Gannet - State lawmakers go back to work
Politickerknj.com - Judge sides with three school districts in opposition to Princeton area charter school
The Record - Unity, division on school reform
Courier Post - Group takes on N.J. education policy
NJ Spotlight - OSA Continues to Be a Lightning Rod for Controversy…New advocate of school voucher bill -- with Walton Family financing -- joins the fray
Today's Legislative Calendar is attached following the news articles. To see all, Click here on
Gannet - State lawmakers go back to work
Lawmakers kick their post-election, lame-duck legislative session into gear today with committees considering 68 bills and two new members being sworn into the General Assembly.
Though the Assembly hasn’t met in five months, outside of a few summer hearings to critique Gov. Chris Christie budget vetoes, six of 13 committees whose turn it is to meet won’t convene today. Nor will three of seven committees in the Senate, which did meet sporadically this summer and fall.
Troy Singleton, 38, will be sworn into office to complete the term that became vacant when Assemblyman Jack Conners resigned in August and took a job as Camden County director of veterans affairs. (Symons, Gannett)
http://www.courierpostonline.com/article/20111121/NEWS01/311210011/State-lawmakers-go-back-work
Politickerknj.com - Judge sides with three school districts in opposition to Princeton area charter school
An effort by a Princeton area charter school to prevent three school districts from using public money to oppose it has been rejected by an administrative law judge.
The Princeton International Academy Charter School had sued three districts – Princeton Regional, South Brunswick and West Windsor-Plainsboro – arguing that they should be prevented from using taxpayer money in their efforts to oppose the charter school’s opening. (Mooney, State Street Wire)
NJ Spotlight - OSA Continues to Be a Lightning Rod for Controversy…New advocate of school voucher bill -- with Walton Family financing -- joins the fray
By John Mooney, November 21 in Education|3 Comments
Advocacy groups for and against the proposed Opportunity Scholarship Act (OSA) have begun to mobilize as talk gets louder that the controversial school voucher bill could come for legislative vote soon.
The legislature will return this week with its first meetings since the midterm election, with a range of education bills expected to be under debate in the coming weeks. But few draw the rancor of the OSA bill, a pilot program that would use state corporate tax credits to fund school vouchers for low-income students in a select number of districts.
And with that, a number of groups -- both familiar and new -- are preparing to say their piece on the topic, with protests and other public displays aimed to catch the legislature's attention.
Maybe the newest to the fold is We Can Do Better New Jersey, a nonprofit coalition of Catholic school and other community leaders who have long had a voice but now are getting formally organized to promote the OSA.
The group is led by the Catholic diocese leaders in Paterson and Camden and formed last winter as an advocacy organization, but kept a relatively low profile. With close to $500,000 in funding from the Walton Family Foundation, among other donors, it is becoming more public and will cosponsor a rally on December 1 in Trenton to promote the OSA.
"We are solely focused on the education and mobilization part," said John Eriksen, the Paterson diocese's school superintendent and member of the governing board. "We thought in creating this that there was a chance to strengthen the overall coalition in favor of OSA."
In addition to the Trenton rally, it will also conduct a media campaign about the OSA that includes broadcast and bus advertising, Eriksen said. And the public will surely see more of the Harvard-educated school leader who has been outspoken nationally in discussing the difficulties of falling enrollments in Catholic schools in general. The Paterson diocese has lost 10 schools in the last three years, he said.
But Eriksen said the OSA is not only about the Catholic schools. "Obviously this would help certain schools, but I see this as a civil rights issue," he said.
The new group will join another stalwart of the voucher wars, Excellent Education for Everyone (E3), now in its 13th year. E3 is a cosponsor of the rally on December 1 and also continues media buys across the state, with funding as well from the Walton Foundation.
Norm Alworth, president of E3, said he's pleased with the addition of the Eriksen's group to put more feet on the ground at a time when the legislation may be closer than ever to passage.
"We are alive and well, doing better than ever and right in the thick of it in making sure this gets done," Alworth said. "And it's great to have as many groups as possible engaged to make sure it happens."
But it's not only the pro-OSA forces at work; there are voices to be heard on the other side, too. One of them is Save Our Schools New Jersey, a grassroots group that has become a leading voice against the state's charter school law and the Christie administration's push to expand charters in the state.
SOS NJ has been long been outspoken against the OSA, as well, and came out in force last winter for legislative hearings. "Frankly, it has been somewhat dormant since then," said Deborah Cornavaca, an active organizer in East Brunswick.
