New Jersey Nightly News; New Jersey Nightly News Episode from 05/15/1979 7:30 pm

Any any any New Jersey monthly with a bucketful bill in Trenton and Clayton Vaughn in Newark. Good evening. In the news tonight Public Service Electric and Gas the state's biggest utility asks for a big rate hike three hundred and seventy five million dollars. General Public

Utilities the holding company that owns several power companies sued by its stockholders and almost New Jersey gas stations will not take part. You know Ford a nationwide shutdown this week at least a handful of dealers will take part. We'll have a report on why. Good evening Rebecca also have a report on today's defeat of a proposal to allow 24 hour casino gambling in Atlantic City. We'll have the New Jersey day in sports including a report on Cathy Woodworth the all time money when our On the women's pro golf tour. The state's largest utility Public Service Electric and Gas has asked the board of public utilities for a three hundred seventy five million dollar rate increase. And today in New York the board held the first in a series of public hearings to consider that request. Jeffrey Hall reports this is the third time in four years PSTN G has asked the board of public utilities to approve a rate hike in one thousand seventy six P.S. CNG asked for four hundred forty seven million dollars.

The BPU approved 136 million in 1977 PSEG wanted to charge its customers an additional three hundred ninety five million dollars. The board approved another one hundred thirty six million. Now PFC Energy says it needs to charge an extra three hundred seventy five million dollars. The company's big selling point is inflation and higher fuel costs. Jesus senior vice president Everett Morris. The devastating effect of inflation during the past several years have contributed to our need to again petition the board for additional regulation. If the utility gets all it's asking for it will mean an average monthly increase of about 22 percent for residential electric customers. Average monthly electric rates for homeowners would jump from $35 to $43 during the summer months. Gas rates for non heating customers would go up 14 percent from 14 dollars a month to $16 a month. Senior citizens on fixed incomes already clobbered by inflation say any increase

would hurt poor people or retired persons who are out of THINK THINK. Will we get when we get a certain amount of money that put in time to you we cannot go back to Social Security or through our pension plans to get an increase yet public service even though they make the biggest booboos in the state name a quite a few of them. They can charge it to us we can charge them put anything. State public advocate Stanley Van Ness says his department will try to stop P S E N G from charging its customers any more money. I sincerely hope that they will bring a method public service another New Jersey utility. I hope that this board will tell them loudly and clearly that when they engage in dubious risky venture that this they no longer will permit them to shift the financial burden to their customers. PFC Energy officials say if a company gets its 375 million dollars another rate increase for at least another several years from city hall in Newark.

I'm Jeffrey Hall. Several construction workers including union president were jailed today for staging a demonstration at PFC Angie's building sideboards new corporate headquarters here in New York. The workers say the state AFLCIO as lock them out of jobs at the site of the powerful state labor organizations of the workers were denied jobs because they were not affiliated with the AFL CIO. Another group of construction workers joined the demonstration over still another dispute. They claim that one company doing business with the site refuses to honor New York's affirmative action plan for construction workers which is one minority for every five employees. We're back. The Board of Public Utilities today asked Jersey Central Power and Light to start thinking about what would happen if the company went bankrupt. J.C. PNL has asked the BPU for a one hundred thirteen million dollar rate hike to help pay the costs of the Pennsylvania nuclear accident. Now the BPU has sent Jersey Central a letter asking it to examine how a bankruptcy and corporate reorganization would affect

its customers and its creditors. Meanwhile there was bad news today for Jersey Central parent company General Public Utilities. Some stockholders feel GP you misled them about the safety of their investment. Jack Kennedy has more on that since the accident your Three Mile Island North Jersey Central has been buying the power lost from the shutdown that's costing the company almost $800000 a day in the end is not in sight. It's that cash loss that's brought Jersey Central back to the PUC to ask for a rate hike. And it's for security Central's parent company GP you to cut stock dividends by more than 40 percent. What's worse the value of that stock is dropped almost 50 percent from around $18 a share before the accident to about nine today. And industry analysts predict it will go even lower. That has stockholders up in arms and they filed a suit in federal court in Newark to get some of that money back. The class action suit charges GV you would falsely inflating the value of its stock by

