North Jersey lawmakers are looking to ensure the banking crisis does not spread past the collapses of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank. Sens. Bob Menendez and Cory Booker are among the politicians in both houses that are looking to reinstate provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act repealed in 2018. And Rep. Josh Gottheimer is part of a House coalition that wants to ensure immediate actions are taken to protect depositors and prevent runs on banks. North-JerseyNews.com
Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen will tell U.S. Senators the nation’s banking system is sound and that the Biden Administration is committed to ensuring that American bank deposits are safe. In prepared testimony ahead of a Senate Finance Committee hearing March 16, Yellen will state the rescue was intended to make sure that bank customers could access their money, pay bills and make payroll, not protect shareholders and debt holders from losses. “I can reassure the members of the committee that…Americans can feel confident that their deposits will be there when they need them,” Yellen is prepared to say. “This week’s actions demonstrate our resolute commitment to ensure that depositors’ savings remain safe.” The New York Times
Credit Suisse’s stock jumped on March 16, and markets rose across Europe, after the bank grabbed a lifeline from Swiss regulators, an attempt to calm investors after days of turmoil in the banking industry fueled fears of a broader financial and economic crisis. The 166-year-old lender said it would tap as much as $54 billion from Switzerland’s central bank and consider taking money from a separate “short-term liquidity facility,” which it didn’t name. It also plans to repurchase billions of dollars of its debt. The rise in the bank’s stock on Thursday regained some of the ground it lost in a steep plunge the day before. The Wall Street Journal
Ronald Rice, the Newark native who was often referred to as the conscience of the State Senate for his work on social justice and racial equality, passed away at the age of 77 March 15. The longest-serving Black legislator in state history who resigned from his State Senate seat on Aug. 31, 2022, the retired Newark police officer was a leading advocate for civil rights in the Garden State. “I can’t think of anyone who was better at speaking from the heart on the Senate floor than Ron,” said State Senate Minority Leader Steve Oroho (R-24). “His passionate voice and his presence in our chamber will be sorely missed.” North-JerseyNews.com
Vice President Kamala Harris spoke before dozens of people at a private residence in Paramus as part of a fundraiser organized by the Democratic National Committee. Vice President Harris addressed the crowd for about 20 minutes, focusing on several of the Biden Administration’s health care initiatives. “The problem with the way that we’ve been dealing with this as a country is we act as if health care starts from the neck down,” Harris said. “But what about health care from the neck up? Mental health.” The Record
The New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission announced it imposed a $31,573 fine against Paterson’s Wendy Guzman, who unsuccessfully ran for the 5th Ward City Council seat in 2016. The commission said Guzman has failed to file four campaign finance reports covering about $16,000 in political donations she received for that race. Guzman alleged spent about $15,000 of those contributions, according to the state’s penalty notice. New Jersey Globe
The shooting death of Najee Seabrooks has led local and state activists to call for the federal government to investigate the Paterson Police Department (PPD). As a result of Seabrooks’ death and the recent history of corruption and alleged abuse, the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice is asking to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to conduct an investigation into the “widespread unlawful and unconstitutional conduct perpetuated by the Paterson Police Department. Residents of Paterson have lived for years under a police department with a history of excessive force and other abuse, all felt disproportionately by Black and Brown residents in one of the most diverse cities in the country,” the letter states. North-JerseyNews.com
A separation agreement has been reached between Central Regional School District and Superintendent Triantafillos Parlapanides following his handling of the bullying incident that lead to suicide by 14-year old Adrianna Kuch. Officially, Parlapanides will be on leave until May 1, when he will resign and retire. During that leave, he will continue to be paid up to $127,676 as well as up to $30,000 in unused sick time and vacation days. The agreement includes a clause that would prevent both sides from filing any legal actions against each other. Parlapanides went on leave after he sent emails that revealed personal and medical information about Kuch and her family, and often used unflattering terms and language. NJ1015.com
The Biden Administration wants TikTok’s Chinese ownership to sell the app or face a possible ban as the White House hardens its stance toward resolving national security concerns about the popular video service. The new demand to sell the app was reportedly delivered to TikTok, owned by the Chinese internet company ByteDance, in recent weeks. The White House had been trying to negotiate an agreement with TikTok that would apply new safeguards to its data and eliminate a need for ByteDance to sell its shares in the app. The New York Times
