Sen. Rice Reacts to Newark Watershed Conservation and Dev. Corp.'s Vote to File for Bankruptcy

Senator Ronald L. Rice issued the following statement on the vote by the Newark Watershed Conservation and Development Corp. board of trustees to file for bankruptcy:

“I want to commend the new board for filing bankruptcy charges and working to recoup taxpayer dollars to help those who were harmed during this fiasco. I also want to commend Mayor Baraka for staying the course as a council member and as mayor, as well as other council members who never relented in their effort to have this entity investigated.

“It’s unfortunate that those of us – citizens and elected officials – who continue to bring these kinds of issues to the state and federal government too often are ignored until it’s too late. Newark Watershed is just one example. We have a history of cities being ignored when it comes to requests to look into situations. In addition, officials continue to ignore the hue and cry of the public and elected officials to look at the issues that have taken place under Newark Schools Superintendent Cami Anderson. This has to end.

“In Newark, we are facing serious issues. The city has a $93 million deficit, the school district faces a $53 million shortfall, and there are many other problems that we face. I hope the state and federal government begins to pay attention to serious concerns that continue to be raised by taxpayers and those who represent them. It is the mission of the state and federal agencies to investigate, examine and audit public entities when there are allegations of impropriety, wherever they are alleged to take place. It cannot be selective in ferreting out waste and abuse. At the end of the day, when funding is lost to this kind of conduct, it comes back on the taxpayers in various ways, including increased property taxes, lost services and layoffs.

“While the action taken by the Newark Watershed trustees is good news for the city, we must continue to root out waste, fraud and abuse wherever it occurs.”