Current Legislation - November 19, 2012

MINIMUM WAGE INCREASE: S-3/S-853 SCS (Sweeney/Vitale/Codey) A-2162 (Oliver/Greenwald/Green/Johnson/Prieto/Wisniewski) was released from the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee today by a vote of 7 to 6. The senate committee substitute would increase the minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $8.50 per hour and allow for annual adjustments based upon the Consumer Price Index (CPI). NJEA submitted testimony in support of the substitute. The bill now heads to the Senate floor for a full vote.

SHARED SERVICES:  S-2 (Sweeney, Kyrillos, O’Toole, Bucco) The Senate Committee Substitute clarifies the powers of the Local Unit Alignment, Reorganization, and Consolidation Commission (LUARCC) to recommend the consolidation or merger of specific municipalities and autonomous agencies and the sharing of services between municipalities or between municipalities and other public entities. The bill was released by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee by a vote of 13-0 and is now on second reading in the Senate.  An early draft of the bill would have suspended tenure and Civil Service for local governments, including boards of education.  Senator Sweeney removed the provisions impacting schools prior to introduction.  NJEA and unions representing public employees did not take a position on the amended bill.