Newark City Council to vote on a wide range of reforms including redevelopment pay to play.....

See NY Times article-

Ethics Bills Up for Vote in Newark

" The measures, a centerpiece of Mayor Cory Booker?s drive to shake up City Hall, would cap campaign contributions at $300 for individuals who do business with Newark, ban all donations from those engaged in redevelopment projects and require builders seeking zoning variances to publicly reveal past political contributions."

?This legislation will put Newark on the cutting edge of pay-to-play reform not only in New Jersey but in the nation,? said Harry Pozycki, chairman of the Citizens? Campaign, an advocacy group that helped draft the legislation. ?It basically draws a line in the sand against corrupting influences and says Newark is open for honest business.?

Jersey City: Are we there yet?

Among the many other issues and happenings at the City Council meeting this evening, Civic JC will follow up on our request for the City Council to introduce the model Redevelopment Play to Play ordinance at this meeting.

I've never done this before. But I'm going to post just to bump this thread. Folks, this is important. Real important.

There is a disclosure requirement for professionals whose services are utiized by developer/redevelopers in the application processes.

Key Components:

* Prohibits contributions to local elected officials, the municipal political parties, and county political parties from developers from the time notice is given (or 1 year prior, whichever is shorter) through the completion of the redevelopment project.

* Requires that developers and their professionals disclose all political contributions.

* Individuals who break the law, or try to circumvent it are banned from receiving redevelopment agreements for 4 years.

Daniel Levin, president
Civic JC

I believe, effective this year, there is a state-wide "pay to play" ordinance applying to contractors.

This is the next step. The council should definitely support this law.

Joshua

This proposal deserves support. A measure like this is long overdue in Jersey City. Would it apply only to the actual developers or would it also apply to their associated attorneys, architects, contractors, etc? The developers themselves are just the tip of the iceberg when you review the campaign finance filings of some of our local officials.

Civic JC
PO Box 248
Jersey City, NJ 07303-0248
www.civicjc.org



for Immediate Release

June 15, 2006

Contact: Daniel Levin, president, 201.792-3386, dlevin@civicjc.org
Andrew Hubsch, vice president, 201.432.7615, ahubsch@civicjc.org


CIVIC JC AND JERSEY CITY CITIZENS URGE THE JERSEY CITY MUNICIPAL COUNCIL ON PASSAGE OF REDEVELOPMENT PAY-TO-PLAY REFORM ORDINANCE

Jersey City, NJ ? Civic JC and Jersey City citizens presented a model redevelopment pay-to-play ordinance to the Jersey City Municipal Council at Wednesday evening?s council meeting, June 14, 2006.

Andrew Hubsch, vice president for Civic JC, said, ?The ordinance that we are presenting to the Council tonight will allow Jersey City to ensure that major redevelopment decisions are solely based on the public?s interest, and not as a reward to deep-pocketed campaign contributors and politically-connected players. For too long, our good city has labored under a cloud, and constituents have questioned if campaign dollars dictate the political agenda. Finally, upon adoption of this important ordinance, Jersey City municipal government will declare freedom from even the appearance of conflicting interests, re-affirming that the ballot box is the only proper instrument for influencing government.?

Daniel Levin, Civic JC president said, ?Protecting the integrity of the Jersey City?s redevelopment plans from the undue influence of large campaign contributors is essential to protecting the quality of life of Jersey City?s citizens and the financial future of the city.?

The proposed ordinance would ban contributions from developers who wish to do redevelopment within Jersey City from one year prior to the negotiations through the completion of the redevelopment agreement.

This model law was development by a team of top legal experts, and is advanced by the Citizens? Campaign. Across the state, members of the The Citizens? Campaign are presenting legislations similar to this in their hometowns. The City of Asbury Park was the first municipality to adopt this ordinance. Similar ordinances have also passed in Belmar, Hightstown, Hamilton, West Windsor, and the County of Mercer.

Civic JC is a non-partisan, community-based initiative, designed to promote a comprehensive, positive vision for the future of Jersey City as a ?World Class City?. Through the www.CivicJC.org informational portal, Civic JC provides information and policy initiatives designed to make Jersey City a world class place to live, work and visit. Civic JC expects to concentrate on efforts that will improve the transparency of decision making of Jersey City municipal government.