Wednesday Morning News Roundup
By Jon Whiten • Apr 22nd, 2009 • Category: Blog
- A new report issued by a division of the state Department of Environmental Protection says the state’s standard for cleaning up toxic chromium sites may be far too lax, given the cancer risk to people living around the sites. The internal report suggests that the cleanup standard should be 20 times more rigorous than it is, and 240 times stronger than the standard used several years ago to clean up Hudson County sites that were developed for residential housing. Read more from the Star-Ledger.
- A 17-year-old boy was shot and killed yesterday in Greenville’s Triangle Park, a location that was the site of a triple shooting less than a month ago. The shooting came not long after the JCPD and various state and federal agencies held a highly-touted press conference announcing the arrest of 50 individuals during Friday night raids. Despite rounding up so many people, cops only reportedly seized one firearm and an unspecified amount of cocaine and heroin. NJ.com has published the JCPD’s slick TV-style public relations video as news — you can check it out here.
- Four of the five mayoral candidates gathered at St. Peter’s College last night for a forum on affordable housing. Mayor Healy did not attend, but sent a representative to read a statement. No major policy differences emerged, as all four candidates stressed the need for more affordable units. Look for our full report — and video — later in the week, and check out the Journal‘s dispatch.
- The Insider wonders why there isn’t more excitement being generated by the mayoral campaign, and runs down what he sees as the five candidates’ chances.
In statewide news:
- With a number of municipalities around the state defeating the proposed tax levy to pay for schools in yesterday’s school board elections, the Record looks at what comes after the defeat at the polls.
- U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez has sent a letter to the Department of the Treasury urging the administration to restrict credit card companies that receive taxpayer dollars from imposing unilateral interest rate increases and other consumer-unfriendly practices.
- State legislators are exploring ways to head off a provision of Gov. Corzine’s proposed budget that would establish co-payments for some AIDS/HIV patients who get their medications through the state.
- The state attorney general says the New Jersey State Police won’t hire 150 new troopers in the coming budget year if federal funding isn’t secured.
- A new report from New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) says the state faces a grim economic situation that will not improve without significant change in public policy. The policy changes NJPP advocates for in the report are improved and targeted job training, investing in infrastructure, and tax reform, among others.
- New Jersey Future has named its 2009 Smart Growth Award winners — none from Hudson County.
- A New Jersey judge who allowed a lawyer to plug an evidentiary gap with a Wikipedia page has been reversed on the ground that the online encyclopedia that “anyone can edit” is not a reliable source of information.
- PSE&G’s CEO is calling on Congress to enact legislation that will set a price on carbon-based energy sources as the key to creating cleaner energy.
- A new Quinnipiac University poll shows Gov. Corzine still trailing potential opponent Chris Christie in the governor’s race.
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Jon Whiten is the founding editor of the Jersey City Independent; he now works for a public-policy nonprofit in Trenton.
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