News : POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: The upcoming debate: Should N.J. allow blowing?

Thursday, December 16, 2021

POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: The upcoming debate: Should N.J. allow blowing?

Dec 16, 2021

Good Thursday morning!

Few things get suburbanites more worked up than leaf blowers. Several New Jersey towns — the ones I know of are all wealthy and mostly liberal bastions like Montclair and Princeton — have curtailed their use. They have their passionate defenders as well.

Now there are two bills to address how New Jersey blows. The more radical proposal, by Senate Environment and Energy Chair Bob Smith (D-Middlesex), would ban sales of gas-powered leaf blowers within a year of his bill's enactment and bar use within four years, punishable by fines of up to $1,000. Another bill, by Assemblymember Lisa Swain (D-Bergen), who's from — get this — Fair Lawn, would direct the BPU to provide subsidies for people to purchase electric leaf blowers. The bills were introduced this month, just days apart.

I know that some people want to have pristine lawns and some are big enough to make raking difficult, though probably not many in the most densely populated state. But it is important to take note that this contraption creates an eye-popping amount of pollution, especially considering its purpose. And then there's the noise pollution angle. I tweeted about this yesterday and the debate has been passionate.

I talked to Smith about it, who said he doesn't plan to try to move his proposal in lame duck, but to try over the next two-year session. Considering how hard it was to enact the single-use plastic bag ban, it could take a while, if it happens at all.

WHERE'S MURPHY? "Ask Governor Murphy" on News 12 at 5:30 p.m.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "There are people who feed the homeless who don't have good intentions. People don't see it from that perspective. There are homeless people that get sick, people that have given homeless fentanyl." — Newark Mayor Ras Baraka. I emailed the city for documented cases of people giving fentanyl to homeless people under the guise of feeding them but did not hear back.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Assemblymember Gordon Johnson, HCDO Chair Amy DeGise, former Booker COS Matt Klapper, former Mahwah Councilmember Rob Hermansen, attorney Brian Bartlett

TIPS? FEEDBACK? HATE MAIL? Email me at mfriedman@politico.com

JOIN TODAY FOR A WOMEN RULE 2021 REWIND AND A LOOK AHEAD AT 2022: Congress is sprinting to get through a lengthy and challenging legislative to-do list before the end of the year that has major implications for women's rights. Join Women Rule editor Elizabeth Ralph and POLITICO journalists Laura Barrón-López, Eleanor Mueller, Elena Schneider and Elana Schor for a virtual roundtable that will explore the biggest legislative and policy shifts in 2021 affecting women and what lies ahead in 2022. REGISTER HERE.

WHAT TRENTON MADE

CAN'TABIS — "Black businesses feel shafted as N.J. gets set to choose who can grow and sell weed legally," by NJ Advance Media's Jelani Gibson : "The New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission had touted on Oct. 15 how diverse the businesses being awarded vertically integrated and medical cannabis licenses are. Except most, if not all, of those minority license winners were white women. In the following days, applicants of color would go on to claim that they had not received accurate points for being 'minority' applicants in the scoring and award process … When asked directly on the number of Black and Hispanic owned-businesses, the commission has not provided those numbers and instead opted for saying that there have been three businesses out of 15 certified as a 'minority and/or woman owned business or enterprise,' a category in which people of color would normally qualify, during a Dec. 7 meeting. The commission has not said which of those M/WBEs, if any, were Black or Hispanic."

—"N.J. just began accepting applications to grow recreational marijuana. Hundreds started the process."

SOURCE: 'THIS HOTEL SUCKS' — Congressional redistricting commission begins negotiations on new map, by POLITICO's Matt Friedman: Congressional redistricting [started] in earnest Wednesday as the 12 Democratic and Republican commissioners head to a Cherry Hill hotel where they will begin negotiating a new district map that could have a major impact on next year's midterm elections. The commission, which must select a new map by Jan. 18 to reflect shifts in the state's population, has held nine public hearings since October. Now, at the Crown Plaza hotel, the six Democratic and six Republican commissioners will tweak the maps they've privately drawn as they shuttle in and out of negotiations with the tie-breaking commissioner, John Wallace Jr., a former state Supreme Court justice and registered Democrat.

