From the Cherry Hill Courier Post:
Corzine likely to sign ban on holding 2 offices
Gov. Jon S. Corzine said a proposed ban on dual officeholding that would carve out exceptions for politicians who already hold two or more elected posts does not go far enough for his tastes, but he is likely to sign the bill anyway because it is the best he can get right now.
“I’m not satisfied with what we’ve done, but I also believe in the practicality of, you’ve got to have the votes, you’ve got to be able to make progress,” Corzine said Monday during a 24-minute question-and-answer session with reporters.
“I know there’ll be be criticism of it, but I think I want to seize the moment to set in train a change in the fundamental way that we have allowed, I think, the system to develop real weaknesses in ethical patterns on the issue of dual office holding,” Corzine said.
After Corzine demanded a dual office holding ban, the Senate and Assembly agreed to pass a bill that would take effect in February, giving officials one last chance this November to win an additional office. The bill would also allow officials to move up from the Assembly to Senate while keeping a local post. Anyone who holds more than one position by February would keep all their jobs as long as they won re-election.
Republicans have said the ban should be immediate and cover everyone.
Corzine said dual office holders are not unethical, but added, “I think it is a very hard case to make that one job doesn’t influence the other.”
It’s a start. I guess the worst case scenario has us talking about the last dual office holder in 20 or 30 years.
it’s most likely 40 or 50 years and by then most state workers will be retiring on 300K and the last dual office holder should hit a cool million a year.
it’s most likely 40 or 50 years and by then most state workers will be retiring on 300K and the last dual office holder should hit a cool million a year.