failing to advice stock holders of the risks of a plant breakdown. The stockholders also want to know why they weren't told about what they call the negligence of personnel and faulty equipment at Three Mile Island. Negligence they charge led to the accident and placed their investment dollars in jeopardy. Stockholders say they thought they were buying a blue chip and instead ended up with a very risky investment. This lawsuit may have a very real effect on Jersey Central bankruptcy possibility it will be one of the important factors the few with the well considering the flooding that question and in the meantime it may also mean the trading in stock will be suspended again on Wall Street for the second day on this brain. And it puts a very dark cloud energy use chances of recovering from the worst nuclear accident in history. I'm Jackie Kennedy. There's been some damage done to the reactor core at the Salem nuclear power plant and Steve Taylor reports that while there were appears to be no danger to the public it probably will be higher cost to the customers of public service electric and gas.

The Salem plant has been shut down since April 3rd because some of the radioactive fuel rods are being replaced. Those rods are shaped like giant pencils 11 feet high and they're held together in bunches like this. The bunches are called Rod assemblies. What's happened is that when some assemblies were lifted out of the core workers discovered that some of the metal structures holding the rods together had small pieces not that so far they found 20 damaged assemblies and there may be more. The company says it doesn't know what caused the damage but it may have been the actual process of lifting the assemblies out of the core. Salem's rod assemblies are bigger than the ones at most nuclear plants one company source told me today that only two plants with the larger assemblies have gone through refueling like Salem is now after the damage was discovered today. He called those plans and they found out that they had the same kind of damage. If that's so then the Nuclear Regulatory Commission should have known about it. But my Salem source told me the NRC never told the AC in G No comment from the NRC today repairing or replacing the damaged rod assemblies at

Salem will probably cause some delay in putting the plant back into operation. And the longer it takes the more it will cost the company and its customers. I'm Steve Taylor. This is probably no surprise but top energy experts are predicting a continuing shortage of gasoline in New Jersey there's even a possibility of rationing this summer though. Energy Commissioner Joel Jacobson says he hopes to avoid that. Jacobson told Betty Adams on the New Jersey public television program question today that the emergency rationing plans have already been drawn up and are ready to go whether they're necessary may depend on state motorists keeping their cool. We have in place a contingency plan that frankly I hope we never have to move forward or cooperate with the fire with a very helpful. We are prepared if necessary to institute the odd even plan they have to take eligibility before you can see here again in the hope that we can avoid the law taking place in California. Like I point out one fact the average sale for a car in California in January was 14 gallons.

Today it's three. It's perfectly obvious what having a California is that people are getting in line to top off the tank. There's no that you know the product that can cause the public rest of the interview with Jacobson along with gasoline retailers association president Gerry Ferraro and New Jersey Petroleum Council representative John Galloway can be seen tonight at 10:30 on New Jersey Public Television. There's a nationwide weekend gasoline station shutdown in the works members of the New Jersey gasoline retailers have already said they will not participate. But not all dealers are happy about that. Greg Wells reports. Jeffrey United has been a Sunoco dealer for 15 years. Back in January he led a group of two hundred fifty gas station owners our protest march to Trenton and he says he doesn't care what the gas retailers association says. He says he plans to close his station Wednesday night and not open again until Monday. Our problem is the same as California. There are retail such as us and by us supporting California. The problem can be only not only isolating California but tells the general

public that the problem is nationwide. Course we don't want to burden the consumer. But it's in the long run it would be for the consumers benefit for the service station to have a healthy atmosphere as far as Proposition sorry Unitas is no longer a member of the gas retailers association. He says he'd rather deal with the oil companies on his own. Executives at the Retailers Association say their dealers were polled about the shutdown and indications are that they closings will be few and far between in the last six months service station owners have been faced with supply cutbacks rising prices and the possibility of some form of rationing by summer. But despite these problems the Retailers Association says a four day shutdown would serve no purpose. Executives of the group say the consumer would suffer in a situation that only involves the dealer and the oil companies. While Unitas represents only him so this protest has aroused some interest from other gasoline retailers and motorists are perhaps hoping that the idea doesn't become too