EDUCATION — "Senate's education leader steps up and moves on," by NJ Spotlight News' John Mooney: "Ruiz (D-Essex) will gavel her committee to order Thursday in what in all likelihood will be her last meeting before taking the new leadership role in the Senate — a promotion that by anyone's measure will heighten her profile. But the move at the same time will take her from her familiar place at the head of the dais in a first-floor committee room of the State House, where the panel meets and Ruiz has presided over virtually every big education debate of the last decade in this state, from teacher tenure to testing and standards."

HOSPITALIZATIONS — "A year into NJ's COVID vaccine rollout, waning immunity is contributing to hospitalization rise," by The Record's Scott Fallon: "New Jersey is on pace to see 3,500 COVID hospitalizations by mid-January — almost the same number seen at the height of last winter's surge, when only a very small percentage of New Jerseyans had received even one vaccine shot, Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said Monday. … The number of COVID patients needing hospitalization has more than doubled in a month and stood at 1,730 on Tuesday, the highest since late April. …[I]n the last week of November [the fully vaccinated] made up 21% of all positive cases. The bulk of COVID patients being treated in New Jersey hospitals still remain unvaccinated. But 20% to 25% of hospitalizations now involve partially or fully vaccinated people, Persichilli said — an increase from the summer, when nearly all severe COVID cases were among the unvaccinated."

— "Booster push on as models predict boom in COVID-19 cases"

LET'S NOT GET CRAZY NOW — Sweeney bill gives warehouse workers rest breaks, by POLITICO's Katherine Landergan: A new bill sponsored by outgoing Senate President Steve Sweeney would require employers in New Jersey to give warehouse workers rest breaks. The legislation, NJ S4265 (20R), would give warehouse workers paid meal breaks of at least 30 minutes if they work for more than five hours continuously. Workers also would be entitled to a paid rest period of "at least 15 minutes" if they work for more than four hours straight. In all, 21 states require meal breaks for warehouse workers; six of those states also have rest break requirements.

IF ONLY THE STATE MOVED AT THE SPEED WITH WHICH IT GETS POLITICIANS BACK INTO THE PENSION SYSTEM — "'Effectively ignored': NJ slow in protecting Section 8 tenants from discrimination," by The Asbury Park Press' Kayla Canne: "When Tonya Wood filed a discrimination complaint with the state Division on Civil Rights in August, she thought it would be a quick and clear-cut case. She had recorded a Woodbridge landlord rejecting her apartment application because Wood receives federal rental assistance, commonly called a Section 8 voucher. But August passed, and then September, October, November, and now December is rolling by, with a series of promised response deadlines from state investigators coming and going. 'They're slow-rolling,' Wood [said]. … Out of 31 total income discrimination cases in 2019, 10 remain unresolved, according to state data from September. Nineteen out of 28 cases filed in 2021 are still under investigation. And, in one case, a discrimination complaint from 2010 remained unresolved for 10 years."

EDNA MAHAN — "High-ranking prison official now charged in brutal attack at N.J. women's prison," by NJ Advance Media's Joe Atmonavage: "The top-ranking official at the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women on the night a group of officers violently extracted a handful of women from their cells has now been criminally charged for his role in the brutal assault. Sean St. Paul, the former associate administrator of the prison, was the highest-ranking New Jersey Department of Corrections official at Edna Mahan on Jan. 12 when he ordered the cell extractions that led to multiple injured prisoners."

— " Marking 1 year since first COVID vaccine in N.J., Murphy says booster shots are crucial"

— "Atlantic City casino PILOT bills up for Assembly vote Monday"

— " Applications to grow, sell weed in N.J. open [Wednesday]. Will new operators include Black businesses?"

