Former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan, a possible candidate for the 2009 Republican gubernatorial nomination, says that Gov. Jon Corzine’s proposed budget is a “phony freeze” and said the state needs real spending reductions to bring New Jersey back.

“New Jersey state spending has doubled in ten years, gone up fifty percent since McGreevey was elected and even with the alleged reductions will be nearly twenty percent higher than it was when Governor Corzine took office,” said Lonegan.  “The Governor’s proposal does nothing to reduce New Jersey’s out of control tax burden, nothing to reduce New Jersey’s ridiculous welfare state and nothing to cap the outrageous pensions and other giveaways to public employees.”

Lonegan is proposing: Immediate layoffs; elimination of Project Labor Agreements; stop debt that has already been authorized but not yet borrowed; elimination of the departments of State, Community Affairs, the Comptroller and the Public Advocate; repeal the 9% pension hike passed in 2001; end state municipal aid to Abbot districts; raise the retirement age for public employees to 65 and end longevity bonuses; rejection of the “new war on small towns;” stop the use of rebate programs; crack down on “out of control pensions, lavish medical benefits and order new and recent employees into 401(k) programs;” sunset all state regulations for a complete review; pass an Initiative & Referendum law; end binding arbitration for public employees, including police officers; stop subsidies to New Jersey Network and sell their licenses and facilities to the highest bidder; eliminate all unfunded state mandates on county and local government; veto the Paid Family Leave legislation; create a new $130 Million payroll tax and a new open-ended entitlement program; roll back the $10 television tax, the $500 S-Corporation tax and other new taxes passed under the McGreevey-Codey-Corzine administration; and oppose any new taxes or toll increases.