Monmouth County retains rare AAA credit rating, saves taxpayers millions

Monmouth County retains rare AAA credit rating, saves taxpayers millions (via NJ.com)

FREEHOLD BOROUGH – Monmouth County’s fiscal strength means more than flat tax levies and trim budgets – it also directly translates into big savings for taxpayers and municipalities. The county received the highest possible credit rating for 2014…

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Saturday, March 29—Women’s History Month at Stephen Crane House

Today is the last Saturday and almost the last day for Women’s History Month. An annual declared month celebrated during March that highlights the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society.
This year’s theme, ‘Celebrating Women of Character, Courage, and Commitment’, honors the extraordinary and often unrecognized determination and tenacity of women. Against social convention and often legal restraints, women have created a legacy that expands the frontiers of possibility for generations to come.”

Asbury Park’s Stephen Crane House & The Asbury Park Historical Society
will be honoring Asbury’s own Mary Helen Peck Crane and her two daughters. In 1883, Mrs. Crane bought the cottage at 508 4th Avenue in Asbury Park and dedicated herself wholeheartedly to the work of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union as well as women’s rights. She and her daughters were also talented writers and artists. The Crane House will celebrate the lives and accomplishments of the Crane women. Mrs. Crane settled in Asbury Park to be near the Methodist stronghold of Ocean Grove and her son Townley, then the area’s Associated Press reporter.

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Menendez calls for hearings into post-Sandy flood insurance ‘low-balling’

Menendez calls for hearings into post-Sandy flood insurance ‘low-balling’ (via NJ.com)

MIDDLETOWN – Constituents have told Sen. Robert Menendez that the National Flood Insurance Program is feast or famine – high premiums feast on Jersey Shore residents, while low payouts force tough decisions on homeowners affected by Hurricane Sandy…

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O’Scanlon Calls On Towns To File For Arbitration Before April 1

With one business day to go prior to the expiration of the Interest Arbitration Award Cap that has saved New Jersey property tax payers millions of dollars over the last 3 years, and with no sign that Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto is going to call the General Assembly back into session to vote on concurring with Governor Chris Chrisite’s conditional veto of legislation to extend the cap, Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon, R-Monmouth, the Republican Assembly Budget Officer, is calling on every New Jersey municipality with an expired police or firefighters contract to file for arbitration on Monday so their new contract will fall within the 2% parameter of the existing cap.

“It is quite frankly heart breaking to me that the leadership of my house, all of who are my friends, are leading New Jersey property tax payers off a cliff,” O’Scanlon said, “I fully expected to hear by the end of the day today that we would be brought back to Trenton on Monday to vote to affirm the Governor’s conditional veto of the arbitration award cap legislation which was overwhelmingly passed on a bipartisan measure by the apparently much more responsible New Jersey State Senate.

“Since the clock is counting down to the expiration of the previous law and the Assembly leadership seems to care more about pandering to special interest than the property tax payers of New Jersey I now feel compelled to take action assuming we’ll face the worst case scenario. In order to most comprehensively guard themselves against potential frivolous, but costly none the less, litigation any municipality that has an expired contract, but that has not yet filed for arbitration, should do so immediately – before the April 1 expiration of the previous law.

“It is extremely unfortunate that the Assembly Democrat leadership would act to threaten the welfare of New Jersey property tax payers, but that is apparently the reality.”

Pass this post on to your municipal officials.

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The Arnone Report

By Monmouth County Freeholder Tom Arnone

Freeholder Tom Arone

The Monmouth County “Made in Monmouth” Expo is rapidly approaching. It is an annual event showcasing products exclusively produced in Monmouth County. “Made in Monmouth” is a free event for both vendors and visitors; its purpose is to encourage people to shop local. To date 142 vendors are confirmed registered. The products sold at this event, made right here in the county are creative and nothing less than amazing. I am also happy to report that we are partnering with the Food Bank of Monmouth and Ocean counties this year to conduct a food drive at the event. We are asking our vendors as well as people that are attending to bring a donation of canned or dried food for the Food Bank. The third annual “Made in Monmouth” is Saturday, April 12, 2014 at the MAC Building at Monmouth University in West Long Branch. For more information, please call 732-431-7470.

On March 27, 2014, Verizon recognized the student team from Biotechnology High School, Freehold, one of Monmouth County’s premier high schools, for their achievement of Best in State, Best in Region and National Best Educational Application Concept status in the 2013 Verizon Application Challenge. It was an honor for me to be present at the recent ceremony as the student team received this recognition. The Board of Chosen Freeholders is extremely proud of the students at Biotechnology H.S. on this accomplishment and commends their efforts in achieving such high accolades.

On behalf of The Board of Chosen Freeholders and as liaison to the Department of Shared Services, I recently hosted and participated in a meeting at the Monmouth County Connection in Neptune to assist Middletown in their exploration of creating an animal shelter to service Monmouth County municipalities. Many municipalities are facing serious capacity and public health issues in this area as well as heavy annual increases in service costs which are greatly reducing their ability to meet other service needs in the community. Middletown contacted the county to assist in bringing together as many towns as possible to discuss this issue, engage the towns for their ideas and input and strategize on how to address these common issues together. The meeting went extremely well and the towns that attended were very appreciative of both Middletown’s and the County’s efforts. There was very high interest in moving forward and approximately 30 towns expressed interest in our initial outreach.

