Category: Village of Ridgewood

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>By TOM BALDWIN
Gannett State Bureau

https://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20081125/NEWS01/811250356

Stewards of the state-employees’ pension fund on Monday promised greater communication with workers at a time when Wall Street’s troubles are sapping retirement plans for legions of workers.

The fund managers said they would, for example, disclose emergency investments even if they are less than the $50 million threshold.

The vow came in testimony to the State Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee by the state’s director of the division of investments, William Clark.

The issue was whether Clark and his staff should make smaller investments without prior review by a larger governing body, the state investment council.

An OK from the council is mandated for investments more than $50 million.

The session marked the first chance lawmakers had to delve into how the state-workers’ pension fund is being battered by Wall Street’s almost daily woes.

Last Thursday, the investment council disclosed a loss of $16 billion over three months ending in October. Clark said the fund held $62 billion on Oct. 31, after being as high as $81 billion.

Monday’s budget-committee hearing sought answers and direction, said Budget committee chairwoman Sen. Barbara Buono, D-Middlesex.

“I don’t think any of us could have predicted we would fall so far so fast . . . At the end of the day, people want solutions and not theatrics,” she said.

“There clearly is a lot of fear out there . . . Things are happening that should not be happening,” said Clark, who drew praise from some members for keeping the state-workers’ pension fund performing at a level that is better than an array of other institutional investors.

“Mr. Clark, you’ve done a very good job . . . New Jersey is performing better than most places,” said Senate Majority Leader Stephen M. Sweeney, D-Gloucester.

A bevy of Republican committee members asked why Orin Kramer, the chairman of the larger body, the investment council, did not appear at the hearing.

“The agenda said that Investment Council Chairman Orin Kramer had been invited to appear,” said Sen. Anthony Bucco, R-Morris. “When the state has one-year losses approaching the magnitude of the entire state budget, the investment council chairman should be there to reassure the people.”

He was joined in his complaint by Sens. Kevin O’Toole, R-Essex, Steven Oroho, R-Sussex and Philip E. Haines, R-Burlington.

“Democrat leaders tell us that Kramer’s appearance was put on the agenda by mistake,” Haines said. “Mistakes in agendas should be corrected long before the meeting starts.”

“The investment council is ultimately responsible for pension performance,” Oroho said.

Noting the pension plan had gone unfunded by the state for 10 years, union official Hetty Rosenstein, issued a statement saying: “The pension plan could not in any way handle vicissitudes of the market because it is grossly underfunded.”

Rosenstein is New Jersey area director for the Communications Workers of America, which represents many state workers.

Reach Tom Baldwin at tbaldwi@gannett.com

https://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20081125/NEWS01/811250356

>Amid legislators’ flak over losses, director promises transparency

https://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1227591370311770.xml&coll=1

Tuesday, November 25, 2008
BY CLAIRE HEININGER
Star-Ledger Staff

Under fire from lawmakers who criticized their actions as too secretive, managers of New Jersey’s pension fund will now disclose any emergency investments immediately, even if they fall below the $50 million threshold for public review, officials said yesterday.

The change comes after three such deals were not revealed in October, sparking frustration at the Statehouse as the financial crisis focused a bigger spotlight on the embattled pension fund.

During wide-ranging testimony that also touched on an ill-fated Lehman Brothers investment, state pension director William Clark told the Senate Budget Committee he would increase transparency on future deals.

Clark said he and his staff will still be able to make such investments without prior review by the state investment council — which is required for investments of more than $50 million — but will make them public right away on the state website, rather than waiting for the next monthly council meeting.

He also defended the state’s controversial strategy of alternative investments, which allows the pension fund to buy into hedge funds, private equity and real estate as well as stocks and bonds. The pension system covers 700,000 public workers and teachers.

The strategy came under fire at the hearing.

“I believe firmly that the alternative investment program has gone too far, too fast,” said Jim Marketti, who represents the AFL-CIO on the investment council.

The pension fund, which started the year worth $81.3 billion, has lost $23 billion in value amid the markets’ collapse.

But Clark said that without the alternative investments, the fund could have lost about $2 billion more. He said hedge funds are down 20 percent this fiscal year, compared to 37 percent for the U.S. stock market.

