March 4, 2010
Contact: Jason Smith / (609) 693-6700
District 9
The Assembly Health and Senior Services Committee favorably released legislation (A-330) introduced by Senator Christopher J. Connors, Assemblyman Brian E. Rumpf and Assemblywoman DiAnne C. Gove that would create the offense of financial exploitation of the elderly.
“This measure targets those individuals who prey on elderly persons age 60 and above who are suffering from a mental disease or condition rendering them incapable of making financial decisions on their own,” said Senator Connors. “Too often, persons use the trust they have gained from an elderly person left vulnerable from their unfortunate circumstances to steal through means of fraud, false promises, extortion or even intimidation. Under our legislation, stiffer penalties would be established for despicable crimes of this nature involving lesser amounts of money.”
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March 1, 2010
Contact: Bill Murray / (609) 292-5199
Senator Tom Kean (R-21)
Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney and Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean today said the ability of the state to keep its promise of a secure retirement for career public employees would be jeopardized without a constitutional guarantee that future lawmakers and Governors could not shirk their annual pension obligations.
The Senate leaders jointly proposed a constitutional amendment (SCR-1) that would require the state to annually meet its obligation for each pension plan it operates. But they noted that even if the state had made its full payments over the past decade, the system would still be nearly 30 percent underfunded – highlighting the need for the reforms the Senate unanimously passed last week to secure the pension system’s foundation.
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Concerned that New Jersey residents already receive the lowest rate of return of any state on tax dollars sent to Washington, Senators Tom Kean (R-21), Steven Oroho (R-24) and Joe Kyrillos (R-13) questioned the equity of a new plan by President Obama to levy a new tax on investment income that would be borne disproportionately by New Jersey residents.
To help fund his multi-trillion dollar healthcare proposal, the President’s new plan, released on February 22, calls for the addition of a 2.9% Medicare tax on certain income, including that derived from interest, dividends, annuities, royalties and rent. This new tax would apply to individuals earning more than $200,000 and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly.
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March 1, 2010
Contact: Katie Cocozza / (732) 840-9028
District 10
Legislation Prompted by Tragic Murder of 30-Year-Old Social Worker
Prompted by the murder of a 30-year-old Ocean County social worker, 10th District legislators, Senator Andy Ciesla and Assemblymen Dave Wolfe and Jim Holzapfel, have introduced legislation to provide further protection against those who repeatedly commit acts of domestic violence.
The bill, S-1331/A-1295, would prevent defendants who are arrested a second or subsequent time for contempt of a domestic violence restraining order from being released on bail while awaiting trial. Instead, in these cases a Superior Court judge would hold an emergent hearing and make a final disposition of the charge within 72 hours of the arrest. The bill also provides that the municipal court would not have jurisdiction in these matters.
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March 1, 2010
Contact: John Gorman / (609) 292-5199
Senator Tom Kean (R-21)
Kean’s Resolution to be Voted on in Key Committee as AZ Withdraws Bid to Host Biggest Game
The possibility that New Jersey will play host to Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014 gained traction over the weekend. On Friday, Arizona announced that they would no longer be applying to host the Super Bowl that year, leaving New Jersey, South Florida and Tampa as the remaining three finalists.
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February 25, 2010
Contact: Bill Murray / (609) 292-5199
Senator Tom Kean (R-21)
Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean commented today on an initiative by Governor Christie that would adjust unemployment insurance fund benefits to ensure the stability of the fund. A constitutional amendment, sponsored by Senators Kean and Sweeney, banning future raids on the unemployment fund will be voted on by the voters in November.
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February 24, 2010
Contact: Bill Murray / (609) 292-5199
Senator Tom Kean (R-21)
Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean announced today that Senator Kevin O’Toole (R-40) will be appointed to the Senate Judiciary Committee to replace Senator Bill Baroni. Senator O’Toole will replace Senator Baroni beginning with the March 1, 2010 meeting.
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February 23, 2010
Contact: Andy Pratt / (609) 292-5199
Senator Mike Doherty (R-23)
Senator Michael Doherty’s employee health care reform legislation, Senate Bill 3, is estimated to save taxpayers nearly $1 billion over the next three fiscal years. The bill, which passed the Senate by a vote of 36 to 0 on Monday, will require state, local and school employees to pay at least 1.5% of their base salaries toward their health benefits.
“Nearly every private sector and federal government employee pays a far larger share of the soaring cost of health care coverage than this bill requires,” Senator Doherty said. “Our state is on the brink bankruptcy in part because we haven’t made the common sense changes to state and local benefit plans that many employers adopted decades ago.”
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February 23, 2010
Contact: Layli Whyte / (732) 933-1591
District 12
Senator Jennifer Beck, Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon and Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande have recently written to officials from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requesting an update on the status of the Fort Monmouth revitalization plan.
The plan was submitted on September 5, 2008, but no word of approval has come back from either HUD or the Department of Defense (DOD).
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February 22, 2010
Contact: Andy Pratt / (609) 292-5199
Senator Joe Kyrillos (R-13)
Senator Joe Kyrillos, a senior Republican senator on the Judiciary Committee, said he hopes that there are no further delays of hearings and votes on the governor’s nominees. The Senate Judiciary Committee adjourned today before a vote on the education commissioner’s nomination or selection of a date when the hearing will be resumed.
“The governor needs to have his team in place if government is to function smoothly,” Kyrillos said. “Delays make it more difficult for nominees to assemble their own teams and begin working on behalf of taxpayers.
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