NJN News; Friday, November 16, 1990

it's barely matter the state treasurer paints a bleak picture of new jersey's finances with projections of a budget shortfall as high as six hundred million dollars hours after missing a big interest payment on his taj mahal donald trump works out a new deal to head off leaves own financial collapse charges are dismissed against hundreds of drivers arrested by state police on the turnpike and funeral services are held for a teenage meadowlands concert goer who died after a scuffle with the state trooper coming up next major funding for new jersey network news is provided by the geraldine our dutch foundation and first the daily bank it's been

good evening new jersey's fiscal picture is going to leak or state treasurer doug berman disclosed today that the state faces a budget shortfall of six hundred million dollars in the current fiscal year a figure that could grow even larger and new jersey network news has learned that could lead to the layoffs of up to five thousand state workers larry stickney gold reports these will be tough times for government for government workers and most important for the people of the states and it's not a pleasant time state treasurer douglas berman call the problem facing the state budget serious but manageable as he outlined a projected shortfall for this fiscal year of six hundred million dollars the biggest downturn is in the state's sales tax or hundred and fifty million dollars couple that with shortfalls in the really the transfer tax money from banks and financial institutions and the decrease motor fuels tax and income is down by five hundred million dollars and that another one hundred million

dollars in increased medicaid costs ayer fuel prices and unanticipated apartment cost and you have a six hundred million dollar deficit for and blamed the problem on the downturn in the national economy it said the problem could get worse the national recession and its impact on new jersey has shown up in the sales taxes today it has not yet shown up in other taxes one could anticipate that likely will close the gap the administration is freezing capital accounts banning out of state travel putting a hold on consulting fees and purchasing equipment and personnel actions that include possible layoffs furloughs and benefit givebacks the governor has already announced he was an eighty percent reduction in the army's legends this year term and would not say how many layoffs that might include until we've had a chance to talk the legislative leadership and the unions and to talk to the cabinet about what programs cuts they think we can accelerate i'm not there to speculate what were we would not speculate on how many state employees could be laid off jersey network news has learned

that up to five thousand state workers could be facing the ax governor florio also would not give a layoff numbers actually repeated layoffs are under consideration that's not something i say gleefully but if it comes to pass that mishaps meanwhile republican assembly minority leader bare bedrock i try and today called for resignation and i believe i'm the problems that we face in new jersey in the future now blamed on non dominant over the florida where immense says the administration is not considering any new taxes and usually this number should be taken into consideration as lawmakers debate cutting the only american to win a billion dollar tax plan pretty network news trenton and we'll have more on the latest budget projections coming up later on tonight special segment donald trump has once again found a way to his escape his latest financial troubles hours after defaulting on a forty seven billion dollar interest payment on his taj

mahal in atlantic city the developer reached an agreement with bondholders as merida know i reports the deal calls for trump to head for bankruptcy court and voluntarily surrendered partial interest in the property there was a negotiation but when it was over donald trump emerged with a debt restructuring plan that if approved would save him from being forced into bankruptcy instead he would file chapter eleven voluntarily as part of the deal we envision maybe three or four weeks if the process is yours and i don't think that's been trying to determine the conference the word bankruptcy and chapter eleven never passed trump's let's instead he stressed the positive about the taj mahal performance any blame the economy the taj mahal has gotten a huge recession may be toward his depression and you got on route one of the jurors in every house every building is for sale gets its a rough time in the northeast everybody knows that under the plan trump would pay two percent less interest but would give up half of the equity interest in the taj mahal to his creditors

try would still maintain a majority on the board of directors but only if he maintains certain performance standards for now at least it appears the bondholders are still betting on the donald's business savvy to make their investments pay we believe that part of the assets of the casino well the one that we don't have a mortgage on his donald trump and i think that's an important part of the picture we don't think that he tried to hurt the bondholders anymore than a tribal region so but gelb says he's far from hurting in fact he says he expects the taj mahal to emerge from these trying times a clear winner or regionally a new jersey network news new york we'll have more on the taj mahal agreement in jim van sickels business report as twenty one year old david gregory boone two and was buried today at cloud of mystery still surrounds the case the meadowlands concert goer died after an apparent scuffle with the state trooper earlier this week and as trish to guess press reports an attorney for the family says there are witnesses that implicate the trooper

it was a somber scene at queen of peace church of north arlington today maybe even more so by grief etched on faces that were so young has been several hundred of david gregory's friends attended his funeral this morning gregory father was flanked on one side by his younger brother and on the other by gregory's girlfriend project on elaine donnelly had attended the concert with gregory witnesses have told authorities that the fight in the parking lot broke out when someone horse donnelly and gregory came to her aid then a state trooper rushed in to break up the fight and gregory sustained a fatal head injury that trooper is still on duty this thing has from the church's point of view we weren't disruptive as soon as possible a good fair impartial investigation into gray's family has hired an attorney to conduct an independent investigation into the attorney declined to be interviewed on camera he didn't sell new jersey network news that so far the witnesses interviewed