“We’re not making the argument that hedge funds are no risk, we’re making the argument they’re lower risk,” Clark said.

Last month, the state put $49.5 million apiece into three hedge funds: Canyon Special Opportunities Fund, GoldenTree Credit Opportunities Fund and the BlackRock Inc.-managed Credit Investors Co-Investment Fund. The state initially invested in the funds in September 2007, with $100 million for each. He said they needed the new infusions quickly to protect New Jersey’s existing investments, and to create the potential for lucrative returns.

“There was no attempt to hide anything here,” he said.

But prominent lawmakers, including Senate President Richard Codey (D-Essex), said the $49.5 million figure sent up a red flag.

“On its face, the infusion of capital just below the threshold amount raises the specter of an opaque, secretive process,” said committee chairwoman Barbara Buono.

Afterward, Buono (D-Middlesex) said she needed time to evaluate the step announced by Clark before deciding whether the new disclosure goes far enough.

“I believe that we have to give the division enough discretion to be able to do their job effectively, but you have to balance it against the need for transparency,” she said.

Republicans on the panel zeroed in on the state’s June investment in Lehman Brothers, the bank that has since filed for bankruptcy. New Jersey lost $115.5 million on a $180 million Lehman stake in less than four months.

Sens. Steven Oroho (R-Sussex) and Kevin O’Toole (R-Essex) asked whether there was a conflict of interest, since two members of the investment council were Lehman employees and one member was a former Lehman employee at the time of the investment.

Clark said the division made the decision to invest in Lehman without council input and there was no conflict. He said the state will soon decide on whether to sue Lehman officials to recoup some of its losses. “Obviously, I wish we had that one back,” he said.

Gov. Jon Corzine said he believes the pension investments “were made entirely on merit” and not personal relationships.

Staff writer Tom Hester contributed to this report.

https://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1227591370311770.xml&coll=1

>“please let the record show that Boyd Loving caught this and brought it to the council’s attention. not the first nor the last time, i’m sure … but credit where credit is due, and this is his latest coup” … annie (Anne Zusy VC )

>Advice has the potential to be costly to taxpayers

https://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1227417449161150.xml&coll=1

Sunday, November 23, 2008
BY DUNSTAN McNICHOL
Star-Ledger Staff

After making millions selling New Jersey bonds to investors, Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs told other wealthy clients they could profit by betting the Garden State may not be able to pay off its bonds as scheduled, according to a confidential presentation made two months ago.

The advice would cost state taxpayers if investors believe New Jersey bonds appear riskier than they actually are — and force the state to pay higher interest rates on future bonds.

While not illegal, it is troubling Goldman Sachs almost simultaneously marketed New Jersey bonds to one set of investors, while suggesting to others they would be smart to buy insurance from the investment bank because those bonds may not be repaid, according to Geoffrey M. Heal, professor of public policy and business responsibility at Columbia University.

“That’s not a good way to do business,” he said. “They’ve got a conflict of interest and they’re acting against the interest of their customers.

“You act in the interests of your clients. You don’t screw them, to put it bluntly.”

Goldman’s strategy of “shorting municipal credit,” or essentially betting the state bonds would decline in value, was outlined in a 58-page report obtained by ProPublica, a New York-based nonprofit group specializing in investigative reporting. ProPublica assisted The Star-Ledger in reporting this story.

This summer, Goldman, which once employed Gov. Jon Corzine as its chairman, shared in $1 million in fees for helping New Jersey sell $345 million in highway improvement bonds to investors. The fees are among $15 million Goldman has earned since 2002 for selling investors hundreds of millions of dollars in New Jersey debt.

With the September pitch, Goldman was essentially casting doubt on many of those bonds by suggesting New Jersey and five other states might be considered ripe for default on their bond payments because of huge shortfalls in pensions and other public employee retirement benefits.

Michael DuVally, a spokesman for Goldman Sachs, denied there was anything untoward about the firm’s roles as a seller of bonds and a provider of insurance against their default, saying the advice came from different divisions separated by “a Chinese Wall.”

