Oroho Points to Record on Management of Unemployment Fund, Calls on Assembly to Act on Bipartisan Reform

In recent days, the state Democrat Party Chairman and others have falsely suggested Republicans "raided" and spent down the Unemployment Compensation Fund when they controlled the State House more than seven years ago. Senator Steve Oroho, a member of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, released the following statement correcting these misleading statements:

"The Unemployment Compensation Fund grew by $1 billion under Republicans from 1998 to 2002. No amount of Democrat rhetoric changes the reality that the Unemployment Compensation Fund steadily grew under Republicans and that the fund's march to insolvency began only when Democrats took control of state government."

The audited, growing, year-end balances of the Unemployment Compensation Fund under Republicans follow:

• 1998 $2.51 billion

• 1999 $2.88 billion

• 2000 $2.99 billion

• 2001 $3.25 billion

• 2002 $3.52 billion

The falling balances of the Unemployment Compensation Fund for the seven years under Democrat Governors McGreevey, Codey, and Corzine:

• 2003 $2.94 billion

• 2004 $2.13 billion

• 2005 $1.54 billion

• 2006 $1.45 billion

• 2007 $1.1 billion

• 2008 Not yet audited.

• 2009 Soon to be bankrupt.

Senator Oroho also called on the Assembly to move bipartisan legislation, SCR-60 sponsored by Senators Tom Kean and Steve Sweeney, that would prevent future diversions of revenue intended to support the Unemployment Compensation Fund. SCR-60 was passed by the Senate without dissent but has been bottled up in the Assembly Labor Committee without a vote for more than four years. Senator Oroho is a co-sponsor of SCR-60

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