have implicated the trooper gregory's down a family friend who knew gregory remembered how he took care of his dying mother three years ago her high school years when his mom was very sick he and his brother both home after school taking over she's been written for several years before she won the best way that i think it really allows every opportunity to avoid responsibility rather you to see if you're into it there are still many more questions than answers in this case it is expected to go to a grand jury with in two weeks trista gaspar is new jersey network news north arlington charges will be dropped against hundreds of motorists arrested by state police on the new jersey turnpike that announcement today from the middlesex county prosecutor following an investigation into the actions of state troopers who patrolled the roadway from the new brunswick barracks melinda morton has that story criminal charges against some two hundred fifty defendants were dismissed today by middlesex county prosecutor alan rogoff krakow said the dismissals were the most unpleasant past his office has ever been called upon

to undertake the majority of the charges were drug related rogoff added many of the defendants were more likely guilty and many of these cases that the report by the year by the losses that was unquestionable guilt on the part of the opium defendants there was seizure of drugs seizure after nearly a seizure of money and done another will involve a criminal activity the indictments and complaints were thrown out because disciplinary action had been taken against five of the arresting state troopers robert unit was let go earlier this year after being charged with them number of offenses and misconduct charges in aiken gary turn chris along with several others appear officers were acquitted of conspiring to cover up alleged beatings of motorists on the turnpike or three other troopers steven will be peter beck mean and janice wilson still face charges a majority of the cases business today were being handled by middlesex county public

defender graduate programs must is a clear case of police conduct creating the dismissal of art which in fact you know have to be dismissed but frankly there probably are normal people who warned faculty hey rob offset the misconduct charges and action taken against the arresting officers would have made it very difficult for a judge and jury to accept them as credible witnesses against the defendants rogoff added some cases involving arrests on the turnpike by the troopers have been prosecuted however those dismissed today were unresolved will know for their dismissals are expected melinda morton new jersey network news coming up jim van sickle with a look at the day in business and in our special segment more reaction to new jersey's bleak financial picture if you see news happening or shoot it with your home video camera others know about it fly going to new jersey network news tip line one eight hundred jersey one time hey dr s e

y one fb fb now that the florio administration is talking about downsizing state government the tax

revolt group hands across new jersey is proclaiming up political victory michael aaron spoke with hands cofounder john burns ash this afternoon and others about the revenue shortfall and impending layoffs here are some excerpts from those interviews in two night special segment today state treasurer republican attorneys repeatedly asked how many layoffs were a government employee might be necessary declined to go into specific statement of this week front page new jersey and across new jersey leader john fund's assets smaller government is good news but he hopes there are fewer layoffs of what he called a lower echelon state workers we're looking for the reductions management people are getting a big box a lot of the no show jobs and elimination of a lot of the perks and when you talk about things such as the legislative watches the court hundred fifty thousand dollars a year to the taxpayers up the raises the edges that these are things he wasn't given back not not the average worker who has do a job for the people you know was he going to forgive those things back and you still have a hundred several hundred

million dollar problem that won't be solved without laying people off the estimate her online to raise as a loan if that was rescinded would be out about one point three million as i understand it then if you consider all the name to combine things are a hundred fifty thousand for lunch and hundreds of the five thousand whatever was lunches and so for these things happen you just first before he's telling of the people the people need the money to other homes for the families and put back into the state's economy or think of a politically astute not to applaud as thousands of state workers are about to get the gate at it isn't this what hands across new jersey has been calling for for the past four or five months the downsizing of state government stop wasting our tax dollars or not against downsizing we are desperate for that eliminating people through attrition point when they retire that's it they're gone their position if it's a position that isn't necessary for the people and if you can eliminate the duplication services duplicated the agencies in the state and so forth this is what we're looking for to cut the waste and the government not cut the necessary functions on the same program

treasure german was asked how massive layoffs could be avoided if it's going to lay off of ten thousand workers who would realize the savings that only three dollars and six hundred million dollars problem quietly looking at thousands of thousands of wells well there are a lot of ways we can get reductions as a crude approximations yes each day employee earns roughly thirty thousand dollars on average but then you have to look at who really can cut because if you say correction guards we are collect people out of prisons can't be laid off and so that the people who were in the institutions taking care of the mentally over the retarded those people need twenty four hour care of those people can be laid off and state police no real avenue then look at who's left to run the government and some of those people are needed seven to pick an arbitrary number i think is misleading though you're not your cabinet officer liu to have to cut your department by eight percent you couldn't do it without hundreds of layoffs could do well with that we've actually lay people walk already this