“There is absolutely no conflict,” he said in an e-mail response to written questions. “The material was prepared by a group within the Securities Division on the public side of the ‘Chinese Wall’ and does not represent the views of Goldman Sachs as a firm.”

Tom Vincz, a spokesman for the New Jersey Treasury Department, declined to comment. Douglas Love, a member of New Jersey’s State Investment Council, which sets investment policy for the state’s pension funds, said he was not troubled.

“Research is research; it’s supposed to be independent,” said Love, chief investment officer for an insurance fund. “That is proof they’re independent.”

In the 58-page proposal, Goldman said it identified 11 states where prospects for a default might be on the upswing.

Six of those states, including New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts, were judged as vulnerable because of “significant unfunded pension and OPEB (post-retirement health insurance) costs.”

New Jersey’s pension problems have been known for years and are getting worse.

Experts said that as of July 1, 2007, the fund set up to cover long-term pension payments contained about $28 billion less than is needed to pay the benefits already promised to the 700,000 workers and retirees it covers.

At the time, the funds held investments worth about $82 billion. Since then, the global economic crisis has drained at least $23 billion from the accounts, officials said last week. On top of that, New Jersey has promised its retirees $50 billion in medical benefits, for which no funds have been set aside.

According to the Goldman report, New Jersey is one of just 15 states that has both unfunded medical expenses and a pension system that is at least 20 percent underfunded.

Goldman’s confidential presentation outlined various potential strategies for investors to consider in light of unprecedented instability in worldwide credit markets. The material was only presented to investors with at least $10 million in assets, according to a footnote.

Goldman recommended that investors could take positions against New Jersey bonds by buying complex financial instruments called credit default swaps.

The swaps are like an insurance policy, where an investor pays a bank — like Goldman — a premium in exchange for protection against the risk that New Jersey could default or, more likely, make a late or lesser payment than scheduled. Goldman and other bankers routinely sell such insurance to investors who do not hold the bonds being insured, despite the fact such investors have no direct stake in whether or not the bonds are repaid.

Selling the swaps could, if done properly, help New Jersey by reassuring nervous investors who would not buy the bonds without insurance. But the swaps have also drawn criticism for their role in the near-collapse of insurance giant AIG in September, and for their propensity to be used by speculators in a market that remains unregulated.

Goldman acknowledged in its document that the firm “may have potential conflicts of interest” and that it may “by virtue of its status as an underwriter, advisor or otherwise, possess or have access to non-publicly available information,” which it would not disclose to its credit default swap customers.

Goldman’s foray into the business of “shorting municipal credit” proved short-lived.

DuVally said Goldman was no longer giving the trading advice to clients “in any meaningful way,” and that the traders who came up with the idea are now promoting new investment ideas.

Nevertheless, this incident shows the growing intricacies of the financial markets, according to professor Heal. “For a company that’s dealing with many entities, big firms, local and state governments, it’s actually quite hard to avoid conflicts,” he said. “And it’s getting more difficult as the market gets more concentrated. But you know, if I was New Jersey, I might want to look for someone else to issue my bonds.”

Dunstan McNichol may be reached at dmcnichol@starledger.com or (609) 989-0341.

https://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1227417449161150.xml&coll=1

>The Ridgewood Village Council recently directed Village Manager James Ten Hoeve and Village Attorney Matthew S. Rogers to investigate the legality of Cablevision’s recent decision that requires their subscribers to obtain, and in some cases pay for, digital cable boxes to receive public access channels (including Channel 77, where Village Council and Board of Education meetings are broadcast).

Here’s what officials in Yonkers, NY have to say about Cablevision’s actions:

September 26, 2008

Mayor Blasts Cablevision for Limiting Public Access Channels

Yonkers Suggests Cablevision May Have Violated Federal Law in Placing on Availability Restrictions on Public, Education and Government Access Channels

City May Seek Injunction Against Cablevision to Protect Residents’ Rights

YONKERS, NY — Mayor Phil Amicone is blasting Cablevision for moving unilaterally earlier this month to limit the availability of public, education and government access channels to many of its subscribers in the City of Yonkers, and is now threatening legal action if the company does not immediately remove those limits.