— "Bills advancing in lame duck could bring more costs to N.J. businesses"

— Oroho: " Phil Murphy's energy master plan for New Jersey is costly foolishness"

— Bucco: "New Jersey's stealth tax increase must be stopped"

— Lassiter: " Norcross' glass jaw and Murphy's Pinelands mulligan"

— Opinion: "New Jersey's pension fund is crossing the tipping point"

— " New bill would crack down on NJ's 'Wild west' temp industry"

BIDEN TIME

— "Democratic governors press U.S. Senate to act on voting rights legislation"

— "Healey names Monmouth GOP star as campaign manager"

— "As NJ overdose deaths climb higher, rethinking access to methadone"

STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president's ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today.

LOCAL

DAMAGE CONTROL — "Mayor Baraka: Feed the hungry? Absolutely, but safely," by Ras Baraka for The Star-Ledger: "Our required permit for food distribution in public places is designed to protect the consumers, whether they be at a street fair, a Heritage Day, or at Peter Francisco Park across from Penn Station where the homeless congregate. For health reasons, we need to be able to trace the source of food should people get sick so we can take appropriate measures."

ERNIE HIDES FACE IN SHAME — "Proud Boys group shows up at Woodbridge Town Council meeting," by News 12: " The Facebook Live video posted by Kason Little advocating for Black Lives Matter shows that it all started on the front stairs of the Woodbridge Municipal Building. The topic of critical race theory being taught in schools was the root of the dispute. Both sides spoke at the meeting. 'We as Proud Boys have a duty to protect our communities from oppressive government, violence against the innocent, and the pollution of our children's minds,' said a member of the group who identified himself as Burt."

INFLUX OF NEW JERSEYANS LEADS FLORIDA TO RENAME CITY 'PARM BEACH' — "New video shows Bergen County executive's son name-dropping father during Florida arrest," by The Record's Katie Sobko: "When James Tedesco IV was pulled over for speeding on Interstate 95 in Florida last month, he told a police officer he was heading to a fire in Miami. He also said he was an active member of the New York Fire Department and that he had worked there during the Sept. 11 attacks. None of it was true. It was only after a sheriff's deputy had him in handcuffs that Tedesco mentioned something that did check out: He told the officer his father, James Tedesco, is a former mayor of Paramus and now serves as Bergen County executive."

WALL — " Amid hazing probe, Wall appoints same interim AD used after Sayreville scandal," by The Asbury Park Press' Joe Strupp: "Nicholas Pizzulli, a veteran coach and athletic official who helped Sayreville get past its 2014 high school football hazing scandal, has been hired to provide the same guidance for Wall Township."

LIVE, WORK AND PAY — " Monmouth Mall tax breaks could be on the table with new redevelopment designation," by The Asbury Park Press' Dan Radel: "A move to designate Monmouth Mall an area in need of redevelopment has drawn the ire of residents long critical of how the mall's redesign is being handled. Town officials defended the move, saying it gives them more control over future changes at the struggling mall and could help spur its redevelopment. Most concerning to those opposed to the move is that it leaves the window open for a 30-year tax abatement, also called a PILOT — payment in lieu of taxes — and several residents questioned the mayor and council at a public meeting last week about why the designation is even necessary. … The designation comes five years after mall owner Kushner Cos. promised to overhaul the mall and the borough re-zoned the property to create the Mixed-Use Regional Center zone, or MURC. The zone allows for a host of several new uses including apartments, which were part of Kushner's design of a 'live, work and play,' concept at the mall. However, the only addition to the mall so far has been one medical building under construction now, with another planned."

WEIRD AL TO OPEN PARODY RESTAURANT NEXTDOOR — " Paterson grants licenses for Councilman Michael Jackson's restaurant to reopen," by The Paterson Press' Joe Malinconico: "Michael Jackson received business license approvals from his colleagues on the Paterson City Council Tuesday night that will allow his restaurant and bar to reopen this weekend. Jackson — a constant critic of Mayor Andre Sayegh — did not participate in the vote or the public discussion about the licenses for Jacksonville … Some members of the council suggested that the mayor's staff was trying to block the approvals for Jackson's license as political retribution, and mentioned that the councilman may run against Sayegh in next year's election."

