Christie said he took the action because the authority approved a 3 percent raise for staff, set aside money for 'Employee Service Awards Program'
Chris Christie delivers his State of the State address in the Assembly Chamber of the Statehouse in this Jan. 11 file photo.TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie has vetoed the New Jersey Redevelopment Authority’s approval of its 2011 administrative budget, citing “inappropriate expenditures.”
Christie said he took the action because the authority approved a 3 percent discretionary raise for its staff and set aside money for an “Employee Service Awards Program” that allowed employees who worked there a certain amount of time to select gifts from a brochure.
"Such expenditures contradict my stated goal of fiscal prudence,” said Christie in his veto message.
The raises were to be based on performance and would have amounted to a total of $30,000 of the authority's $1.9 million budget, according to Department of Community Affairs spokeswoman Lisa Ryan. The authority set aside $500 for the employee rewards, which included picture frames, key chains and pen sets.
Christie said he vetoed the entire budget because the expenditures he objected to were not line items.
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