WNYC: NJ's $253 Billion Time Bomb

From Mark Lagerkvist
Oct 10, 2017

HOW WILL NEXT NJ GOVERNOR HANDLE A FISCAL TIME BOMB?

New Jersey's public pension system faces a $253 billion crisis that could result in higher taxes for residents, fewer services or even bankruptcy for state government.

WNYC analyzed data the state reported under national accounting standards. Those numbers show New Jersey's public pension system is actually underfunded by $168 billion. And that does not include an additional $85 billion shortfall for the medical benefits of retirees.

Gov. Chris Christie will hand that fiscal time bomb to a new chief executive that voters elect in November – either Democrat Phil Murphy or Republican Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno. Neither candidate has offered a plan on how they'll find enough money to avoid a financial meltdown.

While Guadagno promises pension reform, she was at the center of a controversy that led to a pension fraud investigation. The findings of that state criminal probe have never been released. The WNYC report examines the details of that case.

The full report by investigative journalist Mark Lagerkvist – complete with links to key documents – is now online at http://www.wnyc.org/story/ticking-time-bomb-faced-next-nj-governor/.

Lagerkvist: Golden parachutes of NJ public college presidents cost millions

From Mark Lagerkvist

For departing New Jersey public college presidents, their farewell payments, perks and positions can resemble lottery jackpots. Not left to chance, these windfalls are carefully crafted into their employment contracts.

George Pruitt of Thomas Edison State University in Trenton is slated to receive $1.7 million in payouts after his presidency ends. It begins with a one-year paid sabbatical leave at his presidential salary, currently $337,000 – and a new title, president emeritus.

When he returns from sabbatical, Pruitt will begin a five-year fellowship to conduct research at TESU’s John S. Watson School of Public Service. He’ll get 80 percent of his former salary – another $1.348 million or more. To top it off, the university will pay a $10,000 lump sum to cover Pruitt’s relocation expenses.

At least 13 current presidents have an express option to work in other six-figure positons at their institutions when they step down. Nine of those chief executives can begin their post-presidential careers with generous paid sabbaticals, according to a NJ Spotlight analysis of employment contracts obtained under the Open Public Records Act.

The full story is now online at NJ Spotlight – http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/16/05/23/bon-voyage-bonanzas-golden-parachutes-of-nj-public-college-chiefs-cost-millions/

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Mark Lagerkvist is a veteran investigative reporter who has worked for CNBC, News 12, Asbury Park Press, New Jersey Watchdog and other newspaper, television and online news outlets. His work has won more than 60 journalism awards, including honors from National Press Club, Scripps Howard Foundation, and Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE). He can be reached at Mark@Lagerkvist.net.

Lagerkvist: NJIT President's $5.3M Contract Tops New Jersey's Pay and Perks for College Chiefs

By Mark Lagerkvist


At $555,000 a year, Joel Bloom does not have the highest salary among New Jersey public college presidents. But counting his extra benefits and perks from New Jersey Institute of Technology, Bloom has a taxpayer-supported deal that’s second to none.

Bloom’s five-year contract with NJIT is worth roughly $5.3 million. And that doesn’t count the cost of his pension, health insurance, vacation time, sick leave and expense account – not to mention the car and driver provided by the Newark-based research university.

No other public officials in New Jersey receive the levels of compensation that many college presidents enjoy – not even Gov. Chris Christie or state Supreme Court justices, according to a NJ Spotlight analysis.

The little-known cornucopia of extras is detailed in employment contracts obtained by NJ Spotlight under the Open Public Records Act. For example, Bloom’s deal with NJIT includes:

• Performance bonus of up to 25 percent of his salary. Last year, it was $130,000.
• Annual “retention incentive” bonus of $120,000 to help ensure his loyalty to NJIT.
• Housing allowance of $85,000 a year
• Three-fourths of his salary for two years – $825,000 based on his current pay – as an advisor and figurehead with the title of president emeritus after he retires or resigns.

NJ Spotlight’s analysis of the contracts of New Jersey’s 30 public college presidents found:

• 20 have contracts that provide for annual bonuses based on performance or longevity
• 17 receive deferred compensation or contributions to annuities to supplement the public pensions.
• 17 receive free use of college-owned residences or housing allowances as part of their compensation packages.
• 23 are provided with the use of college cars or an allowance to cover the cost of their own automobiles.

