May 8, 2012
Contact: Adam Bauer / (609) 847-3600
Senator Joe Kyrillos
Reiterates Call for Meaningful Tenure Reform
Tenure protections should not result in a four year dismissal process for a teacher caught on video whipping a disabled student with an electric cable, leading to his indictment on criminal charges, said state Senator Joe Kyrillos (R- Monmouth).
Kyrillos, sponsor of legislation to overhaul New Jersey’s antiquated tenure laws, said the current system takes entirely too long to terminate teachers even in cases in which the evidence of misconduct is overwhelming.
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April 30, 2012
Contact: Adam Bauer / (609) 847-3600
Senator Joe Kyrillos
Legislation Eliminates Cash Value for All Future Sick Leave; Addresses Democrats’ Objection to Original Bill
In an attempt to jump start action on stalled legislation to prohibit cash payments to public employees for unused sick leave, Senator Joe Kyrillos (R- Monmouth) said he will submit new legislation designed to eliminate legal objections that have prevented Majority Democrats from taking up the issue.
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April 26, 2012
Contact: Adam Bauer / (609) 847-3600
Senator Joe Kyrillos
State Senator Joe Kyrillos (R- Monmouth), prime sponsor of the “School Children First Act” which reforms New Jersey’s tenure system for educators, issued the following statement regarding reports that several Cherry Hill elementary school teachers and aides were recorded bullying a student with autism:
While at least one teacher’s aide was dismissed by school officials, the father of this student alleges, and news accounts confirm, that other teachers and aides involved were simply reassigned.
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Republican Senators representing districts with large numbers of New York City commuters have sent a letter to Mayor Michael Bloomberg expressing their strong opposition to any effort to restore a .45% income tax on New Jersey commuters working in New York City.
The proposal to bring back the “commuter tax”, which was abolished in 2000, has been floated by Manhattan Borough President and 2013 Mayoral candidate Scott Stringer. Proceeds from the levy would be used to bail out the long-dysfunctional Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).
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April 12, 2012
Contact: Adam Bauer / (609) 847-3600
Senator Joe Kyrillos
Senate Judiciary Committee member Joe Kyrillos (R- Monmouth) said today that continued frustration in New Jersey’s Korean and Asian-American communities over the politically motivated rejection of Philip Kwon to the New Jersey Supreme Court is well-justified.
“Phil Kwon was as fine a nominee as any who has come before the Senate in my career,” said Kyrillos. “If Phil Kwon isn’t qualified for the bench, then who is? Only in Trenton could rumor, innuendo, and outright falsehoods be used to railroad a Supreme Court nominee who has spent his entire career prosecuting public corruption and violent criminals on behalf of New Jersey residents.”
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Senate Republican Judiciary Committee Members Gerald Cardinale, Kevin O’Toole, Joe Kyrillos, Christopher Bateman, and Michael J. Doherty issued the following statement regarding the Committee’s rejection of Supreme Court nominee Phil Kwon:
Today, Democratic Senators on the Judiciary Committee rejected an exceptionally well-qualified Supreme Court nominee for no good reason whatsoever. From the moment Mr. Kwon was nominated, the Majority engaged in a campaign of intensely personal character assassination centering around issues that were completely immaterial to his fitness to serve on the court.
The Majority’s entire line of questioning and basis for rejecting his nomination centered on events that had absolutely nothing to do with Phil Kwon.
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March 21, 2012
Contact: Adam Bauer / (609) 847-3600
Senator Joe Kyrillos
Senator Joe Kyrillos, prime sponsor of legislation ending payment to public employees for unused sick leave, issued the following statement on today’s news accounts that the decades old terminal leave policy cost New Jersey Transit $4.1 million last year:
When Governor Christie stepped up to the plate and fixed Jon Corzine’s mess at NJ Transit, we heard howls from Trenton Democrats he dare make the tough decisions that Corzine put off in an election year.
Today, we learned that NJ Transit was left holding the bag for $4.1 million in sick leave payouts that Democrats refuse to end.
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March 1, 2012
Contact: Adam Bauer / (609) 847-3600
Senator Joe Kyrillos
Senator Joe Kyrillos spoke with students today at both Middletown High School North and Middletown High School South about current events in New Jersey government and the importance of being an active participant in the political process:
“Students and young people are underrepresented at the polls in every election, which in turn makes government at all levels lose sight of the needs of the next generation,” Kyrillos said.
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February 29, 2012
Contact: Adam Bauer / (609) 847-3600
Senator Joe Kyrillos
Following a tour of New Jersey’s Cop2Cop crisis intervention program call center in Piscataway, Senator Joe Kyrillos (R- Monmouth) applauded the University of Medicine and Dentistry (UMDNJ) for providing professional, life saving crisis intervention services to New Jersey’s law enforcement officers:
“Cop2Cop, like its sister services Vet2Vet, Vets2Warriors, and Mom2Mom, fill a critical need for police officers dealing with significant psychological and emotional trauma as a result of their service to our state and communities,” said Kyrillos, who was the original prime sponsor of the legislation which established the program. “UMDNJ has done a fantastic job of running and promoting what was at its conception a truly innovative idea. This program is now a model for the nation that has helped to avert 187 suicides since its inception.”
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February 15, 2012
Contact: Adam Bauer / (609) 847-3600
Senator Joe Kyrillos
Senator Praises Inclusion in Christie Administration’s 2012 SDA Project Portfolio
Construction projects designed to address critical educational needs at the John C. Caruso Elementary School in Keansburg will be moving forward under the Christie Administration’s 2012 Schools Development Authority (SDA) project portfolio, Senator Joe Kyrillos said today.
Kyrillos praised the Administration’s decision to include Keansburg in its second round of SDA-funded construction projects, noting the Governor’s steadfast commitment to cleaning up financial mismanagement at the beleaguered agency.
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