Paul Moriarty
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For the welsh rugby union player see Paul Moriarty (rugby player)
Paul Moriarty (born September 25, 1956) is an American Democratic Party politician, who serves in the New Jersey General Assembly where he represents the 4th legislative district, having taken office on January 10, 2006. Moriarty was elected to the Assembly on November 8, 2005, filling the seat of fellow Democrat Robert J. Smith II, who did not run for re-election and had held the seat in the Assembly since 2000.
Running on a platform of open government, property tax relief, and the elimination of waste and inefficiency, Moriarty was elected Mayor of Washington Township, representing 25% of the voters in the 4th district, with overwhelming, bipartisan support. He garnered 60% of the vote in a hotly contested four-way race.
Moriarty worked as an investigative journalist at KYW-CBS 3 for 17 years protecting consumer rights and investigating businesses taking advantage of the less fortunate. Before KYW-CBS 3, Moriarty was a news producer at WCAU TV.
Moriarty's accomplishments include over 30 Emmy Awards, honors from the National Press Association, the Associated Press and the Radio and Television News Directors Association.
Moriarty was a member of American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) for 20 years while working as a journalist. Serving 6 years as a shop steward, where he developed an understanding of the importance of fighting for the rights and benefits of working families and plans to bring that perspective to Trenton. He is a strong believer in the collective bargaining process and ensuring a fair deal for working men and women.
In Trenton, Assemblyman Moriarty has stated that he plans to fight to protect property tax rebates, restore fiscal accountability through comprehensive department-by-department audits and ensure that children are getting the best quality public education.
Moriarty received a B.A. from Temple University in Communications.
He was born in Salem, Massachusetts and has been a resident of Washington Township since 1996. Paul and his wife Lisa have been married nearly 20 years and are raising their ten-year-old daughter Meghan.
[edit] Controversies
On June 1, 2006, Assemblyman Moriarty, along with State Senator Stephen M. Sweeney (D, 3rd legislative district) and fellow Assembly Democrat Jerry Green (D, 22nd legislative district), held a press conference to announce their support for significant cuts (on the order of 15%) to New Jersey state worker salaries and benefits. This effort appears to have been put forth to avoid a one-point increase in the state's sales tax designed to cover a multi-billion dollar gap in the state's budget. Significant negative reaction from the state's labor unions resulted primarily because of Sweeney's position as an Ironworkers business agent and treasurer from Gloucester County for Ironworker's Local 399, and also due to his position as the chairman of the Senate Labor committee which controls most labor-related bills, but also because of Moriarty's history as an AFTRA shop steward and stated support of the collective bargaining process. Moriarty's call to impose cuts on state workers in the third year of a four-year contract gave the appearance of a 180° shift, wherein he was now advocating breaking the existing contract negotiated through the collective bargaining process.
After forming a recall committee, on June 9, 2006, a Washington Township resident filed a petition to recall Mayor Moriarty. As of July 6, 2006, the Petition form for the recall of Mayor Moriarty was approved by the Municipal Clerk[1]. This effort was ultimately unsuccessful, failing to attract the approximate number of 8,000 signatures needed for recall.
[edit] District 4
Each of the forty districts in the New Jersey Legislature has one representative in the New Jersey Senate and two members in the New Jersey General Assembly. The other representatives from the 4th Legislative District for the 2006-2008 session are:
- Assemblyman David R. Mayer, and
- Senator Fred H. Madden
[edit] External links
- Assemblyman Moriarty's Legislative Website
- Madden, Mayer and Moriarty legislative website
- Moriarty and Mayer Assembly campaign website
- Initiatives to Curb Excessive State Employee Compensation
- Steve Mordente's website to recall Mayor Moriarty
- New Jersey Legislature financial disclosure form for 2005 (PDF)
