The Herald and The Lantern

Pane IK

Wednesday, January 23,1980

Crucial Point

fiipr May fount) Sh riff Beech Fox has leveled a rather serious (hartfc ir his eanuiaiKn for the Second fongre*sion«l neat currently held by Congressman William Hughes In a recent news releas • as part of his campaign effort, the Republican challenger alludes to assertions that up to 80 per cent of rhe staff me nhers hired by the 43. r > Members of (Congress are involved | rimarily with re-election efforts instead of legislation rurlhermore and here the allegation strikes home Mr Fox has stated flat out that he intends "to show this to be true” of Mr Hughes and his

staff

If Mr Fox can prove tl is allegation, it would certainly underscore the consistan theme of his campaign the rif^l'to rid what is pom ived as a political self seeking government bureaucriicj of lethargy, inefficiency and

waste

’ If, on the other hand, th * claim by Mr Fox proves to be .notnmg but unfounded campaign rhetoric, then the hallenger will have rendered a heavy self inflicted blow

to his own credibility earl' THE SKRIOt JSNKSS of and pervasiveness of w assertion is tKal some Congressional staff sala efforts, and that virtually his recent pms ndease.

in the campaign

f the charge lies in the magnitude v ial is claimed. In elfeef; the $100 million in taxpayer-paid i ies go mainly for re-election ill Congressmen are culprits In . for example. Mr Fox not only

makes the broad stateme it that Congress is to blame for most of inflation's ills, but, more specifically, that Memliers of Congress * are a bloated, wasteful and

inefficient group

The.Fox for Congress campaign has started early and, therefore, runs the risk of iieaking well before the election next November As such. Mr Fox must sustain a tough challenge hv bringing tough, hard hitting issues before the public IWauso Mr Hughes is perceived in most circles a^ an extremely «ffective representative for his district and as very popilar among many voters, the effort by Mr Fox to urseat the incumbent must be

unyielding

AT THE SAME TIME, t h* campaign must be credibile and more accurate than most election efforts given the tenor of down home praet cality. hard work and honesty countenanced by campaigner Fox If allegations by Mr Ft x almut large amounts of taxpayers money going into re-election efforts can be proven, and proven specifically with regard to Congressman Hughe* it certainty Would damage the incumbent's esteem And the Fox campaign would gain momentum and addifl public attentioh But again, these are serious charges, which will surcl' backfire on the man who has made them if they aren't p roven conclusively Early on in what appeals will bo a tenacious campaign by thd challenger, a crucial claim has been made We await the proof or lack thereof, and on it. we believe, much of the future of the F >x campaign rests

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Capital Comments , Taxation By Stop Watch

By James Hurley TRENTON - The recent convening of the 199th session of the New Jersey State Legislature and the delivery of the Governor's annual message were overshadowed by the desperate attempt on the part of the Governor, his staff and the Democratic legislative leadership to pass a $280 million tax package in the dying hours of the lame-duck legislative session With only minutes to go in the old session, the

Senate completed legislative action on the one bill in the Governor's package to survive the Legislature's hasty consideration — a IMt per cent increase in the corporation income tax) designed to raise $90 million annually On January 5 the Democratic majority in the Assembly had rejected a 5 per cent sales tax on professional services, such as fees charged attorneys and architects, and accountants which was the cornerstone of the program

and would have raised over $200 million annually. The Assembly also turned down a proposed refinery tax. but passed bill which would have changed the state's gasoline tax from 8 cents per gallon .to 10 per cent of the wholesale price. This bill was considered by the Senate, prior to adjournment. but received only 16 votes. 5 short of passage THE LAST DAYS of the lame-duck session were marred by a scries of developments which made the Legislature resemble an asylum more than a deliberative representative body. For the first time in the memory of State House observers debate was halted in order to insure passage of the tax bills. In the Assembly a gag rule was passed to facilitate passage of the gasoline measure; in the Senate debate was halted ten minutes prior to ^ adjournment so that a vote could be taken on the corporate tax increase. The Assembly's committee system, which had been steadily strengthened during the 1970’s, was bypassed completely In the hasty rush toward imposition of new and increased taxes. The cries for public hearings from groups as disparate as Common Cause and the State Chamber of Commerce were ignored and pleas from most of the state's media for reasoned, rational consideration of the tax hills fell on deaf ears. Even more reprehensible than the atmosphere in which the bills were considered were events surrounding the passage of