The Pentagon released video footage from a drone that crashed over the Black Sea on March 14 showing a Russian jet buzzing it, dumping fuel on it and apparently damaging its propeller. The Defense Department video, taken by the MQ-9 Reaper drone shortly before it was guided into the water by its remote pilot, shows a Russian Sukhoi 27 jet fighter flying in a way that Pentagon described as “an unsafe/unprofessional intercept.” In a summary released alongside the video, the Pentagon said an Su-27 collided with the drone. The final seconds of the footage show that, after a transmission break, “the propeller can be seen again and one of the props can be seen damaged.” The Wall Street Journal
New Jersey environmental officials said there is no link between those activities and the deaths of whales washing up on Jersey Shore beaches on the eve of a GOP-led hearing into offshore wind technology. The state’s Department of Environmental Protection said in a statement there is “no credible evidence that offshore wind-related survey activities could cause whale mortality” and there is “no reason to conclude” that whale deaths and offshore wind projects are related. The department said it will continue to monitor the deaths of whales along the Atlantic coast, as it has with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration since 2016. That year began what officials have called an “unusual mortality event” involving whales. New Jersey Monitor
A dead dolphin washed up on a beach in Monmouth County, the fifth dolphin to end up dead in the Leonardo State Marina section of Monmouth County since February. Three died at Sandy Hook and another had to be put down in Atlantic Highlands. News12 New Jersey
The owners of a South Jersey gym that made headlines when they refused to shut its doors during the COVID-19 pandemic lost their appeal in court on March 15. That means Atilis Gym in Bellmawr must pay almost $124,000 in fines for their failures to abide by Gov. Phil Murphy’s statewide mandates in 2020. While gym owners Frank Trumbetti and Ian Smith have appealed the fines against them in multiple proceedings, the courts have found that Atilis disobeyed a series of Department of Health orders and related court orders. NJ1015.com
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) updated data found approximately 395,300 additional jobs added to New Jersey’s labor force within the past two years as the state’s economy recovered from the coronavirus pandemic. Those additional job numbers indicate that the state’s workforce rebounded a lot quicker and with more people being employed from the pandemic, months earlier than first reported. North-JerseyNews.com
A new report from the Rutgers Center for Women and Work found Latinas in New Jersey face one of the highest wage gaps in the country. According to the study, New Jersey ranks 49th out of 50 states. Latinas fill about 9% of some of the state’s most essential and frontline jobs, but the research shows many are struggling to get by on earnings of $27,000 to $30,000 a year. That’s about 45 cents for every dollar a non-Hispanic White man earns. NJ Spotlight News
Elmwood Park Councilman Daniel Golabek has announced that he will challenge Republican incumbent Robert Colletti for Mayor. Elmwood Park is a swing town with a GOP mayor and a 4-2 Democratic council majority, including Pellegrine. Jack Ciattarelli carried the borough by four percentage points in 2021, Rep. Bill Pascrell won by two percentage points in 2022, and Joe Biden prevailed by eight points in 2020. The 27-year-old Golabek won his first election nine years ago, becoming a school board member at age 18. He was first elected to the borough council in 2016 and has been re-elected twice. New Jersey Globe
A proposal to change the speed limit on the entire 2.1-mile length of Franklin Turnpike in Ramsey to 35 mph was heard by the Bergen County Board of Commissioners on March 15. At present, only a 0.4-mile section of the county road between Prospect Street and Airmont Avenue has a 35 mph limit, at the busy Lake Street/East Main Street intersection. The rest of the major thoroughfare has a 40 mph limit. The county Department of Planning and Engineering conducted a traffic study at the request of the borough in January and February 2022 and found a total of 92 accidents were reported in that time period, 37 of them “same direction” accidents such as rear-end collisions and sideswipes. The Record
Hoboken taxpayers will be hit with a nearly 8.5% school tax increase under a $74.9 million budget that earned preliminary approval March 14 by the city’s Board of Education. A loss in state aid, as well as increases related to personnel are being cited for the hike, the largest in three years. The Jersey Journal
The Jersey City Planning Board on March 14 approved a minority woman-owned cannabis micro-dispensary at 125 Christopher Columbus Drive. Cannabotique by Greenhouse would be near the Grove Street PATH station that is a short walk from the Newark Avenue Pedestrian Plaza. The owners are planning to open a consumption lounge, but Jersey City is waiting on the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission to finalize state rules first. Hudson County View
And finally…Doug Edert, Saint Peter’s NCAA Tournament hero last year, discovers that miracles don’t last a lifetime — or even a year. NJ.com
