Newark

The Senate State Government Committee has approved a bill that would honor Walter Gilbert Alexander and Hutchins Inge, M.D., the first African Americans to serve in the New Jersey State Assembly and Senate -- with a permanent plaque in the State House. "Assemblyman Alexander and Senator Inge overcame the racism of their respective time periods and won their seats because they were the best men for the job," said Senator Joseph Coniglio, who chairs the Senate State Government Panel. "It's only fitting that we show our respect and admiration for these trailblazers in New Jersey State government."

From the January 16, 2007 edition of The Inside Edge:

New Jersey state government is closed today to honor the life of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. while the Legislature has still failed to honor the lives of two African American trailblazers who won historic elections to the State Senate and General Assembly. A bill to provide a plaque honoring Hutchins Inge, M.D. the first African American to serve in the New Jersey Senate, passed the Assembly last year but never received consideration by Senate State Government Committee Chairman Joseph Coniglio New legislation introduced in January 2006 by Assemblymen Reed Gusciora, Michael Patrick Carroll and others, included Walter Gilbert Alexander, the first African American to serve in the General Assembly. A2339 was approved by the Assembly State Government Committee last June, but has not yet received consideration from Assembly Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nellie Pou.

Alexander, a Republican who was elected to the State Assembly in 1920. The son of former slaves, Alexander was born in Virginia in 1880; he went to college at age sixteen and then to medical school. Alexander moved to Orange to build a medical practice and became involved in local politics. He ran unsuccessfully for the State Assembly in 1912 on the Progresive (Bull Moose) Party ticket with Theodore Roosevelt, and won in 1920. He went on to serve two terms in the Legislature and then spent many years on the state Health Commission. He died in 1953.

Inge, a 64-year-old Newark physician, became the first African American to serve in the New Jersey State Senate. Inge was elected in 1965, after the U.S. Supreme Court's one-man, one-vote decision increased the size of the Essex County Senate delegation from one seat to four. Republicans thought they had scored a candidate recruitment coup when they convinced William Tompkins to be one of their candidates. The 52-year-old Tompkins first won an Assembly seat in 1949 and left the legislature when President Dwight Eisenhower named him United States Attorney in 1953. The founder of Tompkins, McGuire, Wachenfeld & Barry, which remains one of the state's top law firms, both parties viewed Tompkins a heavy favorite to capture one of the new Essex Senate seats created after the U.S. Supreme Court's one-man, one-vote decision. He was running on a ticket with incumbent Robert Sarcone, a 40-year-old rising star who had served as Assembly Minority Leader and had toppled a Democratic incumbent two years earlier, Irwin Kimmelman, a 35-year-old freshman Assemblyman who would later serve as state Attorney General and as an Appellate Court Judge, and with James E. Churchman, Jr., a Newark funeral home director and the state's first African American GOP State Senate candidate.

But 1965 turned out to be a Democratic year and with Governor Richard Hughes carrying Essex County by nearly 70,000 votes, Democrats (former Newark Municipal Court Judge Nicholas Fernicola, former West Orange Municipal Court Judge Maclyn Goldman, labor leader John Giblin -- a former Freeholder and the father of Assemblyman Thomas Giblin --and Inge. Tompkins finished last, almost 24,000 votes behind Inge. Inge was a last minute addition to the Democratic ticket. The Essex County Democratic Chairman, Dennis Carey, wanted an African American to balance a ticket that included Irish, Italian and Jewish candidates. His first choice was Eulis "Honey" Ward, the Central Ward Democratic Chairman and later the Deputy Register of Deeds and Mortgages, and he actually appeared in a photograph of the ticket sent to several newspapers -- but some last minute vetting by Democrats made them decide to pick another candidate after the filing deadline.

Inge lost re-election in 1967 and retired to Cape Cod in 1970. He died in 2002, at age 101, without his achievement being honored in New Jersey.

CODEY STATEMENT ON PORT AUTHORITY'S PLAN TO ACQUIRE STEWART AIRPORT

TRENTON -- Senate President Richard J. Codey today released the following statement on the plans by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to acquire Stewart Airport:

"Without a doubt, I think Stewart Airport is the way to go, in terms of reducing congestion and delays at our major airports, particularly Newark Liberty International, which is crucial to New Jersey travelers. From a strategic standpoint this makes perfect sense. Stewart Airport is in a unique location to siphon a portion of travelers away from Newark, J.F.K. and LaGuardia.

