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Wed Feb 08, 2012 at 03:48:43 PM EST
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Yeah, I back the idea of eliminating sick day payouts. Not for the reason Steve Sweeney or Chris Christie are, to save money, but I do think it's a good idea.
Before I go any further, I agree with Jersey Jazzman that there should be some tat for this tit. As I said the Sweeney-Christie team are looking to reduce government costs, but I don't think that should be done on the backs of workers.
But sick days are necessary to the health of the employees, the health of the various governments and the health of the state.
More below the fold.
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Wed Feb 08, 2012 at 09:30:00 AM EST
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NJ Senate President Steve Sweeney unveiled a plan today to completely do away with unused sick day payouts:
Democrats had previously wanted to cap sick leave pay for future accumulated unused days at $15,000, then offered to lower the cap to $7,500. But Christie has been steadfast to his opposition to any compromise, lambasting the Democrats' proposals telling town hall gatherings "zero means zero."
Under Sweeney's proposal, payouts for unused sick leave would be limited to what workers have already earned.
Currently, state workers' retirement take home pay for unused sick days is capped at $15,000. But some local governments have no limits, causing budget strain.
Full disclosure: I am a public school teacher. And I am against this plan; here's why:
1) It is a well-established fact that public employees with significant experience or higher education make less in salaries than private sector employees. There is a body of excellent scholarship that shows teachers are relatively underpaid, and that benefits do not make up the gap in compensation. Recent studies have confirmed public workers make less than private workers, and the gap grows greater as the level of education of the employee rises.
More below the fold.
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Wed Feb 08, 2012 at 07:04:00 AM EST
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NY or NJ Giants? ESPN deals with it. Plus - what finally can keep Chris Christie from talking? We have our answer. Oh wait, this is why?
All is not well in the land of pink
NJ Komen chapters hope to win back support.
Medical marijuana grow center & dispensary in Egg Harbor Twp
After a rocky start and what it calls an 'unfair denial' from its first-choice location in Westampton, Compassionate Care Foundation settles on new location in Atlantic County.
Medical marijuana provider sues Mount Holly.
Over 150 NJ mayors & electeds at Statehouse today
Will Christie meet with them? Nope.
Christie will take his show on the road instead this morning, a "Town Hall" in Westfield: 10:30 a.m., Westfield National Guard Armory, 500 Rahway Ave. Open to the public.
That's Christie-base country, where most of his top advisors lived.
If you're 23-year-old Republican Hank Lyon, you have to be pretty pissed off today
State appeals court voids Morris County freeholder Margaret Nordstrom' election, orders her removed from office saying Lyon should have been declared the Republican nominee but the the "passage of time has made it impossible" for Lyon to run against the Democratic nominee (Truscha Quatrone), and he cannot "mandatorily" be installed as freeholder.
Citizens Campaign says local governments should protect public's right to record meetings
Says the Plainfield school district's restrictions on video recording school board meetings is an example of what not to do.
O'Malley knocks Christie on same-sex marriage
Chair of the DGA and frequent Christie critic Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley.
GOP senators want to know how Kwon & Harris info was leaked to press
Kean, Jr. & Cardinale want Steve Sweeney to find out how Star-Ledger got 'confidential' questionnaires.
LOL, Bruce Harris contributed to Corzine in '09. (Mulshine)
Port Authority Audit
$4 Billion cost-overrun at World Trade Center, and a mess in the organizational structure of the Port Authority.
Jerseynomics
NJ homeowners saw their property tax go up an average $183 last year, a spike, but a smaller one than last year.
Bill to end sick leave payouts for public employees proposed by Steve Sweeney.
With Chris Christie under scrutiny for patronage, Port Authority quietly releases long-touted audit. (Capital)
County-issued ID cards for vets to allow them easier access to veterans discounts, approved by Senate panel.
Van Drew and Connors want South Jersey representation on Turnpike Authority.
Sources: Inky ground troops wary of Norcross
The editorial staff at the Philadelphia Inquirer has a message for the Democratic Party bosses eyeballing their paper: stay away from our newsroom.
Edunomics
Standardized testing giant and cyber-charter developer Pearson Education gets a whopping tax advantage to move to Hoboken (it was already in NJ).
Acting Ed Commish Chris Cerf likes Teresa Ruiz' tenure legislation, but wants pay changes too.
