From our friends at Save Jersey:
We’re going to get a bit nerdy for a second, folks. Bear with me.
Tax increases MUST originate in the Assembly. In the case of the N.J. gas tax/TTF package, the Assembly’s June version of bill stalled in the Senate. So now the Senate needs to amend that bill and send it back to the Assembly for a vote before it can get to the Governor’s desk.
In order for New Jersey’s State Senate to amend a bill AND pass it outright on the same day, Save Jerseyans, an action available only for a so-called ’emergency measure,’ gas tax deal supporters need a minimum of 3/4 of the chamber (30 of 40 available votes).Democrats boast a 24-16 majority.
That means Senate President Steve Sweeney will need some Republican votes to consummate the gas tax deal cut with Governor Chris Christie and Assembly Democrats on Wednesday morning at 10:00 a.m. before the Assembly convenes at Noon; again, previous versions of their Faustian pact addressed the estate tax but not the sales tax. Otherwise they may need to return on Thursday for final passage, and time is always of the essence when you’re trying to ram something awful down everyone’s collective throat!
Wednesday finality may prove elusive.
The unknowable questions at this hour?
(1) Will the Democrats perpetrate some sort of procedural hijinks, and (2) will some senators vote FOR the emergency but against the gas tax?
The Republican caucus’s leader, Tom Kean, Jr., announced via Facebook on Tuesday that he is a ‘NO’ vote on the gas tax deal itself.
“I’m voting ‘NO’ tomorrow on the gas tax increase. I’ve said since June that I think a 23 cent/gallon gas tax increase is too high,” the Senator explained. “The current proposal, which would more than double New Jersey’s gas tax, is just too much to ask of New Jersey’s families, small businesses and motorists.”
Save Jersey sources in Trenton report that likely NO votes also include Sens. Diane Allen (R-7), Christopher Connors (R-9), Jennifer Beck (R-11), Kip Bateman (R-16), Mike Doherty (R-23), Joe Pennacchio (R-26), Gerald Cardinale (R-39), Jeff Van Drew (D-1), Loretta Weinberg (D-37), and Ray Lesniak (D-20).
Other possibilities include Jim Whelan (D-2), who will likely face a tough 2017 State Senate challenge from Asm. Chris Brown (R-2) who, for his part, previously supported the gas tax increase, and Tony Bucco (R-25) who represents portions of primary-prone Morris County and whose son and namesake already voted ‘no’ in the Assembly.
Remember: if they’re really against this thing, legislators need to vote NO to not just the subsequent gas tax hike vote but also against the emergency.
Stay tuned….
“I’m voting ‘NO’ tomorrow on the gas tax increase. I’ve said since June that I think a 23 cent/gallon gas tax increase is too high,” the Senator explained. “The current proposal, which would more than double New Jersey’s gas tax, is just too much to ask of New Jersey’s families, small businesses and motorists.”
Save Jersey sources in Trenton report that likely NO votes also include Sens. Diane Allen (R-7), Christopher Connors (R-9), Jennifer Beck (R-11), Kip Bateman (R-16), Mike Doherty (R-23), Joe Pennacchio (R-26), Gerald Cardinale (R-39), Jeff Van Drew (D-1), Loretta Weinberg (D-37), and Ray Lesniak (D-20).
Other possibilities include Jim Whelan (D-2), who will likely face a tough 2017 State Senate challenge from Asm. Chris Brown (R-2) who, for his part, previously supported the gas tax increase, and Tony Bucco (R-25) who represents portions of primary-prone Morris County and whose son and namesake already voted ‘no’ in the Assembly.
Remember: if they’re really against this thing, legislators need to vote NO to not just the subsequent gas tax hike vote but also against the emergency.
Stay tuned….
CLICK HERE to let your voice be head AGAINST the gas tax!
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