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Still Hope For Property Tax Cap

The ball is in the Assembly’s court

Both the State Senate and General Assembly passed the bill that would blow a hole in municipal budgets for the next four years, the “extension” of the 2% Interest Arbitration Cap for police and firefighters base salaries that did not really cap those salaries.  Had the bill become law, there would have been a massive cut in municipal services throughout New Jersey or property taxes would have started rising again at levels we experienced during the Corzine/Codey/McGreevey administrations.

But Governor Chris Christie conditionally vetoed the bill and the Senate quickly concurred with the changes he made to the bill which kept the cap intact through December 2017 by a vote of 33-1.   Christie’s office announced the conditional veto and the Senate’s concurrence in the same press release.

One has to wonder why the Senate went through the exercise of passing the “bad bill” in the first place, by a vote of 28-7, only to abandon the changes it made to the existing Interest Arbitration Cap and, for the most part, extend the existing law for another four years, so quickly.   Without the Senate’s concurrence to Christie’s conditional veto, the cap on arbitration awards would expire on April 1st.  Either the “bad bill” or the expiration of the cap would have been a victory for the Trenton Democrats benefactors in the police and firefighters unions.

The unions may still have their victory.  Before the Assembly could take a vote on concurring with Christie’s conditional veto, Speaker Vincent Prieto abruptly adjourned the session.   No Assembly session has been scheduled, yet, to take up the concurrence prior to April 1.

Below is a video of Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon’s floor speak before the chamber voted on the “bad bill.”   As usual, O’Scanlon makes is case and fights for New Jersey taxpayers very well.

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Friday, March 28-Shakin’ the Mess Outta Misery

Beginning tonight at 8PM, The Dunbar Repertory Company presents
SHAKIN’ THE MESS OUTTA MISERY By Shay Youngblood.

The story of a young black girl’s coming of age in the
South in the 1960s. Daughter, the main character and 25-year-old
narrator whose mother died when she was very young, was raised by womenin the community, some blood related, some not. When she was 12 years old she began her journey to womanhood guided by these very diverse,nontraditional, older black women.

Produced and Directed by Darrell Lawrence Willis, Sr, a native
son of Long Branch and a graduate of Long Branch Senior High School.

Featuring Eatontown Resident, the WisdomKeeper, Lorraine Stone

Held upstairs in ‘Studio 99’ room at the Count Basie Theatre, 99 Monmouth Street, Red Bank

Tickets are $20 Seating is limited; call 732-370-8982 to RSVP.

Also on Saturday, March 29, 8PM-10PM and Sunday, March 30, 4PM-6PM

Information Brought to you by
Lynn Humphrey, Administrator/Owner
BizEturtle:Events in Monmouth
contact me at lynn@bizeturtle.com or 732-759-0485

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Christie meets the press

Governor Chris Christie’s held is first press conference since January 9 this afternoon to answer questions regarding the Mastro Report into the George Washington Bridge lane closures known as Bridgegate that was released yesterday.

Christie announced the resignation of Port Authority Chairman David Samson in his statement prior to taking reporters questions.

The press conference was available live on MMM via livestream.

A recording of the press conference is made available courtesy of NJTV.

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Christie to hold press conference this afternoon

MMM photo/Art Gallagher

Governor Chris Christie will end his 75 day exile from the New Jersey press corps this afternoon at 2:30 with a press conference in his outer office.

Christie has not taken questions from the press since his January 9 marathon press conference about the revelations that members of his team had orchestrated the George Washington Bridge lane closures last September.

Yesterday the lawyers that Christie hired to investigate GWB lane closures and Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer’s allegations that he, through Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno, threaten to withhold Sandy relief from Hoboken unless Zimmer secured a zoning approval for the Rockefeller Group, a client of Port Authority Chairman David Samson, released their findings.  The report backed up Christie’s claims from his January 9 press conference that he had no involvement in the lane closures and Guadagno’s denial of Zimmer’s allegations.  The investigation cost New Jersey taxpayers roughly $1 million.

The report blamed Christie’s former Deputy Chief of Staff Bridget Ann Kelly and his former #2 at Port Authority David Wildstein for the GWB lane closures and concluded that the widely speculated motive for the lane closures…political retribution against Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich…did not make sense. The report says the motive for the lane closures remains a mystery.  Kelly’s termination from Christie’s staff was announced at the January 9 press conference, the day after her “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee” email to Wildstein became public.

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NJ Democrats: Report clearing Christie brings more questions than answers

NJ Democrats: Report clearing Christie brings more questions than answers (via NJ.com)

TRENTON — A leading Democratic state lawmaker investigating the George Washington Bridge lane closures dismissed the findings of a report released today by Gov. Chris Christie’s lawyers clearing him of responsibility for the traffic scandal. State…

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