TRENTON — The Assembly tonight rejected Gov. Chris Christie’s plan to turn over management of New Jersey public television to WNET, delivering a political blow to Christie while leaving the fate of the state’s public broadcasting network in limbo. In a vote of 45 to 30, the Assembly blocked the five-year contract that would allow Public Media NJ, a...
State Treasurer Andrew P. Sidamon-Eristoff consults with an aid at the Senate Budget Committee meeting to review the details of the proposed transfer of NJN television to WNET and its radio licenses to WNYC and WHYY on Thursday, June 23, 2011 in Trenton.TRENTON — The Assembly tonight rejected Gov. Chris Christie’s plan to turn over management of New Jersey public television to WNET, delivering a political blow to Christie while leaving the fate of the state’s public broadcasting network in limbo.
In a vote of 45 to 30, the Assembly blocked the five-year contract that would allow Public Media NJ, a subsidiary of Channel 13 WNET, to be incorporated in New Jersey, to operate New Jersey public TV.
Several who voted to nix the deal complained about an out-of-state entity operating a New Jersey asset.
"Giving NJN to New York makes no sense," said the resolution’s sponsor Patrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex) before the vote. "We need to make NJN stronger and not give it away."
Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen) introduced a similar resolution in the Senate earlier this week. That body could vote on Monday, but it must pass by Tuesday to prevent the deal from going through.
What the vote means for the future of the broadcast is unclear. Appearing before a Senate committee earlier in the day, State Treasurer Andrew Sidamon-Eristoff said if lawmakers reject the deal he negotiated, "NJN as we know it will cease to exist." Layoffs of the state employees who work at New Jersey Network will go ahead as planned, he said, and the state would do the minimum required to maintain the FCC licenses and nothing more.
Weinberg was among the lawmakers who were not buying his doomsday predictions. She said the FCC requires some programming and staffing, and noted that even Sidamon-Eristoff stated the station would not go black.
"There is definitely money in the budget that could keep NJN operating," she said.
After months of political posturing, hours of public hearings, and a bi-partisan report that agreed with Christie’s view that state-run TV was no longer viable, the governor and lawmakers agreed last year on a compromise. Lawmakers overwhelmingly passed a bill, which Christie signed in December, granting Sidamon-Eristoff the authority to negotiate a management agreement with a private entity to take control of the New Jersey Network’s TV operation. The Legislature would have 15 days after receipt of the contract to vote it down, according to the law.
In addition to the management agreement with Public Media NJ, the subsidiary of WNET, Sidamon-Eristoff also reached agreements for the out-right sale of the state’s nine public radio licenses. Those deals, with WHYY in Philadelphia and New York Public Radio, operator of WNYC and WQXR, did not generate opposition and will likely be signed next week.
Defeating the current plan was a necessary "next step" to securing a good deal for New Jerseyans, said Assemblyman John Burzichelli (D-Gloucester).
"I think there is a deal here, I think there’s a place for WNET in the deal," Burzichelli said. "We need to make (NJN) stronger, more relevant and an asset that this state can continue to be proud of."
Earlier in the day, Sidamon-Eristoff spent more than two hours before the Senate Budget Committee responding to sometimes contentious and often repetitive questions about the deal. Lawmakers asked about the financial details of the contract, the process used to solicit bids to the definition of a nightly news cast.
Sidamon-Eristoff told them the partnership would Public Media would improve the quality and number of Jersey-centric programs seen on the network, to be renamed NJTV. He cautioned them against voting it down.
"Such an act would constitute a tragedy. The proposal before you is in fact a good deal," he said.
Lawmakers also quizzed the treasurer on why WNET was selected over runner-up Montclair State University. Sidamon-Eristoff said he and his panel of advisors determined WNET’s proposal was the stronger one.
"They have stronger fundraising capabilities, and the ability to operate 24/7, 365 right out of the gate," he said. "Montclair has no experience. That’s a bit of a leap of faith."
Montclair State University president Susan Cole described the Montclair plan as an alternative to PBS networks already available to New Jersey viewers.
"The University felt that the future focus for NJN should be to seize the opportunity to fill an existing gap," Cole said "by providing New Jersey centric programming that is not being offered anyplace else."
For more New Jersey arts coverage, follow Peggy McGlone on Twitter at twitter.com/PeggyMcGlone