Dear Editor:
I find it necessary to respond to the letter sent by County Executive Tom DeGise to Jersey City residents at taxpayer expense which was certainly laced with politics and offer unfair criticism against our great Mayor Glenn D. Cunningham.
When Interim County Executive Bernard M. Hartnett, Jr., departed from office he left this county on the right path for his successor to follow. The county welfare division was successful in moving people from welfare to work — in fact prior to Mr. DeGise taking office the caseload was reduced from over 20,000 cases to about 6,000 cases. The people involved were able to attain self sufficiency and get out of the welfare cycle.
It is to be recognized that our great Mayor Glenn D. Cunningham took office in 2001, and there have been no tax increases, and the city services to all have been enhanced and improved. Remember our Mayor inherited a debt of hundreds of thousands of dollars from the previous administration — an administration that Mr. DeGise was a part of. Also, when DeGise took office many of his supporters were granted thousands of dollars in pay increases in the county — some were increased by over $15,000 per year.
In regards to homeland security, Mayor Cunningham has been working to create a local Department of Homeland Security, and this would be the first municipality in the State to accomplish this. In fact, Jersey City was one of only 200 cities throughout the country to host a preparedness drill sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and as a result may receive about $250,000 in federal funds for this effort.
Please, Mr. DeGise, you must recognize the accomplishments and attributes of our great Mayor Cunningham and work with him as part of a team for the betterment of all.
Sincerely,
Michael Giacomazzo