popular in Clifton. I'm read well the New Jersey Conference of Mayors has come out against any form of gasoline rationing. A spokesman for the group Vineland mayor Patrick Fiorello says the mayors believe the current energy squeeze has been contrived to drive up the price of gas. The mayors are urging other city leaders to contact their congressional representative representatives to demand a federal investigation. Meanwhile a Republican state legislator is also calling for federal action. Assistant Senate Minority Leader Barry Parker is asking for a meeting of all state legislators to put pressure on Washington to adopt a workable energy plan. But Senate President Joseph Marlena a Democrat says President Carter had a plan that was voted down by Republicans. Senator Miller says a state energy plan has been proposed by New Jersey already. Well I was another of those traffic tie ups near Brahmas today that just makes life a little adventure for all of us. The challenge in this one was how to get around an overturned truck on Route 17 in

Hasbrouck Heights. Traffic backed up for over four miles all the way into Paramus truck driver got only minor injuries as a load of paper products spilled in that that didn't have to be offloaded in the spilled part cleaned up before the truck could be righted and traffic put back to work. New York Airways which I was and flown and helicopter service and the garage at the Newark Airport last month says it will file for financial reorganization under the Federal Bankruptcy Act three persons were killed in that Newark crash in the line round its helicopters. Since the cause of the garage apparently was metal fatigue the line provides service connecting the three large metropolitan airports in lower Manhattan a financial reorganization would allow the company to resume operations. New Jersey state trooper Harry Hill douceur was found guilty today of manslaughter. How do say it was on trial in Bridgeton for shooting to death a Vietnamese refugee during a highway chase. Sentencing has been set for June 25th. The state has been hoping to develop a Liberty State Park in Jersey City into a place where concerts and festivals can be held.

With the Statue of Liberty standing there as a backdrop. Now Governor Burton has signed an executive order creating an advisory commission to keep an eye on the park's development and operation. The board will have nine members eight of them private citizens plus the mayor of Jersey City. We were scheduled for all that sunshine we got today but will gladly take any relief from the rain. It will be partly cloudy tonight with a chance of showers and a possibility of a funder shower. The low temperatures will be in the upper 40s to mid 50s in the north and in the low to mid 50s in the south. Tomorrow will be sunny and breezy the highs will be in the upper 60s to mid 70s in the north and in the low 70s in the south and Thursday should also be sunny and mild. We're going to be right to you to preach

to me just to bring in a brilliant American brings a great American novel. Don't miss it. Wednesday at 9:00 the New Jersey Public Television. There is finally peace on the labor front and Paul Budde line is here to explain all that. Thank you Rebecca that long strike by Major League umpires is apparently near an end. According to The Associated Press an agreement has been reached between the ups and the major leagues. All that's needed is final approval and that could come by tomorrow. And the big leagues today the Chicago Cubs beat the Philadelphia Phillies 7 to 1. The ladies pro golf tour is here this week for the Coca-Cola Classic at the Upper Montclair Country Club today was set aside for practice of the tournament itself doesn't begin until Friday. Just about all the pros are already in town for most of their first look at the Upper Montclair of course.

This year's field includes Kathy Whitworth the all time leading money winner on the ladies who were at age thirty nine Whitworth is in her 21st year on the tour. She's won more than $800000 in her career much of it in the late 60s and early 70s when there was a lot less prize money offered. And Cathy Woodworth has won 80 tournaments. She needs only two more wins that tie the all time record of 82 that was set by Mickey Wright. It's a record that's on Kathy's mind. Did he have a thing about it was I mention about it a lot but I. I really don't look at it is something that I'm going towards or it's a record that I want to be to yes I would like to win more tournaments but it's not necessary because I'm looking to make each record you know. It's nice to set on but it's not something that I I fight or play towards another the same possibility of becoming the first woman to earn a million dollars on the tour. Person has always been the first to do something so it's kind of exciting and it would be it would be fun to do that but you know it may not ever ever happen so I'm not going to put my hopes on it to have

the pro-am in that tournament coming up tomorrow. Three New Jersey state champions will be featured on the same boxing card next month at ICE world in total what that announcement was made today at ICE world by promoter Dan do the main events about their separate June 12th that's the Tuesday night and one match up New Jersey welterweight champion Nino Gonzalez of bay on will defend his title against Julio Garcia of Newark. Also state heavyweight champ Scott Frank will take on John Gallagher that's Gallagher there that's a non-title bout and New Jersey middleweight title holder rusty Rosenberger who was not at today's news conference will also have a non-title fight. And Sol is frank and Rosenberg are all undefeated as professionals that fight Guard coming up Tuesday night June 12th and Toto. Also today there was still another major track meet as the season nears an end this when the wreckers realize in Piscataway about 30 schools from New Jersey New York and Pennsylvania where there are about one hundred twenty athletes and all team results are not available yet but some better performances are as follows.