The story is now online at NJ Spotlight – http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/16/05/22/njit-president-s-5-3m-contract-takes-top-spot-among-nj-college-chiefs/. Details on each college president – with links to their contracts – is posted at http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/16/05/22/the-list-all-the-presidents-pay-and-perks-at-new-jersey-s-public-colleges/.

Lagerkvist: Christie's security expenses hit $1.7M, details remain secret

Christie’s security travel costs hit $1.77 million; how most was spent remains a mystery

The travel costs of the governor’s security detail soared last year with Chris Christie’s presidential ambitions, but details of how the taxpayers’ money was spent remain a state secret.

Of the nearly $614,000 spent on travel in 2015 by the State Police Executive Protection Unit, $545,000 was charged to American Express cards issued to the governor’s office. Citing concerns for Christie’s safety, the state has refused to release the Amex statements that list food, lodging, transportation and incidental expenses for out-of-state trips.

Overall, EPU expenses totaled nearly $1.77 million for Christie’s first six years as New Jersey governor. More than 85 percent – or $1.52 million – was charged to state Amex accounts, effectively exempt from outside scrutiny.

A NJ Spotlight analysis of internal administration documents, obtained through Open Public Records Act requests, illustrate how the EPU travel costs increased year-by-year as Christie pursued his political fortunes outside of New Jersey:

2010 – $64,975: Security travel expenses during Christie’s first year as governor were roughly one-tenth of the 2015 total.

2011 – $129,842: EPU expenses double as Christie starts to get national attention.

2012 – $248,277: Costs double again as Christie’s political star continues to rise, culminating in his keynote speech at the Republican National Convention and campaign appearances for Mitt Romney.

2013 – $220,355: Christie’s out-of-state trips decrease slightly as he campaigns in New Jersey for re-election as governor.

2014 – $492,420: As chairman of the Republican Governors Association, Christie journeys extensively to help raise $106 million in political contributions. While RGA pays for Christie’s expenses, taxpayers are stuck with the EPU bills.

2015 – $613,693: More than $340,000 in EPU travel costs are racked up after June 30, the date Christie officially declared his candidacy for president. During 2015, Christie traveled outside the state for all or part of 261 days.

The complete story and supporting documents are online at NJ Spotlight – http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/16/03/13/christie-s-security-travel-costs-hit-1-77m-how-most-was-spent-remains-mystery/

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Mark Lagerkvist is a veteran investigative reporter who has worked for CNBC, News 12, Asbury Park Press, New Jersey Watchdog and other newspaper, television and online news outlets. His work has won more than 60 journalism awards, including honors from National Press Club, Scripps Howard Foundation, and Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE). He can be reached at Mark@Lagerkvist.net.

Lagerkvist: NJ $100K pensions double in 5 years

Retired New Jersey officials with $100,000-plus public pensions double in five years

The ranks of retired public officials who collect more than $100,000 a year from New Jersey pensions have more than doubled in the past five years, according to a NJ Spotlight analysis of state Treasury data.

When 2015 ended, 2,296 retirees were collecting six-figure pensions from state pension plans. It is a 131 percent increase above 2010, when the count was 992.

The top of the “$100K Club” is loaded with retired school executives. Former Essex County College president A.Z. Yamba leads the pack with $195,000 in annual retirement pay. Of the 30 pensioners who get $150,000 or more, 22 retired as educators.

But in sheer numbers, police and fire officials are predominate. Nearly half – or 1,131 pensioners – belong to the Police and Firemen’s Retirement System.

Of those PFRS retirees, 93 percent – or 1,050 – took advantage of a “special retirement” provision in state pension law. It allows law enforcement officers – but not other public employees – to collect full benefits after 25 years of service, regardless of age.

Ironically, the largest state pension plan – the Public Employee Retirement System – has comparatively few members in the $100K Club.

PERS has roughly 160,000 retirees, more than half of the state’s 300,000 pensioners. But just 172 – roughly one-tenth of one percent – get pensions of $100,000 a year or more. PERS is comprised of government workers who are not in the plans that cover educators, law enforcement and the judiciary.

Overall, less than one percent of state retirees belong to the $100K Club.

