VAN DREW BILL WOULD REFORM AFFORDABLE HOUSING LAWS

TRENTON – Sen. Jeff Van Drew along with his Assembly colleagues is sponsoring an omnibus bill that would significantly change New Jersey’s affordable housing laws, making homes available to people who need them while giving towns more flexibility in meeting their housing obligations.

“It’s been more than three decades since the New Jersey Supreme Court’s Mount Laurel decision on exclusionary zoning,” Senator Van Drew said today. “It’s clear the laws that have been enacted in response to that decision been more successful in building a thicket of rules and regulations than in building affordable housing. Though created with the best of intentions, the system New Jersey has now doesn’t work nearly as well as it should. It’s time to fix it.”

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Wake-Up Call

Morning News Digest: March 16, 2010

Lt. Gov. Guadagno takes on red tape in N.J.  Gov. Christie Whitman declared New Jersey "open for business" in 1994 and appointed an ombudsman to lead entrepreneurs through "the expanding maze of regulation." Before her, an environmental commissioner under Gov. James Florio urged permit applicants to call him directly...

Wally Edge

''It's a Robin Hood in reverse.  'It taxes the poor to give to the rich.''  -- Assembly Speaker Alan Karcher, after Gov. Tom Kean’s first budget address in March 1982.
In New Jersey, where judges often baffle political insiders on election law matters, three state Appellate Court judges allowed a Tea Party group to move forward on their bid to force U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez into a recall election.  Judges...
The most irresponsible rhetoric of the day – so far, since it’s just 11 AM – comes from Democratic State Chairman John Wisniewski.  Wisniewski put out a press release blasting GOP congressional candidate Jon Runyan for locating his campaign in...
Spring Lake Councilwoman Janice Venables will seek the Democratic nomination for Monmouth County Freeholder, opposing Vincent Solomeno, a former aide to U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-Long Branch) for the Democratic nomination.  Republicans have a...
Veteran Cape May County Freeholder Gerald Thornton has lost party support for his re-election bid, according to a report from Atlantic City radio personality Harry Hurley.  A vote of the Cape May Regular Republican Organization gave Thornton 94...

Contributors

This is going to be a budget that is going to be unlike any other you’ve probably seen in NJ in at least the last 20 years and maybe... more »
Everybody needs to start a new job with a list of priorities and Chris Christie is no exception. There might be a thousand things that need to get done... more »
It's impossible to support consolidation of government services and also support COAH.S1 paints with a broad brush and thus will miss some fine points.  COAH paints with... more »
Governor Christie seems to have played the rotten fiscal cards he inherited fairly well. As reported by the Star-Ledger, he is proposing to cut school aid by more... more »
As part of his solution to New Jersey’s current budget deficit, Gov. Chris Christie announced that, effective yesterday, he will not allow any additional parents to enroll in FamilyCare,... more »
Let me get this straight.  The state has a “cap” or limit on how much municipalities can increase their annual budget every year—four percent.  The goal is to keep... more »
On Rebate Issue, Christie Will Win.  The leading New Jersey Sunday newspapers yesterday confirmed that Governor Chris Christie will propose in his FY2011 budget the... more »
You’ve got to hand it to Christie; he calls it as he sees it.  I don’t mean the newly crowned Governor, Chris Christie, but his nine-year-old son, Patrick.  ... more »
Anyone involved in governing and administrating a town or county in New Jersey understands the economic problems outlined in The Star-Ledger editorials of February 28 and March 1.  The... more »
It is widely anticipated that Gov. Chris Christie’s first budget message, to be delivered on March 16, will show the harsh reality of New Jersey’s bleak financial outlook. No... more »
In keeping with the commitment I made to you in the November election, I am looking at every possible way to cut wasteful government spending and relieve your tax... more »
Republican Playbook:  Fear, Scorn & Partisanship -- Instill fear.  Sow uncertainty.   Create doubt.  Demonize.   These tactics may be the unfortunate norm for campaigning, but they are bad – if not... more »
Our new Governor suffers from no lack of advice.  Much of it, contained in the transition reports, deserves prompt attention.  Obviously, economic prosperity benefits everyone, and – as... more »
I have to genuinely wonder if this legislature will go down as the most taxing legislature in the history of the state of New Jersey surpassing the legislative actions... more »
Now that  the dust has finally settled after the grueling campaign for governor, there are a number of lessons that we can draw from this election. First and... more »
March 14, 2010  Governor Christie Cuts The Day to Just 23 Hours   In yet another Executive Order sure to rile clock and calendar makers, Governor Chris Christie... more »
Sheriff Larkin must go:  no ifs ands or buts.According to published reports, Mercer County Sheriff Kevin Larkin entered the Political Science class of associate professor Michael Glass at Mercer... more »
New Jersey is in severe financial crisis because for years elected officials have been able to make irresponsible and short-sighted decisions without any restraint.  Future governors may... more »
On January 6, 2010, several newspapers published articles with titles like “no more aid for struggling cities”, “Christie will cut state aid” and the like; furthermore, in the body... more »
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, you target teachers. That’s not a positive note to start your tenure. You forget that the Teachers’ Union makes decisions on its own, such... more »
On the day of his inauguration, Governor Christopher Christie inherited a gaping $2 billion hole in the state’s budget and swiftly set about the people’s business in meeting our... more »