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STENDER STATEMENT ON CHRISTIE’S CONDITIONAL VETO OF CIVIL SERVICE REFORM BILL

Assemblywoman Linda Stender, the prime sponsor of legislation recently passed to overhaul and improve the state’s civil service system, today issued the following statement on Governor Christie’s conditional veto derailing the process:

“The changes we made are designed to create a more flexible and open system while protecting the public from corruption and patronage. Considering how much emphasis the Governor has placed on civil service reform as a key to lowering property taxes, it’s amazing that he has let this bill sit on his desk for nearly two months and is now going to delay its implementation even further.

“We worked hard to create a bill that takes into account the concerns of everyone involved in this process, but unfortunately the Governor prefers to employ a ‘My Way or the Highway’ approach.

“The cesspool at the Passaic Valley Sewerage Authority is a prime example of why we need civil service reform to protect taxpayer dollars. There would have been an open and competitive process in place requiring hiring tests. Instead we see the awarding of outrageous salaries and blatant nepotism when it comes to hiring practices. This is the worst case scenario when you eliminate civil service protection,” said Stender (D-Middlesex/Somerset/Union).