SENATOR LESNIAK TO COMPETE IN FINAL ROUND OF INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMPETITION

UNION – Senator Raymond J. Lesniak has been selected by Le Mémorial de Caen to compete in the final round of their international human rights competition. Speeches were submitted from lawyers around the globe and only 10 were selected for the prestigious final round.

Senator Lesniak, a graduate of St. John’s University School of Law and partner in the law firm Wiener Lesniak, will travel to Caen, France to defend his speech, entitled “The Road to Justice and Peace,” on Sunday, February 1, 2009.

SENATOR LESNIAK’S STATEMENT ON COAH REFORM LEGISLATION

UNION -- Senator Raymond J. Lesniak, chair of the Senate Economic Growth Committee, released the following statement regarding the current Council on Affordable Housing’s (COAH) mandates, and his legislation to address the short-comings in the current affordable housing law and regulations:

“I have proposed a bill (S 2485) which would fix the faults in the current COAH guidelines that are stifling job growth and economic development in New Jersey. The bill would suspend the 2.5% development fee strangling our economic recovery as well as direct the State Housing Commission to recommend sound planning and economic principles sorely lacking in the current COAH mandates and regulations.

This week former Assemblyman Neil Cohen was indicted for viewing child pornography on state owned computers located in the legislative office he had shared with State Senator Raymond J. Lesniak and Assemblyman, Union County Undersheriff, Democratic State Committee Chairman, Union Township Municipal Chairman Joseph Cryan. It has been six months since Cohen was spirited away to commit himself to a psychiatric facility to the time that the Attorney General announced that a Grand Jury had handed up an indictment. There have been many here in Union County who had given up on ever hearing anything more about the case certain that Cohen had been given special treatment because of his station in life or politics depending how you look at it.

Assemblywoman Linda Stender says she has her party's support to seek another term

Assemblywoman Linda Stender (D-Fanwood) said today that she intends to run for re-election to the assembly in 2009.

“My immediate plan is to seek another term to the legislature, and I have great support from the state chair, my county chair, and I’ve got very good working relationships with my delegation members,” she said. “There’s a lot of important work to be done, we’re in a tough time in our economy and state and I’ll be looking forward to taking on those challenges.”

An Inside Edge report from just before the election said that a Union County Democratic official suggested that the party would try to get Stender to step aside if she lost the House race. But Stender said today that she has not felt any pressure to leave her seat.

SENATOR LESNIAK’S STATEMENT ON ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF NEW JERSEY’S DEATH PENALTY REPEAL

UNION – On December 17, 2007, New Jersey became the first state in the Union to repeal the death penalty since the Supreme Court reinstated it in 1976. Senator Raymond Lesniak, prime-sponsor of the legislation that repealed New Jersey’s statute, issued the following statement for the one-year anniversary of Governor Jon Corzine signing his bill into law:

“One year ago, New Jersey eliminated capital punishment and the Coliseum in Rome was lit to celebrate its abolition. New Jersey’s efforts now serve as a guiding light for other states. Measures to repeal the death penalty are gaining traction all across the nation.

LESNIAK STATEMENT ON APPOINTMENT OF LISA JACKSON TO HEAD EPA

TRENTON – Senator Raymond Lesniak, Chairman of the Senate Economic Growth Committee, issued the following statement regarding Lisa Jackson's appointment to the Obama Administration:

“She's the perfect choice. She knows how to protect the environment, promote energy efficiency AND economic growth. The brightest star in the Corzine cabinet.”

Assemblyman Richard Merkt (R-Mendham)

In the state Senate today, Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union) plans to introduce a bill that would suspend for 12 months a 2.5 percent tax on commercial development designed to create funds for affordable housing development. 

But the two Republican candidates officially in the race for governor both believe the Council on Affordable Housing (COAH) shouldn’t be tweaked so such as simply scrapped. 

To that end, Assemblyman Richard Merkt (R-Mendham) intends to introduce his own bill on the floor that would do just that, even as the Legislature with Lesniak’s proposal will consider fine-tuning COAH, the State agency responsible for establishing and monitoring municipal affordable housing obligations in New Jersey. 

LESNIAK-BATEMAN INTRODUCE RESOLUTION CALLING ON CONGRESS TO MAKE CHANGES TO FEDERAL LAW TO ENSURE ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Increased Federal Investment in Affordable Housing Will Mean New Homes, Jobs in the Garden State

TRENTON – Noting a national obligation to ensure affordable housing opportunities for all people, Senators Raymond J. Lesniak and Kip Bateman today introduced a New Jersey State Senate concurrent resolution calling on Congress to make changes to federal affordable housing laws to guarantee access to affordable housing for more of New Jersey’s residents, encourage building new homes and create jobs in New Jersey.

“Right now, federal affordable housing programs are not sufficient to meet the need for new homes in the State of New Jersey and around the nation,” said Senator Lesniak, D-Union. “We’re in the midst of a national economic crisis, in which the value of our hard-earned dollars is down, and the cost of living is through the roof. We need federal programs that identify the needs of the people of this country, and provide adequate support to states seeking to act in good faith to ensure housing opportunities for all their residents.”

“It’s a critical time for our nation,” said Senator Bateman, R-Somerset and Morris. “The federal government simply must find a way to ensure that homelessness doesn’t soar during this period of economic turmoil. The changes in federal law requested by Senator Lesniak and I will help keep hardworking people in New Jersey in decent housing and stimulate the economy.”

LESNIAK INTRODUCES RESOLUTION CALLING ON CONGRESS TO MAKE CHANGES TO FEDERAL LAW TO ENSURE ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Increased Federal Investment in Affordable Housing Will Mean New Homes, Jobs in the Garden State

TRENTON – Noting a national obligation to ensure affordable housing opportunities for all people, Senator Raymond J. Lesniak today introduced a New Jersey State Senate concurrent resolution calling on Congress to make changes to federal affordable housing laws to guarantee access to affordable housing for more of New Jersey’s residents, encourage building new homes and create jobs in New Jersey.

“Right now, federal affordable housing programs are not sufficient to meet the need for new homes in the State of New Jersey and around the nation,” said Senator Lesniak, D-Union. “We’re in the midst of a national economic crisis, in which the value of our hard-earned dollars is down, and the cost of living is through the roof. We need federal programs that identify the needs of the people of this country, and provide adequate support to states seeking to act in good faith to ensure housing opportunities for all their residents.”

LESNIAK-VAN DREW RESOLUTION URGING CONGRESS TO REPEAL BAN ON SPORTS BETTING ADVANCES IN COMMITTEE

TRENTON – A resolution sponsored by Senators Raymond J. Lesniak and Jeff Van Drew which would urge Congress to lift the federal ban on sports wagering was unanimously approved by the Senate Wagering, Tourism and Historic Preservation Committee today.

“At a time when New Jersey is working to overcome chronic revenue shortfalls and the effects of a national economic recession, we need to identify new revenue sources,” said Senator Lesniak, D-Union. “Increased tax revenue generated by sports wagering could be used to fund a wide variety of worthy programs which might otherwise have to be eliminated given the State’s bleak budgetary picture. Giving states the authority to conduct legal sports wagering would be a good complement to any economic stimulus packages being considered by our leaders in Washington.”