>
Last week’s public demonstration by police and fire unions protesting common-sense reforms to employee compensation confirmed a Democratic Party uninterested in solving the problem of high property taxes for middle-class taxpayers, and bodes ill for that party’s claim to ever represent the “center” of NJ’s electorate for years to come. (Michaels, PolitickerNJ)
https://www.politickernj.com/jeffmichaels/45572/democratic-party-crack
>Sweeney looking to force shared services on towns
Sweeney plan removes state aid
State Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney is expected to announce today a proposal to give a state commission power to take away state aid from towns, school districts and other government bodies that refuse to enter a shared services arrangement. (Method, Courier-Post)
>Perhaps RHS should help the President out :
White House memo notes shortage of applicants for contest to have Obama to speak at high school graduation
Posted by Peter Maer
The White House is ramping up an effort to promote a nationwide competition to decide which high school wins a commencement speech by President Obama.An internal White House memo indicates that the White House is facing a shortage of applications less than a week before the deadline.
The competition was extended from the February 25 deadline until Friday, March 11 after few schools met the original application deadline. CBS News has learned a White House Communications Office internal memo dated February 22 noted “a major issue with the Commencement Challenge.”
“As of yesterday we had received 14 applications and the deadline is Friday,” the memo said. The memo also urged recipients to, “please keep the application number close hold.”
https://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20040100-503544.html
>Light Gate:the saga continues
the Staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ – Councilwoman Bernadette Walsh questioned sports group members asking if the parents whose fees were collected by the organizations knew their dollars were going toward under the table agreements for field lighting and make improvements to both village or BOE properties?
As has been reported previously reported many parents have expressed both unhappiness with the late night filed lights and the fact that sides deals with the BOE appear to have been struck without consent of the Village Council or parents .Sports Groups have responded to paraphrase ,if you don’t like it don’t play . Councilwoman Walsh who apparently didn’t get the memo that Sports Groups now run the Village was not impressed with this answer.
The Sports Groups are non profits run by volunteers and in the past have unilaterally decided to spend their funds on what ever was best for the organization , but the current lighting controversy ,dubbed as “Light Gate” involves more that just the Sports Groups and the children that enjoy participating . Late night light create both a light and noise problem for the neighbors who have argued that they were never consulted before or during the project .
The BOE has relied on the argument that the argument that the field upgrades were approved in a referendum which included the lighting however there seems to be some debate over whether the Lighting and the additional playing times were included or not ,thus the moniker, “Light Gate” . To make things worse the the referendum was barley approved with a majority of its support coming from the Willard School district which has seen a notable absence of field lights.
>HIGH COST OF ENERGY : Assembly Committee seeks to stop hydraulic fracturing before it can start
Assembly Committee seeks to stop hydraulic fracturing before it can start
How crucial is relatively cheap natural gas to the state’s economic recovery?
That question came up repeatedly yesterday, as New Jersey lawmakers took action on a package of bills aimed at halting the practice of hydraulic fracturing, a controversial process that produces natural gas by injecting large volumes of water into wells dug in Marcellus Shale formations. (Johnson, NJ Spotlight)
https://www.njspotlight.com/stories/11/0307/1957/
>Assembly panel approves bill hiking fines for cell phone use, texting while driving
Legislation cracking down on the use of cell phones while driving received approval by an Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee Monday. (Hester, New Jersey Newsroom)
https://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/state/assembly-panel-approves-bill-hiking-fines-for-cell-phone-use-texting-while-driving
>Sweeney wants concurrent votes on health care, pensions
State Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney said Monday that he will not allow passage of pension and health care reform packages unless both are approved together. (Method, Courier-Post)
>Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney will push for shared-services agreements
Senate leader would require more sharing
State Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney said Monday he will push for a law aimed at moving the state’s 566 municipalities into shared-services agreements. (Method, Asbury Park Press)
>U.S. sets $223B deficit record
The federal government posted its largest monthly deficit in history in February, a $223 billion shortfall that put a sharp point on the current fight on Capitol Hill about how deeply to cut this year’s spending.
That one-month figure, which came in a preliminary report from the Congressional Budget Office, dwarfs even the most robust cuts being talked about on the Hill, and underscores just how much work lawmakers have to do to get the government’s finances in balance again.
The Senate plans to vote Tuesday on competing proposals to cut spending, but Democrats have rejected GOP-backed cuts of more than $50 billion, and Republicans have ruled out Democrats’ cuts of less than $10 billion, meaning neither plan will draw the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster and pass.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/mar/7/government-posts-biggest-monthly-deficit-ever/
>BOARD OF ED CANDIDATE PETITIONS ARE DUE TUESDAY, MARCH 8
The Board will have two vacancies in the April 27 Annual School Election. A full term on the school board runs for three years. Candidate kits are available in the Board Secretary’s office at the Education Center, 49 Cottage Place, or online from the New Jersey School Boards Association. The deadline for filing candidate petitions is Tuesday, March 8, at 4 p.m.
DEADLINE IS APRIL 6 TO VOTE IN THE ANNUAL SCHOOL ELECTION ON WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27
Wednesday, April 6, is the deadline for registering to vote in the Annual School Election.
Any registered voter can choose to vote by mail-in ballot. April 26 is the deadline for mail-in ballots to be received.
>St. Patrick’s Day Mass at Mount Carmel parish
Please join us for the 26th annual St. Patrick’s Day Mass, scheduled at
8:30 am on Thursday, March 17 at Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish in
Ridgewood. The mass, sponsored by the Knights of Columbus Council 1736,
will feature traditional Irish tunes and piper music.
A reception will be held immediately after the mass in the Parish Center, where complimentary
soda bread, coffee and tea will be served. We are always looking for those
willing to share their family recipe, and bake/bring soda bread for this
event. If you can help, please contact Patty Mullen at 201-444-1725.Come
start your St. Patrick’s Day in true Irish fashion.
>Hearings on N.J. budget planned
New Jersey lawmakers start their budget review process this week.
Budget committees in the Senate and the Assembly will hold public hearings on Gov. Chris Christie’s proposed $29.4 billion budget, which cuts spending by 2.6 percent over last year and calls for heftier contributions from state workers for pension and health care benefits. (Shipkowski, The Associated Press)
>Cops issuing more tickets, red-light cameras all about more money
Last week we discussed how so many towns have so many cops and so little crime and pondered what they all do. The answer is they write a lot of tickets to make up for lost municipal aid from Trenton. (Ingle, The Daily Journal)
https://www.thedailyjournal.com/article/20110307/OPINION02/103070332
>N.J. municipalities scramble to notify voters on property tax referendum
New Jersey enters a new era today as voters get to find out if they may be asked next month to raise their property taxes beyond the Christie administration’s new 2 percent limit. (DeMarco, The Star-Ledger)
https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/03/nj_municipalities_schools_scra.html
>Number of healthcare reform law waivers climbs above 1,000
By Jason Millman
The number of temporary healthcare reform waivers granted by the Obama administration to organizations climbed to more than 1,000, according to new numbers disclosed by the Department of Health and Human Services.
HHS posted 126 new waivers on Friday, bringing the total to 1,040 organizations that have been granted a one-year exemption from a new coverage requirement included in the healthcare reform law enacted almost a year ago. Waivers have become a hot-button issue for Republicans, eager to expose any vulnerabilities in the reform law.