Public, education and government access channels, or PEG channels, are public amenities provided for by franchise agreements between cable companies and municipalities like Yonkers. It is standard in those agreements for the franchisee, in this case Cablevision, to provide those channels free of charge to all subscribers including those on its most basic cable service package.

However, on September 16, 2008, Cablevision began requiring its customers to obtain, and in some cases pay, for digital cable boxes in order to receive PEG channels, a move Yonkers believes is in violation of federal law.

“Access to PEG channels has always been a basic right of the cable-viewing public and should continue to stay that way. We believe that what Cablevision has done in limiting access to and in some cases charging its subscribers additional fees for these channels is not only wrong, it may in fact be a violation of federal law. I have directed our Corporation Counsel to notify Cablevision of our intent to use any and all legal means available in order to ensure that the public’s access to these important informational channels will continue unfettered,” Mayor Amicone said.

Amicone said that although Cablevision has a limited offer of one free digital cable box for its analog customers (those without digital boxes), the move effectively limits access to PEG channels in several ways:

1) The free digital box offer lasts only 60 days;

2) Only one digital box is included in the offer, limiting PEG channel availability to one TV set per household; and

3) Cablevision may begin pushing hidden charges once digital boxes are installed.

The mayor said that even more troubling was the fact that Cablevision’s began imposing these limits unilaterally and without approval from the City of Yonkers, the NYS Public Service Commission or the Federal Communications Commission.

The issue is an important one since PEG channels offer informational programming about the public school system and city government, allow officials to communicate with their constituency, televise important public meetings and provide the public at large with an opportunity to disseminate information over cable airwaves.

The city notified Cablevision of its demand to immediately remove the new limits in a letter dated today. The letter cites specific requirements provided by federal law requiring cable companies to provide PEG access to subscribers without restriction and free of charge, and warns the company of the city’s intent to pursue legal remedies if the limits are not removed.

A copy of the letter is below:

Cablevision maintains in an August 12, 2008 letter to the city that it would only affect a small number of customers and that the move was part of an ongoing effort to improve service through the ongoing transition to digital technology.

But with more than 40,000 subscribers in City of Yonkers, even the approximately 10% of its subscribers who Cablevision estimates are affected by the new restrictions still amounts to thousands of customers.

Mayor Amicone also acknowledged that technology upgrades are a normal part of doing business for service companies like Cablevision and expressed his support for Cablevision’s efforts to augment service quality.

“We understand that technology upgrades are a necessary and even a welcomed part of doing business. But we can’t allow ordinary customers who have been loyal for years and have paid their bills on time to be left behind at the whim of a corporation. Safeguards must exist for the average consumer, and in this case city government as administrator of the franchise agreement is that safeguard. We will therefore do everything within our power to make sure Cablevision provides PEG access to all its customers free of charge,” Amicone concluded.

Below is a copy of the city’s letter to Cablevision…

September 26, 2008

Mark Weingarten, Esq.
DelBello, Donnellan, Weingarten, Wise & Wiederkehr, LLP
1 North Lexington Avenue
White Plains, New York 10601

Robert Hoch, Director, Government Affairs
Cablevision
Six Executive Plaza
Yonkers, NY 10701

RE: City of Yonkers Objection to Cablevision Transition of PEG Channels to Digital Tier of Programming

Dear Mr. Weingarten and Mr. Hoch:

Cablevision Systems, Westchester Corporation (“Cablevision”) informed the City of Yonkers, New York (“City”) on August 12, 2008, that it intends to shift all public, educational and government channels (“PEG”) to digital transmission, thereby effectively creating a second basic tier of service. This action will require City residents to acquire set-top boxes in order to access City programming. Cablevision created this second basic tier on September 16, 2008, and did so without the permission of the City. Cablevision’s unilateral action is in violation of federal law and is a material breach of the existing franchise between the City and Cablevision entered into on December 17, 1985 (“Franchise Agreement”). Accordingly, the City objects to Cablevision’s action and demands that it reinstate transmission of PEG channels to a single basic tier of service available to all subscribers in the City of Yonkers without need for a set-top box.

