“Time for some budget problems in Trenton…
“There is as much reason to shut down the State of New Jersey over Horizon as there was to shut the George Washington Bridge for a traffic study.
“The first responsibility of the Senate and the Assembly is to pass a budget.  It is not to pander to or satisfy a discredited Lame Duck Governor’s whims for revenge toward Horizon, by passing a bill that will have broad but unknown impact on 50% of insured people in the State.  This would be true during any 11th hour before budget expiration, but it is especially true given the mess in Washington and the Republican Healthcare Death Bill.
“It is CWA’s position that both the Senate and the Assembly should pass a clean budget bill.  If both or either house cannot reach an agreement on a Horizon bill under these circumstances, that should not hold up a budget.
“A shut down of the State of New Jersey is not an acceptable option, and threatening or manipulating the process to use it as leverage is immoral.  It would result in thousands of workers furloughed and harmed. It eliminates needed direct services, such as motor vehicles and unemployment. It would lead to lost revenue in the form of lottery sales and tax. And it means closing parks and some beaches to families on the one long weekend of the summer they may have together.
“CWA expects our allies in the Assembly and Senate to vote to pass a budget regardless of whether or not a Horizon bill is voted on in this session. “

-Hetty Rosenstein
CWA NJ State Director