DiVincenzo wants Democrats to ‘do the right thing’ on arbitration cap bill
FAIRFIELD – Essex County Executive Joe DiVincenzo says he hopes Democratic lawmakers “do the right thing” and move on an arbitration cap proposal Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto (D-32) allowed to expire.
DiVincenzo, who attended Gov. Chris Christie’s town hall in Essex County, said he agreed with the governor that renewing the arbitration cap is the right thing to do. The state Senate recently voted to renew the cap, though the Assembly permitted the proposal to expire after refusing to bring it to the floor for a vote by the end of March.
“I haven’t spoken to Vinnie,” said DiVincenzo, adding, however, that he’s been “urging [his] colleagues” to support moving on the arbitration cap
“I hope they do the right thing,” he said. (Arco/PolitickerNJ)
Judge: Christie ex-aides Kelly, Stepien can withhold documents in GWB probe
APRIL 9, 2014, 4:02 PM LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2014, 6:41 PM
BY SHAWN BOBURG
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD
Two key figures in the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal do not have to comply with legislative subpoenas demanding that they turn over documents, a judge ruled Wednesday, delivering a setback to lawmakers whose probe linked the closures to the governor’s office earlier this year.
The Mercer County Superior Court judge agreed that Bridget Anne Kelly, Governor Christie’s former deputy chief of staff, and Bill Stepien, a former campaign manager, were right to assert their Fifth Amendment protection against self-incrimination. A federal criminal investigation into the lane closure is under way.
Judge Mary C. Jacobson described the subpoenas demanding documents related to the lane closures as too broad, one of several issues she identified, while acknowledging the legal complexity of the case forced her into “largely uncharted waters.” But Jacobson appeared to suggest that the legislative panel could re-issue more narrow subpoenas to Kelly and Stepien that might hold up against a legal challenge.
Reader says The taxes and mandates placed upon private enterprise make doing business in NJ uncompetitive with other states
As a business owner in the private sector, let me add to it from that perspective.
The taxes and mandates placed upon private enterprise make doing business in NJ uncompetitive with other states.
The foolish Democrats that control Trenton kill the economy here every time they pass another law with the stroke of a pen.
Nobody ‘mandates’ that private enterprise make a profit (which is taxed), yet the morons who are elected from the big cities (Newark, Camden, Paterson etc) that milk the funds from the state treasury continue to pass rules that hurt businesses.
Many businesses will never expand here, and move new operations to more ‘tax friendly’/’regulation friendly’ states.
No large business would ever consider moving here.
The state is broke due to ‘obligations’ to the unions as mentioned in the previous post.
Further draining the state treasury are the billions of dollars that get flushed down the toilet in the “Abbot’ school districts (thanks to the left wing activist NJ supreme court).
It should come as no surprise that the ‘big earners’ make sure they do their ‘time’ out of state….spend 181 days per year in FLA and vote there… so NJ can no longer pick their pockets… and the rest of us will have to make up the difference in higher taxes..
Try to explain logic such as that to the Dumbocrats in Trenton… good luck.
IRS Employees Brazenly Campaigned For Obama And Your Tax Money Paid For It!
IRS employees are being investigated for actually actively campaigning for Obama and other Democrats while on government time to taxpayers seeking information on how to pay their taxes. Amazingly, we’re supposed to still believe that there is no basis for the accusations of IRS targeting the Tea Party and other conservative groups.
From the Washington Times:
In one case the Office of Special Counsel, which investigates federal employees who conduct politics on government time, said it was “commonplace” in a Dallas IRS office for employees to have pro-Obama screensavers on their computers, and to have campaign-style buttons and stickers at their office.
In another case, a worker at the tax agency’s customer help line urged taxpayers “to re-elect President Obama in 2012 by repeatedly reciting a chant based on the spelling of his last name,” the Office of Special Counsel said in a statement.
…Another IRS employee in Kentucky has agreed to serve a 14-day suspension for blasting Republicans in a conversation with a taxpayer.
“They’re going to take women back 40 years,” the IRS employee said in a conversation that was recorded. The employee also said that “if you vote for a Republican, the rich are going to get richer and the poor are going to get poorer.”
That employee went on to tell the taxpayer she knew she wasn’t supposed to be voicing her political opinions, and asked the taxpayer not to say anything.