The complete story – and a database of state retirees collecting $100,000-plus annual pensions – are online at NJ Spotlight – http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/16/03/13/the-list-retired-nj-officials-with-100-000-plus-public-pensions-doubles-in-five-years/

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Mark Lagerkvist is a veteran investigative reporter who has worked for CNBC, News 12, Asbury Park Press, New Jersey Watchdog and other newspaper, television and online news outlets. His work has won more than 60 journalism awards, including honors from National Press Club, Scripps Howard Foundation, and Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE). He can be reached at Mark@Lagerkvist.net.

With Christie out of race, will his NJ expenses go up?

From Mark Lagerkvist

As a presidential candidate, Gov. Chris Christie could bank on campaign funds to pay for his meals, travel and entertainment on his many travels.

Out of the race, he is likely to spend more of the $95,000 a year state expense account he receives in addition to his $175,000 annual salary. In the state budget, it is listed as “an allowance of funds not otherwise appropriated and used for official receptions on behalf of the state, the operation of an official residence, for other expenses.”

Last year, the governor used just $13,191 of that allowance and returned $81,809 to the state, according to Treasury records. The big reason: Christie was traveling outside the state on all or part of 261 days in 2015 – and when he was gone, it was usually funded by his campaign committee or other political entities.

In contrast, he spent $92,284 from the allowance during 2010. And during his first five-plus years as governor, Christie charged nearly $300,000 to the state for food and alcohol purchases.

It’s the same expense account Christie tapped to pay for food and drink concessions at MetLife Stadium.

On 82 occasions, Christie used a debit card in 2010 and 2011 to pay a total of $82,594 to Delaware North Sportservice, which operates the concessions at the home field for Giants and Jets. The governor’s office did not provide any receipts, business reasons or names of individuals entertained, but defended the expense.

On another front, taxpayers may find good news in that former candidate Christie is less likely to take out-of-state trips that require State Police protection details to travel with him.

Since Christie took office in 2010, travel expenses for the Executive Protection Unit have totaled $1.57 million. Of that amount, $1.33 million was charged to American Express cards for unspecified expenses.

The story by investigative reporter Mark Lagerkvist is now online at NJ Spotlight – http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/16/02/10/will-governor-s-expenses-go-up-now-that-christie-s-out-of-presidential-race/#

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Mark Lagerkvist is a veteran investigative reporter who previously worked for CNBC, News 12, Asbury Park Press, New Jersey Watchdog, and other news outlets. His work has won more than 60 journalism awards, including honors from National Press Club, Scripps Howard Foundation, and Investigative Reporters & Editors (IRE). He can be reached at Mark@Lagerkvist.net

Questions remain on Guadagno pension-fraud probe after State shuts door on probe

From NOT NJ Watchdog:

The shadow of a pension fraud probe continues to hang over Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno, who acted as titular head of New Jersey government for most of last year and is widely expected to run for governor in 2017.

With a recent appellate court ruling that released some records but withheld the findings of the investigation, it is unlikely the public will ever learn why the case was quietly dropped by the attorney general’s Division of Criminal Justice, where Guadagno once served as deputy director.

As Monmouth County sheriff, Guadagno made false and conflicting statements that enabled her chief officer, Michael Donovan, to collect an $85,000 a year pension in addition to his $87,500 salary. It was one of three cases the Police and Firemen’s Retirement System board of trustees referred to DCJ for investigation.

“The concerns raised are that the taxpayers of New Jersey are being defrauded,” wrote PFRS board secretary Wendy Jamison to then-Attorney General Paula Dow in June 2011. “Please provide this office with the outcome of this investigation.”

Instead, the DCJ refused to share the findings with PFRS, leaving its board without the guidance it sought on how to handle double-dipping abuses.

“Upon a thorough investigation of this matter, it is being returned to you for whatever administrative action you deem appropriate,” DCJ Corruption Bureau Chief Christine Hoffman informed PFRS in a June 2012 letter that reported the case closed, but little else.

The Appellate Division ordered the release of those two communications after a lengthy public records battle. Yet the judges allowed DCJ to keep secret a five-page memo that contains the findings of the investigation.

While the probe ended without prosecution, the underlying facts of the case continue to challenge Guadagno’s credibility.

