NJ Supreme Court gives Christie a win on pensions
The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that Gov. Chris Christie (R) can move ahead with his proposed $1.57 billion cut to the state’s public employee pensions system to clean the state’s fiscal house.
The decision came as much-needed good news for Christie, who is expected to announce whether he’ll run for president in the coming weeks.
In a statement, Christie hailed the court’s ruling as a victory for taxpayers, “who simply cannot afford these unsustainably high costs.”
{mosads}”The Court’s position is clear, as is mine: it is time to move forward and work together to find a tangible, long-term solution to make our pension system and public employee health benefit costs affordable and sustainable for generations to come,” Christie said.
But the 5-2 ruling didn’t come without criticism for Christie. In her majority opinion, Justice Jaynee LaVecchia wrote that “because of the importance of maintaining the soundness of the pension funds, the loss of public trust due to the broken promises made [through Christie enacting such a policy] is staggering.”
“The Court recognizes that the present level of the pension systems’ funding is of increasing concern,” LaVecchia wrote.
Christie has been dogged by bad headlines and sagging polls numbers as his critics attack his fiscal policies; credit rating agencies have downgraded the Garden State’s credit score nine times since he took office.
And then there’s “Bridgegate,” as authorities investigate his former senior administration officials in connection with the 2013 closure of lanes on the George Washington Bridge as an apparent act of political payback.
Christie, who was in New Hampshire on Tuesday, looked to move forward — even as unions said they’d petition the U.S. Supreme Court.
“In light of today’s decision, I urge all interested parties to come back to the table and partner with me to finally solve this problem once and for all,” Christie said in a statement.
Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
