>In light of the recent disclosure that BOE employees failed to deposit donated funds earmarked for an athletic scholarship in memory of RHS graduate Edward “Ted” Winfield, I will be voting “no” on the school budget this coming Tuesday.

Clearly, an organization incapable of promptly depositing checks, and holding no one accountable once the egregious error was discovered, should not be trusted to manage $84.4 million in taxpayer monies.

I’m fed up with all of the BOE’s mistakes, and their continued failure to discipline those responsible for making them.

Vote “no” on Tuesday, April 21 and send a clear message that taxpayers expect increased effectiveness and more accountability for less money.

>https://www.nowhampshire.com/2009/04/15/taxpayers-storm-%E2%80%98luxury-lavatory%E2%80%99-at-state-house/

“About seventy women and forty men” visited the Senate President and Speaker of the House’s new taxpayer-funded “luxury lavatory” at the State House to relieve themselves all at once today, sources tell NowHampshire.com.

About 500 people showed up for the Concord “Taxpayer Tea Party.” After protesting the federal government’s spending policies in Concord during the noon hour many of the taxpayers needed to relieve themselves. So Republican state Rep. Fran Wendelboe invited anyone who had to go to the third floor bathroom, which cost the state $72,000 and is seen by many in New Hampshire as an unnecessary extravagance in the middle of an economic recession.

bathroom-after2Sources on the ground tell NowHampshire.com three state troopers were called up to monitor the taxpayers even though they were well behaved. It’s unclear whether the troopers were called in at the behest of Speaker Terie Norelli or Senate President Sylvia Larson, both of whom are Democrats.

The fancy bathroom has become the source of controversy for leadership in both houses of the state legislature. Senate leadership says the new bathroom was necessary because of urine stains on the floor.

The bathroom has also become a national story. It was featured on the Fox News Channel last weekend.

https://www.nowhampshire.com/2009/04/15/taxpayers-storm-%E2%80%98luxury-lavatory%E2%80%99-at-state-house/

>Highlights:

PJ- you missed a barn burned tonight at village hall.

Happy to fill you in…..

Anne Zusy told the taxpayers of Ridgewood to suck it up and stop being cranky.
Mayor Pfund threatened to re-open the debate over train parking on Ridge road.

When it was pointed out the shuttle is paid for with borrowed
money and council tried to boost ridership to justify the bus with
that Thursday night email the mayor threatened to put the Ridge Road
parking idea back on the table?

Anne Zusy claiming the shuttle has 4-6 people on board on every run
when we watch it go by empty?

quite a night..

>April 16, 2009

Dear Neighbor,

Join me in supporting the Ridgewood School Budget at the polls on April 21st. The 2009-2010 budget rises to the current financial challenges before us, adheres to the statutory constraints imposed by the State of NJ and meets the educational expectations of our community.

Key Points-
1.Unprecedented financial challenges balanced by strong decisions to support the core values of our community.
2. Fully explores cost saving measures with professional service providers, bargaining units, and purchasing consortiums to bring the most value to the taxpayer.
3. Moves us forward to meet the educational needs of our students by maintaining class sizes, curriculum work, textbook materials, and professional development for our staff.
4. Continues our commitment to facilities improvements.

The hard decisions have already been made. We encourage you to support the Ridgewood School Budget in the voting booth on April 21st by voting, “YES”. A budget defeat will likely result in further cuts to the education offered Ridgewood’s children.

Let’s not let that happen.

Sincerely,
ABC
Advocating for the Budget Committee

>Hundreds of anti-tax rallies kicked off Wednesday in several U.S. cities as demonstrators protested high taxes and massive government spending

like “Give me liberty, not debt” and “Our kids can’t afford you” were heard across several U.S. cities Wednesday as anti-tax “tea party” protesters took to the streets to voice their opposition to big government spending.

Thousands of protesters — some dressed in colonial wigs with tea bags hanging from their eyeglasses — showed up in states from California to Kentucky to Massachusetts, holding signs and reading speeches lambasting the Obama administration’s tax-and-spend policies.

“I have two little kids and I know we are mortgaging their futures away,” one protester at a rally in Austin, Texas told FOX News. “It makes me sick to my stomach.”

