Rutgers-Rowan vote postponed amid Democratic insurgency
Amid a hectic day of haggling over the budget at the Statehouse, the planned vote on the biggest restructuring of higher education in a half-century has been postpoined until next week, Senate President Stephen Sweeney said moments ago.
Rutgers-Rowan vote postponed amid Democratic insurgency
Matt Katz, Inquirer Staff Writer
Click here for the full story in Friday's paper on the Democratic insurgency and Democratic budget proposal.
Amid a hectic day of haggling over the budget at the Statehouse, the planned vote on the biggest restructuring of higher education in a half-century has been postponed until next week, Senate President Stephen Sweeney said moments ago.
My colleague, James Osborne, reports that Sweeney attributed the delay on today's scheduled Senate vote to last-minute amendments to the plan. "We're not going to rush this thing," he said.
But there's an insurgency among Democrats in the Assembly. Led by Assemblyman Joseph Cryan, who was ousted last year from Assembly leadership, these insurgent Democrats want a vote postponed on Rutgers-Rowan until after the November election. Otherwise, they won't support the Democrats' budget proposal. The insurgent votes are needed to pass a budget by mandated date of June 30, Cryan said.
No Assembly committee has even had a hearing on the higher-education bill yet.
"This legislation is three weeks old and is going to be the biggest change in higher education since the Rutgers Act of 1956," he said. "We need a full understanding of the implications of this bill."
Sweeney wouldn't talk about that. But in the Senate, he said, "I have my people lined up." The vote, he said, will be Monday.
The story about the reorganization of higher education -- which would involve Rutgers-Camden entering into a new relationship with Rowan University while cutting most ties with the mother ship -- changes by the day.
Last week, no one seemed to know how much this whole plan would cost. On Monday, it was said to cost no more than $40 million. And today, I reported that a cost analysis from the Christie administration says the merger will actually save money. (Christie supports the plan).
So stay tuned. This is changing by the minute.
The decision makers are not armed with the cost information they need to justify the merge. If the cost and benefit information to support the merge existed true leaders would point them out. Decisions made in the absense of crucial and credible cost information are indefensible and reflect elected officials following orders like lemmings or backroom deals that have no bearing on higher education.
This initiative has nothing to do with enhancing higher education and everything to do with political control of education resources and assets.— mike_stanton- Steve Sweeney is hitching his political wagon to the wrong issue. It will be his political doom. Can't say I will be sorry. The "merger" was a bad idea from Day 1, and the lack of real cost data says a lot. Thank goodness some Dems finally got a spine and said no thanks.— Jen D
- Sweeney is a DINO.— BobSG
Reach him at mkatz@phillynews.com or 609-217-8355.
Follow Matt on Twitter: @mattkatz00. Reach Matt at mkatz@phillynews.com or 609-217-8355.
