Good morning, New Jersey. It’s an enormously consequential day in the Garden State.
Both houses of the legislature will hold hearings this morning on a fast-tracked bill introduced last week to amend the Open Public Records Act and dramatically impede access to government records and documents.
“The bill is deeply flawed,” the New Jersey Press Association said in a position paper opposing the changes. “Many records that are currently available to the public will be cloaked in secrecy or otherwise made more difficult to obtain if the Bill is enacted. And, wrongful denials will be impossible for many to challenge.
Two Democratic candidates for the U.S. Senate, Tammy Murphy and Andy Kim, oppose the bill, as do the two Democratic gubernatorial candidates, Steve Fulop and Steve Sweeney.
State Comptroller Kevin Walsh also opposes the proposal.
“I’ve spent my career committed to transparency in government. Some of OSC’s best tips have come from residents who filed OPRA requests and sent us the docs they received,” Walsh said. “This bill will undermine OPRA. Less transparency in government inevitably will lead to more fraud, waste, and abuse.”
Former Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg said that “citizens of New Jersey are obviously not happy about reducing transparency.”
“I know our legislature must be listening,” she said.
In a different era, before the sharp decline of legacy newspapers, editorials in opposition to changes in the state’s OPRA law would frighten lawmakers; now, plummeting circulation rates appear to have emboldened elected officials who no longer fear editorial boards. Newspapers, in some cases, use OPRA requests in lieu of sending reporters to local governing body members.
At noon, Gov. Phil Murphy’s office will hold a briefing to unveil the long-awaited independent review of the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The lead investigator, former First Assistant Attorney General Paul Zoubek, will conduct the briefing.
The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee will also consider a bill abolishing the Council on Affordable Housing and a five-year extension of the gas tax with an increase of roughly two cents per gallon and an annual fee for electric vehicles.
Tonight, Democrats in Mercer and Cape May counties will hold conventions to award organization lines for U.S Senate and Congress.
In Mercer, any candidate who wins at least 40% of the vote at the convention may run on the organization column. Kim is favored but must exceed 60% to exclude Murphy from the preferential ballot position.
Democrats Herb Conaway, Jr., Carol Murphy, and Sarah Schoengood will face off for Kim’s open congressional seat in the 3rd district. (A fourth candidate, Joe Cohn, does not appear to be competing at the convention.)
Cape May will choose between Joe Salerno, Carolyn Rush, and Tim Alexander to take on Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis) in the 2nd district.