Christie takes action to stop 'pattern of abuse'
Gov. Chris Christie holds a town hall meeting about his reform agenda on Jan. 24.TRENTON — For decades, the commissioners who ran the state’s largest sewage treatment plant operated it as if they lived in their own kingdom, accountable to no one — not even the governor.
They hired brothers, wives, children and in-laws; cut sweetheart deals for insiders; gave out lucrative, no-bid consulting contracts, and ran up lavish travel expenditures.
Today, Gov. Chris Christie said he had had enough.
He fired nearly all of them.
Taking steps to terminate six of the seven members of the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commissioners, the governor said using the state authority as a "personal spoils system" would no longer be tolerated. He gave the six until Thursday to voluntarily resign or he would move to have them removed for cause.
"The members of the PVSC board of commissioners have had more than enough time to begin reforming the commission, but have chosen instead to perpetuate a pattern of abuse," Christie said. "They have repeatedly engaged in unethical hiring practices, secured unwarranted perks and blatantly ignored conflicts of interest."
The unprecedented action came just over a week after a report in The Sunday Star-Ledger documented widespread patronage, nepotism and self-dealing at Passaic Valley. It marked the first time in anyone’s memory an entire state authority was virtually sacked.
News of the firings was first reported this evening on NJ.com, The Star-Ledger’s real-time news and information site.
While political appointees can change with governors, authorities generally have staggered terms with members who typically bridge administrations over time. PVSC commissioners serve five-year terms, although four are holdovers whose terms have already expired.
The commissioners being dismissed are Chairman Anthony J. Luna, who also serves as the municipal manager of Lodi; Vice Chairman Carl S. Czaplicki Jr., director of the Jersey City Department of Housing, Economic Development & Commerce; William F. Flynn, a retired Paterson firefighter; Frank J. Calandriello, the mayor of Garfield; Angelina M. Paserchia, a former mayor of Belleville; and Thomas J. Powell, a Harrison redevelopment commissioner. Two seats are currently vacant.
Kenneth J. Lucianin, a Passaic city councilman and a Democratic appointee of former Gov. Jon Corzine, was the lone commissioner spared, said a spokesman for the governor. Considered a reformer, Lucianin will remain the governor’s at-large representative.
At his home tonight, Powell said no one had called from the governor’s office, but asserted he would "absolutely" fight the action, which he believed was unlawful.
"I have nothing to be ashamed of. In my time at Passaic Valley, I’ve served dutifully. I’ve served honestly," he said.
Flynn, also reached at his home, said he had heard nothing of the governor’s announcement.
Paserchia declined comment and a knock on Calandriello’s door elicited a call to "go away." Luna did not return a call to his office and Czaplicki was not at home.
Lucianin, whom Christie credited with demonstrating "more integrity," had not been informed of the governor’s decision, but said he had been willing to step aside if asked.
"I was well aware I am a representative of the governor, and I recognized the fact that the governor wanted a change," he said.
The run-up to the governor’s action came after the commissioners had been told last week to provide a full accounting by today of all hirings and personnel moves at Passaic Valley in which they had been involved. In their responses, the governor’s office said, several acknowledged they had lobbied in favor of — or recommended — the hiring of relatives and family members to work at the PVSC. Commission documents indicate several of them also voted to award raises and promotions to those individuals.
Flynn, however, ignored the governor’s request for answers. He instead demanded an apology from Christie for the tone of letter from the governor’s counsel.
Tonight during the "Ask the Governor" feature on New Jersey 101.5, Christie zeroed in on Flynn.
"This will show you how out of touch these professional political hacks are," Christie said of Flynn’s response. "This is outrageous, and I’ve just had enough. The statute permits to terminate these people for cause."
Passaic Valley, which handles the waste of 48 communities in Bergen, Passaic, Hudson and Essex counties, has been under mounting pressure ever since the revelations in The Star-Ledger, which found no-bid contracts awarded to politically connected consulting firms, including half a million dollars in public affairs and lobbying expenditures; travel to various conferences always held in warm places; and the hiring by commissioners of brothers, wives, children, cousins and in-laws.
In addition, the commission signed several deals that directly benefited the communities of commissioners who approved them.
Other documents obtained under the Open Public Record Act found the commissioners maintained a scorecard to keep track of the jobs they each had to give out, which were known as the "commissioners’ rounds." Numbered like NFL draft choices, the internal records showed one former commissioner, Kenneth Pengitore — now the PVSC’s chief financial officer — picked his daughter-in-law when his turn came. Another, Carl Czaplicki, selected his wife.
And despite an engineering department of 58 employees, the commission spent millions more on outside engineering contracts, with one company getting more than $1 million in new work just before it hired the former executive director of the PVSC.
While the governor has the power to appoint commissioners, it is not so simple to remove one. In this case, Christie sent letters to the six commissioners notifying them he would immediately begin removal proceedings "for cause."
The grounds being cited included conduct violating the commissioners’ oath; that certain commissioners had a direct or indirect interest in PVSC contracts; that the commissioners violated the authority’s code of ethics; and that they were no longer fit or able to serve.
The governor also took the steps necessary to suspend the commissioners without pay pending the resolution of the removal proceedings.
At the same time, Christie signed an executive order today vesting all necessary authority to run the PVSC to its executive director, Wayne Forrest.
If any of the commissioners refuse to resign, they can request formal hearings, which could be held as early as Monday in Trenton.
"It is clear that the PVSC has forfeited the right to police their own behavior," Christie said. "They must be held accountable which is why the legislature must give me the ability to stop this betrayal of the taxpayer’s trust."
Sen. Kevin O’Toole (R-Essex), commended the governor for his action, which he said will ultimately lower rates for ratepayers and communities served by the commission.
Commissioner Frank Calandriello, right, talks to fellow commissioner William F. Flynn, left, Wayne Forrest, the executive director for PVSC, Anthony J. Luna, the chairman of PVSC and Carl Czaplicki Jr., the vice chairman of PVSC during a public meeting. The Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission is an obscure agency whose payroll is swollen with the friends and family of those with political clout, while records show the funneling of thousands of dollars in no-bid contracts to political insiders. "The PVSC needs a fresh start," O’Toole said, calling on others in the Legislature to work together on reform legislation.
A bill sponsored by O’Toole and Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen) would extend the governor’s veto power over the PVSC, as well as the North Jersey District Water Supply Commission.
Weinberg also applauded the governor’s move, saying it promised to "shake things up" at the commission.
"It’s long overdue," Weinberg said a phone interview tonight. "It’s long overdue. This group has acted like out-of-control adolescents. They don’t know any boundaries. They’ve proven they can’t set their own limits."
Aliza Appelbaum, Ginger Gibson, Dan Goldberg, Ryan Hutchins and Rohan Mascarenhas contributed to this report.