The full story by investigative reporter Mark Lagerkvist is now online at NJ Spotlight - http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/16/01/05/state-shuts-door-on-guadagno-pension-fraud-probe-but-questions-remain/.

Mark Lagerkvis: Christie reveals travel secrets he convinced a court to keep confidential

December 8, 2015

Chris Christie’s presidential campaign is revealing his travel secrets – the same type of data the New Jersey governor convinced a court to keep confidential because it would supposedly endanger his safety.

The names and locations of 34 hotels and 32 restaurants where the Christie entourage lodged and dined were listed by Chris Christie for President Inc. in its quarterly report to the Federal Election Commission. Required by law, the 1,030-page document details $2.8 million the campaign spent on various expenses from July through September.

Those disclosures are in direct conflict with the argument Christie used to convince a judge not to release state records of travel expenses racked up by the governor’s Executive Protection Unit and paid by New Jersey taxpayers, including $1.3 million in American Express charges.

Four months ago, Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson ruled that past records of the EPU’s meals, lodging and transportation could create a potential security risk for the governor in the future. The troopers assigned to protect Christie often take the same flights and stay at the same hotels as the man they guard.

In court, Jacobson said she based her decision on a confidential sworn statement submitted under court seal by State Police Capt. Kevin Cowan, head of EPU.

“He unequivocally swears in that certification that release of the information would increase the risk of harm to the governor,” said the judge.

Yet those are the same types of details provided in the Christie campaign’s report to the FEC, publicly available online at the commission’s web site. The record includes the name of the business, address, type of expense and amount paid– though it does not identify the individuals who are traveling.

The result is a paradox: The hotels, restaurants and airlines patronized by Christie and his campaign staff using private money are a matter of public record. Yet details of the public cost caused by Christie’s White House run are kept secret by court order.

The complete story by investigative reporter Mark Lagerkvist is online at NJ Spotlight at http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/15/12/08/christie-reveals-travel-secrets-that-he-convinced-court-to-keep-confidential/.

NJ WATCHDOG: 7 deadly sins of NJ pensions = $104-B debt

For immediate release:


The fiscal future of New Jersey and Gov. Chris Christie’s presidential ambitions hang in the balance as Trenton finally faces the $104 billion deficit in the state’s retirement system.

One key is whether Christie and the Legislature can agree to plug costly loopholes and stop blatant of public pensions. If not, many public officials will continue to gorge themselves at the public trough while others make sacrifices.

A long line of governors and legislative leaders — past and present, Republicans and Democrats — share the blame for decades of unaffordable promises and political favors. As a result, pensions are underfunded by $51 billion, plus the state faces a $53 billion shortfall from retiree health benefits, according to the latest official numbers.

Joseph Blaettler is a poster boy for a governmental retirement system gone wild.

At age 46, Blaettler retired as Union City deputy police chief. Collecting nearly $135,000 a year from his pension, he will rake in more than $4.5 million by age 80, his statistical life expectancy. And that figure does not include the cost of his retiree health benefits.

“Politicians created this system, and I simply accepted what they gave me along the way,” Blaettler told New Jersey Watchdog. “If taxpayers want to get angry with someone, they need to ask their local and state politicians how they allowed the system to get to the point it is at.”

Christie is expected to propose a new round of reforms next month based on the findings of a special commission he picked to study the dilemma. The question is whether state officials can learn from their past mistakes.

During the past four years, New Jersey Watchdog investigations have focused on the “Seven Deadly Sins of New Jersey Pensions.” Reporter Mark Lagerkvist revisits the retirement shams, schemes, double-dipping, disability abuses, benefits giveaways, six-figure pensions and deadbeat behavior by state leaders.

The story is now online at http://watchdog.org/171777/deadly-sins-pensions.

NJ WATCHDOG: Ex-lawmaker doubles his NJ pension

For immediate release:

GOV. CHRISTIE'S CREW HELPS EX-LEGISLATOR DOUBLE HIS PENSION

Larry Chatzidakis needed a favor from Gov. Chris Christie’s administration.

Nearing his 62nd birthday, the former New Jersey assemblyman had never held a full-time public job. Based on his 11 years as a legislator plus other part-time government posts, Chatzidakis might qualify for a modest state pension of roughly $19,000 a year.

Then a new executive position was created at the Motor Vehicle Commission – in the face of Christie’s vow to cut the state’s work force.

