Nicholas Scutari

Republican Party officials have missed an opportunity to challenge an embattled State Senator in the 22nd district. And on Wednesday, two days after the primary filing deadline for Legislative races, the GOP leadership collectively offered no stirring endorsement of a candidate who hopes to ward off an Assemblywoman intent on upsetting a Republican Congressman next year.

"There was a mixup with the petitions and we didn’t get the requisite number of signatures," Union County GOP Chairman Phil Morin said of his party’s failure to field a State Senate contestant. "But we intend to write-in a candidate in the June primary."

The state Division of Elections initially listed Bryan DesRochers as a candidate for State Senate -- and a challenger to incumbent Sen. Nicholas Scutari, whom the Democrats nominated in 2003 when Joseph Suliga abruptly ended his re-election bid.

Scutari is one of three legislators served with a subpoena connected to a federal probe of legislators receiving an alleged personal benefit from state budget items. Scutari’s wife works for a non-profit organization that received state funds.

Elections officials admitted they made a mistake when they listed DesRochers as a candidate in the Senate race.

SCUTARI BILL TO EXPAND ''NO FAULT" DIVORCE BECOMES LAW

TRENTON - Legislation sponsored by Senator Nicholas P. Scutari to amend current divorce laws and protect the privacy of divorcing couples became law today.

"The end of a marriage is always a sad and difficult occasion, and our legal system should not be compounding that burden," said Senator Scutari, D-Middlesex, Somerset, and Union. "By establishing 'irreconcilable differences' as grounds for divorce, we will allow couples to move forward with their lives in a civil and amicable fashion, without undue emotional stress and anguish."

SCUTARI, POU URGE LEGISLATORS TO 'HOLD THE LINE' ON REFORMS

TRENTON - Senator Nicholas Scutari and Assemblywoman Nellie Pou, co-chairs of the Joint Legislative Committee on Public Employee Benefits Reform, today urged legislators, public employees, and interest groups alike to continue supporting the work put forth by their committee, stating that the end of the special session process does not signal and end to reform efforts.

"During our Committee's deliberations, we discovered certain areas within the State's pension and health benefits systems that were in dire need of reform," said Scutari. "While we support fair compensation for State workers, we need to put an end to excessive perks that increase the cost of government on property taxpayers."

"The recommendations that we put forth in our report will go a long way toward ending much of the abuse present in our pension and benefits systems only if we act on them," said Pou. "Now, more than ever, we need to be diligent and steadfast in our pursuit of property tax reform."

GIBLIN STATEMENT ON RECOMMENDATIONS FROM BENEFITS REFORM COMMITTEE

(TRENTON) -- Assemblyman Thomas P. Giblin, a member of the Joint Legislative Committee on Public Employee Benefits Reform, today voiced strong support for the findings and reform recommendations unveiled this morning by co-chairs Senator Nicholas P. Scutari (D-Union) and Assemblywoman Nellie Pou (D-Passaic/Bergen).

Giblin (D-Essex/Passaic) issued the following statement:

O'TOOLE: PENSION REFORM COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS A GOOD START

Assemblyman Kevin O'Toole, R-Essex, Passaic and Bergen, a member of the Joint Legislative Committee on Public Employee Benefits Reform, issued the following statement today regarding the recommendations issued by the Committee:

BENEFITS COMMITTEE REPORT PROVIDES PROPERTY TAX RELIEF BY REDUCING WASTE, FRAUD, ABUSE
Scutari, Pou Recommend Methods of Reducing Costly Abuses & Reforming Benefits System

(TRENTON) - Senator Nicholas P. Scutari and Assemblywoman Nellie Pou, the co-chairs of the Joint Legislative Committee on Public Employee Benefits Reform, today submitted a report to legislative leaders that includes more than 40 specific reform recommendations, many of them aimed at cracking down on abusive practices that have undermined the security and solvency of the state's public employees' pensions and health benefits system.

The best race in New Jersey this year turned out to be in the seventh congressional district, where the same national issues that helped Democrats capture control of the U.S. House of Representatives nearly ended Republican Michael Ferguson's political career. Ferguson defeated Democratic Assemblywoman Linda Stender by a narrow 49%-48% margin, winning a fourth term by just 3,259 votes out of 193,272 cast. Two Indepedent candidates combined for 5,053 votes.

Ferguson carried Hunterdon County by 5,710 votes (56%-40%) and Somerset County by just 3,232 votes (52%-46%), while Stender carried Union County by a 717 vote margin (50%-49%) and Middlesex County by 4,966 votes (56%-41%).

Ferguson was one of the Republicans in Congress who recognized the potential for a tough race early enough to avoid being taken by surprise, and Democrats never really added Stender to their list seats they seriously though they could win. Stender could run again in 2008, but unless the political environment stays the same or gets worse over the next two years, Ferguson is not likely to have future electoral problems under the current map. (In the very Republican year of 1980, Marie Muhler won 49% of the vote against seven-term Democratic Congressman James Howard, but as the climate shifted away from the GOP, she won just 36% in her 1982 rematch.)

One Democratic leader wondered, albeit prematurely, whether Stender's strong showing and the upset defeat of Linden Mayor John Gregorio could create an opportunity for Stender to replace Nicholas Scutari as the State Senator in the 22nd district next year. Stender wanted that seat in 2003 when Joseph Suliga ended his re-election campaign, but Gregorio insisted on Scutari instead.

GORMLEY AND O'TOOLE: STOP STONEWALLING ON BENEFITS REVIEW TASK FORCE REPORT
CALL ON SCUTARI AND POU TO ALLOW VOTE ON INDIVIDUAL REFORMS

BENEFITS REFORM PANEL TO TAKE TESTIMONY FROM PRINCIPAL AUTHOR OF MURPHY REPORT WEDNESDAY

(TRENTON) - The Joint Legislative Committee on Public Employee Benefits Reform will take testimony from Philip D. Murphy, Chairman of the Governor's Benefits Review Task Force, on Wednesday.

BENEFITS REFORM PANEL TO HOLD PUBLIC COMMENT MEETING WEDNESDAY IN SEWELL

(SEWELL) - The Joint Legislative Committee on Public Employee Benefits Reform has selected Sewell as the site of the second meeting it will conduct for purposes of gathering public comment on pensions and health benefits provided to state, county, municipal, and school district employees.