Neptune high school set a national high school record in the 400 yard shuttle hurdle relay. Fifty seven point three seconds a national record in the 30 to 100 meter relay Trenton high. They're always wrong one in seven minutes forty nine point nine seconds and Columbia High School of Maplewood That's Joe at Clark there from Columbia won the 30 200 meter relay nine minutes 28 seconds. The records the relays are still in progress. The track season by the way will continue through the early part of the issue. Meanwhile in tennis this afternoon the state's number one team Livingston High went after win number 26 without a loss. Livingston was at Columbia High in Maplewood today. Livingston seen here in the white shirts won four to one losing only one doubles match. Coach Elliott Lovise team remains unbeaten 26 and 0 0 with three regular season match remaining living in by the way want to perfect. Thirty seven and two years ago quite a tradition at that high school really good Madison and Stephen is also nearing its close the state tournament coming up May 28 and living

and will of course be one of the teams to watch coach Elliott Lovise name and that's sports Rebecca. Thanks Paul. Casinos in Atlantic City will not be able to operate around the clock at least not right now. A state assembly committee today shot down a trial balloon set up to test sentiment the 24 hour operation. And Michael reports that the casino industry was not surprised even though the casino industry found out today that the mood in Trenton isn't right for 24 hour gambling the industry says it's not giving up. Some state legislators suggested a compromise such as around the clock betting on weekends only and Resorts International says it's willing to wait until after the State Government Committee voted not to allow 24 hour gambling. The president of resorts tried to remind everyone that the state has a stake in the issue too. We would have made some more money. It would not be a monumental amount of money but.

It would have provided more employment. And as we make more money of course the state makes more money. The man who sponsored the amendment for nonstop gambling says he didn't do it for taxes. He did it for traffic. Say next year from now we'll have five casinos opened I have approximately 18000 cars trying to leave Lennox city which is an island that we only have three major roads. The committee chairman says however that casinos should close briefly for the good of the people inside them. I think it's a good idea to make an individual a better stop betting. Give him a few hours away from the table let him sit and reflect upon his betting. If it's during the week make him realize that he has a job to go to the next morning. Even Cody however thinks that compromise probably will succeed someday. His guess is that Atlantic City will have casinos that never close in three or four years. This is Mike power. Those of you who have invested in resorts stock already know the good news. The rest of us will hear this and weep Resorts International Inc. The parent

company that owns the Atlantic City casino reports that in the past year its net earnings have increased one thousand percent. And in the first quarter of this year its net earnings totaled almost 19 million dollars. Meanwhile casino gambling has had a mixed impact on Atlantic county's economy. The county reports that real estate prices have doubled since Resorts International opened. But there hasn't been much improvement in the unemployment picture. Officials say unemployment dropped less than 1 percent in the cabbie despite the growth of jobs in the gambling industry. Officials say they have no explanation for the very small drop in unemployment. Platon with the Ocean County sewerage authority has been ordered to stop construction of its 1.2 million dollar pumping station in Normandy Beach. The project is almost half completed. A state appeals court issued the stop order at least until that same court issues a full opinion. The problem is the environmental impact statement and whether that statement completely goes the authority apparently did not consider alternate sites. The

project is being challenged by some area residents. And back in the days when there was a death row on state prison inmates there waiting to die were not allowed to work. Other prisoners not facing execution could get their terms shortened by work credits. Then came the U.S. Supreme Court ruling knocking out the death penalty and then game three New Jersey prisoners. Their death sentences commuted to life imprisonment. And now asking for work credit for the time that they spent on death row since parole is possible for lifers after 25 years. Now comes the court ruling. No. Beneath the line mysterious shapes and Richard cargo from the sunken ships of Antiquities and whatever drowned us to drowned in the AGM object of search terms Plato is described. Is it fiction

