The Jersey City Independent "

- Ward C councilwoman Nidia Rivera Lopez has not filed her taxes in New Jersey for the last three years, according to a deposition of her given by Diana Jeffrey, an attorney representing Norrice Raymaker in the legal battle over whether or not Lopez is a Jersey City resident. “”It’s pretty hard to claim that you live in the state of New Jersey if you don’t pay taxes here,” Jeffrey tells the Journal. More from Politicker.

- It looks like the city and state have succeeded in wooing 1,600 financial jobs from Lower Manhattan to Newport. What did it take? At least $74 million. In February, the state offered Depository Trust a package worth $74.6 million over 10 years if it moved 1,600 employees to Jersey City when its NYC lease expires in 2012. New York city and state officials counteroffered, but ultimately balked at “[using] scarce taxpayer dollars to chase irresponsible enticements that other places may be willing to give away.” Apparently, New Jersey still has no problem doing just that. Read more on the policy implications of this “race to the bottom” from New Jersey Policy Perspective.

- Charges against Irwin Rosen, a former municipal court judge in Jersey City, have been dropped. Rosen was charged in a parking ticket fixing scandal two years ago.

- State officials plan on hosting a reception on 9/11 at the site of the controversial “Empty Sky” memorial in Liberty State Park. They plan to announce that Phase 2 construction of the memorial, including the amphitheater sloped towards Ground Zero, has been completed.

- State officials are refusing to explain what kind of health concerns the Secaucus Crowne Plaza’s alleged dumping of sewage into the Hackensack River may have caused and what kind of environmental damage has been done to the waterway.

- Jersey City has nearly doubled the amount of money it gives the Liberty Humane Society in an effort to keep the animal shelter from closing.

- A car hit another car in the street, then veered onto the sidewalk and hit two pedestrians walking on a sidewalk near Grand Street and Washington Boulevard late last night. The driver was arrested and charged with the reckless component of assault with an auto. All three people were taken to the Jersey City Medical Center, where they were treated last night.

- The auto repair chain Brake-O-Rama has been sued by state regulators, accused of billing customers for work that was not done, including jobs the shops didn’t have the equipment to perform. The charge follows an undercover investigation in June by state inspectors at the repair shops in Jersey City and other locations.

In statewide news:

- A new Fairleigh Dickinson University poll finds that only one in three New Jersey voters say that the health-care reforms being proposed by President Barack Obama will benefit them and their families.

- All 1.3 million uninsured New Jerseyans will be able to receive the swine flu vaccine for free at walk-in health centers and public clinics in all 21 counties starting in mid-October.

- A federal judge in Trenton has issued a maximum $1 million fine to a Liberian-based shipping company after two of its engineers admitted concealing dumping waste from cargo ships into the ocean off of New Jersey.

- The Revelation Generation christian rock festival in Hunterdon County is expected to draw 30,000 fans this weekend.

- The state is continuing its push to have dry cleaners use fewer toxic chemicals with new training sessions on converting to greener cleaning methods.

- Independent gubernatorial candidate Chris Daggett has unveiled what he describes as a comprehensive plan for overhauling New Jersey’s affordable housing policies to prevent sprawl and to more closely align the goals with the objectives of the state master plan.

- New Jersey residents can now sign up for free emergency alerts from state law enforcement and homeland security agencies.

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