Pallone to Volunteer for Union Beach Day of Caring

UNION BEACH, NJ – On Sunday, April 13, 2014, at 8:30am, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) will join Starbucks employees and families from Monmouth &beach clean Middlesex County, to volunteer for the Union Beach Day of Caring sponsored by Starbucks to mark National Volunteer Week. Volunteers will be able to participate in several activities, including painting homes, removing debris, rebuilding homes, and cleaning up local beaches and parks. Congressman Pallone will also be joined by Union Beach Mayor Paul Smith.

This Day of Caring is part of Starbucks’ fourth annual Global Month of Service, where employees and customers work together to lead community service projects focused on the individual needs of the neighborhoods where they live and work.


WHO:
Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06)
Union Beach Mayor Paul Smith

WHAT:
Participating in the Union Beach Day of Caring activities

WHERE:
650 Poole Avenue
Union Beach, NJ 07735

WHEN:
Sunday, April 13, 2014
8:30am-9:30am

Army Corps Levee Repair Contract Awarded

From Middletown Alerts:

Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced that the contract has been awarded and work will begin this month on the $3.4 million project to repair levees and remove debris resulting from Superstorm Sandy. The project includes repairs to the levee in Middletown between Bray Avenue and Port Monmouth Road.

This Army Corps of Engineers project is funded at full federal expense and was made possible by the Sandy aid package passed by Congress. The contractor, Di Iorio Construction Corp. of Rutherford, New Jersey, is required to complete the work within 210 days of starting.

Read more ... Here

Pallone Announces More than $59 Million to Clear Debris from NJ Waterways

Washington, DC – On Tuesday, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced $59,741,909 in new Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding to reimburse the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for the use of contractors to remove an estimated 850,000 cubic yards of sand and other sediment from waterways in the central region of the state. The additional sand and sediment as a result of Superstorm Sandy were potential threats to navigation in the waterways.

“Getting New Jersey back to pre-Sandy conditions remains my number one priority,” said Pallone. “The state faced so many unanticipated costs after Sandy, and it is necessary that FEMA help cover the costs after such a statewide emergency. New Jersey’s navigable waterways are used for commerce, travel, and leisure, and I’m pleased that this very sizable grant will help in removing threatening or impassable blocks.”

This FEMA grant covers 90% of the entire project, which includes the removal of sand and sediment that may block the waterways and verification that the waterways are not longer threatened with debris. All debris will be recycled or disposed of in accordance with local, state, and federal guidelines.

Pallone Announces FEMA Grants to Reimburse the Cleaning of New Jersey Waterways

Washington, DC – Today, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced new Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding to reimburse the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for the use of contractors to load, haul and dispose of debris from the state’s waterways as a result of Superstorm Sandy.

“Getting New Jersey back to pre-Sandy conditions remains my number one priority,” said Pallone. “The state faced so many unanticipated costs after Sandy, and it is necessary that FEMA help cover the costs after such a statewide emergency. It’s important to keep our state’s waterways free from unsafe and unsightly debris, and these grants have helped.”

FEMA has awarded two grants to DEP that will cover 75% of each debris removal project for New Jersey’s waterways. $23,160,047 will be awarded for the statewide debris removal project, and $15,994,244 will be awarded for the removal of debris in the Northern Region of the state.

Me Thinks, Mercantante Protests Too Much About "Monday Morning Quarterbacking" Surrounding AshBritt

Yesterday Middletown's Township Administrator Tony Mercantante, had an Op-Ed published in the Asbury Park Press and online at the Atlantic Highlands Herald.

In his commentary Mr. Mercantante lambastes all the "Monday morning quarterbacking going on"  that has been surrounding the controversial decision of the no-bid contracts that were awarded to AshBritt Inc., for Hurricane Sandy related debris removal.

I think Mr. Mercantante protests to much. After all, if he and the Township Committee did their due diligence as other towns had done instead of jumping on Chris Christie's bandwagon once again, the town could have saved nearly half of the $14M it spent on debris removal!

Saying that there was no time to shop around for a better price is nonsense when you're dealing with taxpayers dollars. The rush to have debris removed from the streets didn't get people back into their homes any faster than if they would have waited a week or so for a better price from a local hauler as opposed to giving AshBritt millions to do the job.

It's funny how the sleight of hand in Middletown works, Gerry Scharfenberger has repeatedly stated that the town couldn't go out and hire small contractors to pick up the storm debris but yet the township committee passed numerous resolutions in the days following Hurricane Sandy to do just that, after giving the main no-bid contract for debris removal to AshBritt.

