Act Now

Stop the Cuts!

Join HPAE at Lobby Day to

Tell Legislators to Make Better Choices for New Jersey and to STOP the Assault on Public Employee Benefits

WHEN: Thursday, June 12^th at 9:30a.m.

WHERE: Statehouse in Trenton (meeting in the Café NJ)

WHY: The proposed state budget takes New Jersey in the wrong direction, balancing the budget by assaulting Public Employees benefits, cutting vital services and jeopardizing our future.

Sample Letter for Campaign

Subject: Stop the Budget Cuts!

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

The proposed state budget takes New Jersey in the wrong direction, cutting vital services and jeopardizing our future. These cuts might seem to help balance the budget in the short term but they will weaken our communities, drive up property taxes, undermine the future for our families, and hurt our seniors, children and most vulnerable residents.

Proposed changes to Public Employee Benefits would diminish benefits that members negotiated through collective bargaining and fought to obtain. While legislators take action to deal with abuse of the pension system, the "solutions" crafted threaten to harm hard-working members instead.

Please do not go through with dangerous and short-sighted cuts to the Department of Health and Senior Services, cuts in direct support for hospitals and levels of charity care and other areas that are essential to our quality of life.

There are better choices, like closing corporate tax loopholes and asking more of wealthy individuals. We need a budget that invests in our state?s future. I hope I can count on you to make better choices for New Jersey's working families.

Sincerely,

Campaign Launched:
June 10, 2008

Background Information

Ø S-1969: Requires that members who hold multiple positions choose only one job for pension purposes. This would severely diminish the pensions of members who hold two or more part-time jobs to make ends meet rather than one full-time position.

Ø S-1964: A change in the pension formula for future employees to use the average of an employee’s five highest years of earnings when calculating individual pensions. Currently the formula uses the three highest years. Under the new formula, the pensions of FUTURE employees would be lower than they would be under the current formula.

Ø S-1965, denies health insurance benefits to part time employees.

Ø Our colleges will lose $76 million, meaning cuts in financial aid, higher tuition rates for our students and less ability to compete in the 21^st century.

Ø Out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for our seniors, disabled residents and low-income families will increase by at least 40% as Medicaid and Pharmaceutical Assistance to the Aged and Disabled are reduced