The demonstrations are part of a larger grassroots movement against government spending called Taxed Enough Already, or TEA — giving name to the Tax Day Tea Parties — and come more than 235 years after the original Boston Tea Party revolt against taxes.

Protesters gathered in cities across the country.

Shouts rang out from Kentucky, which just passed tax increases on cigarettes and alcohol, to Salt Lake City, where many in the crowd booed Republican Gov. Jon Huntsman for accepting about $1.5 billion in stimulus money. Even in Alaska, where there is no statewide income tax or sales tax, hundreds of people held signs and chanted “No more spending.”

“Frankly, I’m mad as hell,” said businessman Doug Burnett at a rally at the Iowa Capitol, where many of the about 1,000 people wore red shirts declaring “revolution is brewing.” Burnett added: “This country has been on a spending spree for decades, a spending spree we can’t afford.”

In Boston, a few hundred protesters gathered on the Boston Common — a short distance from the original Tea Party — some dressed in Revolutionary garb and carrying signs that said “Barney Frank, Bernie Madoff: And the Difference Is?” and “D.C.: District of Communism.”

Texas Gov. Rick Perry fired up a tea party at Austin City Hall with his stance against the federal government, as some in his U.S. flag-waving audience shouted, “Secede!”

But unlike many events around the country, politicians were not allowed to speak at a separate rally in San Antonio.

“They are welcome to come and listen to us, for a change,” organizers said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Obama seized the opportunity to defend his tax policy Wednesday, saying, “Make no mistake: this tax cut will reach 120 million families and put $120 billion directly into their pockets, and it includes the most American workers ever to get a tax cut. This will boost demand, and save or create over half a million jobs.”

“I know that April 15 isn’t exactly everyone’s favorite date on the calendar. But it is an important opportunity for those of us in Washington to consider our responsibility to the people who sent us here and who pay the bills,” he said.

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs also defended the president’s promise to cut taxes.

“If anybody involved looks at the facts, they’ll find out that this president promised and this president delivered on putting more money back into the pockets of hardworking Americans, cut their taxes, made it more affordable to buy a home, made it more affordable to send their kids to go to college, provided tax incentives for businesses to create jobs through things like clean energy,” Gibbs told reporters during an afternoon press conference.

“I’ll let the organizers of whatever these are speak to their motivations,” he said.

Earlier in the day, poor weather and permit problems threatened crowd turnouts at protests in Washington, D.C.

One million tea bags delivered to Lafayette Park were reloaded and sent away because tea party organizers did not have the proper permit, protest organizer Rebecca Wales told FOX News.

And a D.C. rally scheduled to take place outside the Treasury Department was cancelled when the U.S. Secret Service prevented protesters from gathering outside for lacking a permit.

The latest round of protests started yesterday when about 200 people gathered at the Missouri state capitol.

The movement has attracted prominent Republicans, some considering a 2012 presidential bid.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich address a tea party in a New York City park Wednesday night. His advocacy group, americansolutions.com, has partnered with tea party organizers to get word to the group’s members.

South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, another likely 2012 GOP presidential hopeful, planned to attend tea parties in Columbia and Charleston. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal sent an e-mail to his supporters, letting them know about tea parties taking place throughout the state.

There were several small counter-protests, including one that drew about a dozen people at Fountain Square in Cincinnati. A counter-protester held a sign that read, “Where were you when Bush was spending billions a month ‘liberating’ Iraq?” The anti-tax demonstration there, meanwhile, drew about 4,000 people.

In Lansing, Mich., outside the state Capitol, another 4,000 people waved signs exclaiming “Stop the Fiscal Madness,” “Read My Lipstick! No More Bailouts” and “The Pirates Are in D.C.” Children held makeshift signs complaining about the rising debt.

More than 1,000 protesters gathered outside a downtown federal building in Salt Lake City despite the rain and snow. Kate Maloney held a cardboard sign that read “Pin the tail on the jacka$$” with a picture of Obama on a Democratic donkey.

Other protesters also took direct aim at Obama. One sign in the crowd in Madison, Wis., compared him to the anti-Christ. At a rally in Montgomery, Ala., where Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It” blared from loudspeakers, Jim Adams of Selma carried a sign that showed the president with Hitler-style hair and mustache and said, “Sieg Heil Herr Obama.”

Still others talked of their children’s futures. In Washington, D.C., Joe Hollinger said he took the day off to attend the protest with his 11-year-old daughter.