• 12-247 - Emergency Contract With Ashbritt, Inc For Storm Debris Removal Services
• 12-248 - Emergency Contract With Arcadis-US, Inc For Storm Debris Management Monitoring & Technical Assistance Services
• 12-249 - Emergency Contract With Bennett Property & Design Works For Curbside Collection & Trucking of Storm Debris
• 12-251 - Emergency Contract With Sutton Trucking LLC FOr Curbside Collection & Trucking Of Storm Debris
• 12-252 - Emergency Contract With Montecalvo Disposal Services For Loading & Trucking Of Storm Debris.
• 12-268 - Ratifying Remaining Emergency Contracts In Relation to Superstorm Sandy.

In a related story to the last post, the Buono for Governor campaign issued a press release earlier today highlighting an editorial that ran in yesterday's Daily Record titled "True costs of AshBritt deal could grow". The editorial goes into a little more detail about the circumstances behind Governor Christie's decision to issue a "piggybacked" no-bid contract to AsBritt Inc. for Hurricane Sandy related debris removal and Senator Lautenberg's recent letter advising the govern of FEMA's reimbursement concerns:

Here's what the editorial had to say:

Gov. Chris Christie says a lot of the right things about how government should be run efficiently and responsibly.

But, like most any other politician, he doesn’t always lead by example.

The governor has, for instance, railed against New Jersey’s plentiful authorities and agencies that past administrations have turned into patronage pits. Yet he’s been more than willing to push people with minimal credentials into jobs at the Port Authority, arguing among other things that because he had already gotten rid of so many more unqualified people there that it’s all good. Well, no, it isn’t.

The stench of the AshBritt debris removal deal also isn’t going away. After superstorm Sandy ripped through the state, Christie quickly signed on with AshBritt, “piggybacking” onto a Connecticut contract with the same company, which is another way of saying that New Jersey simply adopted the Connecticut deal without bothering to negotiate one of its own.

It was a no-bid operation, in other words, the kind Christie in the past has often found so offensive. The administration spin is that since the deal was the product of competitive bidding in Connecticut, that was good enough. The state was also operating with a sense of great urgency given the overwhelming storm damage, suggesting speed was of the essence.

But was it that important to get a deal in place that quickly? Several Shore towns chose to bypass AshBritt and strike separate deals on their own, reportedly at lower costs and without any great concerns about inferior work or delays. It also doesn’t help that Christie is friendly with former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who advised Christie to sign up AshBritt because of that company’s work along the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina. Barbour, however, just happens to be the founding partner of a lobbying firm that represents AshBritt. The chairman of that firm held a fund-raiser for Christie’s re-election in Virginia in February. Christie would frown on such cozy relationships if they involved other lawmakers and businesses.

Now comes word of a supposed warning from FEMA issued shortly after the AshBritt contract was sealed that federal reimbursements could be at risk because of the piggyback nature of the contract. That bit of news was delivered to Christie by U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg in a February letter.

Both the Christie and Lautenberg camps said the correspondence is merely routine, and considering the Democrat Lautenberg and Republican Christie have often been at political odds, it’s no surprise that Lautenberg may have simply wanted to give the threat a bit more juice than it really deserves.

It does, however, highlight one thing: the feds don’t view the state’s no-bid piggybacking onto the Connecticut deal as simply a convenient time-saver. Fact is, there were likely better deals out there that would have cost less, and help extend the overall reach of the Sandy aid. Some towns seem to have found those deals. And the more money unnecessarily poured into AshBritt, the less there is for other relief needs.

For Middletown, Costs Of Using No-Bid AshBritt Contact Could Be Costly

On Friday of last week the Newark Star-Ledger ran the story "FEMA warned Christie administration that AshBritt contract could jeopardize federal funding". The article stated that a letter was send to Governor Christie in February, by U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg, advising him that FEMA officials had contacted his office to advise, that due to the Governor's use of a "piggybacked" no-bid contract to hire AshBritt Inc. for debris removal after Hurricane Sandy, the State and therefore local municipalities, were in jeopardy of losing federal reimbursement funds due to the fact that AshBritt may have overcharged for there services. FEMA found that towns that did not use Ashbritt for their clean-up needs, struck better deals with local debris removal firms than if the would have used Ashbritt, thus saving US taxpayer money.

For people living in the communities affected by Hurricane Sandy, like Middletown, this could be huge problem if they "piggybacked" onto the State's deal to used Ashbritt for their clean-up needs after the storm.

Many of these towns are expecting to be reimbursed up to 75% of the cost for debris removal  and are planning this year's budgets around this figure. Middletown for example just introduced its budget and is expecting to be reimbursed upwards of $3 million over the next couple of years from FEMA for storm related clean-up costs.

We are learning now however, that Middletown and other towns may not see reimbursements upwards of 75%, it could be far less, which in turn would wreak havoc with tax levys sometime this year and later down the road.

