NJ GOP wants transparency as American Rescue Plan deadline looms
By: Katie Sobko
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... New Jersey received more than $6 billion form the federal government in 2021 as part of the American Rescue Plan, and one Republican state senator wants to know exactly where that money was allocated and how much is left to distribute before the deadline to do so arrives this year. [2024]
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In a letter to Governor Phil Murphy and the chairs of the Legislature's budget committee, state senator Paul Sarlo and Assemblywoman Eliana Pinto Martin, State Senator Declan O'Scanlon, the minority budget officer, called for more transparency in the allocation process.
..... "It has recently come to my attention that discretionary allocations and reallocations are being made unilaterally by the governor with no formal legislative role and no transparency,' O'Scanion said in the letter. "Until recently, I believe that reallocations of past legislative appropriations would be made through a formal public legislative process, which would be far more appropriate."
..... According to O'Scanlon's letter, the budget and finance officer of the nonpartisan Office of Legislature Services has said that nearly $500 million of prior allocations have been reallocated and that about $200 million has not been allocated at all.
..... O'Scanlon requested a meeting of the Joint Budget Oversight Committee, or JBOC, to review a final allocation plan and "comprehensive information that explains all new allocations and reallocations' made by Murphy since July 1, [2024] as well as a complete list of all allocations of the ARP funding.
..... O'Scanlon said Wednesday [10/16/2024] that the Legislature "absolutely should be involved in the process' and that his letter wasn't an attack but rather a reminder to the administration and legislative leadership that lawmakers are "supposed to be acting in as transparent a way as possible when we're spending the public's money"
..... He said the Legislature set up a process to allocate the money through JBOC so the public would have the opportunity to see what's going on.
..... In his opinion, the money should be spent on projects "where it can do the most broad public good" and not "projects of questionable value."
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New Jersey has until the end of December [2024] to allocate all $6.2 billion received, otherwise the unallocated money needs to be returned to the federal government. After the money is allocated, the state has until the end of 2026 to spend it.
..... A spokesperson for the state Treasury Department said the :vast majority of funds have been allocated, and the administration continues to work with the Legislature on remaining allocations," going on to say that "all funds will be obligated in accordance with U.S. Treasury rules" by the end of the year [2024] and that the goal is for the "Process to be complete by the end of October." [2024]
..... When asked if the governor has allocated any funds since July 1, [2024] or if he has been in touch with legislative leaders about where the remaining money should be sent, a spokesperson for his office referred to the response from Treasury.
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Sarlo, who chairs the upper chamber's Budget Committee and is also chairman of the JBOC, said recently that he had asked the governor's office for a full accounting of how much money was left and that he would potentially schedule a committee meeting after receiving that.
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Last month, [09/2024] New Jersey Sports and exposition Authority earmarked $7,125 million in ARP funds to assist MetLife Stadium with securing and hosting the WWE SummerSlam in East Rutherford next summer. [2025]
..... At the beginning of the summer, [2024] the stat Economic Development Authority deemed the satellite location for the Pompidou French arts museum project in Jersey City not viable.
..... The Jersey City Redevelopment Agency had been allocated $10 million in American Rescue Plan funds for the museum during the JBOC meeting on May 5, 2023.
..... That funding is now in a central account with other unobligated funds and money returned due to underspending.