...And Big Government

In a recent, self-pitying statement released to the press, Mayor Dawn Zimmer expresses her frustration that Mayor Brian Stack and other Hudson Dem politicos seldom return her phone calls nowadays.

Our mayor is particularly upset that her preferred candidates for Democrat Party committee seats were not awarded the HCDO (aka "the machine") line. Zimmer, who readily accepted the machine's "help" in past election cycles (and only last year ran her committee slate on the HCDO line), is now positioning herself as the sworn enemy of crooked Hudson County "political machinery." And of course, only after the machine failed to endorse her friends in the upcoming Democrat primary.

Another layer of irony: Zimmer then lavishes praise on Sen. Robert Menendez (the very embodiment of Hudson County bossism):

"I had the pleasure of hearing Senator Menendez speak directly from the front lines regarding our Country’s budget negotiations. During his briefing he highlighted the fact that while the debate may appear on the surface to be about money, it is really about our commitment to women’s issues, senior and children’s issues, environmental issues and other core Democratic values. His talk sparked a commitment in me to work as hard as I can to support him on women's and environmental issues in particular."

This head-in-the-sand response to mounting deficit spending is especially disheartening, as the mayor has often paid lip service to fiscal prudence on a state and municipal level. Zimmer should keep in mind that she can't save the city while bankrupting the nation.

Here's a great letter to the editor, from Ron Simoncini of the Mile Square Taxpayers Association:

A New View on Rent Control Is Needed

Dear Editor:

It was two and one half years ago that I first began to understand just how corrosive the rent control ordinance in Hoboken had become, not just to property owners, but to the fiscal health of the city and the condition of the housing stock. In 22 years of opposing rent control, I had never seen a situation remotely as dysfunctional and inequitable as what I found in Hoboken.

Now we are on the verge of the most minimal changes to the ordinance, after a bruising and wearying process, and there remains purely political opposition to reversing the inequities that bad policy and worse administration have wrought. It is not an abrogation of tenant protections to assert the manifest rights of property owners. Hoboken can’t afford that perspective any more in any sense of the word, and the opposition we see is a clear instruction that the paradigm shift is needed.

Tenant leaders fear that passing these amendments should be the beginning of a long-term dismantling of the ordinance. We should only be so lucky.

Ron Simoncini

Our view? Don't amend it. End it!

For More on the Folly of Rent Control: The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics

Today marks the 100th anniversary of Ronald Reagan's birth. And so today we honor the greatest president of the 20th century—and one of the greatest presidents ever. Here's to you, Ron.

The first-ever National School Choice Week is now under way, with events planned coast-to-coast. And here in the Mile Square, School Choice Night is Wednesday, January 26. The event, organized by the Hoboken Republican Club, will feature remarks from E3's Derrell Bradford and School Board Trustee Maureen Sullivan. Here are the key details:

Date: Wednesday, January 26
Time: 7:00 Pm - 9:00 PM
Venue: 1 Republik (Back Room)
Address: 221 Washington Street (Hoboken)
Free Admission: Cash Bar

Derrell Bradford is the Executive Director of E3 (Excellent Education for Everyone). In addition, he serves as Vice-Chairman of Greater Newark's Black Alliance for Educational Options.

Maureen Sullivan serves on Hoboken's Board of Education, where she is often the lone voice of dissent. She previously had a twenty-year career in journalism, with twelve years as a foreign correspondent.

National School Choice Week is designed to highlight the many benefits of educational freedom. For more information, please visit www.schoolchoiceweek.com.

In the News
Jersey Journal, 01/26/10, Hoboken Republican Club to Host Event in Honor of School Choice Week

From Maureen Sullivan:

Happy New Year!

I wanted to take this opportunity to update you on some important matters that will come before the School Board on Tuesday. The introduction of the new school budget, the audit of last year's finances, the new superintendent's contract, the departure of interim superintendent Peter Carter, and another high-priced junket for board member Frances Rhodes-Kearns are some of the topics on the agenda.

The board has just gotten a look at the proposed 2011-12 budget as well as the audit of the books for 2009-10. Despite claims of a tax cut from Kids First, the schools portion of our tax rate actually increased from 1.176 per $100 assessed value in calendar year 2009 to 1.199 per $100 in calendar year 2010, according to our outside auditors. For a home assessed at $500,000, that's an increase of $115, when we were assured taxes were not going up.

As we move into budget season, it's clear that "creative accounting" is on the agenda once again. Last year, the board approved a budget of $57,882,147. This year, the administration has drawn up a budget of $57,966,973. That's up slightly, by $84,826. But the administration is presenting this as a cut of 4%. That's because it is comparing one year's total expenditures and revenues, which typically exceed our initial budgets by $2 million, with a proposed budget for the upcoming year. If we stick to apples to apples (comparing the proposed budget for this current year with the one beginning July 1), we've got a higher budget on tap for next year, not a lower one. You can see how misleading this is...this year they say they are cutting the budget 4% and last year Kids First said they cut the budget 7%. With this kind of accounting, there won't be a budget at all in a few years.

Last year, I led the charge against the board approval of a $3,000 junket to Chicago for board member Fran Rhodes-Kearns. I lost that vote, but later the county superintendent vetoed the trip. That didn't stop the board's finance committee from going ahead with approval for her to attend a two-day junket in Washington, D.C. next month to learn how to lobby members of Congress. If it's approved on Tuesday, it will cost taxpayers nearly $1,900, including $450 for a business class train trip on the Acela (specifically forbidden by state statute) and more than $540 in hotel charges.
　
Among the topics that she will be getting instruction on is learning how to lobby against members of Congress and the U.S. Dept of Education who "voice support for expanding charters... ." As a board, we certainly have never discussed the idea of one of our board members going to Washington to fight charter schools. I'm not sure if the many Hoboken taxpayers who have their children in charter schools want their tax money going to fight those schools.

And the state has finally approved a contract for new superintendent Mark Toback, one that meets the salary cap of $155,000. The board will vote on it at Tuesday's meeting. Despite overwhelming evidence that the state would not approve a superintendent contract over the new cap, and over my objections, the board pushed ahead with a contract that was nearly $20,000 over the state's mandate. And then the board voted 8-1 to sue the state. Would the state have approved a contract last year that met the cap? I think so.

Interim Supt. Peter Carter will depart the district on Jan. 31 and will be replaced by Asst. Supt. Walter Rusak until Dr. Toback gets released from his current contract and begins here.

I encourage you to attend the meeting, which starts at 7 p.m. in the board office at 1115 Clinton St. There is an opportunity at the beginning of the meeting to discuss agenda items and at the end of the meeting for items not on the agenda. Here is the link to the agenda: http://hoboken.k12.nj.us/files/January%2011%202011%20BOE%20Stated%20Session%20Agenda.pdf.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Best regards,

Maureen Sullivan

Reflections on Death in Arizona

A federal judge shot dead. A congresswoman shot in the head, now struggling for her life. Six dead in all, including a nine year old girl.

Our thoughts and prayers, naturally, are with the victims and their families.

John Boehner is right: "An attack on one who serves is an attack on all who serve."

And, we might add, the people they represent.