In case you missed it...

James Ahearn, columnist for the Bergen Record, weighed in on pension abuse in Seema Singh’s office during her time as ratepayer advocate with a "thumbs down":

For Legislature, Two Thumbs Down, One Up

By JAMES AHEARN

Ethics complaint

In another "Clean Elections" district, the 14th in Mercer and Middlesex counties, the Democratic Senate candidate is Seema Singh, who served five years as state ratepayer advocate.

This post will be unfamiliar to many readers, but it is an important one.

The advocate represents the public before the Board of Public Utilities on rate increases and mergers. She was chosen for the post by former Gov. James

E. McGreevey in recognition of the growing importance of the Indian-American community in Middlesex.

Singh's chief of staff was a woman named Leora Mosston, who retired in July 2003. Six days later, Singh hired her as a consultant, paying her $125 an hour, two and a half times her previous salary. At the same time, Mosston began receiving a state pension.

Not entitled to pension

Last month pension officials, acting on an ethics complaint, ruled that Mosston's status had continued to be state employee, that it had not changed to independent contractor, that she was not entitled to the pension she had received for three years, and that she had to repay all $86,000 of it.

Seema Singh, a smart woman whose job was protecting the public interest, should have protected us here. She didn't.

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