at a recent New Jersey Conference of Mayors seminar in Atlantic City. Furthermore, the police chief and sergeant in Wenonah’s seven-member police department were about to retire, so merging with Mantua’s 29-member force should have been easy. (Magyar, NJ Spotlight)
Former N.J. Gov. McGreevey hails Obama’s support of gay marriage, calling it ‘a moral turning point’
Former Gov. Jim McGreevey whose secret affair with a male aide led to the downfall of his administration, said President Obama’s position marked a turning point in American history.
“The President’s decision today represents a moral turning point that civil liberties and the basic dignity of all persons ought to be respected,” McGreevey told The Star-Ledger just moments after Obama publicly re-staked his position in support of gay marriage. (Giambusso, The Star-Ledger)
N.J. union-work leaves cost taxpayers more than $30 million
New Jersey paid more than $30 million over five years for labor representatives to conduct union business while on leave from government jobs, according to a State Commission of Investigation report.
One teachers union official in Brick received $1,375 in “perfect attendance” bonuses “even though he devotes all of his work time to union business,” the report found. Eleven officers with the state Corrections Department don’t report to prison jobs and still qualify for overtime. (Young, Bloomberg)
Former FBI Agent, Wes Rigler, to join the firm as Director of Investigations
NEW YORK, May 09, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Corporate Resolutions Inc., a global business investigations and consulting firm, today announced it has hired Wes Rigler as Director of Investigations in the firm’s New York headquarters, in a move to expand its premiere investigations team.
As Director of Investigations, Mr. Rigler will rely on his career in local and federal law enforcement to coordinate and oversee corporate investigations and monitoring assignments for Corporate Resolutions. Mr. Rigler spent 28 years with the FBI focusing on organized crime investigations and labor racketeering, and conducted many investigations that ultimately led to the successful prosecution of numerous corrupt labor leaders and contractors.
In 2007, Mr. Rigler was nominated for the FBI Director’s Award for his role in the investigation of corrupt union officials of Local 825 of the International Union of Operating Engineers. Before joining the FBI, Mr. Rigler was an officer with the Ridgewood Police Department in New Jersey, and has also served in the United States Army. Mr. Rigler received his Bachelor of Science degree from William Paterson University and attended Pace University School of Law.
“We’re thrilled to bring Wes aboard as Director of Investigations,” said Ken Springer, President of Corporate Resolutions. “His wealth of experience in investigations, stemming from 28 years with the FBI, will help to keep Corporate Resolutions at the forefront of the corporate investigations and fraud prevention industry. We look forward to working with Wes and we’re sure that his skills will prove invaluable to Corporate Resolutions’ client base, both now and in the future.”
With the goal of advancing “legislation that encourages economic growth, job creation, and a less intrusive federal government,” the US Chamber of Commerce recently announced it has endorsed Congressman Scott Garrett for re-election in 2012. Congressman Garrett has a strong record of supporting job creators, most recently shepherding the Jumpstart our Business Startups (“JOBS”) Act to passage in the House of Representatives. This bill was ultimately passed by the Senate and signed into law by the president. It’s no wonder the Chamber of Commerce says that re-electing Scott Garrett will help “get our country back on track.”
