The War On Plastic Has Come To New Jersey

If you think your plastic straws are safe in New Jersey, think again.

There is a Bill in Trenton S2776 introduced June 25/A4330 introduced July 30 that “Prohibits use of plastic carryout bags, expanded polystyrene, and single-use plastic straws.”

Nothing is safe in this state, not plastic bags, Styrofoam containers or straws!

Don’t think this can’t happen. The Sierra Club is already pushing this! In fact, on August 6 the group issued a statement in which Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, states, “We will not reduce our plastic waste with a fee which is why New Jersey needs a statewide ban.”

Senate Bill S2776 is indeed a statewide ban. The “statement” portion of the bill is clear:

   This bill would prohibit stores and food service businesses from providing plastic carryout bags to their customers.  The bill would also prohibit any person from selling or offering for sale in the State any expanded polystyrene (commonly referred to as "Styrofoam") food service product and prohibit any food service business from selling or providing any food in an expanded polystyrene food service product.  Further, the bill would prohibit any food service business from selling or providing single-use plastic straws to customers.  The prohibitions in the bill would take effect one year after the date of enactment of the bill into law.

     A person who violates any provision of the bill would be subject to a penalty of up to $5,000 for each offense, and each day during which the violation continues would constitute a separate offense.

The Assembly version is identical.

The war on plastics is coming to New Jersey in full force. Senators Bob Smith and Linda Greenstein as primary sponsors of S2776 and Assemblywoman Nancy Pinkin, Assemblymen James Kennedy and John McKeon as primary sponsors of A4330 are leading the charge.

Apparently, based on their nearly 1,100 word anti-plastics statement of August 6 legislators have enlisted the New Jersey Sierra Club as their army.

In that statement, the Sierra Club points out, “There will be a Senate and Assembly joint Committee meeting on plastics, including plastic bags, straws, and Styrofoam on August 23rd.” As of this morning we couldn’t find anything about this meeting on the State Legislature’s website, clicking August 23 on the calendar says, “No scheduled proceedings today.” We’ll keep watching because it’s time to stop the nonsense.

If the radicals in this state are successful in banning plastic bags, straws and Styrofoam what’s next? “Zip lock” baggies? The plastic bags I buy to pickup after my dog? Trash bags? The list goes on.

Maybe it’s time to call the sponsors of this ridiculous bill and remind them the remote control they use to tune to MSNBC is made of plastic as is the bottle they’re drinking their water from while being brainwashed watching the personalities on that channel.

Is Haddon Township Commissioner’s Recent Incident Just The Tip Of The Iceberg?

Haddon Twp Commissioner Paul Dougherty; photo from Twp. website

Yesterday we told the story of an elected official from Haddon Township, Commissioner Paul Dougherty, who was “accused of leaving the scene of an accident” and “charged with driving without a license.”

Multiple sources have told us the ticket(s) was/were mailed to his house. Common sense tells us if the ticket was mailed that “driving without a license” means it wasn’t simply a case of him not having it in his wallet, but he doesn’t have a license, maybe suspended, maybe revoked or maybe he never renewed it. Who knows? Whatever the reason, as a municipal prosecutor in several municipalities, he should have known better than to drive without a license. Surly, he’s prosecuted people for doing exactly that.

The thing is this latest incident may be just the tip of the iceberg with Dougherty. Given the truckload of garbage behind him it’s a wonder he was ever re-elected.

In 2012 Dougherty was forced to repay $2,500 to Haddon Township after accepting payroll checks that were issued “to Dougherty at his request that were more than the compensation approved in the budget.”

In March 2013 Haddon Township police officers held a vote of “no confidence” in Dougherty. Members of the Department claimed “he had inappropriately discussed a police personnel matter in a public meeting; had appointed a hearing officer that he had a financial relationship with to preside over a preceding considering disciplinary actions for a police officer; had been found to be in a "suspected state of intoxication" on several occasions by township police officers and several other allegations.” There’s a YouTube video here.

In June 2013, after Dougherty was moved from Public Safety to Finance, probably because of his apparent issues with members of the Township police department, he slashed $20,000 from the police budget for items other than salary. The other two commissioners had to vote to restore the funding.

In October 2013 Dougherty was accused by a Township woman, who happened to be his neighbor, of “targeting” her with code enforcement. Coincidentally, the woman was going through a divorce and sources tell us Dougherty, an attorney, just happened to representing her estranged husband at the time.

Since yesterday’s post we’ve received many calls and anonymous messages about Mr. Dougherty, too many to immediately investigate considering we both have day jobs. There is probably more to this guy’s story but for now we’ll ask, how did this guy get re-elected?

Update 6:17PM: Other sources inform us Dougherty did NOT represent the woman's ex husband. But eventually the town's prosecutor did represent the ex husband

Another Camden County Democrat Heads To Court

What’s in the water at Camden County’s Democratic Headquarters? A second elected official from their party is now headed to court in as many months.

You may recall, back in June, former Assemblyman Arthur Barclay resigned that post for “health reasons” after it was discovered he was arrested for a domestic violence incident.

At that time, Camden County Republicans asked why it took 11 days from arrest to resignation and wondered if the arrest was kept quiet so the former assemblyman could cast a vote for the state‘s budget. A county spokesman promised an investigation, that may or may not have happened, and Camco Republicans have asked if Barclay still holds his county job.

Last week, according to a published report, Haddon Township Commissioner Paul Dougherty has been accused of “accused of leaving the scene of an accident” and “charged with driving without a license.”

This latest incident involving a county Democrat happened on July 19 and Republicans are asking why it took two weeks to become public. A valid question considering it took almost two weeks for the Barclay incident to become public, which happened only after Republicans discovered it.

Haddon Township is a nonpartisan town, but Dougherty is an elected member of the Camden County Democratic Committee. He also happens to be the municipal prosecutor in at least three municipalities in Camden County. As a prosecutor Dougherty should have known better to drive without a license and county Republicans were right to point that out in a press release this morning.

So, now we have an elected Township official, who has been accused of leaving the scene of an accident, who the town’s cops have accused of being seen in a “suspected state of intoxication” in the past.

Dougherty’s past controversies do give cause to wonder why a guy apparently driving without a license is accused of leaving the scene of an accident. And, Camden County Republicans are right to ask if he’s going to be kept on as a municipal prosecutor if he really is, or has been, driving without a license as a prosecutor should know better.

Camden County Democrats should answer the questions about these two cases because both have been holding positions that pay them with taxpayer dollars.