Senator Joe Pennacchio, R-Morris and Passaic, said he will continue to monitor transparency in the spending of federal stimulus aid in New Jersey, after Governor Corzine announced that he has finally taken the first steps toward helping taxpayers track where their money is going.
Starting in June, Pennacchio issued repeated news releases pointing out that it has been impossible for taxpayers to use the state’s Web site to track stimulus spending, despite Governor Corzine’s promises of transparency. The governor announced today that the Web site, www.nj.gov/recovery has at last been upgraded to include features that other states such as Wisconsin, Michigan and Florida have offered for months.
“Governor Corzine is finally taking the first steps toward helping taxpayers learn whether their stimulus dollars will create the promised jobs in New Jersey,” Pennacchio said. “Rest assured, my constituents and I will continue to monitor stimulus spending closely to make sure that taxpayers get the benefits they deserve from this aid.”
Pennacchio noted that Corzine now says that the Web site contains a link that allows taxpayers to learn county by county, town by town and project by project where federal stimulus aid will be spent. Pennacchio first called for this feature in July after seeing it on Wisconsin’s stimulus Web site. Pennacchio said he will begin using this feature and others to determine if New Jersey has indeed caught up to other states in stimulus transparency and is spending the money wisely.
“Taxpayers have a right to know where their money is being spent,” Senator Pennacchio said. “Increased transparency will allow taxpayers to see if stimulus money is being spent based on risk and need and not to feed the political gravy train.”
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January 15, 2010
