Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-26), sponsor of S-445, discussing The Transparency in Government Act. Pennacchio is joined by Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean (R-21) and Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform.
A full quality version of the video can be downloaded from www.senatenj.com/uploads/transparency.wmv.
Update - January 2010
The Transparency in Government Act has been reintroduced for the 2010-2011 legislative session. The legislation, formerly S-445 in the 2008-2009 session, has been designated S-708 in the current session.
Amended Legislation Will Include All Levels of Government
Legislation sponsored by Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-Morris/Passaic) that would create a user friendly easy to navigate web site that would allow taxpayers to see how their money is being spent, unanimously passed the Senate State Government Committee today. The bill was amended to include all levels of government in New Jersey.
“I am very grateful that one of Chris Christie’s first official acts as Governor was to issue an executive order bringing greater openness and accountability to state spending,” Pennacchio stated. “It is now time to codify this executive order and make it an official law.”
Legislation Would Make Permanent Executive Order Signed by Governor Christie
Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-Morris/Passaic) expressed his optimism today that his Transparency in Government Act would soon become law. The bill is posted for a vote this Monday in the Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism and historic Preservation Committee, in which Senator Pennacchio plans on testifying.
“I am very grateful that one of Chris Christie’s first official acts as Governor was to issue an executive order bringing greater openness and accountability to state spending, ” Pennacchio stated. “It is now time to codify this executive order and make it an official law.”
Senator Joe Pennacchio and Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean congratulated Governor Christie for making the Transparency in Government Act among his first Executive Orders. The Executive Order, which has the force of law, will create a searchable, easy-to-use Web site that taxpayers can use to track government spending.
“It’s been more than a year since I introduced this vitally needed legislation, yet without a full court press from former Corzine Administration, it failed to pass during the last session,” Pennacchio stated. “Today with the stroke of his pen Governor Christie made transparency in government the order of the day.”
Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-Morris/Passaic) said he is “beyond frustrated” that Governor Corzine’s ‘transparency’ website isn’t user friendly for taxpayers.
“The site provides only the vaguest information on how government money is spent, and nothing on who gets the taxes and fees collected from state residents,” Pennacchio said. “It also does nothing to help taxpayers track how billions of dollars of federal aid are spent by state and local governments, who gets billions of dollars in aid to schools and municipalities, or how hundreds of millions of dollars in tolls and fees collected by sports, highway, port and bridge authorities are doled out.
Senator Joe Pennacchio, prime sponsor of the Transparency in Government Act, and Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean urged Governor Jon Corzine to use all his influence to help win passage of the Transparency in Government Act during the lame-duck session. This bill, which is also sponsored by Senate President Richard Codey, will create a searchable, easy-to-use Web site that taxpayers can use to track government spending. Governor Corzine has said in the past that he supports this bill, which cleared the Senate State Government Committee today.
“It’s been more than a year since I introduced this vitally needed legislation, yet without a full court press from Democrat leaders, its passage is far from assured during this session,” Pennacchio said. “Governor Corzine needs to use all his influence to help push this through a Legislature controlled by his party.”
State Senator Joe Pennacchio (R – Morris/Passaic) was joined in Trenton today by various state and national taxpayer groups in support of his Transparency in Government Act. They called on the Corzine Administration to fulfill its commitment to transparency.
The participants included: Americans for Tax Reform, Sandra Fabry from the Center for Fiscal Accountability, Jerry Cantrell and Neil Coleman from the New Jersey Taxpayers Association and Parsippany Council President John Cessaro.
Senator Joe Pennacchio, a member of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, has sent a letter to the state Division of Investment and the chairman of the State Investment Council after reading an Aug. 20 news article that indicates that the state will not reveal where outside advisers have invested about $100 million of taxpayer and worker pensions. The article states that the outside advisers are former employees of Lehman Brothers, which the state is suing for $118 million in investment losses.
Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-Morris/Passaic) released a list of New Jersey municipalities that have endorsed S-445, the Transparency in Government Act. The legislation would establish a State public finance website which retains and displays data and information on the State’s annual revenues, expenditures and total debt.
The bill establishes an accessible, user friendly source of information to track State revenues and expenditures and to gauge its past and present levels of indebtedness.
The following is a recently received analysis from the non-partisan Office of Legislative Services that shows the total cumulative impact of tax and fee increases imposed between 2002 and 2009.
The analysis shows that the total cumulative increased cost to New Jersey’s taxpayers is over $30 billion as a result of tax increases imposed during the administrations of governors McGreevey and Corzine.
Calls Again on Corzine to Adopt Transparency in Government Act
Senator Joe Pennacchio, a member of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, commented today on published reports that “there exists transparency or accountability risks in the financial reporting or processing of transactions.”