A SPEZIALE FRIEND — "Troy Oswald, former Paterson police chief, will make a bid for Passaic County sheriff," by The Paterson Press' Joe Malinconico: "Troy Oswald, who retired as Paterson's police chief at the beginning of 2020, is looking to run for the Passaic County sheriff's job. Oswald, 53, told Paterson Press on Wednesday morning that he would seek the Republican Party's nomination for sheriff. 'I have 32 years of service,' said Oswald, who headed the Paterson Police Department's narcotics division and internal affairs bureau before becoming chief in February 2018 … Oswald, who is making his first bid for elected office, was popular among rank-and-file police officers, City Council members and community leaders in Paterson. He retired in early 2020 after a prolonged feud with Mayor Andre Sayegh, a battle that started with a salary dispute. … Paterson Public Safety Director Jerry Speziale, who was sheriff in Passaic County more than 10 years ago, could not be reached for comment regarding Oswald's candidacy."

HOBROKEN —"Hoboken Board of Education hears opposition to $241M school referendum for the first time," by Hudson County View's Daniel Ulloa: "The Hoboken Board of Education heard public comment on the proposed $241 million school referendum for the first time at last night's meeting, with the majority of public speakers coming out against the project. BOE President Sharyn Angley said it is part of an overall need to address overcrowding, noting that the city's population is up 180 percent since 1990 and that trend is expected to continue … Joshua Sotomayor Einstein said the meeting was rushed and called it an 'abuse of democracy' to applause from the crowd, later calling the process 'underhanded, rushed and as opaque as possible.'"

MIDDLETOWN —"Murphy's hometown school board scales back COVID-19 student quarantines," by NJ Advance Media's Rob Jennings : "A policy unanimously adopted by the Middletown school board Monday night stipulates that in-school close contacts of anyone who has tested positive 'shall not be excluded from school work, but may voluntarily be excused for self-quarantine.' Middletown school board vice president Frank Capone described it as 'a rational data-driven policy that continues to put the necessary safety and security of our students as the top priority while allowing them to continue not to lose countless days for unnecessary quarantines.' … However, the new policy — which took effect on Tuesday — runs counter to state school health guidelines."

— "Officials approve 10-year deal for Passaic County to house inmates at Bergen jail"

— "N.J. schools grapple with spike in threats of violence, shootings on social media"

— "Howell police officers vote 'no confidence' in Chief Andrew Kudrick"

— "Wayne schools maintain in-person approach, despite 'dramatic' spike in COVID-19 cases"

— "Hundreds pack meeting to oppose proposal for medical cannabis facility in rural [Alexandria Township]"

— "Oakland ordinance would allow for marijuana growing businesses but not retail sales"

— "[Lambertville] mayor 'strongly disagrees' with city council considering delaying redevelopment plans"

— "Authorities investigating accusation off-duty [Passaic] sheriff's deputy broke into car outside N.J. restaurant"

EVERYTHING ELSE

HE WAS GIVING BOO-TOX INJECTIONS — "Rutgers brings in ex-N.J. comptroller to probe allegations of 'ghost surgeries' tied to top neurosurgeon," by NJ Advance Media's Ted Sherman: "Rutgers University has retained the law firm of former state comptroller Matthew Boxer to investigate allegations of 'ghost surgeries' involving the head of its neuroscience program. Dr. Anil Nanda has been on administrative leave since claims surfaced that he may have not been 'fully present' in the operating room at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick during portions of procedures he had scheduled, according to a letter sent last month to the hospital's board of trustees."

— " Like Vanguard, Prudential Financial to freeze some medical benefits; workers feel 'shocked and betrayed'"

R.I.P — "Viking Yachts co-founder Robert Healey Sr. dies at 92"

— " Teaneck chef fights abuse lawsuits as #MeToo movement roils Orthodox Judaism"

— "State health department hearing on Bayonne Medical Center sale largely draws CarePoint Health supporters"

Follow us on Twitter