The village manager recently revealed some positive numbers for Ridgewood’s budget heading into 2011.
Graydon Pool cut its 2009 losses nearly in half; the building department may finish the year in the black; and a number of other revenue generators are contributing to the gains, said Village Manager Ken Gabbert.
In 2009, Graydon’s expenses surpassed its revenues by about $192,000, but this year the municipal pool’s “losses” have been cut to around $100,000, Gabbert said.
The building department lost $153,000 in 2009, but could end the year with a positive $15,000, Gabbert said.
>ELEC: Democratic State Committee wrongfully spent on Corzine campaign
Democratic State Committee spent $227,120 for Gov. Jon Corzine’s reelection run last year, but didn’t follow campaign financing laws, according to a complaint from the Election Law Enforcement Commission released this week. (Carroll, PolitickerNJ)
The state has cut a total of $100,000 in aid to 225 municipalities because some are operating inefficiently, a top state official said Wednesday. (Method, Courier-Post)
In what some fear could lead to higher parking costs for commuters, NJ Transit is weighing a plan that could privatize parking at 81 of the cash-strapped agency’s sites — including the Hamilton, Princeton Junction and Trenton train stations. (Duffy, The Star-Ledger)
>N.J. Supreme Court to decide whether effort to recall Sen. Menendez can proceed
New Jersey’s Supreme Court is expected to rule today on whether a citizens group has the right to try to recall U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez. (The Associated Press)
>Bill Clinton bans Twitter, Facebook and live-blog coverage for upcoming speech
Bill Clinton has called for a ban on the use of Twitter, Facebook updates and any live blogging during his keynote at the Dreamforce Cloud Computing conference in San Francisco next month.
Maybe Al Gore, who is a member of Apple’s board of directors and possibly more tech-friendly, could get the 42nd president of the United States to embrace a bit of social media and blog coverage of his speech?
Tech blog ReadWriteWeb said it was sent this memo from Outcast, a public relations firm, regarding Clinton’s speech at the conference, sponsored by Salesforce.com:
“PLEASE NOTE: President Clinton’s representatives have mandated that there be absolutely no reporting during his session.
That includes live blogging, Tweeting, Facebook posting or use of any other social media.
We understand the inconvenience this may present, but greatly appreciate your compliance. Thank you.”
TSA’s tyrannical tactics threaten American freedoms
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has crossed the line. As if subjecting millions of Americans to X-rated x-ray scans and public groping sessions weren’t bad enough, the agency now threatens $11,000 in fines against anyone refusing to submit to humiliation at the airport.
Oceanside, Calif., resident John Tyner found this out after he posted on YouTube a video of his degrading encounter with TSA screeners. Mr. Tyner’s catchy phrase, “If you touch my junk, I’ll have you arrested,” spread quickly, thanks to attention provided by the Drudge Report. TSA was not amused, and an official announced Monday that Mr. Tyner faces punishment for leaving the airport without submitting to the high-tech or low-tech molestation options.
The term is not used lightly. Under 18 U.S. Code Section 2244, ” ‘sexual contact’ means the intentional touching, either directly or through the clothing, of the genitalia, anus, groin, breast, inner thigh or buttocks of any person with an intent to abuse, humiliate, harass, degrade.” It’s no coincidence that TSA initiated sexual-contact pat-downs after fliers began to refuse the pornographic scanners. There can be no question that when threats of civil punishment are used to ensure compliance, those encounters with the TSA lose their status as a voluntary transaction. It’s even more outrageous that these unnecessary searches are being conducted on children.
>Migration from high-tax states to states with lower taxes and less government spending will dramatically alter the composition of future Congresses
Low-tax states will gain seats, high-tax states will lose them By: Barbara Hollingsworth Local Opinion Editor 11/17/10 10:00 AM EST
Migration from high-tax states to states with lower taxes and less government spending will dramatically alter the composition of future Congresses, according to a study by Americans for Tax Reform
Eight states are projected to gain at least one congressional seat under reapportionment following the 2010 Census: Texas (four seats), Florida (two seats), Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah and Washington (one seat each). Their average top state personal income tax rate: 2.8 percent.
By contrast, New York and Ohio are likely to lose two seats each, while Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania will be down one apiece. The average top state personal income tax rate in these loser states: 6.05 percent.
The state and local tax burden is nearly a third lower in states with growing populations, ATR found. As a result, per capita government spending is also lower: $4,008 for states gaining congressional seats, $5,117 for states losing them.
And, as ATR notes, “in eight of ten losers, workers can be forced to join a union as a condition of employment. In 7 of the 8 gainers, workers are given a choice whether to join or contribute financially to a union
Read more at the Washington Examiner: https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/low-tax-states-will-gain-seats-high-tax-states-will-lose-them-108681159.html#ixzz15aTdzCXY
>DeMint: Obama, Pelosi Not ‘Free Market Americans As I Understand It’ Tuesday, November 16, 2010 By Dan Joseph
(CNSNews.com) – In an interview with CNSNews.com on Monday, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) would not say whether he thinks President Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) are “extremists,” but he said he thinks they are not “free market Americans.”
In a Gallup poll from August, 40 percent of Americans defined themselves as “conservative,” nine percent of whom said “very conservative,” and only 21 percent said they were “liberal,” five percent of whom said “very liberal.” Thirty-five percent said they were moderate.
On Monday, at a rally on Capitol Hill held by the conservative group Americans For Prosperity, CNSNews.com asked DeMint, “Given that most Americans consider themselves to be conservative – upwards of 40 percent these days in most polls – do you consider Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi ‘extremists’”?
DeMint said, “Well, I think the labels sometimes aren’t helpful, but they certainly aren’t free market Americans as I understand it. Freedom comes from millions of people making their own decisions. The folks in power now think that a few people should be making the decisions for everybody else, whether it’s education, health care, whatever. It’s just a different worldview that doesn’t fit with American philosophy.”
>Department of Education Audit adds to New Jersey school district chaos
Audit adds to New Jersey school district chaos
Wednesday, November 17, 2010 By Matt Huisman and Dan Goldberg For the Star-Ledger
Confusion reigned Tuesday among school districts around the state.
Some had completed contract negotiations with their superintendents that exceeded Gov. Chris Christie’s salary cap prior to its implementation next year. They had even received the blessing from their county’s executive superintendent.
But an audit now being conducted by the state Department of Education of all recently signed contracts has left many districts scratching their heads over the entire process. The review will be completed by Dec. 3, said education department spokesman Alan Guenther.
The audit sparked howls of protest from local school officials, who said they were acting under the current law, not a salary cap that will go into effect on Feb. 7
>“Parent trigger” could restructure or shut down low-performing schools
New Jersey parents with children in low-performing schools could see vast new powers to overhaul those schools, under legislation now being prepared by the Senate Republican leader, Sen. Joseph Kyrillos. (Mooney, NJ Spotlight)
>New Jersey State League of Municipalities wants union officials out of state pension
Most agree lobbying groups should not be in the state pension and health-benefits system. One such lobbying organization, the New Jersey State League of Municipalities, fires back the same goes for union officials; they should be out too. (Ingle, Asbury Park Press)
>To cut costs, Gov. Christie’s toolbox just a start
More than 80,800 fans were at the New Meadowlands Stadium Sunday to watch the Giants play the Dallas Cowboys. The number of fans in that stadium exceeded the population of all but nine of New Jersey’s 566 municipalities. (Former Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts Jr., guest columnist for The Star-Ledger)
TRENTON — A bill to allow school districts to sell ads on the sides of school buses passed the Senate Education Committee Monday. (State Bureau, Gannett)
