Thursday, February 18, 2010

We are in full agreement with Council member Steve Fulop, political appointees do not need nor deserve paid health care

Neither does the City Council here in Jersey City but that'll be taken up next week.

Fulop is trying to address the fact that currently two appointees (as well as scads of other political appointees) get full health care benefits at the cost to Jersey City taxpayers. Fulop's point is well made that if you take a look just at the Jersey City Incinerator Authority, their meetings are averaging out to 12 hours a year. For this they get taxpayer funded health care. Let's get nutty and say they work 24 hours a YEAR, that's still not worth the cost. Fulop says his proposal (and good luck with it Councilman, you're the last bastion of clean government in this city) would save taxpayers upwards of $400K a year. That's HUGE in this day and age.

When business as usual council member Bill Gaughan tried walking Fulop back to say he didn't really know if it was just 12 hours a year Fulop stood his ground:

“It’s all political patronage, that’s what it is.”

Political patronage? In Jerramiah Healy's Jersey City?

Say it ain't so.

1 comment:

PepsiCola said...

This is a no brainer, but remember where we are, Jersey City. Saving, or helping to ease the burden of taxpayers makes too much sense and what is worse citizens should not involve themselves in such matters. That says volumes of how the people we elected feel toward us. The days of political patronage perks are numbered because their hands are in my pockets and I am tired. Steven has brought some things to light that would've continued to go unnoticed, and I am sure that we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg. They all need to cut their losses and run because who knows what other cards he has up his sleeve.