But with an expectation that there could be a quick vote in December, it is already planning its own campaigns -- albeit lower-cost -- and aims to provide a counterweight to the pro-OSA rally on December 1.
"We will be looking at a more public showing as it is appropriate," Cornavaca said. "We have heard about the rally on December 1, and we certainly don't want that to be the last voice heard."
The Record - Unity, division on school reform
IT IS something that both sides finally agree on: The education system in New Jersey needs to be reformed. How the sides propose to go about doing that is another matter indeed.
Last week, at its annual meeting, the New Jersey Education Association announced its broad education reform agenda. But because of the acrimonious relationship between Governor Christie and the state teachers union, because the NJEA is in the midst of a domestic dispute with many Democratic legislators who supported the governor on state employee pension and benefit reform, and because the agenda comes without a recommendation of funding source, most view the NJEA agenda as dead in the water. (Harrison, The Record)
http://www.northjersey.com/news/opinions/134197208_Unity__division_on_school_reform.htmll
Courier Post - Group takes on N.J. education policy
A new organization is seeking to become an authoritative voice in the debate over how to improve New Jersey schools, giving Republican Gov. Chris Christie a deep-pocketed, well-connected and bipartisan ally and the state’s biggest teachers union a new foil.
The group, Better Education for Kids, made its presence known in politics spent about $400,000 to boost four legislative candidates. For the past few weeks, it’s been holding meetings with teachers and education reform proponents to try to find some common ground. (Mulvihill, Associated Press)
Legislative Calendar for November 21 as posted 11-21-11 9:30 a.m.
SENATE QUORUM 12:00 PM Senate Chambers
10:00 AM: Group (1) Committees scheduled to meet
1:00 PM: Group (2) Committees scheduled to meet
Senate Budget and Appropriations Meeting
Chair: Sen. Sarlo, Paul A.
The Committee will not meet.
Senate Commerce Meeting 1:00 PM
Committee Room 6, 1st Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Sen. Gill, Nia H.
A3133 [Riley, Celeste M./Coughlin, Craig J.+3], Motor fuel cred. card-permits rebates
A3537 [Coughlin, Craig J./Diegnan, Patrick J.+3], Foreclosed prop.-file contact info w/mun
S2444 [Vitale, Joseph F.], Foreclosed prop.-file contact info w/mun
S2459 [Turner, Shirley K.], Deed solicitors-reg.
S2927 [Gordon, Robert M./Beach, James+1], Motor fuel cred. card-permits rebates
S2932 [Buono, Barbara/Bucco, Anthony R.+3], Portable electronics insur sale-concerns
Pending Referral:
S3046 [Gill, Nia H.], St. pymts., cert.-prov. options
Senate Community and Urban Affairs Meeting
Chair: Sen. Van Drew, Jeff
The Committee will not meet.
Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Meeting
2:00 PM Committee Room 1, 1st Floor,
State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Sen. Weinberg, Loretta
The Committee will hear testimony from the Advocates for Children of New Jersey (ACNJ) concerning school breakfast programs in the State.
S1999 [Bucco, Anthony R./Weinberg, Loretta+2], Emma's Law-lysosmal storage disorders
S2643 [Vitale, Joseph F.], Medicaid, NJ FamilyCare prog.;$1M
S2734 [Bateman, Christopher+1], Home-baked goods-concerns sale
S2751 [Vitale, Joseph F.], FamilyCare-restore elig. to parents
S2984 [Vitale, Joseph F./Whelan, Jim], Health fac.-offer flu vaccine to workers
S2987 [Turner, Shirley K.], Health care fac.-reuse returned drugs
S3037 [Buono, Barbara/Vitale, Joseph F.], Hosp.-implement MRSA prev. prog.
S3045 [Codey, Richard J.], Yellow Dot prog.-estab. in DHSS
SJR76 [Allen, Diane B./Bucco, Anthony R.], Displaced Homemakers Awareness Mo-desig.
Senate Labor Meeting 10:00 AM
Chair: Sen. Madden, Fred H.
The Committee will not meet.
Senate Law and Public Safety Meeting 1:00 PM
Committee Room 10, 3rd Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Sen. Girgenti, John A.