Chatzidakis was hired by MVC in May 2011 at a salary of $95,000 a year. It was also an opportunity to double his annual pension to $38,630 by the time he retired this year.

“It’s a fact I was hired and I retired,” Chatzidakis told New Jersey Watchdog. “The motivation? People can think anything they want.”

The month after he retired, the longtime GOP leader from Burlington County’s Mount Laurel Township returned to the public spotlight to defend Christie’s role in the Bridgegate scandal.

Quid pro or no, the Chatzidakis case illustrates how questionable pension practices continue under the nose of a governor who championed reforms of the state retirement system.

The story is online at http://newjersey.watchdog.org. The direct link is http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2014/04/21/christie-pension-abuse/.

Gov. Christie Blames His Senior Staff For ‘Brideggate’ Scandal

Report by Mark Lagerkvist - NJ Watchdog
January 9, 2014

CHRISTIE BLAMES STAFF; TROTS TRENTON TWO-STEP TO SAVE 2016 BID

Nearly three years before the 2016 election, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is already in damage control in an effort to save his unannounced campaign for president.

Trotting the Trenton two-step, Christie took responsibility for the Bridgegate scandal while squarely placing the blame on others. According to the governor, his chief misstep was trusting a hand-picked staff that lied to him.

“I had no knowledge or involvement in this issue, in its planning or execution, and I am stunned by the abject stupidity that was shown here,” said Christie at a press conference. “This is not how the administration has conducted itself for the last four years – and not the way it will conduct itself for the next four.”

So heads rolled at the Statehouse, as a contrite Christie declared himself “embarrassed and humiliated,” then quickly cut his losses with an eye on the future.

The governor fired a key aide, severed ties with his top political adviser and apologized profusely for his office’s role in closing traffic lanes as an act of political revenge.

“Time for traffic problems in Fort Lee,” wrote deputy chief of staff Bridget Ann Kelly in a smoking gun email. Christie said he first learned of her role yesterday. Then he threw Kelly under the bus this morning.

Former chief of staff Bill Stepien was also road kill from the controversy that caused four days of massive tie-ups on the George Washington Bridge in September. As a result, Stepien will not be the new chair of the State Republican Committee and will lose his consulting gig with the Republican Governors Association.

As part of Christie’s public mea culpa, the governor said he planned to travel to Fort Lee to personally apologize to Mayor Mark Sokolich. The lane closures were intended as political revenge against Sokolich, who refused to endorse Christie in the November election.

What remains to be seen is how the local scandal and Christie’s remedial maneuvers play to a national electorate that has so far smiled upon the bombastic governor in opinion polls.

A verbal slip at the press conference belied Christie’s presidential ambitions.

“I am not a focus group-tested, blow-dried candidate…or governor,” said Christie while expounding on the authenticity of his character. “I am what I am, but I am not a bully.”

The scandal is not likely to go away soon. New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman today announced an investigation into the lane closures. In addition, the Assembly Transportation Committee probe that subpoenaed the damning emails is expected to continue.

- See more at: http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2014/01/09/christie-bridgegate-scandal/#sthash.u8Sx9rYN.dpuf

NJ WATCHDOG: Lt Gov Debate - Snooze or Big News?

For Immediate Release:


The upcoming debate between New Jersey Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno and challenger Milly Silva could be one of the most boring political occasions of this election year.

Or it could be one of the most revealing events yet. It all depends on what questions are asked Friday evening at Kean University in Union.

For three years, the GOP lieutenant governor has dodged inquiries about her involvement in a pension scandal, first reported by New Jersey Watchdog.

False statements by Guadagno as Monmouth County sheriff enabled a top aide to improperly collect $85,000 a year in retirement pay in addition to an $87,500 salary.

The controversy is the focus of a hush-hush state criminal investigation that began in 2011. Guadagno, Gov. Chris Christie and the attorney general have all declined comment through their spokespeople.

Despite an abundance of public appearances and photo opportunities, Guadagno has never held a press conference, as noted by the Philadelphia Inquirer's Matt Katz. The debate could put her on the spot for the first time.

Democrat Silva may be reluctant to tackle Guadagno on pension issues.

