By The Staff | The Save Jersey Blog
73 days of Game of Thrones Jersey are over for now, Save Jerseyans, as Governor Chris Christie signed what his office is describing as a “pro-taxpayer” Atlantic City legislation.
“For Atlantic City officials, the final countdown starts today,” the Governor said in a statement. “They now have 150 days to develop and implement fiscally responsible reforms and finally meet the obligations of every other municipal government in our state. They know that if they fail to change their tendencies of wasteful spending and mismanagement, my administration will be empowered to immediately step in and do the job for them.”
The legislation is actually a package of bills: S-1711/A-2569 (Sweeney, O’Toole, Sarlo/Prieto, McKeon, Mazzeo, Caputo), the Atlantic City “Municipal Stabilization and Recovery Act,” and S-1715/A-2570 (Sweeney, Whelan/Prieto, Mazzeo, Caputo), a bill designed to help Atlantic City compensate for its property assessment decline.
Going forward, the city gets a secured bridge loan for the next six months. A five-year “recovery plan” also kicks into effect which includes a balanced budget for 2017 and other fiscal benchmarks.
Earlier this week, as the legislation came together, Assemblyman Chris Brown (R-2), a regular critics of both the Governor and the South Jersey Democrats, specifically hailed the PILOT compromise as good policy.
“By never giving up and standing up to special interests and back room deals, we earned a victory for middle class families and retirees throughout Atlantic County by getting them a better deal that requires a transparent plan which includes, with Governor Christie’s guarantee and Mayor Guardian’s assurance, $40 million in tax relief for county families while ensuring casinos can’t opt-out of the PILOT so they pay their fair share,” explained Brown.
Watch:
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