A2074 [Johnson, Gordon M.+1], Police, alt. route trained-auth. hire
S787 [Madden, Fred H./Sarlo, Paul A.+2], Fire & EMS Crisis Intervention Svc-estab
S1401 [Weinberg, Loretta], Police, alt. route trained-auth. hire
Senate Law and Public Safety Meeting (continued)
S1802 [Norcross, Donald/Madden, Fred H.+1], Pub. emp killed on duty-funeral expenses
S2871 [Kyrillos, Joseph M.], Law Enforcement Crisis Hotline-clarify
S3010 [Sacco, Nicholas J./Greenstein, Linda R.+21], Caylee's Law-failure to report death
S3014 [Kean, Thomas H./Allen, Diane B.+9], Caylee's Law-concealing death of child
Senate Transportation Meeting 10:00 AM
Committee Room 10, 3rd Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Sen. Sacco, Nicholas J.
A1080 [Gusciora, Reed], Train stations-concerns permit parking
S2482 [Greenstein, Linda R.], Mun traffic calming measures-implement
S2876 [O'Toole, Kevin J.+1], Wheelchair, secure-paratransit veh. req.
S2922 [Lesniak, Raymond J./Van Drew, Jeff], MV fac.-estab. customer wait times
S2968 [Turner, Shirley K.], Train stations-concerns permit parking
SJR58 [Pennacchio, Joseph/Doherty, Michael J.], Passenger Rail Sys. Study Comm.-create
ASSEMBLY QUORUM 10:00 AM Assembly Chambers
Immediately following Quorum, Assemblyman-select Troy Singleton and Assemblywoman-select Gerry Nardello will be sworn in as Members of the General Assembly.
10:00 AM: Group (A) Committees scheduled to meet
2:00 PM: Group (B) Committees scheduled to meet
Assembly Appropriations Meeting 2:00 PM
Committee Room 11, 4th Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Asw. Pou, Nellie
A271 [Russo, David C.], New auto., loc. govt.-exemp. cert. fees
A1466 [Wisniewski, John S./Prieto, Vincent], Homestead prop. tax reimb. prog-concerns
A2862 [Gusciora, Reed/McKeon, John F.], Electronic Waste Mgmt. Act-revises
A3224 [Milam, Matthew W./Albano, Nelson T.+1], Coastal emerg. mgmt.-concerns
A3233 [Ramos, Ruben J./Caputo, Ralph R.+1], Car-sharing prog.-exemp., mv rental fees
A3250 [Diegnan, Patrick J./Moriarty, Paul D.+7], Unclaimed prop.-concerns
A3773 [Benson, Daniel R./Riley, Celeste M.], Mold hazards-estab. standards
A3917 [DeCroce, Alex/Chiusano, Gary R.], St Invest Council memb-forbid cert votes
A4104 [Cryan, Joseph/Coutinho, Albert+1], UEZ funding, qual. mun.-concerns
S264 [Van Drew, Jeff/Connors, Christopher J.], Coastal emerg. mgmt.-concerns
S1977 [Smith, Bob/Bateman, Christopher+2], Electronic Waste Mgmt. Act-revises
Assembly Budget Meeting
Chair: Asm. Greenwald, Louis D.
The Committee will not meet.
Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Meeting
2:00 PM Committee Room 9, 3rd Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Asm. Coutinho, Albert
S3033 [Lesniak, Raymond J./Kyrillos, Joseph M.+12], Grow NJ Assist. Prog.-estab.
S3052 [Whelan, Jim/Sarlo, Paul A.+14], Small Bus. Loan Prog.-estab. in EDA
Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Meeting (continued)
Pending intro and referral:
A4306 [Coutinho, Albert/Conaway, Herb+2], Grow NJ Assist. Prog.-estab.
A4336 [Benson, Daniel R./Coutinho, Albert], Est. Small Business Loan Prog in EDA
A4337 [Coutinho, Albert], Creates NJ Business Action Ctr; requires center to provide competitive intelligence information to certain businesses
Assembly Consumer Affairs Meeting
Chair: Asm. Moriarty, Paul D.
The Committee will not meet.
Assembly Financial Institutions and Insurance Meeting
Chair: Asm. Schaer, Gary S.
The Committee will not meet.
Assembly Health and Senior Services Meeting 10:00 AM Committee Room 16, 4th Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Asm. Conaway, Herb
A1088 [Gusciora, Reed/Johnson, Gordon M.+4], Syringes w/out prescription-limited sale
A2553 [Conaway, Herb/Wagner, Connie], Managed care plan networks-audit
A2599 [Quigley, Joan M.], Parkinson's Disease Pub. Awareness Act
A3754 [Greenwald, Louis D./Bramnick, Jon M.], Ambulatory care fac.-prov. cred.
