(TRENTON) – Legislation sponsored by Assemblymen Herb Conaway, M.D. and Jack Conners to ensure county bridge commissions comply with the same pay-to-play prohibitions applicable to counties while also imposing greater pay-to-play safeguards on county bridge commissions and their contractors was advanced Monday by an Assembly panel.
Under the bill (A-3097), a county bridge commission would be prohibited from entering into a contract exceeding $17,500 if the contractor has made a reportable campaign contribution during the preceding 18-month period to a candidate committee or political party committee in that county, if the candidate or a member of that political party is serving in an elective public office in that county when the contract is awarded.
“We’ve imposed tough campaign contribution restrictions at levels throughout New Jersey government, and now it’s time to ensure taxpayers receive this additional protection at this level,” said Conaway (D-Burlington/Camden). “County bridge commissioners should have to face the same tough prohibitions as anyone else. It’s that simple.”
“Taxpayers deserve the confidence that the campaign contribution prohibitions from contractors will also be imposed at county bridge commissions,” said Conners (D-Burlington/Camden). “If these restrictions are good for everyone else at the state and local level to ensure transparency and combat the taint of money in politics, then they should also be applicable to county bridge commissioners. It’s the right thing to do.”
The bill would also prohibit a business entity that has entered into a contract exceeding $17,500 with a bridge commission from making reportable campaign contributions during the term of that contract to a candidate committee or political party committee in that county, if the candidate or a member of that political party is serving in an elective public office in that county when the contract was awarded.
Finally, the bill would prohibit applicable political committees from accepting campaign contributions from county bridge commission contractors during the term of the contract.
The bill was released 5-0 by the Assembly State Government Committee.
