Opposition to Assembly Bill A2806

Acting Governor Richard J. Codey
Office of the Acting Governor
PO Box 001
Trenton, New Jersey 08625


Dear Acting Governor Codey,

As you are aware, Assembly Bill 2806 establishes "The Essex County Prosecutorial Unification Pilot Program Act of 2004." I would like to take a moment of your time to express my opposition to this Bill and Senate Bills S2054, S282 and S1007.

Some of the issues of concern which have arisen in response to this proposed legislation are as follows:

* Higher taxes for the citizens of New Jersey.
* Loss of specialized services/task forces which suit individual county needs.
* The statewide transfer of Prosecutor's employees.
* The loss of collective bargaining rights by employees.
* Nullification of union contracts.
* Loss of salary and step programs won during contract negotiations.
* Loss of protection of rights of county investigators.

These are just a few of the issues which have come to the forefront as a result of this legislation. These bills were designed to relieve the tax burden of the citizens of each county. These bills however, would only shift the tax burden to the state level. It is a known fact that the State of New Jersey currently faces a $4 billion dollar deficit in 2005. The question is then, where will the money to support the takeover of twenty-one County Prosecutor's Offices come from?

The Prosecutor's Offices in each of the twenty-one counties operate as a hands-on law enforcement agency with contacts and daily operations in every municipality within the state. This local approach allows each office to function more effectively lending their expertise to the unique problems faced within each municipality in their respective counties. This ultimately leads to a more effective prosecution of cases.

This letter is being written to officially inform you and your political constituents of the negative impact that Bill 2806 will have on the county prosecutor's offices, county prosecutor's detectives, county prosecutor's, assistant prosecutor's, clerical staff, paralegal staff as well as the voting citizen's of each of the twenty-one counties in the State of New Jersey. I therefore, strongly oppose this legislation.

Thank you in advance for your attention to this urgent matter.

Sincerely,


A concerned taxpayer of the State of NJ