LESNIAK-WHELAN HIGHER EDUCATION RESTRUCTURING BILL APPROVED IN SENATE

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Raymond J. Lesniak and Jim Whelan which would ensure accountability and transparency at public universities and State colleges was approved by the Senate today by a vote of 36-0.

“Our State colleges and public universities are among the best in the entire country, but a lack of cost controls and general accountability has made higher education more and more unaffordable in the Garden State. By establishing greater State oversight of public college spending, and requiring thorough and complete spending audits at each of these institutions, we will be better able to maintain our world-class higher education system and keep tuition rates reasonable,” said Senator Lesniak, D-Union.

LESNIAK HIGHER EDUCATION RESTRUCTURING BILL APPROVED BY BUDGET PANEL

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senator Raymond J. Lesniak which would ensure accountability and transparency at public universities and State colleges was approved by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee today by a vote of 14-0, with one abstention.

“While our schools remain among the top-ranked colleges and universities in the entire nation, we need to do more to ensure that higher education is affordable in the Garden State. By increasing transparency and accountability of college spending and re-establishing a central, cabinet-level voice for colleges, we can continue to provide world-class education and keep tuition costs from escalating,” said Senator Lesniak, D-Union.

LESNIAK BILL REQUIRING TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANIES TO COOPERATE WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT IN EMERGENCIES ADVANCES

Bill Would Require Caller Location Info Be Provided In Certain Cases

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senator Raymond J. Lesniak which would require telecommunications companies to provide caller location information for crime victims to law enforcement agencies was unanimously approved by the Senate Law, Public Safety and Veterans Affairs Committee today.

“Law enforcement officers need to be able to use every tool at their disposal to help them solve crimes and protect innocent victims from physical harm,” said Senator Lesniak, D-Union. “By requiring telecommunications companies to cooperate with law enforcement agencies and provide location information for mobile devices, we can hopefully apprehend criminals before they victimize someone else. This bill will revolutionize police investigations and hopefully allow law enforcement officers to act before it’s too late for people in harm’s way.”

VAN DREW WELCOMES CORZINE TO SPORTS BETTING LAWSUIT

Says Pushing Legislation May Move Legal Proceedings Quicker

TRENTON – Senator Jeff Van Drew, D-Cape May, Cumberland and Atlantic, issued the following statement regarding Governor Corzine’s announcement that he will be joining in the legal effort to overturn the federal ban on sports betting, and called on legislative leaders to move sports betting legislation in New Jersey to speed up the legal proceedings:

“I applaud Governor Corzine for lending his support to legal efforts, led by Senator Ray Lesniak and myself, to overturn the federal ban on sports betting. New Jersey’s gaming industry, and the larger tourism sector that depends on the vitality of that industry, cannot afford to fall behind other states in the nation when it comes to a legalized sports book.

Sen. Ray Lesniak (D-Elizabeth) today told PolitickerNJ.com that a published report that he intends to support 4th Ward Councilwoman Dawn Zimmer in the June 9th  Hoboken runoff election is inaccurate.

“There is absolutely no truth to that report,” said Lesniak. “I’m giving no money and no endorsement.”

Lesniak said he has no intention of backing Zimmer, who’s running against At-Large Councilman Peter Cammarano, who today picked up the endorsement of former mayoral candidate Ryn Melberg.

Sources say Lesniak flirted with the idea of supporting Zimmer, then retreated.

SENATOR LESNIAK SENDS OFF NEW JERSEY’S MARINES

UNION – This morning, Senator Raymond Lesniak – a veteran of the U.S. Army – addressed 135 New Jersey Marines and their families at their deployment ceremony in Red Bank. The brave native sons and daughters will be the command element for a combat logistics battalion which will provide all logistics for the providence of Al Anbar in Iraq.

LESNIAK-SWEENEY 'VOTE BY MAIL LAW' RECEIVES SENATE APPROVAL

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senator Raymond J. Lesniak and Senate Majority Leader Steve Sweeney which would create a Vote by Mail system to allow more New Jerseyans to take part in the democratic process was approved by the Senate today by a vote of 24-14.

“Voting by mail has become a popular alternative nationwide for busy voters unable to get to the voting booth on Election Day,” said Senator Lesniak, D-Union. “Oregon and Washington State have an electoral system that’s run entirely from the mailbox, as opposed to the ballot box, and many other states are considering hybrid systems which balance voter convenience with vote integrity. As New Jersey tries to get more people to exert their voice in government, we must make it easier for voters to vote on their own terms, rather than try to squeeze something else into what can be a hectic workday.”

Former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan on the Statehouse steps.

TRENTON – Pat Benatar’s “Hit me with your Best Shot” blared out of speakers then died – but only defiantly - as a 101.5 radio personality built up Steve Lonegan, a long coat-clad GOP gubernatorial candidate and the state’s movement conservative in chief, who came out of the rain to stand under the pillars.

Lonegan stepped up to the mike at the podium on the front steps of the State Capitol with the crowd stretching across West State Street.

“You heard them talk about ‘Yes, we can’ last year and what that turned out to mean was apologizing to Europe for the greatness of America, it meant “Yes, we can” create more government,” yelled Lonegan, who faced a rain-spattered 300 here on a 101.5 SOS to protest high taxes, even as the Senate Budget Committee crouched inside and considered Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine’s proposed $29.8 billion budget.

American flags waved.

Up the block in front of the Annex and nursing their own anti-Corzine issues, leaders of CWA Local 1033 huddled in their van behind closed doors, apparently recognizing that for the moment it would be futile to try to compete with the self-styled Tom Paines and Patrick Henrys who dominated in blue jeans, parkas and baseball caps.  

LESNIAK ANNOUNCES SPORTS BETTING LAWSUIT

TRENTON – Senator Raymond J. Lesniak, D-Union, released the following statement detailing his efforts to overturn the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PAPSA):

“As Captain Renault said to Rick, ‘I’m shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!’ Gambling is going on here – sports gambling. According to a 1999 National Gambling Impact Study, $380 billion dollars a year are illegally wagered on sports betting. Profits from these wagers are lining the coffers of offshore internet operations, backroom bookies and organized crime rings. Sports betting in the U.S. is unregulated, untaxed and illegal: except in Nevada and as allowed in Delaware, Montana and Oregon.

GREENWALD THROWS SUPPORT BEHIND LAWSUIT TO OVERTURN A.C. SPORTS BETTING BAN
'Fighting for Legalized Pro-Sports Gaming Is A Play New Jersey Can't Afford Not to Run'

(VOORHEES) - Assemblyman Louis Greenwald said he fully supports a lawsuit filed today by Senator Ray Lesniak and three of the state's horse racing associations that seeks to invalidate federal law that has blocked professional sports wagering from being offered at Atlantic City's casinos.