Wayne Bryant

On Friday, Republican Medford Mayor Chris Myers asked his Democratic 3rd District Congressional opponent, State Sen. John Adler, whether he ever received funds from a controversial legislative slush fund.

Frustrated at what he saw as a non-answer, Myers reiterated the question today.

“I called on John Adler to come clean on his potential involvement in this scam last week, and the silence was deafening,” said Myers in a press release today. “Adler owes the taxpayers of New Jersey – and in particular the 3rd Congressional District – an answer as to whether or not he was involved in this massive abuse of taxpayer dollars. A list of individual legislators – Democrat and Republican – who were involved in this scam, and the pet projects they funded should be released for public review immediately. The way politicians in Trenton abuse their power and our tax dollars is despicable and the ones involved should all be held to account immediately.”

They may face each other in a gubernatorial primary election next year, but for now Assemblyman Richard Merkt (R-Mendham) wants U.S. Attorney Chris Christie activated for a common purpose.

Tired of lobbying state channels and getting no results, Merkt today called on Christie to investigate a grant program that appears to have been "nothing more than a political pork slush fund for certain Democratic legislators," in Merkt’s words.

"We need to know what legislators, in addition to (former state Sen. Wayne Bryant D-Camden) had control of these funds, where they directed those funds, and whether they benefitted from the recipients," said Merkt, who’s probing a run for governor next year. "The U.S. Attorney now needs to look into the entire scope of this program to see whether there is wrongdoing that extends beyond Mr. Bryant’s actions."

State Sen. Tom Kean, Jr. (R-Union): Politicker photoSUMMIT - As far back as 2004, Sen. Tom Kean, Jr. (R-Union) recalls himself and others - state Sen. Leonard Lance (R-Hunterdon), then Assemblyman Kevin O'Toole (R-Cedar Grove) among them - complaining about the lack of transparency in the way legislators obtained money for projects in their respective districts.

Now on the heels of George LeBlanc’s testimony in the corruption trial of former Sen. Wayne Bryant (D-Camden) in which the Senate budget officer highlighted how legislators in 2004 and 2005 siphoned money from a dedicated $40 million property tax relief fund, Kean wants answers.

"The next step is to get our hands around what occurred," the senator told PolitickerNJ.com. "Who was spending and what was being spent? The most important thing now is to expose to the light of day what was happening - expose the process.

"We're talking about a system in which information was being held not just from the public but from other members of the Legislature, a system that resulted in massive overspending with no oversight, which made New Jersey more unaffordable, in which members of the (Codey) administration were complicit."

Two-and-a-half years before a state budget aide brought back to light a slush fund that gave key legislative leaders sole discretion over millions of dollars in state money, Assembly Republicans were suspicious of the program and sought to learn more about it.

They didn’t get very far, however, according to documents the Assembly Republicans provided to PolitickerNJ.

The Property Tax Assistance and Community Development grants program became the subject of controversy again yesterday when Democratic Senate budget staffer George LeBlanc, testifying at former State Sen. Wayne Bryant’s corruption trial, said that Bryant got $4 million from the fund to distribute at his own discretion. $200,000 went to his employer, UMDNJ. LeBlanc also testified that former Senate Majority Leader Bernard Kenny also was allocated $4 million.

Medford Mayor Chris Myers: Politicker file photoSeizing on a corruption trial newsflash, Medford Mayor Chris Myers tried to put flesh and bones on his repeated campaign trail depiction of 3rd Congressional District opponent state Sen. John Adler (D-Camden) as a Trenton hack.

In the trial of former Sen. Wayne Bryant (D-Camden), Senate Democratic Budget Officer George LeBlanc told jurors yesterday that in 2004 and 2005, legislators reached into a $40 million dedicated Property Tax Assistance and Community Development fund to fish out money for pet projects in their respective districts.

Today, Myers demanded that Adler "immediately and fully disclose whether he illegally controlled any taxpayer dollars from that fund, and if so, where he directed those dollars to be spent."

"This revelation of a huge secret trust fund, together with the obviously close relationship between Bryant and Adler raises serious red flags about Adler’s knowledge of, and participation in, this growing scandal of taxpayer abuse and self enrichment," Myers said.

Reacting to news that certain state legislators were given sole discretion on where millions of dollars in state funds were spent, State Sen. Leonard Lance – who was Senate Minority Leader at the time – said it was outrageous, and made other scandals about “Christmas tree” items inserted into the budget look tame.

Lance said he was not a beneficiary of the program.

“We voted against the budget and we were railing against the Christmas tree items. But I think this goes beyond that. I haven’t examined it fully, but…. that’s an extremely bad procedure,” said Lance. “We haven’t been involved in the Christmas Tree process, but if someone outright says I want something for my district and it’s there in black and white, we can have a debate back and forth. But this is even worse because it’s done behind closed doors.”

Senate President Richard Codey (D-Essex) refused to comment on testimony delivered today by George LeBlanc, a Democratic budget aide, who said legislators abused a state program dedicated to property tax relief.

LeBlanc gave his testimony in the corruption trial of former Sen. Wayne Bryant (D-Camden).

In a brief conversation with PolitickerNJ.com, Codey said his lawyers have advised him against making comments about last year's state budget scandals until after the end of the corruption trial of state Sen. Joseph Coniglio (D-Bergen).

A witness at former State Sen. Wayne Bryant’s corruption trial gave what could amount to blockbuster testimony today, detailing a little-known practice that the legislature engaged in during 2004 and 2005.   

George LeBlanc, a Democratic budget aide, testified that a program ostensibly dedicated to property tax relief was used to hand out millions of dollars to key legislators to spend on pet projects hand out to their constituents, reports the Star-Ledger. 

According to the testimony, Bryant was allotted $4 million from the Property Tax Assistance and Community Development grants program.  The only other legislator named in the report is former State Sen. Bernard Kenny, who also was given $4 million. 

“The testimony contrasts with claims by lawmakers that individual grant recipients had to apply to the state Treasurer for funding from the $40 million pool, and that grants were awarded competitively,” reported Dunstan McNichol. 

Gloucester County Freeholder Warren Wallace refused to discuss legal action he has taken against UMDNJ, despite Republican Freeholder candidates Phyllis Scapellato and Larry Wallace questioning his timing in filing a lawsuit against his former employer.

In his May 28 lawsuit, Wallace claims he was a victim of racial discrimination when UMDNJ fired him two years ago as a dean at the school’s Stratford campus.

The Republicans say Wallace’s relations with disgraced former state Sen. Wayne Bryant (D-Camden) have more to do with the Democratic incumbent’s UMDNJ troubles.

"Simply amazing," Scapellato said. "He waits until he’s up for re-election to file a bogus lawsuit to take the attention away from his wrongdoings. Warren Wallace filed this suit as an election year stunt to hide from his connections to Wayne Bryant."

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