What kind of government office is run so poorly that the employees felt they had absolute carte blanche to rant to taxpayers about voting for Obama? This is an absolute disgrace and all Americans should be offended by this, but how many on the left will even hear about this or care to comment?
New Jersey’s credit rating lowered to A+ by Standard & Poor’s
APRIL 9, 2014, 4:47 PM LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2014, 7:00 PM
BY HUGH R. MORLEY
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD
Standard & Poor’s downgraded New Jersey’s credit rating Wednesday, saying that the state is dealing with a “structural imbalance” and its efforts to balance the budget will “contribute to future budgetary pressures.”
The ratings agency reduced the state’s general obligation debt one step, to A+ from AA-, lowered ratings for other kinds of debt, and offered unsparing criticism of the state’s financial position just over two weeks after Governor Christie released a $34.4 billion budget.
“Almost five years after the official start of the economic recovery, New Jersey continues to struggle with structural imbalance and stands in stark difference to many of its peers who registered sizeable budgetary surpluses in fiscal 2013,” the statement said.
It added that the state is now suffering from the effects of “bullish revenue assumption and overreliance on untested or uncertain revenues” in the past two budgets.
The downgrade puts the state’s grade four levels below the top, and leaves it with California and Illinois in the single-A category, lower than 47 other states, Bloomberg News reported. A lowered rating generally leads to higher borrowing costs.
At the same time the ratings agency gave New Jersey a stable outlook. S&P had held a negative outlook for New Jersey since September 2012.
decades ago damage from Communist murderer Pol Pot still effects Cambodia today
Ridgewood club seeks to improve lives of children in Cambodia
APRIL 7, 2014 LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, APRIL 7, 2014, 12:04 AM
BY BY LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
If the world were black and white, Cambodia might almost seem like two different places.
One, which suffered a genocide not too long ago – when nearly two million people, more than 20 percent of the population, were lost; the result of a communist regime’s extreme ideology targeting intellectuals and professionals, among others.
And another country filled with people known for their warmth and positivity.
Yet it’s all Cambodia. And, as unlikely as a connection between Ridgewood and this country may seem to a village outsider, it’s a place that has become near-and-dear to the hearts of several students from Ridgewood. The students have been engaging in an ongoing district-wide effort, started in 2007, to help Cambodia move forward. Ridgewood children have even made annual visits to the country, including a visit this past February.
Initiated by Ridgewood parents and later also led by educators and students, the effort is also raising global awareness and cross-cultural appreciation in an affluent school district.
“It’s so nice to give back – for us living this luxury lifestyle in Ridgewood, especially,” said George Washington Middle School (GW) eighth grader Ireland Horan. “Because honestly, even if you don’t need help, you’re going to need it some day.”
Horan, who has seen videos of Cambodia, but has not yet visited, noted that the Cambodian people she has seen “have nothing” and yet “they couldn’t be happier.”
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/clubs-and-service-organizations/ridgewood-club-seeks-to-improve-lives-of-children-in-cambodia-1.843402#sthash.MxqWMe2e.dpuf
The Ridgewood Police Department will be participating in the DEA NATIONAL TAKE-BACK INITIATIVE
Ridgewood NJ, On Saturday APRIL 26, 2014 – 10:00 am to 2:00 pm: The Ridgewood Police Department will be participating in the DEA NATIONAL TAKE-BACK INITIATIVE
This program allows residents a safe and convenient way to dispose of unwanted, expired or unused prescription medication. Often, some of these medicines languish in the home and are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high—more Americans currently abuse prescription drugs than the number of those using cocaine, hallucinogens, heroin, and inhalants combined, according to the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Please bring any unwanted, expired or unused prescription medication to the Police department 131 N. Maple Ave and place them in the collection bin located near the Police Desk.
Reader says time to change residency requirement for new hires
That residency requirement for new hires limits who we can hire, but if it was changed to residency after one year of appointment we’d get a much broader range of qualified applicants going for these golden jobs with their multi-million dollar lifetime benefits. And let the Village fire people for incompetence. Now apparently the only way to get rid of a Village employee is to catch them stealing quarters. According to some former Village employees on this blog, the Engineering department where that thief was employed has cost taxpayers millions of dollars in DEP and other fines, lost quarters, and flooded fields and Village Hall that need to be repaired every time we get a super storm. Where is the accountability to taxpayers there ?
Reader asks why no current member of the Council seems at all bothered by this subversion of the election process.