year the washington lobbyist they're not your new jersey in a recession which is actually why this great job when i'm little reluctant to call it a recession until i see some very sharp declines in that employment numbers three consecutive month so far we haven't had the numbers are still sideways so as if at all i'd like to talk about it as a year of zero growth flat growth or maybe reduced expectations in the homebuilding industry were probably in deep recession at this point other areas armor or cooler or on the edge of recession because of the talk of recession because these things can become self fulfilling prophecies that there are some some a positive signs and some things will be doing them a composite you can see the full discussion with michael aron and his guests on this week's front page new jersey thats tonight at seven thirty with a repeat broadcast sunday morning at eleven thirty on all indian channels coming out more on the taj mahal rescue plan and

new jersey turkey farmers preparing for their busiest season when we come back fb kim zetter business so are predictions that come true so a time where you know there was a lot to still go right at that with their bonds worth fifty cents on the dollar bond holders should be entirely alone half the taj mahal right and has married a lawyer relates that's what trump has given up so now let's turn to barry cummings who's checked out the export in atlantic

city mary we're losing them despite the fact that trump has given up half his equity in the taj mahal some analysts are calling this an amazing deal consider this trump was not able to make a major forty seven million dollar interest payment by his own estimates the taj mahal is now we're at four hundred million dollars he owes is gone or six hundred seventy five million dollars and a target all are the title hall last major money this summer yet bondholders are still allowing him to keep a hand in the taj mahal even through bankruptcy joining us to talk about all this is david johnston casino analyst at the philadelphia inquirer well he's doing it because the bond holders of arms decided the one they're better off with him and with his name the company and still a big draw people deal and they've also decided that the risks of trying to oust him in bankruptcy court were to heart and yet he still has to go through bankruptcy at night everything's coming up roses for trout well yes yes do the report even if it's tax advantages out about it will allow contracts that you know what

in a word bankruptcy is actually beneficial to him to attack castle and trump castle has major problems trump castle had a profit last summer in the summer and when once july august and september are lower seven million dollars the figures out today are down seven point seven to fifty million dollar drop by visiting it's a desirable us today with bondholders of gasoline may not get their interest in the problem ok thank you very much for joining us david johnston of the philadelphia inquirer in the south jersey girl i married planning stand back here that looks like they've decided not to say the whole ship right that at this point but he still has a lot a lot to go through and you can track gas their average all the up for almost thirty seven percent since the racket is number of seventeen percent just last month heating oil up about fifty one percent last month up almost thirteen percent the month that's in pieces picked out a consumer uprising that could solve inflation to shoot up six chester said in october on the heels of a transfer satirizes in august and september bottom

line inflation since a rat running nationally and eight point nine percent annual rate one comforting know what they call the core inflation rate take of olive oil and food and the index rises only three tenths percent for the month of october where some see as a real story with the aural thing a temporary phenomenon new jersey south jersey the cpi up four tenths percent while northern area saw six tense percent rise what's a dollar worth these they will compare nineteen eighty two it's worth less than seventy one says jacob horror of your pocket look at it in nineteen forty seven you could buy with bipolar one dollar gives you may have half a penny left over the sides a lot of jerseys became beneficiaries today of the nineteen thirties depression depression gave us fdic and the slick you know so when the action savings bank went under last night resolution trust that then took it over remain that action federal savings bank

and it was business as usual for depositors of the six charges today well they said that the other day didn't pay a quarter point reduction in the fed funds rate was factored into the market so it happened today in what did the market do not much and i do not not much volume eight years and had a hand with oil slipping below three dollars and borrow and korean flushing somewhat less than expected the market held firm in the face of the surprise restructuring of them cia which reverberated through the longest of stocks you know arms stronger again long bond yield he points for a four percent margin thank you coming up next weekend weather wise i'll have the forecast and in sports and in state rep stories and sea devil a playoff game against the line of alliance next fb the thermometer kept climbing and climbing and didn't stop today until it reached into the seventies in

almost all parts of the state but don't get too excited as mild street will come to a gradual and this weekend or at least by monday with the arrival of more seasonal temperatures hover silently or enjoy it while it lasts as a look at current conditions it's partly cloudy in the sixties state wide eyes broke the seventy degree mark today in newark trenton end atlantic city a couple of records that it will be clear most of tonight with clowns by morning forty two to fifty to overnight a few showers early tomorrow warning that it will turn partly sunny in the afternoon highs in the fifties in northern and central areas into the sixties in south jersey sunny and breezy on sunday it will be wild again between fifty and sixty five statewide that's carolyn is on assignment tonight he joins us from our new york bureau with tonight's sports reported talking college football first that nasa will start at rikers wraps up this season in philadelphia templeton of prisoners in dartmouth prison finally this point onwards it title hopes an anc double a division three playoff action translate travels to africa last saturday