“I’m concerned about the incredible amount of debt Congress is going to put on our children,” Hollinger said, pointing to his daughter’s sign, which read, “Congress get your hand off my piggy bank.”

“Across our nation, thousands of Americans are participating in taxpayer tea parties today for one simple reason: overtaxed families and small businesses have had enough,” House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Wednesday.

“They’ve had enough of Democrats forcing taxpayers to pick up the tab for more wasteful spending instead of working together to make the tough fiscal decisions Americans are forced to make each and every day. They’ve had enough of seeing their hard-earned tax dollars wasted on pork-barrel spending that won’t create jobs, rebuild their savings, or get our economy moving again. And they’ve had enough of Congress and the White House mortgaging our children and grandchildren’s future by saddling them with mountains of debt destined to bankrupt our country,” Boehner said.

FOX News’ Griff Jenkins and Eric Shawn and the Associated Press contributed to this report

>Dear all,

Thanks everyone for your support regarding the Shuttle Bus through the Heights. Last night the Village Council came back with a modified version of the Shuttle Bus project, which was a direct result of our concerted effort and making our voices heard. Although there were still some heated debate and commentary, most of us walked away feeling that this was a good compromise for the time being.

The modification is as follows:

~NJT will provide a smaller bus for 10 passengers plus one handicap seat within the next week.

~The schedule will remain the same: M-F morning and evening rush hour there will be a 15 loop, M – F & S/S daytime schedule will run hourly.

~The rush hour loop will be rerouted to Hillcrest, Glen, Oak to the train station and back.

~The daytime schedule will run through the Heights for the seniors.

Follow up points:

~It was asked that NJT ensure that background checks are completed on all of the drivers assigned to our area.

~The bus schedule may also be amended based on rider use.

Thanks again to all that have helped with the many emails and phone calls.

And a special thanks to those who attended last night with their kids! (The kids were especially well behaved, model citizens).

Sincerely,

Angela, Allison, Carla, Jeff, Dave, Dohyun, Craig, & Bill.

>Sorry this is so delayed we had some tech glitches in the last couple of weeks

Sunday, March 1, 2009

to

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

the Ridgewood blog had 13415 unique ip visits
and 44005 hits making March 2009 another record month

email us with your announcements ,comments ,editorials and garage sales [email protected]

twitter /ridgewoodblog

I am also avaliable for public speaking , I look good in a TUX and if you would like to learn how to use blogging to market your business email me your contact info.

thank you so much

PJ Blogger

>Washington, Apr 15 –

From federal taxes to property taxes, New Jersey residents face one of the highest total tax burdens in the nation. Tax day serves as a stark reminder of the ever-present fact that these crushing taxes make New Jersey unaffordable for too many individuals and families. New Jerseyans are not unaccustomed to this reality, but this year’s tax day arrives amid a unique level of populist anger. Americans all around the country are participating in citizen protests in the form of tax day tea parties, such as the one taking place in the Hampton Plaza in Sussex County, in order to express their outrage at the use of their tax dollars to bail out Wall Street and “stimulate” the economy through a spending bill with questionable economic impact.

In addition to authoring income-saving legislation such as the Individual AMT Repeal Act of 2009 and the Economic Recovery and Middle-Class Tax Relief Act of 2009, I have been outspoken against government actions that increase taxpayer risk. I opposed the bailout of Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, AIG, and the auto industry, I voted against the TARP program, and called on Congress to give its Members time to actually read the stimulus package, rather than rushing the legislation through the House and Senate.

While the actions taken by our government have staggering costs, I remain an optimist and have great confidence in the power of the American people. Americans recognize that the government needs their tax dollars to function and provide essential programs for our country, and Americans have always been willing to pay their fair share. During times of extreme crisis, the people of this country have banded together and made sacrifices for the greater good, but there is no tolerance for the spending rampage in which our government is currently participating.

On tax day this year, taxpayers are asking the American government to be accountable for how it spends their money. In a state like New Jersey, which only sees sixty-one cents in return for every dollar that goes to Washington, DC, taxpayers have a right to demand such accountability for what is being done with their tax dollars. Washington politicians should set aside their political agendas to see how Congress can reform the tax code, reduce the financial burden on the American people, and promote accountability and transparency in government spending.

