TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union) that could create thousands of jobs for area residents and spur economic development for the entire region and state by establishing a new authority to revitalize Fort Monmouth was approved 5-0 yesterday by the Senate Economic Growth Committee.

The bill (S10) would create a Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority to implement the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Plan. It would abolish the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Planning Authority and transfer all of its functions, powers, and duties to the newly created authority, which would exist in, but not of, the Department of the Treasury.

UNION -- Senator Raymond Lesniak released the following statement on New Mexico's abolition of the death penalty:

"I applaud Governor Bill Richardson and the members of the New Mexico State Legislature for recognizing that no good comes from the death penalty. As New Jersey decided in 2007, capital punishment exposes the innocent to execution, causes more suffering for the family members of murder victims, serves no penal purpose and detracts from society’s efforts to address the serious problems of crime and the effectiveness of our prison system.

TRENTON – This Monday, March 23rd, Senator Raymond Lesniak, on behalf of the people New Jersey and fellow plaintiffs, will file a Civil Complaint in the United States District Court, District of New Jersey, to declare unconstitutional the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA), which was signed into law by the President of the United States on October 28, 1992.

Senator Raymond Lesniak, Senator Jeff Van Drew, representatives from the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association (iMEGA), The New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, The Thoroughbred Breeders Association of New Jersey, and the Standardbred Breeder & Owners Association of New Jersey will hold a press conference this Monday, March 23rd at 11 AM in State House room 103 (across from the Senate Chambers) to detail their efforts.

TRENTON – A bill (S-2485) sponsored by Sen. Raymond J. Lesniak (D-Union) that would exempt certain non-residential development projects from a 2.5 percent fee to fund affordable housing was approved 12-0 today by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.

Current law imposes a 2.5 percent non-residential development fee on certain projects to provide funding for the construction of affordable housing. The bill would exempt projects from the fee through July 2010.