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The irony of New Jersey’s latest budget crisis is getting thick in Trenton as Gov. Chris Christie turns to Lou Goetting for help.
Christie is scrambling to plug an $800 million gap before the state fiscal year ends in less than two months.
“I’m going to use every tool at my disposal to get a balanced budget,” Christie declared at a press conference last week. “There’s nothing off the table.”
One of those “tools” is Goetting, Christie’s deputy chief of staff and budget guru, sources told NJ Spotlight. However, Goetting personifies a problem that helped cause the mess.
Goetting – pronounced “getting” – gets $228,860 a year from state coffers – $140,000 in salary plus $88,860 from pension. New Jersey Watchdog investigations have found he is one of many double-dippers who collect two sets of checks despite Christie’s pension reforms.
Such excesses have contributed to a $51 billion shortfall in New Jersey’s public retirement system. Trying to keep pension funds solvent for the future, Christie and the Legislature agreed to mandate increases in the state’s long-neglected annual payments.
The next installment of $1.55 billion is due before the fiscal year ends, as required by state statute. That is also the state’s deadline to come up with $800 million to balance its budget, as required by the State Constitution.
If anyone knows how to manipulate the system, it’s Goetting. In addition to his double-dipping, he has received $370,000 in golden parachute payouts from public institutions.
The story is online at http://newjersey.watchdog.org. The direct link is http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2014/05/05/christie-budget-crisis/.
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