the tax bills in the Senate and the Assembly. The vote tally on the corporate Ux increase was continued for close to half an hour, while a group of Democratic legialators met off the floor witheepresentatives of the Byrne administration. When the legislators returned to the chamber, they cast their votes for the bills. The price? Three Senate bills which would have restructured the public utility gross receipts tax and used some of the funds to benefit urban areas were killed for the

session

IN THE SENATE, urban legislators were angered at the demise of the public utility package in the Assembly The Hudson County delegation refused to vote for the corporate income tax until the administration agreed to pump $43 million in 'additional moneys into the State's municipalities. It is my fervent hope that in the new Legislature there will be no repetition of the unseemly behavior which characterized the last days of its predecessor. The legislature is supposed to be the branch of government closest to the people. It can only function that way if it gives its citizens sufficient time to be heard on legislation and if it conducts its business free of cominance from outside interests or other branches of government. Restoring the integrity of the legislative process is my single most important goal for the new year James R. Hurley (RMillville) is the Assembly Minority Leader.

Fox Charges Congressional Staff Is Primarily For Re-election Use

COURT HOUSE - It is costing American taxpayers about $600,000 for the operation of each Member of Congress' office and that, according to Republican Congressional candidate Beech Fox. is “far too much."" 'Th-' facj is that Congress itself has caused most of the problems associated with mflation. They will never be able to convince the voters to be conservative because they are a bloated, wasteful and inefficient group who could hardly qualify as fiscal conservative leaders." Fox said in a news release. The past year a Congressman s pay was $57,000, according to Fox. compared to $42,500 in 1969 This year it will be $60,663 DEMOCRAT CONGRESSMAN William Hughes voted in favor of a Joint House Resolution list September 20 that would have increased it to $61.525. Fox said ‘It is easy to see that our Congressman is

certainly in favor of increasing Congressional costs, not decreasing them." A Congressman's salary is only the start oha what Fox termed "long list of expenses." " , Each Congressman is allowed $75,000 per year for an expense account, he noted. This includes such items as newsletters, field offices, telephone and telegrams. A U.S. Senator receives an average of $143,000 per year. Each of the 435 Congressmen receive up to $288,000 to pay up to 18 employees, the Republican contender continued "I BELIEVE in the idea that many sources have put forward concerning these staff members. It is claimed that up to 80 per cent of the staff is involved primarily with re-election efforts instead of legislation." Fox asserted "As the campaign progresses I plan to show this to be true right in our

Second Congressional district with our Congressman William Hughes." he charged "The benefits of a Congressman don’t stop there, he went on.” They get a $3,000 cost of living tax deduction annually. A $63,000 life insurance policy is available to lawmakers They receive cut-rate meals at the Capitol restaurant, free parking, free medical care, subsidized health insurance, the list goes on and on. "As each and every one of us fights inflation and escalating costs our Congressmen have insulated them when it comes to pensions. They have an automatic inflation clause as the cost of living increases." Fox said. "IT ALL ADDS up to Congressmen taking care of themselves first and the taxpayer^ down the line somewhere.” he noted. What can be done about it? Fox answered his own question, saying he would start with the staff and cut.

"We do not nee<f high power re-election personnel paid from Congressional monies," he assorted "I would do away with the newsletters in the present form because in 95 per cent of the cases they are a rehash of news articles and Items well covered by the media." Fox said. "I would only use this type of mailing where my constituents have no other way of knowing. I would use the free press to give reports necessary to the peopfe. , "An exchange of mall between a Congressman and his district is good, but not when its real motive is to keep the re-election fires going," Fox said. "I advocate doing away with the waste of tax payers' monies on social amenities such as anniversary cards, congratulations letters, cook books and scores of other such Items." he added.

BOYD

THE LONGSHOREMEN OR THE PRESIDENT

IH 'SOVEREIGNSTATEolAFFAIRS

THIS FOREIGN CRISIS STUFF IS REAUY GETTING CONFUSING

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