Senator Joe Pennacchio on S-1457 - Additional Borrowing for School Construction

Morris Plains, NJ -- State Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-Morris/Passaic) issued the following statement regarding the School Construction Corporation:

“The worst public works program hoax perpetrated on New Jersey taxpayers was the School Construction Corporation’s (SCC) fleecing taxpayers of $8.6 billion. If that was not bad enough, now taxpayers are being asked to fork over another $4 billion.

The SCC was so mismanaged that the Star Ledger reported construction projects their agencies built cost 45% more than similar schools built by districts. The Star Ledger also reported only 132 of 468 projects were completed.

The former head of the SCC was also the Executive Director of the Building Contractors Association, which received $1 billion in SCC contracts. That was an obvious conflict of interest. The school construction review commission, set up by legislation, was charged with examining the program and recommended reforms to be enacted by the commission but they were never organized! Not one person was held responsible. Not one person was indicted, arrested or tried. Now we are asking to fork over another $4 billion, all without voter approval.

If you think fraud can not happen again, pay attention to a recent Supreme Court mandated forensic audit of the Abbott districts which showed that $0.25 of each dollar being spent in those districts are still being wasted. Worse than fleecing our taxpayers is using our children as political pawns to advance additional waste and fraud. Children being taught in hallways and closets are being cited to illustrate the need to spend an additional $4 billion.

Instead of having kids learn in closets or hallways, Newark should have spent $300 million on enriching their children’s’ education experience instead of giving it to a rich hockey owner to build an arena or $1/4 million to superintendents who are satisfied graduating only 40% from high school. With such mismanagement, is it any wonder that taxpayers are fleeing the State? Unfortunately, those left behind are still picking up the bill”