Ethics, school funding issues in Assembly race
BY MARK ROSMAN Staff Writer
One incumbent is among the four candidates seeking election to a two-year term representing the 12th district in the state Assembly in the Nov. 6 election. The district covers Colts Neck, Englishtown, Fair Haven, Freehold Borough, Freehold Township, Little Silver, Manalapan, Marlboro, Millstone, Oceanport, Red Bank, Shrewsbury Borough, Shrewsbury Township and Tinton Falls in Monmouth County, and Hightstown and East Windsor in Mercer County.

The district is presently represented by Democratic Assemblyman Michael Panter and Republican Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck. Panter is seeking re-election to a third term in the Assembly; Beck is seeking election to the state Senate and will not be a member of the Assembly in 2008.

Panter is joined on the Democratic ticket by Amy Mallet. Their opponents in the Assembly race are Republicans Declan O'Scanlon and Caroline Casagrande.

Panter is a partner of an investment managing company in Shrewsbury. As an assemblyman, Panter has served as vice chair of the Assembly Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee and as a member of the Environment and Solid Waste and Transportation committees.

Mallet is the owner of a promotional marketing company in Neptune, a wife and mother of two teenage children.

O'Scanlon is a member of the Borough Council in Little Silver. He owns FSD Enterprises and is a telecommunications consultant.

Casagrande is an attorney and a partner in the law firm of Menna, Supko and Casagrande. She currently serves as the township attorney for Manalapan and said she will resign from that position upon her election to the Assembly.

One of the key elements of the Panter- Mallet platform is property tax relief for New Jersey property owners.

"The 20 percent property tax relief homeowners received this year was a great success, however, that number needs to be closer to 30 or 40 percent in future years," said Panter. "However, the major piece to the puzzle is providing longterm viability of the program through the dedication of the full penny from the 2006 sales tax increase."

Panter and Mallet said they will ensure that future relief is in the form of a credit, unlike this year's rebate program. Making the change to a credit would save money in administrative costs.

The Democrats said they would also focus on education funding reform.

"First and foremost, we have to implement a new school funding formula. The 31 Abbott school districts are eating billions of taxpayer dollars with little accountability as to how that money is being spent. New Jersey ranks No. 1 in per pupil spending, but ranks No. 41 in how much of that money actually reaches the classroom," Mallet said.

Panter and Mallet support removing certain Abbott districts from the program that no longer qualify to receive additional funding, saving taxpayers millions of dollars. In addition, the duo highlighted the need to cap per pupil spending in Abbott districts at the average, which is between $11,000 and $14,000 per pupil.

"There are some Abbott districts that spend $23,000 per pupil, while suburban schools are spending between $9,000 and $13,000 per pupil," Panter said. "Capping that spending at the average per pupil spending could save over $600 million - money that would remain in homeowners' pockets."

In regard to the Abbott school districts, O'Scanlon and Casagrande said they will sponsor legislation to phase out 13 Abbott districts which they said no longer meet the economic requirements of a needy district.

If elected in November, Panter and Mallet said they will be committed to cutting state spending on several levels, including ending pension abuses such as tacking (adding public jobs to boost a pension), double-dipping (holding more than one public position) and pension padding; out-of-state travel by state officials, which accounted for $40 million over the past 10 years, and up to $100 million if all levels of government are considered; and eliminating pork spending, which accounted for $300 million in the Fiscal Year 2007 budget. The duo also supports capping state spending at the same level municipalities and school districts are required to adhere to.

With respect to pension abuses such as pension padding - in which elected officials boost their pensions by receiving appointed public positions - the Democratic duo vowed to introduce ethics reform legislation that would eliminate many of these practices by limiting elected officials who hold appointed public positions and receive public contracts.

O'Scanlon and Casagrande focused their attention on a host of ethics issues they said they will address if they are elected to the Assembly.

"If elected, we will sponsor legislation which bans the process known as wheeling, which allows political donors to skirt campaign contribution rules by giving money to county and municipal committees, and having the money wheeled back to finance specific candidates in other districts," they said. "In 2004 the Legislature enacted a ban on wheeling but only from January through July. Of course, elections are held in November, so once again this was a piece of legislation passed so the Democrat majority could claim they passed a ban on wheeling, despite the fact that it had a loophole you could drive an 18-wheeler through."

The candidates said that if elected, they will sponsor a comprehensive ban on government contractors making political donations, which has come to be known by the term pay to play.

"In 2004, the Legislature passed what they refer to as a ban on pay to play, but the legislation had major loopholes in it. Primarily, it allowed government contractors to donate to the political action committees (PACs) of legislative leaders. This is especially problematic because it puts those legislative leaders in a position to influence the votes of some legislators who know that they will need campaign cash from those same leaders at some point," O'Scanlon and Casagrande said.

"If elected, we will also sponsor legislation which would ban statewide the practice of holding two elected offices. Dual officeholders would be given 30 days to choose which of their offices they would keep. The ban would apply to all elected officials," the candidates said.

There are several other issues involving ethics that the Republicans said they would address if they are successful on Nov. 6.

Specifically, they said they will support giving people the opportunity to choose initiative and referendum.

"We will give the people the right to decide whether the Legislature can raise taxes, to approve new state debt, to approve a new school funding formula, and to cap state spending," they said.

The candidates said they will sponsor legislation which will eliminate health benefits and pension credits for public employees who do not work at least 30 hours per week.