NJ Senate Passes S762 by 36-0 Vote

The State Senate unanimously passed S762 around 3 p.m. We appreciate the efforts not only of Senator Beck, Assemblywoman Casagrande and Assemblyman O'Scanlon in pushing this measure (first introduced outside Earle's main gate in July 2009), but also thank the members of the NOPE community and federal legislators who put their support behind this nonpartisan bill, and especially leadership and countless volunteer hours that NOPE political liaison Elaine Mann put into this time-consuming endeavor.

NOPE will seek confirmation about next steps, but suspect the bill will now be delivered to the Assembly for its own review and vote (before reaching Governor Christie's desk), though we're not sure how long this will take. Recall that the Assembly in the last legislative session approved the measure (then numbered A4159 and since renumbered A2014) 76-0, so we expect much the same this time around.

It is critical for Governor Christie to receive and sign this bill ASAP, so that New Jersey's Treasurer can conduct an appropriate cost-benefits analysis of the unfunded mandate forced upon NJ taxpayers by the Department of Navy. And while the study is conducted, the DEP and DOT will be prohibited from issuing permits to the DoN to start construction of the literal 2-mile road to nowhere (Laurelwood) and the start of a very flawed DoN plan to grant unimpeded access to the privatized housing development on federal, military property through 2040.