A newcomer to the political stage, Silva is executive vice president of 1199SEIU – a labor union that represents nearly 400,000 workers in government and the private sector.

The other person who could bring up the pension issue during the debate is the moderator, Luke Margolis of News 12 New Jersey.

As a public service, New Jersey Watchdog offers a step-by-step primer on the Guadagno pension affair, along with documentation. Click on the links to see the supporting records:

1) In 2008, then-Sheriff Guadagno hired Michael W. Donovan Jr. as “chief of law enforcement division” at a salary of $87,500 a year. She announced the appointment in a memo to her staff. The sheriff's official website identified Donovan as "sheriff's officer chief," supervising 115 subordinate officers and 30 civilian employees.

2) Donovan was already collecting an $85,000 a year state pension as a retired investigator for the county prosecutor. While double-dipping is often legal in New Jersey, this case was different.

3) Since the position of sheriff's officer chief is covered by the pension system, Donovan should have been required to stop receiving benefits, re-enroll in the retirement plan and resume contributions to the pension fund.

4) Instead, county payroll records, the oath of office and a news release by Guadagno identified Donovan as the sheriff's "chief warrant officer" – a similar sounding, but low-ranking position that's not in the pension system. A chief warrant officer is responsible for serving warrants and other legal documents.

5) Yet on Guadagno’s organizational chart, Donovan was listed as chief of law enforcement. The position of chief warrant officer was not on the chart.

6) While sheriff's chief, Donovan pocketed $227,000 in checks from PFRS. Since he did not re-enroll in the pension plan, he avoided another $18,000 in contributions. If the state decides Donovan violated pension law, he could be forced to repay $245,000.

7) Guadagno is also at risk. Under state statute, "Any person who shall knowingly make any false statement or shall falsify or permit to be falsified any record or records of this retirement system...shall be guilty of a misdemeanor."

8) The attorney general's Division of Criminal Justice began an investigation in May 2011 at the behest of a pension board, according to a sworn statement by a state official.

9) Rather than use his constitutional authority to appoint an independent investigator, Christie allowed DCJ to run the case – an apparent conflict-of-interest. Guadagno is a former DCJ deputy director and now Christie's second-in-command. She sits in the governor's cabinet alongside the attorney general, who is in charge of DCJ.

10) Unless there are criminal charges – an extreme unlikelihood given the political circumstances – DCJ will not comment or release records of the investigation, according to a sworn statement by Deputy Attorney General Anthony A. Picione.

11) If Guadagno and Christie get their way, the case will be swept under the rug.

Any questions?

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The story is now online at http://newjersey.watchdog.org. For media inquiries, contact Mark Lagerkvist at Mark@Lagerkvist.net.

New Jersey Watchdog Wins New York Press Club Award

Congratulations to reporter Mark Lagerkvist who has been honored  for his story on Double-Dipping Public Officials!

Alexandria, Va—New Jersey Watchdog, an investigative news site of the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity, has won a New York Press Club Award for a report on “retired” public officials who collect both paychecks and pensions from the Garden State.

The story, by reporter Mark Lagerkvist, was published last August and was selected by judges in the category of political coverage.

“Double-dipping enables public officials in New Jersey to game the system at taxpayer expense,” said Lagerkvist. “The public deserves to know about a practice that drains money from state pension funds already facing a $42 billion debt.”

Lagerkvist’s investigation uncovered five dozen retired state employees back on New Jersey’s payroll– one third hired under Governor Chris Christie, who boasted about his efforts to reform government.

“We are extremely proud of Mark and happy that he is being recognized for this ground-breaking investigation of New Jersey public officials,” said Jason Stverak, president of the Franklin Center. “His work has shed light onto a system that has been abused for years.”

The New York Press Club Awards will be presented on Monday, June 10, at the Press Club’s Awards Presentation Dinner at Manhattan’s Water Club. You can view all the NYPC award winners here.

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The Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity is a leader in non-profit journalism. It was founded in 2009 to address falling standards in the media as well as a steep falloff in reporting on state government and provides professional training and assistance with a mission of exposing waste, fraud, and abuse in government.

Trentonian Editorial: Dogging the Guv

This editorial published in the Trentonion today ties in nicely with the last post pertaining to NJ Watchdog and it's investigative reporter Mark Lagerkvist.