Watchdog questions Rob Andrews' $12,000 trip to California with teenage daughter
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics wants to know if Andrews had legitimate political business in Los Angeles, suggesting FEC should investigate - or federal prosecutors should.
Additional Assorted Christie
Who will Christie listen to on same-sex marriage rights? (BILERICO Project)
Lesniak criticizes Christie at African-American History Month opener. And Christie deserves it.
Corruption Corner
Ex-Bergen County Improvement Authority head gets 4 years prison for mortgage fraud scheme.
More than 70 people marched through the streets of New Brunswick last night
Protesting the street shooting by police of a 19-year-old man.
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Tue Feb 07, 2012 at 06:41:51 PM EST
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Pitchers and catchers report in about a week, but the first home run of the season was hit by my favorite senator, Loretta Weinberg. She was interviewed tonight by Mike Schneider on NJTV - here's the link.
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Tue Feb 07, 2012 at 04:34:00 PM EST
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In the middle of the marriage equality debate and the controversy over Christie's ill chosen words, it was easy to miss this: according to the Christie Administration, property taxes are up 20% since Chris Christie took office.
Why? Mainly this: prior to Christie taking office, the state's property tax credit program rebated the average New Jersey homeowner $1,000 a year off property taxes.
Now? The average homeowner gets only $480 a year in rebates instead.
The difference? A total of $1.1 billion a year - the same cost as Christie's proposed tax cuts that are focused disproportionately on people making over $1 million.
This isn't that complicated - in fact, it's surprisingly simple given the two numbers are the same. Christie has a choice - between stopping the runaway increase in property taxes under his watch and cutting income taxes for millionaires. And he's choosing cutting income taxes for millionaires. Meanwhile, we all keep paying, and paying, and paying more property taxes.
It's rare in politics that choices are this clear. Let's hope that there's some serious focus on this as budget season begins.
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Tue Feb 07, 2012 at 08:45:55 AM EST
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promoted by Rosi
Today the NJ Giants are having a parade in New York City and a celebration at the Meadowlands, and as a NJ Giants fan I am totally stoked. I have my Giants Super Bowl hat, my Giants Super Bowl shirt, and my crappy two year old Sports Illustrated Giants windbreaker.
But I also have an American flag in front of my home, a memorial flag for a family member who died in combat, and I am saddened that the veterans of the Iraq War are not having a parade.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg explains that the Pentagon has asked that there be no parade while there are still soldiers in Iraq. I find this incredibly specious and astonishing, and just a little ahistorical.
We had a parade after World War II, yet we still have soldiers in both Germany and Japan 55 years later. We had a parade after the Korean War, yet we still have soldier serving in the DMZ.
So why wouldn't we have a parade at the end of this war?
Please sign the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America petition to get these soldiers their due thanks.
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Tue Feb 07, 2012 at 02:18:33 PM EST
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Garden State Equality is using a decision in the California court system that came minutes ago as a jumping off point to ramp up activity and create waves to impact the NJ legislature, even as two dates loom which could change everything for gay couples in love in this state. The full Senate will consider NJ's marriage equality bill Feb. 13. The full Assembly follows 3 days later. Both come after companion bills were passed out of both houses' Judiciary committees over the last few days, following 10 hours of often-emotional testimony. Chris Christie, his sights set on his national GOP street cred at least as much as his responsibility to do the right thing in this pro-equality state, has signaled his intention to veto. Unknown if there are enough votes to overturn that veto, and some of those votes may still be in flux.
Less than an hour ago, a 3-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, serving California, ruled that state's Proposition 8, banning marriage equality, is a violation of the United States Constitution. The case is widely seen as destined to be decided in the United States Supreme Court.
In a message sent wide to GSE's NJ supporters, founder Steven Goldstein wrote this:
Jump with me ...
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Mon Feb 06, 2012 at 11:52:07 PM EST
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Feedback from the Rutgers & Rowan communities is invited and encouraged. - Promoted by Rosi
The proposal to merger Rutgers Camden and Rowan University, with its new medical school, is one of several proposals made by Gov. Christie's Advisory Committee on the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. Their report, a 57 page pdf, is available on the web.
The bulk of the report concerns the restructuring of UMDNJ. Two of the committee's charges pertained to South Jersey. One was "whether UMDNJ.'s South Jersey .-based schools should be merged with any
of the senior public higher education institutions in South Jersey" and the other "how graduate medical education should be delivered in South Jersey."