The Franchise Agreement requires Cablevision to “comply with all laws, rules and regulations of the local, state and federal governments and their regulatory agencies or commissions which are now or may hereafter be applicable to the construction and operation authorized herein.” (Section 6). In addition, the Franchise Agreement requires that Cablevision’s provision of PEG channels is “[s]ubject to the applicable Rules and Regulations of the FCC and Commission” (Section 15).

The FCC requires cable providers to provide PEG channels on a single basic service tier. See In the Matter of the Section of the Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992 Rate Regulation, 8 FCC Rcd 5631, 5644 (1993) (1992 Cable Act contemplates that each cable operator must offer only one basic tier); Time Warner v. FCC, 56 F.3d 151, 199 (D.C. Cir. 1995) (finding single basic tier requirement consistent with statute). Further, a basic tier is presumed to be in analog, unless the cable system is fully digital. In the Matter of Implementation of Section 3 of the Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992, 20 FCC Rcd 2718, 2720 (2005). Cablevision’s division of its Broadcast Basic tier into channels that do, and do not, require a digital converter box creates a dual basic tier in violation of law. Further, the dual tier evidences that Cablevision is not operating a fully digital system at this time.

In addition, Cablevision may not place PEG channels on what is effectively a higher level of basic service without the City’s explicit permission, which has not been provided. See 47 U.S.C. § 543(a)(7); In the Matter of the Section of the Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992 Rate Regulation, 8 FCC Rcd at 5737-38 (cable provider required “to carry PEG channels on the basic tier unless the franchising authority explicitly permits carriage on another tier” ).

Cablevision’s shift of its transmission of PEG channels to a second basic tier, without the City’s explicit consent, is in violation of federal law and is a material breach of the Franchise Agreement. Therefore, the City demands that Cablevision revert its transmission of the PEG channels to a single, non- digital basic service tier no later than 5:00 p.m. on October 10, 2008, and to inform this office immediately upon taking this action. If Cablevision fails to take the demanded action, the City intends to enforce its rights in an appropriate forum.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely, Frank J. Rubino

cc: Mayor Philip A. Amicone
Deputy Mayor William Regan
Chief of Staff Lisa Mrijaj
City Council President Chuck Lesnick
Majority Leader Sandy Annabi
Minority Leader Liam McLaughlin
Council Member Patricia McDow
Council Member Joan Gronowski
Council Member John Murtagh
Council Member Dee Barbato
Mark Blanchard, Deputy Corporation Counsel
William Derasmo, Troutman Sanders, Special Counsel
Honorable Jaclyn Brilling, Secretary, NYS Public Service Commission

SOURCE: Press Release

>The Fly has learned that district teachers had a math workshop similar to the workshop the district held for parents recently. Teachers were given the same questions asked of parents, and their answers were pooled to provide feedback to the group of principals and math partners working on standardizing our K-6 math programs. Not surprisingly, the teachers overwhelmingly wanted what the parents answers overwhelmingly revealed: A program that is tested, true, traditional math. They also wanted to have books and fewer games. We know that games, gadgets, computer interfacing, fancy graphics and bold colors are used to “sell” uncritical administrators on constructivist math programs. Kudos to the teachers and, especially, to the high school teachers who were there and who put their support, backed up by experience, behind this position (and behind the parents!). Thank you Ridgewood teachers.

>State average cost for regular falls under $2 for first time since ’05

https://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20081120/COMMUNITIES/811200335&referrer=FRONTPAGECARO– USEL

TRENTON (AP) — Gasoline prices in New Jersey continue to drop as Garden State residents prepare to hit the roads for the holiday.

AAA-Mid-Atlantic says the average price for regular is $1.97 a gallon.

A year ago it was $2.92.

It’s the first time since Dec. 5, 2005 that the average price was under $2 a gallon. The last time the price was $1.97 was March 29, 2005.

The auto club says average prices were even lower in Burlington, Camden and Gloucester counties at $1.89 a gallon.

Average prices remain higher in Bergen and Passaic counties.

