2013 Meet the Candidates Interview Series Continues for the Week of October 6th
By Nicole Sanders | The Save Jersey Blog
As part of my ongoing effort to introduce candidates to the voting public, Save Jerseyans, I started a weekly column called Meet the Candidates. In essence, it is a past day stump speech updated for the virtual world.
For this week’s column, I am honored to introduce you to 18th District’s Assembly candidate Robert Bengivenga, Jr.
A long-time resident of South Plainfield, Mr. Bengivenga went on to the University of Scranton where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Marketing. After graduation, he continued on to build a career in sales and marketing management. His political experience includes being elected to South Plainfield Council in 2005, a position that he still holds to the present day.
My interview with Assembly Candidate Robert Bengivenga, Jr. is below the fold…
Sanders: What are your greatest legislative or personal accomplishments thus far?
Bengivenga: Through my years of service as a South Plainfield Councilman, I am most proud of seeing the tough decisions we made to reduce spending and right-size local government pay off for the middle-class taxpayers of my town. Our efforts to reform government and attract small businesses back to my hometown provided South Plainfield with the lowest property taxes and unemployment rate in the district.
Sanders: On your website, it states you want “Real Property Tax Reform” (http://robandlisaforassembly.com). If elected, what will you actually do to lower taxes for the residents of New Jersey?
Bengivenga: The first step I will take is end my opponent’s roadblock to Governor Christie’s property tax relief proposal and deliver a 10% reduction to property tax relief for middle-class families. I will also work with both parties to finish the job on civil service reform and end jackpot payouts for unused sick and vacation time. I want to propose a package of reforms to stop politicians from getting rich off taxpayers by banning elected officials from seeking government contracts and eliminating retirements for all elected officials.
Sanders: What can be done to create jobs and improve New Jersey’s economy?
Bengivenga: Pat Diegnan spent a decade treating small business owners like ATMs for his spending spree in Trenton. His failed tax and spend policies drove 156,000 jobs out of the state and left us with the highest property taxes in the nation and highest unemployment rate in the region. The first step to growing jobs is ensuring that our business tax environment is competitive with neighboring states. We also need to remove bureaucratic barriers to businesses looking to relocate to New Jersey and provide increased tax incentives for companies that hire new employees and provide education assistance.
Sanders: If your constituents wanted to reach out to you and ask you questions about your positions or how to volunteer, to whom can they reach out?
Bengivenga: You can visit our website www.bipartisanreformers.com or e-mail us at team@bipartisanreformers.com.
Sanders: In a short statement, please advise why your prospective constituents should vote for you and what you wish to accomplish as an Assemblyman?
Bengivenga: I have a record of making tough decisions to lower taxes and create jobs as a Councilman in South Plainfield. I am ready to end politics as usual in Trenton to make our state more affordable and work with Governor Christie to keep our economy moving in the right direction. Career politicians like Pat Diegnan have made millions in taxpayer funded jobs while thousands of New Jersey residents lost theirs. While he got rich, we paid more and now he is standing in the way of the reforms we need. Residents deserve leadership focused on creating jobs for the middle-class, not protecting public jobs for politicians. I am ready to shake-up Trenton and get the job done.
If you are a candidate or with a campaign and you’re interested in being featured in my weekly Meet the Candidates article, Save Jerseyans, then email me at nikisands3@hotmail.com.
