Budget Cuts

Accepting the Oscar for his leading role in the budget adaptation of "There Will Be Blood" is Governor Jon Corzine. This was a budget speech that reached out and stabbed nearly every constituency and hacked at countless services that the public holds dear. As intended, the Governor's speech was grim, sobering and gory. It was also dead wrong.

Slashing thousands of jobs of middle class workers, who had nothing to do with getting the state in this fiscal fix, is grossly unfair. More to the point, it doesn't save money, it doesn't attack patronage and it ultimately hurts all families in New Jersey. My local union, representing thousands of public workers, vehemently opposes these cuts and we intend to vigorously fight against them.

We've seen this movie before starring Governors past. As horror films go, each sequel gets bloodier. This year's version, seemingly written with a chainsaw, proposes to eliminate between 4,000 and 5,000 hard-working middle class workers while failing to present any real solution to state's ongoing fiscal problems. These cuts will be devastating to the critical services that our members provide to the public and which the public values.

Panel Will Examine And Recommend Budget Cuts To Help Fill Budget Gap

            Senator Kevin O’Toole, (R-40), announced today that he has been appointed to a bi-partisan committee to identify and recommend budget cuts to help close the nearly $3.5 billion budget shortfall.

Add-Ons Cost Taxpayers more than $100 Million in FY 2008 Budget

Senator Joe Pennacchio, (R-26), called on Governor Jon Corzine to exercise his Constitutional authority to veto any legislative additions in the upcoming Fiscal Year 2009 budget.  In the current budget items added to the final document cost taxpayers more than $100 million.