or is it the shattered memory of a remote actual event reshaped by human imagining. Wednesday at 8 on the New Jersey Public Television. You are right. We've all heard cries of balance the budget. Few of us know what that would actually mean or what practical effect it might have on us but our adoration commentators Dick Leon and Tom Paine give us some notion of the price of a balanced budget. Well Dick the budgets and balance and there are no new taxes and the legislators most of whom are running for reelection this fall would have you believe that all is well. Well it's not. Let's look at the facts. Ryan is this budget in balance. It is because of a number of One-Shot gimmicks like the speed up in payment of public utility taxes. These gimmicks supply over 50 million dollars which will not be available in next year's budget. This budget is in balance because twenty seven million dollars was

cut from educational aid to the handicapped and it isn't balance because Twenty two million dollars was cut from school districts that are entitled to receive the monies under the law. This budget is in balance because college students are paying higher tuitions because truckers are paying higher fees and because most of us who are driving will shortly be paying higher registration costs. And remember this project is in balance because there is no money for state employees beyond a two and a half percent increase because welfare recipients get only two and one half percent more in benefits because there is no money to implement the promised Lifeline program for senior citizens. Because there is no money for the proposed state takeover of private bus lines and because there is no money for ANY cost of living increase in our present homestead tax rebates are nevertheless used as a whole without nonrecurring surpluses or gimmicks. The budget spends one hundred and seventy million dollars more than it raises. It's a perfect example of an election year budget held together by chewing gum and sealing wax.

It is designed to get the Democratic majority in the assembly through an election year. It fails to initiate it chooses to ignore up a spot on every critical problem. But chickens have a way of coming home to roost Dick. Be prepared for big fiscal problems and attempts to increase taxes in 1980. Tom I'm not that pessimistic. This has been a relatively quiet budget season. There's no crisis over the income tax or threat of massive layoffs. Two big issues of state takeover of some bus lines and an increase in attacks on casinos have budget implications that we dealt with separately on the budget itself the major issues of the proposed increase in tuition and an increase in public employee salaries. The legislature probably will will settle on a relatively small tuition increase at the state colleges perhaps as low as 30 dollars a boost of several hundred dollars at Rutgers and perhaps as much as $1000 at the College of Medicine and Dentistry. While any increase can be

difficult for hard pressed students this seems to be a fair and reasonable compromise. State employee salaries is a tougher question. The state originally offered one and one quarter percent to many employees and now has raised that to two and one half percent far below the rate of inflation in the last five years of tight budget. State employees are falling behind. While there are again real budgetary pressures I think the state will have to make a better offer in the long run. Payroll policies which discourage good people from staying with the state government or joining it in the first place can cost us a lot of money. In any event the budget is conservative and well read in the state's resources. This column does not mean that we're meeting every public need in the state or that our tax system is perfectly fair. Most people would admit that we need to do better in both areas. But after the great tax wars of recent years I think we all need a peaceful period and that's what I think we'll have at least for the foreseeable future. Once again our top story is public hearings started today on public service electric and gas companies

375 million dollar rate increase request from General Public Utilities stockholders of filed a class action lawsuit against the company charging officials with falsely inflating stock value. And there's been some damage to the reactor core at the Salem nuclear power plant but there appears to be no danger to the public. And that's the news tonight Rebecca Good night. Good night for the New Jersey knightly New Jersey is a joint presentation of New Jersey Public Television and their team. The program is broadcast weeknights at 6:30 on Channel 13 and at 7:30 on New Jersey Public Television. There's a repeat broadcast at 10:00 p.m. on New Jersey public television and at 7:00 the following morning Channel 13 reporting. D

d. And now from the Public Television Studios in France and it's time for the drawing of the picket number for May 15. Oh OK. Now you know what I'm telling young you're growing hosting that and helping me tonight going to the state lottery. I think and see each of these machines contain 10 balls numbered 0 0 9 and tell me you please away from the. Printout of. The winning number of a get a home run ball. You could look every week in order that they are automatically wrong. Thank you. I think that I've been running. Good luck. Here we. Go.

Or. Are. You. Guys winning ticket number. 4. 4. With printed again. For another if you don't forget on Friday you're. Doing more. When we select the pick 4 number. Hello and thanks for watching. Everyone.