State Senator Nicholas Asselta

GOVERNOR’S COMMENT HIGHLIGHTS NEED FOR AMENDMENT
SCR-107 REQUIRES BUDGET TO BE PUBLISHED EARLY

Vineland – Senator Nicholas Asselta, (R-1), issued the following statement regarding the Governor’s statement that “the process is broken.�
Vineland – Senator Nicholas Asselta, (R-1), issued the following statement regarding the Governor’s statement that “the process is broken.�

The Governor is correct in his assessment that the budget process is broken. The time has come to implement constitutional safeguards to ensure that this fiasco never happens again. To that end, I have introduced a Senate Concurrent Amendment (SCR) which would require that the budget document be made public no later than the 15th day of June every year.

Many people in my district and in the entire state were hurt by the budget impasse this year. SCR-107 would be the first step to guarantee that major budget stumbling blocks are solved long before the June 30th deadline for an adopted budget. This amendment would also assure a more transparent process by allowing more time for the public and the press to peruse and comment on the most important piece of legislation that is enacted every year.

I would hope that my colleagues in the Legislature would take this opportunity to move this SCR through the legislative process to make certain that it is placed on the ballot in November. Shutting down the government is extremely disruptive to people’s lives. Only be enacting reform measures like SCR-107 will we be able to take the budget process away from outside interests and return it to the people of New Jersey.