If we're not proactive now, the headaches and inconveniences that exist today will be utter havoc in another 10 or 15 years when our three major airports reach capacity. Moreover, creating a fourth major airport is absolutely vital to the economic growth of our region. As Senate President, I'm prepared to support legislation that would expand the Port Authority's power to purchase an additional airport outside its 25 mile radius of authority."

# # #

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Jennifer Sciortino
NJ Senate Majority Office
(P) 609-292-5215

WOLFE SAYS DEMS COULD HAVE DEFUSED
PROPERTY TAX CRISIS BY FUNDING EXISTING STATE AID FORMULA

Rutgers Study Confirms State Aid Freeze Drove Up
Property Taxes by 20% in Some School Districts

Assemblyman David Wolfe said today the conscious decision by Democrats to freeze state aid for schools for five years in a row triggered the massive escalation in property taxes, according to a study by the Institute on Education Law and Policy at Rutgers University-Newark.

The study determined that schools were shorted $846 million during the 2005-06 school year alone. Ernest C. Reock Jr., the author of the study and an expert on property taxes, said had the money been provided property taxes could have been lowered about 6 percent in the poorest districts, 20 percent in lower-income districts, 9 percent in middle-income districts and 3.5 percent in the wealthiest districts.

"No one should be surprised by the findings," said Wolfe, R-Ocean and Monmouth, and a former chairman and member of the Assembly Education Committee. "Without the full amount of state aid to which they were entitled, school districts were forced to rely more on property taxes, which are now twice the national average.

"I understand the need to devise a fairer school funding formula because even the existing formula does not meet the legitimate needs of suburban school districts. But no one can deny the fact that Democrats brought this crisis on themselves by refusing to fund the existing funding formula."

MERKT: AS WARNED, COMPTROLLER BEING DE-FANGED

APPOINTED COMPTROLLER'S POWERS BEING FURTHER LIMITED

Assemblyman Richard Merkt, who voted against creating an appointed state comptroller because it lacked the teeth and independence to effectively monitor government finances, today said that his worst fears about the new office are being confirmed as Democrats scramble to cripple its powers.

Five Repubican State Senators have announced their retirements this year -- the largest group of Senators to leave the Senate without running for another office since 1971 -- and there are likely to be more departures on the horizon. Martha Bark will not be seeking re-election, but Burlington County Republicans are waiting to decide who their eighth district candidates will be before Bark makes her formal announcement. Bernard Kenny, the Senate Majority Leader, is also likely to drop his bid for re-election, rather than face Assemblyman/Union City Mayor Brian Stack in the Democratic primary.

Two Democratic Senators from Newark, Ronald Rice and Sharpe James, could retire, instead of facing challenges for renomination. And in Camden County, where Wayne Bryant is expected to seek re-election, circumstances could alter his plans. Insiders say that Republican Senator Peter Inverso has not made a final decision on his 2007 plans.

New Jersey state government is closed today to honor the life of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. while the Legislature has still failed to honor the lives of two African American trailblazers who won historic elections to the State Senate and General Assembly. A bill to provide a plaque honoring Hutchins Inge, Jr., M.D., the first African American to serve in the New Jersey Senate, passed the Assembly last year but never received consideration by Senate State Government Committee Chairman Joseph Coniglio. New legislation introduced in January 2006 by Assemblymen Reed Gusciora, Michael Patrick Carroll and others, included Walter Gilbert Alexander, the first African American to serve in the General Assembly. A2339 was approved by the Assembly State Government Committee last June, but has not yet received consideration from Assembly Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nellie Pou.

Alexander, a Republican who was elected to the State Assembly in 1920. The son of former slaves, Alexander was born in Virginia in 1880; he went to college at age sixteen and then to medical school. Alexander moved to Orange to build a medical practice and became involved in local politics. He ran unsuccessfully for the State Assembly in 1912 on the Progresive (Bull Moose) Party ticket with Theodore Roosevelt, and won in 1920. He went on to serve two terms in the Legislature and then spent many years on the state Health Commission. He died in 1953.

