Dear Editor:
Trenton has a track record of making promises it fails to keep. The latest plan to expand casino gaming into North New Jersey is another bad bet that will favor special interests and harm taxpayers.
Time and again, Trenton politicians have failed to deliver on important promises.
Whether it is a Transportation Trust Fund that is nearly bankrupt and shutting down $775 million in State Transportation Department projects and $2.7 billion in New Jersey Transit projects, broken promises to cut property taxes when they have sharply increased over the last decade and a half, or nearly $1 billion in 911 funds designed to support the emergency call operation in New Jersey that has been systematically diverted since 2006 to support non-eligible operating expenses, our Trenton politicians have proven they cannot be trusted.
All NJ citizens should be opposed to the referendum to expand gaming into North Jersey. Despite the benefits being touted by the state, we know that Trenton will fail on this promise, too.
The referendum is cryptic in its details, not even identifying a possible location for casino development, raising questions about the level of transparency residents can expect if the initiative moves forward.
We deserve transparency from our state’s leaders, but Trenton continues to play bait-and-switch with our state budget. We won’t stand for another back door deal, especially one that jeopardizes our quality of life and local economies.
Vote no in November to expand gambling to North Jersey.
Thank you,
John Amato