Rep.Scott Garrett

Rep. Scott Garrett represents New Jersey’s fifth district and is the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government-Sponsored Enterprises for the House Financial Services Committee.

>

>4-13 Status Report on Valley Hospital Project

The Planning Board of the Village of Ridgewood is winding up its series of work sessions on Valley Hospital’s proposed Renewal program, during which it has heard from experts on many technical subjects as well as representatives of Valley Hospital and members of the public.

The proposal involves the demolition of certain existing hospital buildings and the construction of new ones as well as parking decks. In the proposal, the new buildings would contain four stories, the same as the existing ones, but the story heights would be increased by two feet each.

At its March 16 meeting, Village Planner Blais Brancheau gave Board members a draft proposal to amend that portion of the Village’s master plan that deals with the Hospital Zone, known as the “H Zone”. That section has not been amended in 31 years and does not reflect the current conditions in the zone. The master plan language concerning the H Zone is also very brief, general and lacking in specific policy guidelines.

Another work session is set for April 21. If the Planning Board were to complete its discussion that evening, it would move forward with the draft master plan amendment and schedule a public hearing on it. The draft amendment, which is still a work in progress, would be made available to the public in advance of any hearing. That would not occur until May at the earliest.

At the public hearing, questions and comments would be considered from representatives of Valley Hospital, the general public and other interested parties. After considering all questions and comments, the Board would decide whether or not to adopt the draft master plan amendment or to revise it before a vote.

If an amendment to the master plan were to be adopted, a draft ordinance would be prepared by the Board and submitted to the Village Council

Such an ordinance would amend the zoning regulations for the H Zone based upon the policies in the master plan.

The Council would then consider whether or not to introduce the ordinance or to amend it first. If and when the Council were to introduce an ordinance, it would schedule a public hearing at which time Valley Hospital and members of the public wuld be given an opportunity to speak on the ordinance. Once the hearing was concluded, the Council would decide whether or not to adopt, amend or defeat the ordinance.

Were an ordinance to be adopted by the Village Council, there would be a third opportunity for the public to speak on Valley Hospital’s proposal.

This would be at any future public hearing involving a site plan application submitted by Valley Hospital to either the Planning Board or Board of Adjustment for multiple buildings that, if the plan were approved, would go up in coming years.

>4/10 Update: Shuttle Bus to Start on a Limited Basis

Please be advised that the NJTransit shuttle bus will resume service starting tomorrow, Saturday, using the new hours discussed last night at our Village Council meeting. For the moment it will use the same bus and route as before. NJTransit has agreed to buy a smaller bus asap. It has already earmarked a bus that has 10 seats plus one handicapped space.

However, NJTransit has said that once a bus is bought, we will have to use it for the entire nine months until this portion of the project is complete. Therefore we need to ascertain whether in fact we need a bus with more seats.

To that end we will be noting how many people use the bus on each and every run for a week starting next Monday. So please if you intend to use it at all during these nine months use it this week. Once we get our far-smaller bus we will be stuck with it for the duration, and NJTransit is going to make the Village sign legal papers saying that what we’ve asked for is our final request. No more buses – bigger or smaller – down the road.

So please, if you intend to use this bus service, please use it this week. Someone will be recording all week long the number of passengers on each run. That will determine whether the bus that is bought is a 10-seater, or a bit larger, or a bit larger than that. For that reason, it’s crucial that this survey accurately reflects usage.

Hopefully you now have enough advance notice to plan on using the bus next week if you’re commuting to the city or walking to school. Please share this information with neighbors, and thanks to those who attended our meeting Thursday night. We are trying hard to make this less of a headache for everyone.

Here is a recap of the bus schedule:

Saturday and Sunday: 10am-4pm, once an hour: Leaving Ridgecrest every hour on the hour, and leaving the train station every hour on the half-hour.

Monday-Friday: From 6am-8:30am, making the loop as necessary for the express and other trains during rush hour, and repeating for the evening rush hour between 5-7pm.

In between, from 9am to 4:30pm, it will make a trip once an hour: Departing on the hour from Ridgecrest and from the train station on the half hour.

>

More States Look to Raise Taxes

By LESLIE EATON

A free fall in tax revenue is driving more state lawmakers to turn to broad-based tax increases in a bid to close widening budget gaps.

