Tom Kean Asks Corzine Why He Won't Give Taxpayers Details of Biden Buyout

Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean asked why Governor Corzine has not released cost estimates of the concessions he agreed to before a campaign rally with Vice President Joseph Biden. According to a letter written by state union leaders to all their members, the concessions included putting hundreds of temporary workers into permanent positions at an unspecified cost to taxpayers. Kean called on the governor to live up to his promises of transparency and accountability, and release the Treasurer's best estimates of how many workers will become permanent and how much this policy change will cost taxpayers.

"The governor talks about how his initiatives will benefit one group or another," Kean said. "He almost never discusses how much his actions will cost the struggling middle class families of New Jersey."

Without a full accounting of the estimates of costs, taxpayers can not judge how much they will pay for these election-year concessions, Kean said. The governor says he supports transparency and accountability. He should prove it immediately by posting estimates of how much the addition of hundreds of temporary workers to the state's permanent payroll and all other concessions will cost taxpayers, Kean said.

"Workers got a letter from their representatives spelling out exactly what the union negotiated on their behalf," Senator Kean said. "Corzine has provided nothing to the taxpayers he is supposed to represent that shows the costs and benefits of this agreement. These are not the actions of a governor who truly believes that the citizens should 'hold him accountable.'''

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