Buono: Mounting Pay-to-play Concerns Regarding AshBritt Inc. Contract

Press Release:
February 25, 2013


Yesterday, former Mississippi Governor and current lobbyist Haley Barbour confirmed to the Star-Ledger that he made calls to Governor Christie on behalf of AshBritt Inc. to secure the Hurricane Sandy debris removal contract.

Gubernatorial candidate and State Senator Barbara Buono released the following statement:

"This weekend, a peculiar ally came to Governor Christie's defense regarding his handling of the bid process for Hurricane Sandy debris removal contracts: AshBritt Inc. lobbyist Haley Barbour. Mr. Barbour admitted to proposing a no-bid solution to Governor Christie and suggested that his client receive the contract. The details of the lobbying process come only days before Mr. Barbour's partner is to hold a fundraiser in Virginia for the Governor.

"Following allegations of pay-to-play political donations, the continued lack of appropriate oversight, and the Governor's unwillingness to operate transparently, New Jerseyans are entitled to a full accounting of how AshBritt Inc.'s political connections played a role in receiving the contract. As the facts stand now, there is simply no way for New Jersey's taxpayers to know whether money designated to rebuild after Hurricane Sandy is going to the families who need it or to the profits for multi-million dollar, politically connected corporations."

Below is a timeline of events preceding Mr. Barbour's admission of directly influencing Governor Christie's decision to select AshBritt Inc. at the request of the firm.

• Fall 2005 - Then Mississippi Governor, Haley Barbour hires AshBritt Inc. to remove debris caused by Hurricane Katrina.
• October 2012 - AshBritt Inc. calls its lobbyist, Haley Barbour, asking him to talk with Governor Christie about using the firm to clean up debris left by Hurricane Sandy.
• October 2012 - During Hurricane Sandy, Chris Christie awards a no-bid contract to AshBritt Inc.
• November 2012 - Days after being awarded a state contract, AshBritt Inc. donates $50,000 to the Republican Governors Association, a group Mr. Barbour once chaired and is now dedicated to reelecting Governor Christie.
• February 2012 - Ed Rogers, a founding partner in Mr. Barbour's lobbying firm, holds a Virginia fundraiser for Governor Christie.

***********************

Hmmm, Middletown has spent nearly $14 million on Hurricane Sandy clean-up, a ton of which was paid to AshBritt, and we still have debris and garbage littering the neighborhoods of North Middletown, Port Monmouth, Belford and Leonardo.  I wonder how much of those taxpayer dollars went to finance donations to the Republican Governors Association?

Congressman Pallone Announces $6.4 Million in FEMA funding for Middletown, Long Branch and Asbury Park

Friday, November 30, 2012

WASHINGTON DC – Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) today announced that three towns in the Sixth Congressional District, Middletown Township, Long Branch and Asbury Park, were awarded grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to reimburse the towns for debris removal following Hurricane Sandy. This is the second round of funding announced by FEMA to reimburse municipalities for Hurricane Sandy related expenses.

The grants allocate $4 million to Middletown, $1.4 million to Long Branch and over $1 million to Asbury Park for debris removal costs after Hurricane Sandy made landfall in New Jersey. FEMA awards these Public Assistance grants on a rolling basis after receiving applications from the state, which coordinates the process with local governments.

 “The resources of our municipalities are stretched thin after Hurricane Sandy,” said Pallone. “This FEMA funding will pay for a significant portion of the extra expenses incurred by the town as they responded to the storm and made sure their residents and roadways were safe.”

 Congressman Pallone joined Congressional colleagues representing areas affected by Hurricane Sandy this week to request an emergency supplemental appropriations bill that will help New Jersey recovery and rebuild from the devastating effects of the storm.

“I look forward to working with FEMA to make sure our New Jersey towns in the Sixth Congressional District have the resources they need to move forward and rebuild after Hurricane Sandy,” Pallone added.

Pallone Announces over $6million for Sandy Debris Cleanup on Shore

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) announced the first round of funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to assist with cleanup efforts for areas impacted by Hurricane Sandy. The FEMA funding will assist with debris removal from Hurricane Sandy including $6,644,850 for three towns in the Sixth Congressional District.

Plainfield, Manalapan and Keansburg will each receive $1,125,000, $3,937,500 and $1,582,350 respectively to help cover the cost of debris removal including felled trees and sand from Hurricane Sandy.

“This FEMA assistance is going to play an important role in rebuilding our communities,” said Pallone. “Hurricane Sandy produced an extraordinary amount of debris from trees, sand and other materials that need to be removed so we can begin the recovery process, and this funding is an important first step.”

The funding from FEMA is the first round of Public Assistance grants based on applications made by municipalities to help with the cost of storm recovery efforts. Future funds will be distributed to help reimburse local governments on a rolling basis.