GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP — Gov. Chris Christie and state Sen. President Stephen Sweeney will speak with elected officials from Camden County about the benefits of consolidating local police and fire departments. Today's meeting at Camden County College is closed to the public and media. Christie is scheduled to meet with reporters afterward. No New Jersey county has gone as far...
GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP — Gov. Chris Christie and state Sen. President Stephen Sweeney will speak with elected officials from Camden County about the benefits of consolidating local police and fire departments.
Today's meeting at Camden County College is closed to the public and media. Christie is scheduled to meet with reporters afterward.
No New Jersey county has gone as far as mass consolidations of its public safety forces, though smaller combinations are becoming more appealing in some places amid a government budget crunch.
The discussion is timely in Camden County because the city of Camden recently laid off nearly half its police officers and the county prosecutor's office is facing deep layoffs in coming weeks.
Related coverage:
• Three Monmouth County towns consider combining police forces
• Somerset County task force examines ways to merge county's 19 police departments
• N.J. mayors plan to weigh shared services in 2011 budgets, League of Municipalities survey finds