UMDNJ has a medical school in Stratford (Camden County), the School of Osteopathic Medicine. The Advisory Committee decided against merging that school with any other institution and essentially leaving it as an independent school.
Cooper Hospital in Camden had had an agreement with another UMDNJ institution, Robert Woods Johnson Medical School, that allowed medical students to do two years of their school program at Cooper. Cooper decided to open its own full medical school which became attached to Rowan University. (For the full story behind this read "How Camden got a medical school" on nj.com.) It is this medical school which forms the basis of the Advisory Committee's recommendation that Rutgers Camden be separated from Rutgers and subsumed under Rowan University. Another Adivsory Committee proposal is that Robert Woods Johnson Medical School leave the UMDNJ umbrella and become a part of Rutgers University. There are other proposals in the Committee's report and none are dependent upon or linked to any of the others.
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Tue Feb 07, 2012 at 09:30:00 AM EST
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Like a father reluctant to hand over the keys to his 17-year-old, ACTING Education Commissioner Chris Cerf says the people of Paterson just aren't ready to run their own schools yet:
The state's top education official brushed aside an ambitious proposal from the school board Monday that sought to end state control of the district by the fall.
Acting Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf said the city should manage its own schools, but such a rapid transition would not be in the best interest of the district's students.
[...]
Under state control, the board can act only as an advisory body to the superintendent.
Board member Jonathan Hodges expressed concern about low scores reflecting poorly on the board when the state is ultimately in control of the schools.
Cerf acknowledged the state's failure, saying "the state did not effectively discharge its duty to the children of Paterson." [emphasis mine]
Got that? Cerf says the state has done a poor job of running Paterson's schools, but he still doesn't want to give up control. Apparently, there are ambitious new plans for the city's schools under the Christie administration.
Well, how's that going?
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Tue Feb 07, 2012 at 07:21:00 AM EST
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Assuming you're not tired of celebrating, Giants return to NJ for a 3pm rally today after a downtown ticker-tape parade in NYC. Already some unofficial joy at Newark Airport and in the Meadowlands - capes, tattoos, the whole 9 yards.
Phillip Kwon & Bruce Harris
7 senators could hold up Christie Supreme Court nominations with senatorial courtesy.
Front office scandalized by public discussion of info in nominees questionnaires, blaming Dems, but the press has them, too.
2 different career paths define nominees.
Must read
Christie's hypocrisy evident on proposed gay marriage, charter school referendums (Bob Braun)
Watchdog group seeks audit of Rep. Rob Andrews' spending
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in D.C. wants a review of two costly trips paid out of campaign funds.
State judge reverses dismissal of ethics charges against assemblyman
State panel action resulting in dismissing ethics charges against Scott Rumana was scuttled by a judge because a panel member was allowed a vote by phone.
3-way LD-16 Dem race
Convention set for March 11 in Somerset County, the bulk of the district.
Marriage Equality
Dem Assembly leadership tells caucus votes are there for marriage equality bill.
Full Assembly vote Feb. 16.
Full Senate vote Feb. 13.
Education
End result of background checks on 5,000-plus school board members & charter school trustees - NJ disqualifies 29 people.
Senate Ed Chair Teresa Ruiz reintroduces her bill - mirroring part of Christie's ideas - dramatically shifting teacher tenure.
At the Senate Higher Ed Committee hearing
Measured responses from university officials, strong objection
from Rutgers students and still no details from Christie.
Merger costs? Still unknown.
Rutgers-Rowan merger moves forward.
Additional Assorted Christie
Shut Your Mouth, Chris Christie:
The whole Jersey fat-guy authenticity thing is over. (Slate)
Poll: Is Christie too concerned about his own political future?
NYC city council speaker Christine Quinn calls on Christie to stop playing games with gay marriage.
But a trans woman from Canada wishes for a referendum on ENDA.
Koch brothers conservatives AFP scorecard gives Christie low marks.
Twitter skirmish, Christie 'n Snooki.
Bob Ingle takes issue with Weinberg lyric change suggestion
to update Rutgers' song to include the other half of its students.
Proposal to create NJ Office of Taxpayer Advocate clears committee
Sen. Diane Allen's proposal.
Tepid support as Sweeney renews call for shared services
Bill creating voluntary county hubs for education programs clears Senate committee.
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