Jersey City mayoral candidates accuse each other of 'pay to play'

By Terrence T. McDonald/The Jersey Journal
February 04, 2013 at 11:00 AM

As Jersey City debates whether to tighten its laws restricting political donors from receiving city contracts, the top two mayoral candidates in May?s city election are lobbing ?pay to play? accusations at each other.

The re-election campaign of Mayor Jerramiah Healy, who is seeking a third full term, is blasting opponent Ward E City Councilman Steve Fulop for accepting tens of thousands of dollars in campaign cash from firms that have been accused of skirting pay-to-play bans in other municipalities.

Meanwhile, Fulop?s camp is calling foul on Healy for accepting a $750 donation from developer Hartz Mountain Industries and $4,500 from United Water. Hartz has received city tax breaks in the past, while United Water has a $14.4 million contract with the city Municipal Utilities Authority.

The Fulop donors cited by Healy?s campaign Sayreville-based CME Associates, which has contributed $38,000 to Fulop?s campaign, and Highland Park accounting firm Hodulik and Morrison, which has given $10,000 were featured in an April 8, 2012 Star-Ledger story detailing how companies skirt municipal pay-to-play bans by contributing to political action committees that then contribute to candidates in municipalities where the companies do business.

The firms do not have contracts with Jersey City, so they are not barred from contributing to the Downtown councilman?s mayoral bid. But their contributions are evidence that they want to ?make a buck in Jersey City? if Fulop is elected on May 14, said Healy campaign spokesman Joshua Henne.

?Time and again it is becoming increasingly clear that Fulop will do or say anything in his bid to seize power, even when it is at taxpayer expense,? Henne said.

Fulop, who led the charge to adopt the city?s first pay-to-play ban in 2008 over the objections of the Healy administration, has attempted in recent weeks to make those restrictions even stricter, but Healy has vetoed both attempts.

Current city law bars city vendors who receive some ?no bid? contracts from contributing more than $300 annually to any mayoral or council candidate. Fulop and his council allies sought to change the threshold to $200, and to include candidates for other offices.

Redevelopers designated by the city for specific projects are barred from making any contributions.

The Healy campaign?s latest accusations are a ?desperate attempt? to confuse voters, said Fulop campaign spokesman Bruno Tedeschi.

As for Healy?s donations from Hartz and United Water, the city?s legal team told Fulop in a Jan. 25 email that they are not violations of the city?s pay-to-play ban. Hartz is currently not a designated redeveloper for any city project, and United Water?s contract is with the MUA, not the city, Signoreli writes.

Heather Taylor, spokeswoman for Citizens Campaign, a group that has worked with city officials to draft a new pay-to-play ban, said Healy?s donations are not violations of the city?s ban, though Taylor said they are ?a violation of the spirit of the law.?

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