Dear Editor:
Our Jersey City mayor strikes again. This Wednesday, November 28th, an ordinance entitled “An ordinance of the city of Jersey City, in the county of Hudson, New Jersey, providing for a` special emergency appropriation of $9,500,000 for the payment of contractually required severance liabilities resulting from the retirement of city employees” is up for a final vote. If this passes, it will add more debt to our city. Sure. One can make a legitimate argument that these city employees earned this. Unfortunately, this clearly ignores the bigger picture.
First, the Mayor touted the city’s bond rating earlier this year. This works the same way as an individual’s credit rating. More debt means more risk. We cannot risk our bonds becoming junk status. Next, continuing to borrow money the city does not have is simply a Ponzi scheme. With this city’s continued lack of fiscal responsibility, we are destined to be mentioned in the same breath as the current faces for a Ponzi scheme which are Bernard Madoff and Allen Stanford. With these points in mind, one begs to ask this: What will happen with our property taxes once the revaluation process is complete and implemented? Has this been Healy’s plan all along? Has he been continuously pushing out the city’s debt so that once the revaluation process is complete, he can blind side the taxpayers with an astronomical property tax increase? With Mayor Healy’s constant bragging about stable property taxes, I just might have hit the nail on the head.
We need an administration that will balance fiscal responsibility with ensuring that city services go unimpeded. More specifically, we need fiscal management that will prevent the need for this type of ordinance in the first place. There are many instances in this city one can point to. But all a resident needs to see is this one example alone, and it is easy to conclude that screams of fiscal incompetence come from the doors of city hall. If Jersey City is going to exist for our children and grandchildren,
We need a new mayor now before its too late.
Thank you,
John Hanussak
Democratic Committee Representative
Ward C District 13
Highland Ave Neighborhood Association
President and Founder