Funny that no current member of the Council seems at all bothered by this subversion of the election process. One would imagine that our elected leadership might want to maintain some level of integrity to the election process where those that seek public office aren’t personally harassed on the very day that their candidacy is certified. After all, this is the very same process that put them into office in the first place. One might imagine that as human beings they might have expressed some sympathy for what a bum deal this young man got for answering the call to public service.
Even the most cynical among us would expect at least a superficial statement from our elected officials condemning this brutally unfair and potentially illegal tactic, the timing of which is highly suspicious. So why the deafening silence?
Ridgewood officials discuss safety plans for ‘Backwoods’ student dance
APRIL 7, 2014 LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, APRIL 7, 2014, 5:05 PM
BY DARIUS AMOS
STAFF WRITER
The reported numbers of unruly teens observed at each of the semiannual RHS Backwoods dances have raised safety concerns among the Ridgewood Council, but police officials believe that the overall positives outnumber any negatives that result from the organized gatherings.
With preparations under way for the next Backwoods dance, typically held in Memorial Park at Van Neste Square every June and September, members of the Ridgewood Police Department last week discussed the trends as well as the pros and cons of the event with Village Council members.
Police also recommended additional officers to staff the upcoming dance.
Reader says Just reading some of the comments from municipal pensioners and union hacks on this blog, and it’s no wonder we’re in such a mess in this state
Just reading some of the comments from municipal pensioners and union hacks on this blog, and it’s no wonder we’re in such a mess in this state. They are living in fantasy land, expecting new municipal hires to be able to afford their own house and property taxes in Ridgewood, and thinking that their oversized pensions and gold plated healthcare-for-life are sustainable if we just keep raising property taxes every year… I’m not even sure these benefits were negotiated in good faith anymore judging by the comments – when you have a potential conflict of interest with former Police and Fire management on the Village Council approving outrageous wage and benefit increases, i.e. in the 2009 CBAs and again when they were re-opened in 2010, you leave the Village taxpayers with an even bigger entitlement liability. Were those CBAs really negotiated in the best interests of taxpayers when you hand out +4% annual wage increases during a recession ? All the union guys talk about is the current cost for public safety – they always ignore the future fixed costs for pensions & healthcare which will cost us hundreds of millions of dollars in the next 15 years – money that we won’t be able to use for services and improved quality of life for Villagers. Many of these retirees don’t even live in Ridgewood !
NJT EXPANDS ‘QUIET COMMUTE’ TO OFF-PEAK ON MAINLINE AND BERGEN LINE TRAINS
Pilot program to launch May 5 on rail lines serving Hoboken Terminal
April 8, 2014
Ridgewood NJ, In direct response to recommendations from customers seeking an improved on-board experience, NJ TRANSIT Executive Director Veronique “Ronnie” Hakim today announced the expansion of the agency’s Quiet Commute program to off-peak trains that serve Hoboken Terminal, through a pilot program starting Monday, May 5.
“We heard from our customers that they want to enjoy the benefits of Quiet Commute cars on trains during off-peak hours in addition to peak periods, and we are taking action based directly on their recommendations,” said Executive Director Hakim. “We want our customers to know that their feedback will continue to be the driving force behind NJ TRANSIT’s ongoing efforts to improve their overall experience on our system.”
Starting May 5, NJ TRANSIT will add Quiet Commute cars to all off-peak trains arriving and departing Hoboken Terminal between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekdays only. This includes trains on the Morris & Essex, Montclair-Boonton, Pascack Valley, Main, Bergen County and Port Jervis lines, along with the 2300-series trains on the North Jersey Coast Line.
The designated Quiet Commute car will be the first car on trains traveling into Hoboken, and the last car on trains departing Hoboken, with seating on a first-come, first-served basis.
Quiet Commute cars are intended to provide a subdued environment for customers who wish to refrain from using cell phones and are willing to disable the sound feature on pagers, games, computers and other electronic devices. Conversations should be conducted in quiet voices, and headphones should be used at a volume that cannot be heard by other passengers.
NJ TRANSIT will closely monitor and evaluate the off-peak Quiet Commute pilot program, with feedback received from customers and employees guiding any possible future plans for further expansion across the rail system.
As a reminder, customers may currently take advantage of the Quiet Commute amenity on all peak-period, peak-direction trains, as follows:
On all Northeast Corridor “3900-series” express trains. The designated Quiet Commute cars are the first and last cars of each train.