AAA says gasoline prices in 22 states are now under the $2 average.

https://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20081120/COMMUNITIES/811200335&referrer=FRONTPAGECARO– USEL

>https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/budget_worries_lead_to_rifts_a.html

Posted by cjrothma November 19, 2008 16:54PM

Frustration over tough budget times spilled over today at the normally placid League of Municipalities Convention in Atlantic City, where a critic of Gov. Jon Corzine provoked a testy exchange with members of the Cabinet.

Former Glen Ridge Mayor Carl Bergmanson, who waged an unsuccessful effort to recall Corzine from office earlier this year, drew cheers from attendees at a mayors’ luncheon when he used an expletive to say the administration was punishing small towns by blaming them for high property taxes.

State Treasurer David Rousseau and Community Affairs Commissioner Joseph Doria called the criticism unfair and insisted they are doing their best to cut costs in a bleak economy.

That left league officials to play referee, with the president, East Orange Mayor Robert Bowser, cutting off the back-and-forth to boos from the crowd.

William Dressel, the league’s executive director, spent the moments before the lunch disposing of anti-Corzine bumper stickers that appeared beneath the mayors’ sandwiches and potato chips.

The unrest came during a stressful time for state and local officials, who are struggling to predict the New Jersey consequences of the economic downturn. Last week, Corzine and Rousseau announced the state faces a $1.2 billion shortfall in its current budget and a hole of $5 billion for the next fiscal year.

As Rousseau combs the budget line-by-line for savings, local officials said they are concerned about the impact on municipal aid and their own finances.

“There’s considerable frustration and anxiety,” Dressel said. But, he said, “it’s too early to start casting rocks and name-calling and passing out degrading slogans…We’re all in this boat together.”

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/budget_worries_lead_to_rifts_a.html

>Thursday, November 20, 2008
BY CLAIRE HEININGER
Star-Ledger Staff

https://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/122715830525100.xml&coll=1

In a move aimed at avoiding big property tax increases during the economic downturn, Gov. Jon Corzine today will offer municipalities a half-billion-dollar break on their payments into the state pension system, an administration official said last night.

Local governments would be able to defer half the amount they are scheduled to submit in April and pay it back gradually over the next three years, under the plan Corzine will present at the state League of Municipalities Convention today in Atlantic City. The proposal would require approval by the Legislature.

Corzine also will stress that towns should consider consolidation and sharing services to cut costs, according to a senior administration official familiar with his plan. The official spoke anonymously last night to avoid upstaging Corzine in advance of his speech to the annual gathering of local officials.

In recent weeks, municipal officials aired their concerns that skyrocketing local pension obligations would force them to break the state’s 4 percent cap on annual property tax increases to balance their budgets.

Local governments and counties are scheduled to pay about $1.1 billion into the pension system in April, according to information the state recently provided to the Transportation Trust Fund’s prospective bond-holders. Corzine’s proposal would allow the towns to defer at least half that amount.

William Dressel, executive director of the state League of Municipalities, said he had not heard full details of Corzine’s proposal and would need to see specifics before judging how much it will help. But he said municipalities will be in deep trouble without some boost.

“There’s not a lot of options out there,” Dressel said. “Clearly if we don’t get some kind of relief, that would be catastrophic for local budgets.”

Dressel testified last week before a state finance board that the property tax cap should be raised to make room for the rising bills of police and firefighter pensions. Instead, the governor plans to tell towns to stay within the 4 percent limit now that the pension payments can be partially deferred.

‘STRONG RESERVATIONS’

Anthony Wieners, president of the New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association, said his organization has “strong reservations about any deferment of the obligations to the police and firefighters of New Jersey.”

Deferring pension payments does have a long-term cost, because the bills must be paid eventually. The local governments’ pension funds currently have $9 billion less than actuaries say they need to meet their long-term cost, and postponing part of April’s payments would add to that debt.

Corzine’s speech was foreshadowed earlier yesterday at the league convention, when a mayor speaking at a luncheon asked members of the governor’s cabinet whether the local pension contributions could be phased in to lighten the financial load. The officials demurred, saying they’d talk it over with Corzine.

Frustration over the tough budget times spilled over at the normally placid convention when a Corzine critic provoked a testy exchange with the cabinet members.

