Timberlake Testimony on ACR-188

          (Trenton) – Below is the testimony of Assemblywoman Britnee Timberlake (D-Essex, Passaic) made during the public hearing on the legislative redistricting constitutional amendment bill, ACR-188:

          “Thank you Mr. Chairman. I will be short and talk about 2 main things, representation and dollars.

“Representation. NJ cannot afford to lose representatives in Washington as we have in the past.

“Dollars, schools, housing, roads, or crumbling infrastructure. Especially as a Black elected official dollars symbolize are life and death in the some of the communities I serve.

“The pandemic has delayed practically every aspect of our society. We have all been doing our part, pushing the importance of the census. But we have been washed out by COVID-19 news, panic, financial stress families are experiencing, and yes unfortunately mourning the loss of their loved ones.

“The data is incomplete if everyone is not filling the Census out. That is why we legislators are choosing the greater good and want to make sure everyone is accounted for, the resources are based on a more accurate count of those represented. When I took my oath of office I made 3 promises to myself. 1. To make my ancestors, history, and family proud. 2. To ensure I make those hard decisions for the greater good. And 3. To fight for every Darn dollar I can for the community. My yes vote and sponsorship of this bill hits all of those

“New Jersey is a Casino state, I am not willing to gamble resources and representation because of an incomplete census count during the pandemic.”