Thursday, March 26, 2009

Let's Get NJ Working!

New Jersey State Senator Marcia Karrow (R-Warren/Hunterdon) expressed her deep concern today after New York announced that its unemployment rate is significantly lower than New Jersey's.
"It pains me to see fear grip New Jersey families faced with the loss of jobs and income,” Karrow stated. "Governor Corzine has to stop touting his alleged ‘successes’ and start leading the way in asking why New Jersey has proportionally more workers out of work than neighboring states do. Then we need him to lead on coming up with a far more comprehensive plan for diversifying our economy and reviving the entrepreneurial culture that once made New Jersey an economic powerhouse.
“A good first step: Repeal bureaucratic red tape that is preventing job growth in New Jersey. Corzine should rescind increases in home energy taxes, roll back newly increased fees on motor vehicles and insist he will not sign a budget until ‘affordable’ housing rules that discourage job creation are ended."
Yesterday the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development released state unemployment figures which showed the rate surged in February to 8.2 percent from January's 7.3 percent. This is higher than New York's at 7.8 percent, Pennsylvania's 7.5 percent and Delaware's 7.4 percent. It also marks the first time since October 2006 that the state unemployment rate was higher than the national rate.
"Until Democrats took control in 2002, New Jersey had a rich and proud history of being the economic powerhouse of the Northeast," Karrow continued. "Governor Corzine's failed policies and misplaced priorities have strangled New Jersey businesses, suffocated New Jersey entrepreneurs and hurt the New Jersey middle class. We need a drastic change of course if we are to recover."

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