A3837 [Benson, Daniel R./Vainieri Huttle, Valerie], Ovarian cancer awareness campaign-estab.
A3909 [Benson, Daniel R.], Surgical practices- req. lic by DHSS
A4041 [Benson, Daniel R./Angelini, Mary Pat], Tamper-resistant opioid drugs-make list
A4099 [Conaway, Herb], Surgical practices- req. lic by DHSS
S958 [Vitale, Joseph F./Weinberg, Loretta+3], Syringes w/out prescription-limit sale
S1711 [Turner, Shirley K./Allen, Diane B.+4], Ovarian cancer awareness campaign-estab.
S2780 [Vitale, Joseph F.+2], Surgical practices- req. lic by DHSS
*Assembly Higher Education Meeting 11:00 AM
Committee Room 15, 4th Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Asw. Lampitt, Pamela R.
A3608 [Chivukula, Upendra J.], Higher ed. food donations-prov. immunity
A4259 [Quijano, Annette], Student loan interest-prov. tax cred.
Pending Introduction and Referral:
A4282 [Lampitt, Pamela R.+1], Higher ed. instit-post budget on website
A4283 [Lampitt, Pamela R./Diegnan, Patrick J.], NJ STARS, NJ STARS II-revise
Assembly Housing and Local Government Meeting 2:00 PM Committee Room 16, 4th Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Asm. Green, Jerry
A898 [Dancer, Ronald S./Albano, Nelson T.], Fire dist. budgets-concerns
A3278 [Wisniewski, John S./Green, Jerry+3], New Home Fire Safety Act
A3949 [Chivukula, Upendra J./Mainor, Charles], Wireless equip.-prov. cert. collocations
A3990 [Green, Jerry], Contractors' fds.-concerns interest
A3992 [Chivukula, Upendra J.+2], Wind generation fac. standards-revises
A4114 [Coughlin, Craig J.], Urban farming-allow mun. lease/sell prop
A4128 [Coutinho, Albert], Land use approval-allow for modification
S317 [Codey, Richard J./Rice, Ronald L.], Contractors' fds.-concerns interest
S1141 [Van Drew, Jeff+1], Fire dist. budgets-concerns
S1249 [Rice, Ronald L./Haines, Philip E.+2], Special Mun. Aid Act-amend
S2989 [Codey, Richard J./Van Drew, Jeff], Wireless equip.-exempt cert collocations
Assembly Law and Public Safety Meeting 2:00 PM
Committee Room 15, 4th Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Asm. Johnson, Gordon M.
A650 [Moriarty, Paul D./Gusciora, Reed+3], Dextromethorphan-reg. sale
A2422 [Diegnan, Patrick J./Watson Coleman, Bonnie], MV restricted use lic.-mv offender apply
A2733 [Johnson, Gordon M.], US Park Police-concern powers
A3100 [Johnson, Gordon M./Spencer, L. Grace], Inmates-release w/med. discharge summary
A3400 [Thompson, Samuel D./Johnson, Gordon M.], Breath test refusal-clarify Leg. intent
A3798 [Gusciora, Reed], Craft Distillery Lic.-creates
A3969 [Coughlin, Craig J./Bramnick, Jon M.+2], Breweries-incr. production limitations
A3994 [Coutinho, Albert], Biological evidence-estab. preserv. req.
A4012 [Coughlin, Craig J.], Wine, home production-elim. permit
Pending Introduction and Referral:
A4321 [Johnson, Gordon M.], Toll free telecommunication svc.-review
Assembly Regulatory Oversight and Gaming Meeting
Chair: Asm. Burzichelli, John J.
The Committee will not meet.
Assembly Regulated Professions Meeting
Chair: Asm. Prieto, Vincent
The Committee will not meet.
Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Meeting 10:00 AM Committee Room 9, 3rd Floor, State House Annex, Trenton, NJ
Chair: Asm. Chivukula, Upendra J.
A2502 [Chivukula, Upendra J./DeAngelo, Wayne P.+7], Prop Assess Clean Energy Mun Finan Prog
A3277 [Wisniewski, John S./Chivukula, Upendra J.+1], Wind energy fac. devel.-allow tax credit
S1406 [Smith, Bob/Bateman, Christopher+6], Prop Assess Clean Energy Mun Finan Prog
Assembly Tourism and the Arts Meeting
Chair: Asm. Milam, Matthew W.
The Committee will not meet.