Inge, a 64-year-old Newark physician, became the first African American to serve in the New Jersey State Senate. Inge was elected in 1965, after the U.S. Supreme Court's one-man, one-vote decision increased the size of the Essex County Senate delegation from one seat to four. Republicans thought they had scored a candidate recruitment coup when they convinced William Tompkins to be one of their candidates. The 52-year-old Tompkins first won an Assembly seat in 1949 and left the legislature when President Dwight Eisenhower named him United States Attorney in 1953. The founder of Tompkins, McGuire, Wachenfeld & Barry, which remains one of the state's top law firms, both parties viewed Tompkins a heavy favorite to capture one of the new Essex Senate seats created after the U.S. Supreme Court's one-man, one-vote decision. He was running on a ticket with incumbent Robert Sarcone, a 40-year-old rising star who had served as Assembly Minority Leader and had toppled a Democratic incumbent two years earlier, Irwin Kimmelman, a 35-year-old freshman Assemblyman who would later serve as state Attorney General and as an Appellate Court Judge, and with James E. Churchman, Jr., a Newark funeral home director and the state's first African American GOP State Senate candidate.

But 1965 turned out to be a Democratic year and with Governor Richard Hughes carrying Essex County by nearly 70,000 votes, Democrats (former Newark Municipal Court Judge Nicholas Fernicola, former West Orange Municipal Court Judge Maclyn Goldman, labor leader John Giblin -- a former Freeholder and the father of Assemblyman Thomas Giblin --and Inge. Tompkins finished last, almost 24,000 votes behind Inge. Inge was a last minute addition to the Democratic ticket. The Essex County Democratic Chairman, Dennis Carey, wanted an African American to balance a ticket that included Irish, Italian and Jewish candidates. His first choice was Eulis "Honey" Ward, the Central Ward Democratic Chairman and later the Deputy Register of Deeds and Mortgages, and he actually appeared in a photograph of the ticket sent to several newspapers -- but some last minute vetting by Democrats made them decide to pick another candidate after the filing deadline.

Inge lost re-election in 1967 and retired to Cape Cod in 1970. He died in 2002, at age 101, without his achievement being honored in New Jersey.

RICE OUTRAGED AT TREATMENT OF WELFARE RECIPIENTS IN EAST ORANGE

Chair of Legislative Black Caucus Calls for Hearings on Motel Housing for Welfare Recipients

EAST ORANGE - Senator Ronald L. Rice, Chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, announced today that he would be calling for legislative and Caucus hearings on the deplorable living conditions of many welfare recipients living in transitional housing in motels, highlighted by the recent emergency evacuation of a motel in East Orange which was deemed "unfit for human occupation."

"We cannot cast aside our responsibility, as a State, to provide for our residents in need and condemn them to living in sub-human conditions," said Senator Rice, D-Essex. "In the case of the Lincoln Motel in East Orange, 26 welfare recipients, most of whom had been placed by the Newark's welfare office, all had to be uprooted during the holiday season, because they were living in horrible living conditions, all while the owner of the motel collected $1500 a month for each resident to house them. There is so much wrong with this picture that it's sickening, and we need to figure out who is responsible, and how do we avoid something like this in the future."

HANDLIN SENDS LETTER TO CORZINE EXPRESSING DISMAY OVER VACANT UMDNJ RESEARCH CENTER

QUESTIONS THE NEED TO SPEND MILLIONS ON NEW STEM CELL CENTERS WITH $110 MILLION BUILDING REMAINING VACANT

Assemblywoman Amy Handlin today sent a letter to Governor Jon Corzine expressing her concern with newspaper reports this weekend that the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) spent $110 million on a cancer research center that is now vacant, and asking that the state explore using that facility for biomedical research instead of spending millions on a new facility.

ACTING GOVERNOR CODEY ORDERS FLAGS TO FLY AT HALF-STAFF TO HONOR U.S. PRIVATE FIRST CLASS JOE L. BAINESTRENTON - In honor of U.S. Private First Class Joe L. Baines, Acting Governor Richard. J. Codey signed the following Executive Order calling for the United States and New Jersey flags to fly at half-staff on Tuesday, December 26, 2006

The federal Judge who will sentence former Senate President John Lynch next week is a career prosecutor who has spent nineteen years on the bench. Stanley R. Chesler, 59, graduated law school in 1974 and served as an Assistant Bronx District Attorney from 1974 to 1980. He worked for the U.S. Department of Justice's Organized Crime Strike Force in Newark from 1980 to 1986, and as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for New Jersey from 1986 to 1987. He served as a U.S. Magistrate from 1987 to 2002, when President George W. Bush nominated him to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey in 2002.