Two GOP legislators make push to challenge special state grants

StarLedger ^ | September 22 2005 | Rick Hepp

[BATNF]

Two GOP legislators make push to challenge special state grants

Thursday, September 22, 2005

BY RICK HEPP Star-Ledger Staff

Two Assembly Republicans yesterday announced an effort to mount a legal challenge against New Jersey officials they contend use politics as the only reason to award special state grants.

Assemblymen Sean Kean and Steve Corodemus (both R-Monmouth) said they have enlisted an Asbury Park attorney to raise money for a lawsuit seeking to stop the state Treasurer's Office, Attorney General's Office and Department of Environmental Protection from distributing about $75 million in unspent money for certain grants. It would then ask the court to appropriate the money to towns based on merit.

The Republican lawmakers say the programs administered by those agencies, which went toward property tax assistance, Homeland Security equipment purchases and parks improvements, were given out at the direction of the governor's office and Democratic legislators rather than on the merit of applications submitted by towns seeking funds.

"On its face, it's unethical and we believe it's unconstitutional," Corodemus said. "Money has been dished out on a partisan reasoning, not on an equitable bases. This has got to stop and apparently this is the only way we can make it stop."

The announcement comes days after a Star-Ledger review of 10 grant programs created in the last three years showed that state officials repeatedly ignored a carefully crafted application process and instead distributed the money to satisfy wishes of key Democratic lawmakers.

The grants were created after former Gov. James E. McGreevey took office and Democrats gained control of the Assembly in 2002 as a way to avoid the annual criticism they got from newspapers for awarding state aid to the districts of key lawmakers, according to five Democratic and Republican insiders.

The grants helped towns pay for everything from Homeland Security equipment and tourism promotion, to library shelves and ramps for the disabled. They also went to expand fire departments, buy playground equipment and aid the destitute.

Corodemus said the lawsuit could investigate all of the grants, but they wanted to initially focus on the programs that still had money.

The assemblymen said the $75 million includes $60 million intended for the Property Tax Assistance and Community Development Grant program in the Treasurer's Office. Another $14.6 million earmarked for Homeland Security equipment remains unspent by the attorney general, while more than $550,000 is still sitting in the DEP's coffers as part of its Livable Communities Grants, they said.

Roger Shatzkin, spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, declined to comment because the lawsuit has not been filed. Representatives from the Treasurer's Office did not return a call for comment..

DEP spokesman Fred Mumford said, "According to our records all funds for fiscal year 2005 have been obligated for specific projects. Only $45 appears to be uncommitted at this point."

The assemblymen said they asked Asbury Park attorney Thomas DeSeno to organize a fund to raise money for a potential lawsuit because campaign finance laws forbid them from doing that while they are running for re-election. They hope local officials from both parties will support the fund, noting that many Democratic towns in Republican legislative districts were also ignored under the grants.