Former Glen Ridge mayor Carl Bergmanson, who waged an effort earlier this year to recall Corzine from office, drew cheers at the mayors’ luncheon when he used an expletive to say the administration was punishing small towns by blaming them for high property taxes.

State Treasurer David Rousseau and Community Affairs commissioner Joseph Doria called the criticism unfair and insisted they are doing their best to cut costs in a bleak economy.

That left League of Municipalities officials to play referee, with the president, East Orange Mayor Robert Bowser, cutting off the back-and-forth to boos from the crowd.

Dressel also spent the moments before the lunch disposing of anti-Corzine bumper stickers that showed up underneath the mayors’ sandwiches and potato chips.

Last week, Corzine and Rousseau announced the state faces a $1.2 billion shortfall in its current budget and a hole of $5 billion for the next fiscal year. As Rousseau combs the budget, line by line, for savings, local officials said they are concerned about the impact on municipal aid and their own finances.

“There’s considerable frustration and anxiety,” Dressel said. But, he said, “it’s too early to start casting rocks and name-calling and passing out degrading slogans. … We’re all in this boat together.”

Staff writers Dunstan McNichol and Josh Margolin contributed to this report.

https://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/122715830525100.xml&coll=1

>Posted by pcox November 18, 2008 15:46PM

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/njs_top_court_rejects_corzine.html

The state Supreme Court today rejected Gov. Jon Corzine’s request to pull the plug on the long-running Abbott v. Burke court case, a case that has forced a succession of governors to steer billions of dollars in special state aid to Newark, Camden and 29 other needy communities.

Instead of closing the case, the court opted to set up a special set of hearings where Corzine will be given the chance to prove to a “special master” whether his new formula for distributing $7.8 billion in state school aid eliminates the need for the special consideration the court has demanded for the so-called “Abbott” communities. The court named Superior Court Judge Peter Doyne as the Special Master.

The text of the opinion is available online.

Tony Kurdzuk/The Star-Ledger Supreme Court Justice Jaynee LaVecchia during arguments in the Abbott v. Burke case at the Hughes Justice Complex in September.
“Until the State demonstrates to our satisfaction that a constitutionally adequate education can be provided to Abbott district students through the funding that will be provided via SFRA (the school funding formula), the State is bound to comply with the prior remedial orders and decisions respecting the plaintiffs in Abbott districts,” the court said in its 5-0 opinion.

The court declared the level of funding included in the current state budget for the Abbott communities to be adequate. However the court required that Abbott communities who feel they need additional funds for supplemental services must be given the chance to apply for them.

The court ordered that hearings before the special master, who will be appointed by the court, be expedited and that they be limited to the question of whether Corzine’s funding for Abbott communities and special needs students are adequate.

https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/njs_top_court_rejects_corzine.html

>CONGRESSMAN SCOTT GARRETT’S OFFICE COMING TO A TOWN NEAR YOU:

Congressman Garrett’s staff will be holding Mobile Constituent Service Hours in a number of Fifth District towns this week. The Congressman’s Constituent Service Officers are trained to act as your liaisons with Federal agencies. But, it’s not always easy to make it out to one of the Congressman’s district offices – in Paramus and Newton – to meet with one of them, especially when you are dealing with government red tape. These Mobile Constituent Service Hours sessions bring the Congressman’s office to you. So, if you are having trouble with a Federal program, such as Medicare, veterans benefits, Social Security, or more, please feel free to come by. And, please bring copies of any relevant paperwork with you to facilitate their work.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Ridgewood MCS
10:00am-12:00pm
Borough Hall, 131 N. Maple Avenue

>Let’s face fact here. As Mr. Hutton is fond of telling parents, “the train has left the station.”

Regina and her puppet, Mr. Fishbein, have already decided on Everyday Math.

This “expert” math panel, the curriculum committee and the parents’ groups are all a sham to provide cover for a fiat compli.

We are going to have Everyday Math, like it or not because that is what Regina wants and the BOE is too weak to demand an open process.

Remember, you heard it here first, we are going to have Everyday Math as the official math curriculum in our elementary schools.

Any one care to bet differently? I’ll give 10 to 1 odds.