anagram of all its first loss to win the new jersey athletic conference championship the lines only needed once more senior quarterback steve mortally at anthony johnson for twenty five yards score the lions won eleven straight on the world unfortunate weather conditions were the best for more spectator standpoint of the place than when we persevered in a kid's play well measure for you know for it the first time allow or when their last game in and i we are going to capture the new jersey appellate coppers tangible our first goal was really pleased in a bid to go along with a great verse bus i've seen four years you know these cars on balboa another area quite you know their last game of the year for seniors last game ever bought but they're a priority so before i made a mistake in their comment last ones and that to some the people the media i said it would show not walk of mythic are now the tribe summer mamma war com so i'll say could be a long walk home for example are unhappy the double slung continues new jersey was no hybrid the meadowlands last night

forward to the most elite john berard has now lost four straight is a disappointing to find the one that we might lose our story the well as my tongue like fires because of a double off the board's misses it with the love and goes off his cattle into the net for the wherewithal later there was a market for syrup west is short handed broadcaster ard has the boos rained down the entire double team his lackluster double so the flyers and while philadelphia coming on getting a feel for one last night the painters winning four and six saudis as we recall from hershey great passing year rubin video cushion or i had to keep that in enacting redirecting the shot there's one hundred and ninety nine in a chilled bowl later kelly i put it really in the zone fighting we're talking on right wing breaking in for a two nothing flyers lee the flyers when they're six in nine is a national football league the giants those detroit the jets playing in indianapolis and he was traveling to atlanta

nba tonight new jersey hosting the defending champion detroit pistons philadelphia entertaining washington as a college basketball the top of the one that talks to bob dinner i asked billy packer football final four out of his hat well i don't know what's going to happen over the course of the season but by today or genes now and not knowing when someone snap of the vegas it will put the master at over there are not include them in the next hour like arizona arkansas a michigan state of north carolina to be a pretty good fortune will take that go to write on the cctv know someone well i think that in the case of north carolina the great land this year of the veterans who have all played together in our quality and then a tremendous group of law a freshman and the runners pass on one of the freshmen played for the tar heels pilot and see double a division three soccer semifinal action last pro state or salem state today to nothing so glass will advance into the division three championship game to our escorts in oregon passed an act in

effect our ipad you know thanksgiving is less than a week away a new jersey turkey farmers are working their wings off trying to keep up with holiday demand scott money act has that story what do we actually know about turkey as we know they're nesting and we'd only tasted the turkeys are also famous for being with a run away from it did other and probably not but reports of turkey's drowning and looking up at the rain percent of the country in turkey farmers say the church's reputation for being stupid is valid they'll eat anything put in front of them and they do some pretty dumb things but let's not pick on these guys too much confined environment and it ought to fend for themselves the way wild animals in the meeting follows a second generation turkey farmer in his family has the largest target businesses this year i think we're a somewhere in the sixty thousand births i'm a layer of the birds are for thanksgiving and we've also a

lot throughout the tri state area the royal family takes care of the turkeys from the day after their border and turkey's from the chesterfield in pemberton finds the turkeys of roughness of the processing plant where they're quickly process designed truck abroad and put in the freezers are corps it's about a two hour process even turkey farmers look forward to a thanksgiving dinner and not just because they say they're thirty states have my favorite new year it's the first day i walked in about a month scott recapping our top stories tonight new jersey network news has learned that up to five thousand state workers are expected to be laid off in an attempt to cut state spending charges have been dismissed again some two hundred fifty people arrested on the turnpike the announcement today followed an investigation into the actions of state troopers who patrol the roadway and donald trump has worked out a plan with creditors will voluntarily go into bankruptcy and surrender have interest in the taj mahal to bondholders that's the news for

tonight i'm glad i had from all of us here have a good weekend everyone fb accountability in our government and we don't want the new taxes that were so within that was one of the things of her for a city wouldn't open given what we just heard from doug berman about where the states there's this village and we talked seriously about repealing any estate taxes without throwing many more of these workers whose jobs you want to protect out of

work well if it's hard to say i have very very reserved feelings as the accuracy of his report you know our governor florio said that there was a huge deficit and we have to raise taxes and those gestures that he did was he cut back the hours the division of motor vehicles to make people suffer i feel if just for a politically wise move the least he thought so at the time because he took the hottest months of the year with the most registrations and cut the hours he went to an inspection line made a grandiose at showing there and said this is horrible let me see what i can do and went back to his office and subsequently the next day came out that he found several million dollars to increase those hours know when you find seven million dollars on a budget he also came up with four billion dollars that he fell into the current transportation where do you find four billion dollars i can find a dime in my checking account but this means finding his money if he gets our budget this capsule sloppy that they can find this money i don't know if i believe the figures for a gun possession which we continue this conversation but we have to move on we've seen what the recession is doing to state government but what is it doing to the rest of the state and how bad is it that's

the focus when we come back after this guy it's b ms fb