NJ's 'secret' public records

For Immediate Release:

CHRISTIE ADMINISTRATION CLAIMS RECORDS OF PUBLIC RECORDS ARE SECRET

Is a government's record of how it keeps public records a public record?

Not in New Jersey, state officials claim. Especially if that record might prove embarrassing to the administration of Gov. Chris Christie.

The Treasury denied a New Jersey Watchdog reporter's request for details on how its payroll and pension databases are kept. The indexes, known as record layouts, would show whether the agency collects data that would enable it to easily track state employees who collect both salaries and pensions – a widespread practice in New Jersey known as "double-dipping."

The reporter filed a lawsuit against Treasury with Mercer County Superior Court in Trenton. A hearing date has yet to be scheduled.

The reporter requested the record layouts in July under the Open Public Records Act, which requires governmental agencies to respond within seven business days. Instead, Treasury took 64 business days to decide, including six extensions for extra time.

Then after nearly three months of delays, Treasury declared its records of records were "not government records" under state law, denying the request in its entirety. 

Two years ago, Treasury informed the State Legislature it had "no estimate" of the extent or cost of double-dipping. The lingering question is whether Christie's bean counters were lazy, less than forthcoming, politically motivated or all of the above.

The story is now online at http://newjersey.watchdog.org.  The direct link is http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2013/11/18/9451/.  

Lt. Gov. Guadagno Breaks Silence on Double-Dipping

For Immediate Release:


New Jersey Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno – as Monmouth County sheriff in 2008 – made conflicting and misleading statements to enable her top aide to collect an $85,000 a year pension plus an $87,500 salary.

Now in the heat of a political campaign, Guadagno has broken a long silence. She claims her maneuvers benefitted taxpayers.

"It saved the taxpayers of Monmouth County $50,000 for the year, put a uniformed officer on the street, put a well-qualified retired law enforcement officer in his place," Guadagno told Associated Press in a national wire story.

Her explanation overlooked several key facts:

• The aide, Michael W. Donovan, collected $228,000 he otherwise would not have received from a state pension fund. He also avoided paying $17,000 in new contributions to the Police and Firemen's Retirement System.
• The incident triggered an investigation in 2011 by the state Division of Criminal Justice. The probe was requested by the PFRS board of trustees.
• Despite a glaring conflict of interest – Guadagno was DCJ's former deputy director – Gov. Chris Christie failed to appoint an independent investigator or prosecutor to handle the case.
• DCJ has refused to reveal the results of its investigation. A New Jersey Watchdog reporter is suing the state in Mercer County Superior Court for records of the probe.

The Guadagno-Donovan pension controversy was first revealed by a New Jersey Watchdog investigation in 2010.

The full story is now online at http://newjersey.watchdog.org. The direct link is http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2013/11/01/9333/.

Records Council Helps Christie Avoid Scandal

For Immediate Release:

The New Jersey agency entrusted with ensuring access to public records may be Gov. Chris Christie's biggest ally for keeping a pension scandal secret in an election year.

After a sudden decision last year not to review state Treasury documents that could incriminate Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno – Christie's running mate – the Government Records Council sat on the case five months before transferring it to the Office of Administrative Law.

The council voted in December to punt the case to OAL. Yet GRC staff waited until this month to send the file, despite an assurance the referral would only take a week or two.

"The delay was due to a work backlog in the Government Records Council," said spokeswoman Lisa Ryan. She would not elaborate.

As a result, a 2-year-old appeal by New Jersey Watchdog returns to Square One. It now appears unlikely the case will decided – or documents released – until after the November gubernatorial election.

The circumstances raise doubt on whether GRC can be trusted with disputes over executive branch records. All members of the council are either Christie cabinet members or public members appointed by the governor. GRC's executive director, Brandon Minde, is Christie's former assistant legal counsel.

Ironically, Christie campaigned on a platform of reform and open government when he was elected governor in 2009.

The complete story is now online at http://newjersey.watchdog.org. The direct link to the article is http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2013/05/21/8551/

TOO HOT TO HANDLE? NJ RECORDS COUNCIL QUITS GUADAGNO CASE

For Immediate Release:

TRENTON — In a sudden reversal, the New Jersey Government Records Council has decided the documents detailing Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno's involvement in a $245,000 pension scandal are too hot for the agency to handle.

The GRC voted unanimously Tuesday to quit the case and not review the records it twice ordered the State Treasury to submit for inspection. Instead, the matter will be sent to an administrative law unit in Gov. Chris Christie's executive branch for a decision, a process likely to take months.

Despite a victory in Appellate Court last month, the Council lost its will to pursue a complaint likely to embarrass or implicate Guadagno, who will remain as Christie's running mate for the 2013 gubernatorial election.

"Because of the nature of the subject of this complaint, this complaint should be referred to the Office of Administrative Law..." according to a draft of the GRC staff recommendation released just before the meeting.

But as soon as the meeting started, the GRC went into executive session to discuss the case in private – and change the wording of the resolution it would adopt.

When the public was invited to return, the reference to "the nature of the subject of this complaint" and its political inference had disappeared. It was replaced by an assertion the agency did not have enough resources or staff to finish the case it started.

For the full story, visit http://newjersey.watchdog.org.