On Northeast Corridor, North Jersey Coast, Midtown Direct and Raritan Valley line trains that arrive in Newark or New York between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m., and trains that depart Newark or New York between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. The designated Quiet Commute cars are the first and last cars of each train.
On Morris & Essex, Montclair-Boonton, Pascack Valley, Main, Bergen County and Port Jervis line trains that arrive in Hoboken Terminal between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m., and depart Hoboken Terminal between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. The designated Quiet Commute car is the first car on trains traveling into Hoboken, and the last car on trains departing Hoboken.
NJ TRANSIT first launched the peak period Quiet Commute program in September 2010 as a pilot on its busiest trains—“3900-series” Northeast Corridor express trains—to test the feasibility of offering the amenity on its rail system. After receiving overwhelmingly positive feedback from customers, NJ TRANSIT expanded the program in January 2011 to include all peak-period, peak-direction trains that begin or end their trips at New York Penn Station or Newark Penn Station. In June 2011, NJ TRANSIT completed a systemwide rollout to peak-period trains with the expansion of Quiet Commute to include all rail lines that serve Hoboken Terminal.
Survey: US sees sharpest health insurance premium increases in years
Americans have recently been hit with some of the largest premium increases in years, according to a Morgan Stanley survey of insurance brokers.
The investment bank’s April survey of 148 brokers found that this quarter, the average premium increase for customers renewing an insurance plan is 12 percent in the small group market and 11 percent in the individual market, according to Forbes’ Scott Gottlieb.
The hikes — the largest in the past three years, according to Morgan Stanley’s quarterly reports — are “largely due to changes under the [Affordable Care Act],” analysts concluded. Rates have been growing increasingly fast throughout all of 2013, after a period of drops in 2012.
53% Expect Quality of Care To Suffer Under Health Care Law
Monday, April 07, 2014
Unfavorable opinions of the new national health care law are at their highest level in several months, while the number who think the quality of care in this country will get worse is at its highest level in over three years.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 58% of Likely U.S. Voters have at least a somewhat unfavorable opinion of the health care law, with 43% who view it Very Unfavorably. Just 39% have a favorable view of the law, including 16% with a Very Favorable one. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Despite the Obama administration’s claim that it has exceeded its March 31 goal of signing up seven million Americans through new health insurance exchanges, overall unfavorables for the health care law are up from 54% two weeks ago. Most voters have had an unfavorable opinion of the law in regular surveys since the beginning of last year. But the latest finding matches the all-time high first reached in mid-November. Favorables fell to a record low of 36% in that same survey.
UConn’s success envied around nation, especially in N.J.
APRIL 8, 2014, 10:55 PM LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2014, 12:48 AM
BY TARA SULLIVAN
RECORD COLUMNIST
THE RECORD
This was before the opening tipoff, before her Connecticut women’s basketball team routed Notre Dame for a second consecutive national championship, before Stefanie Dolson helped turn Storrs, Conn., into the college basketball’s epicenter. Dolson, a senior center who would go out and dismantle the Fighting Irish with 17 points and 16 rebounds, was asked if she’d heard any words of advice from the previous night’s national champions, otherwise known as her male counterparts back at UConn.
Dolson said she and her teammates had received texts from the men’s players that said, “One more game to go – you got this.”
That they did.
For the second night in a row, a Connecticut team outran, out-jumped and out-hustled the opposition; and for the second night in a row, Connecticut was the last college basketball team standing, finishing off a male-female double-double championship for the second time in school history.
The school that was supposed to be left behind is on top of the world.
With a wire-to-wire 79-58 win over previously undefeated Notre Dame in Nashville, Tenn., on Tuesday night, the Connecticut women didn’t simply finish off a perfect 40-0 season, but improved to 9-0 in national title games under head coach Geno Auriemma. One night earlier, the UConn men’s team defeated Kentucky, winning its second national title in four years, and fourth overall.
Between second-year coach Kevin Ollie and predecessor Jim Calhoun, the men’s team is also perfect in four championship games.
Connecticut’s position among the country’s elite athletic programs is indisputable, a testament to a long, sustained and successful building project that is the envy of schools across the land.
Nowhere is that shade of green deeper than amid the sea of Rutgers red, where a floundering department feels so far away from the superior level Connecticut projected to the world across a dominant month of March.