Lagerkvist has doggedly pursued the issue of public officials who retire from one public sector service jobs, start collecting a public pension and then either gets appointed to - through nepotism or cronyism - or elected to another public sector job and collect a salary from the state as well as their pensions. This type of public tax payer abuse is known as double-dipping and the Christie administration has done nothing but condone these abuses:

Gov. Christie travels the land hailed by enthusiastic crowds eager to sample his blunt-talk, no-nonsense Jersey routine — the stuff that made him a star of YouTube. But everywhere the Guv goes, there’s this growling pit bull, its jaws firmly clamped on the gubernatorial ankle. Can’t shake the thing. Dang dawg.

The dang dawg would be the N.J. Watchdog. N.J. Watchdog is nothing if not tenacious. The dawg is kenneled in Red Bank, under the aegis of veteran investigative reporter Mark Lagerkvist. This dang dawg refuses to be impressed by the fact that the governor is an important personage who was on the short list of prospective VPs.

The dawg snarls and barks at the Christie administration like it’s nothing more than another assemblage of backroom pols trying to put one over on the folks who just arrived on the back of the pickup with a load of turnips out of Millway or some such deep South Jersey backwater. Dang dawg has Christie’s No. 2 treed right now and won’t go away no matter how much the administration keeps shouting, “Go on, git outta here!” No. 2, Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, sits up there on the limb, waiting to see what happens next. Dang dawg’s waiting her out.

Here’s the current status: Dawg has put the state government in the peculiar position of dragging itself into court. This has to be one of the oddest antics in the annals of Blackstone. The state in effect is suing itself to keep itself from handing over records N.J. Watchdog has demanded. The records pertain to possibly embarrassing — or worse — finagling Guadagno allegedly did when she was Monmouth County Sheriff.

Dang dawg alleges that she pulled a slick one to enable an aid to do a little double dipping at the expense of taxpayers. She allegedly classified one Michael Donovan Jr. as a lowly underling in charge of arrest warrants when actually he was her chief sheriff’s officer and paid as such. This enabled him to go on collecting an $85,000 public pension on top of his $87,500 sheriff’s office salary — all in alleged contravention of the statutes of the Great State of New Jersey and the peace and dignity thereof, to use the flowery verbiage favored by law enforcement.

One arm of the state government, the N.J. Government Records Council, was going through the pension records pursuant to dang dawg’s demand. But now another arm of government has hauled that arm into court to enjoin it from releasing said documents. Meanwhile, the Lt. Guv sits up there on the limb, and dang dog stands down there growling about double dipping and how Christie’s vaunted pension reform overlooks what could be New Jersey’s official state dance if the square dance weren’t already it.

And so we wait. No problem, so far, for the Guv, as he travels about the land. Nobody out there in Iowa or Wisconsin asking the Guv, “What’s all the barking?” It’s gotta be unfomfortable for No. 2, though, up there in that tree.

NJ WATCHDOG: Cracking the Cover-Up of Christie's #2

For Immediate Release:

NJ RECORDS COUNCIL REJECTS TREASURY'S BID TO AVOID REVIEW OF RECORDS ON GUADAGNO'S $245K PENSION SCHEME

TRENTON — New Jersey's Government Records Council rejected the state Treasury's latest attempt to avoid disclosing documents related to an alleged $245,000 pension scheme involving Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno.

GRC voted 4-0 Tuesday to deny the Treasury's request for a stay and reconsideration of an Aug. 31 order that requires its state pension officials to turn over 26 records for inspection. After review, the council will decide what documents, if any, should be released to New Jersey Watchdog.

Treasury officials gathered the records while reviewing allegations that Monmouth County sheriff's officer Michael Donovan Jr. improperly collected nearly $85,000 a year in state retirement pay in addition to his $87,500 annual salary.

At the center of the controversy are false statements made by Guadagno when she was Monmouth County sheriff. New Jersey Watchdog first reported the scandal in 2010.

The stakes are high for Guadagno, whose political future could be in jeopardy. Under state statute, "Any person who shall knowingly make any false statement or shall falsify or permit to be falsified any record or records of this retirement system ... shall be guilty of a misdemeanor."

For the complete story, visit http://newjersey.watchdog.org.  For media inquiries, contact Mark Lagerkvist at Mark@Lagerkvist.net.