Former NJ state senator convicted of bribery and pension fraud
November 19, 2008 Former chair of the state Senate Budget Committee Wayne Bryant was convicted November 18 on 12 counts of bribery and fraud. Serving 25 years as a lawmaker, the conviction makes Bryant one of the most powerful New Jersey public officials to be found guilty of federal corruption in recent years.
N.J. GOP's requests for public records criticized by Senate Dems
October 27, 2008: Senate Democrats said today that requests by Republican Assembly staffers for dozens of public records over two years suggested a costly fishing expedition by the GOP on state time.
"It has nothing to do with state legislative business and that's what we're supposed to be working on," said Kathleen Crotty, the top Democratic staffer in the Senate.
Copies of Open Public Records Act requests released today by the Democrats show the Republicans were seeking information about legislators holding jobs or elective office outside the Statehouse. Read the full article here.
County clerk defends $24.5G in trips
October 20, 2008: Republican Ocean County Clerk Carl W. Block spent about $24,560 over the past two years to attend conventions, conferences and trade shows all over the country, often accompanied by his deputy and a confidential aide, who in some instances took trips on their own, according to public records. Read the full article here.
Documents reveal how Dems controlled $128 million fund
October 17, 2008: Democratic legislators divvied up taxpayer money as they pleased, with government insiders, political bosses and even a powerful congressman seeking portions of a multimillion-dollar pork-barrel fund now at the center of a federal corruption trial.
Documents released late Friday by the state Department of Treasury show how Democrats controlled a $128 million fund where officials petitioned for everything from $5,000 to $2 million. In many cases grants worth hundreds of thousands of dollars were sought with no formal applications or explanation other than a lawmaker’s name. Read the full article here.
Brightbill: Town could release résumés and financial disclosure forms
October 16, 2008: During the workshop session on Monday, Oct. 2, Middletown Deputy Mayor Pamela Brightbill raised an issue regarding résumés.
Brightbill said she would like residents to be made aware their résumés, once submitted to the Middletown Talent Bank, could be released if requested by the public, according to the Open Public Records Act (OPRA).
Additionally, the deputy mayor said financial disclosure forms also fall under the category of public records, and are thus releasable documents. Read the full article here.
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