At least 10 states are considering some kind of major increase in sales or income taxes: Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin. California and New York lawmakers already have agreed on multibillion-dollar tax increases that went into effect earlier this year.

Fiscal experts say more states are likely to try to raise tax revenue in coming months, especially once they tally the latest shortfalls from April 15 income-tax filings, often the biggest single source of funds for the 43 states that levy them.

More

• Chart: See state-by-state details on tax revenue and budget deficits

The squeeze is especially severe in states hit hardest by the recession, such as Arizona, where sales-tax revenue has fallen by 10.5%, income-tax collections are down 15.7% this fiscal year, and the government faces a $3.4 billion budget gap next year. But such shortfalls are likely to be widespread; federal income-tax receipts from individuals have dropped more than 15% in the past six months, according to Congressional Budget Office estimates.

While most states so far have managed to cope with dwindling cash by cutting spending and raising fees on things such as fishing licenses and car registrations, that is unlikely to be enough in the new fiscal years that generally begin July 1, many analysts said.

“Income taxes and sales taxes are the go-to taxes when you really need to raise a lot of money,” said Donald J. Boyd, who monitors states’ fiscal health for the Rockefeller Institute of Government in Albany, N.Y.

Sales-tax revenue has fallen more sharply than at any time in the past 50 years, Mr. Boyd said, and he expects income-tax collections to drop below levels state officials projected — though the extent of the damage probably won’t become clear until May.

Raising taxes is a perilous proposition for lawmakers, who must balance their states’ budgets every year. Not only do they face political heat for increasing financial burdens during the recession, but added taxes risk worsening their states’ economic problems by, for example, further hobbling consumer spending.

Some lawmakers say they have little choice. “With the size of our budget gap, we are looking at a situation of closing down our courts, releasing prisoners and cutting the school year by as much as a month,” said Rep. Peter Buckley, co-chairman of Oregon’s joint Ways and Means Committee.

His committee is considering an income-tax increase on high-earners, along with major budget cuts, to help close a projected $4.4 billion budget gap over the next two fiscal years. And things could get worse after a revenue forecast due out May 15, he said, because Oregon’s unemployment rate has climbed to 10.8% and the state relies on income-tax revenue.

Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski is likely to support the surcharge, said a spokeswoman , because the state is faced with losing as much as a third of its tax revenue.

Legislators know the increases will be unpopular with residents. “There will be blame, we accept that,” Sen. Eileen M. Daily of Connecticut said earlier this month when she and fellow Democrats announced a budget that raises income-tax rates and expands the sales tax to raise more than $3 billion over the next two years. Connecticut Gov. Jodi Rell, a Republican, has said she would veto the plan.

But some governors are proposing tax increases. Delaware Gov. Jack Markell wants to raise the marginal income-tax rate by one percentage point, to 6.95%, on those earning more than $60,000 a year, effective in 2010. His budget plan also includes increases in corporate taxes as well as spending cuts to close a projected $750 million shortfall in a $3 billion budget, said spokesman Joe Rogalsky.

Many states remain determined to balance their budgets by relying solely on spending cuts. That is the case in Indiana, where raising revenue “is really not on the table,” said Pat Bauer, the speaker of the state House.

Instead, he hopes to tap the state’s rainy-day fund and to produce a budget that covers only one year, rather than the usual two, because plunging revenue makes it impossible to forecast that far in advance.

Tax collections have dropped drastically the past four months, according to Christopher A. Ruhl, director of the Indiana Budget Agency. Income-tax collections, which reflect withholding and estimated tax payments, fell 21% in March compared with last year and are down 7% for the fiscal year.

States have lowered revenue forecasts repeatedly in recent months, yet the estimates still seem to exceed the grim reality. Last week, Pennsylvania officials said total March tax collections were $334.6 million, or 7.9%, short of expectations, due to sharp drops in income and sales taxes and a steep decline in corporate income taxes. For the fiscal year that began July 1, 2008, collections to date are running $1.6 billion less than forecast.

This has led some experts, such as Nicholas Johnson of the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, to predict more legislatures will take up broad-based tax increases as early as May or June. “The problem,” he said, “is that they are filling a hole that has gotten a little deeper.”

Write to Leslie Eaton at [email protected]

https://online.wsj.com/article/SB123923448796803135.html