The recently-signed FY 2023 budget is light on tax relief, Save Jerseyans, but the state’s most powerful Democrat politicians (subcategory: north of I-295) made out just fine when the time came to divvy up $6 Billion in federal Covid-19 aid.
Fixing infrastructure? Guaranteeing clean drinking water? Yes, at least on paper.
NJ Spotlight dug into the numbers…
“But while the state gets ready to address some of its biggest challenges, a share of the pandemic relief approved last week by Gov. Phil Murphy and fellow Democrats who control both houses of the Legislature will be funding more parochial items, according to an analysis of budget documents reviewed by NJ Spotlight News.
One example: money for improvement authorities in just two of New Jersey’s 21 counties, Middlesex and Union. Middlesex County is home to the Assembly speaker. The Senate president is from Union County.”
The money for Middlesex County and Democrat Senate President Nicholas Scutari’s Union County totals $20 million.
Meanwhile, Democrat Speaker Craig Coughlin’s law firm – Rainone Coughlin Minchello – serves as counsel for both Democrat-controlled counties.
“Coughlin’s law firm went from $1.8M in public contracts in 2017, when it was founded, to $6.6M in 2021,” Politico‘s Matt Friedman reported via Twitter.
Coughlin became Assembly speaker in January 2018.
