BERGEN REPUBLICANS SEE POWER GRAB IN COUNTY’S DPW TAKEOVER OF BOGOTA

BERGEN COUNTYREPUBLICANS ORGANIZATION

201-880-1646 

BERGEN REPUBLICANS SEE POWER GRAB IN COUNTY’S DPW TAKEOVER OF BOGOTA 

HACKENSACK – Bergen County’s efforts to take over the public works department for the Borough of Bogota is another step in the gross expansion of the power of county government that must be stopped, say the Bergen County Republican Organization candidates.  

Paul Duggan, who is one of three GOP candidates for freeholder this year and a resident of Bogota, says the idea of having the county assume public works duties is “a naked power grab” by County Executive Dennis McNerney and the all-Democratic County Freeholder Board that will result in poorer service and more costs for taxpayers.

“There is no emergent need for Bogota to give up its DPW service to the county, said Duggan, who noted that former Mayor Steve Lonegan had instituted an efficient DPW operation that meets the borough’s needs.

 “This is a blatant attempt by the McNerney Democratic machine to expand the reach of county government so they have more money to spend and more jobs to hand out. This is the kind of political empire building that we have to stop in Bergen County,” added Duggan.

MCNERNEY’S EMPIRE BUILDING PART II

Duggan said he thought McNerney would have learned his lesson about empire building when the county tried two years ago to take over the police operations in Emerson and Westwood. The plan was ill-conceived and met stiff operation by residents. The county eventually withdrew the plan.

Now, says Duggan, the county is back -- like a recurring nightmare – seeking to grab more power.

“The county is misusing the statewide call for consolidation to grab more power for itself,” said Dugan. “But just as in the Emerson police case; the county can’t economically justify its takeover of municipal services in Bogota or anywhere else.”

 Duggan noted, that under Republican Mayor Lonegan, the DPW was downsized and the borough instituted shared services with Ridgefield Park that included sharing equipment and a joint salt shed and fuel depot. 

In the announcement yesterday, McNerney said the county would establish yet another separate entity to handle municipal public works duties – the Joint Commission for Public Works.  

Republican freeholder candidate Chris Calabrese said the last thing the county needs is another semi-autonomous commission.

“The cost of county government is skyrocketing because there are already too many boards and commissions outside the direct control of the freeholders,” said Calabrese. “The Bergen County Improvement Authority and the Bergen County Sewerage Authority are patronage pits that reward political donors and those with political connections who need jobs.”

“The Joint Commission on Public Works will become another patronage pit,” predicted Calabrese.

Calabrese said the notion that the county can do anything cheaper or better than small municipalities that often share services is just not supported by the facts. “The county budget has escalated by more than $133 million over the last six years. Bergen County now has a $462 million budget and a $700 million debt and yet the freeholders want to take on more costs. That’s just nuts.”

GOP freeholder candidate Jeffery Heller, a former Ramsey Councilman said it is unfair for residents of his community to be taxed to pay for public works duties in Bogota. There is no need to create a new county agency to administer DPW services for a town like Bogota, which seems to be doing okay without county help,” said Heller.

Heller noted that yesterday’s announcement included a notation that the county will get a $30,000 state Department Of Community Affairs grant to hire a consultant to tell them how to best to implement a public works plan.

“The fact that the county needs $30,000 of state taxpayer money to hire a politically connected consultant to tell them how to run a public works department says all we need to know about the political nature of this absurd plan,” said Heller.

 “The last thing anyone in Bergen County should want is help from the state DCA and its director Joseph Doria,” said Heller. “Mr. Doria is a typical Hudson County Democratic politician who wants to build political empires. We don’t need any more Hudson County style politics in Bergen County,” added Heller.