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Open space funding, bail changes put to New Jersey voters

Voters heading to the polls in November will decide a question that's been a familiar presence on state ballots: how to pay for open space.

Voters heading to the polls in November will decide a question that's been a familiar presence on state ballots: how to pay for open space.

They also will be asked to decide a change to the New Jersey Constitution that would allow judges to deny bail to certain defendants - a measure Gov. Christie is pushing as part of an overhaul of the state's bail system.

Currently, the constitution enshrines the right to bail for anyone charged with a crime.

The open-space measure on the ballot Nov. 4 will ask voters whether to approve spending for land preservation, but differently from past questions. The proposal, supported by environmental groups, would set aside some corporation business tax revenue for land preservation.

If voters say yes to the bail question, judges could deny bail based upon concern that a defendant "will not return to court; is a threat to the safety of another person or the community; or will obstruct or attempt to obstruct the criminal justice process," the ballot question says.

Christie, a Republican, dedicated part of his State of the State address in January to calling for the bail change, and he convened a special session of the Legislature on July 31 to press his case.

The Democratic-controlled Legislature subsequently passed a resolution to put the proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot.

Christie and other supporters say that under the current system, dangerous defendants are freed from jail simply because they can post bail while many nonviolent offenders who cannot afford bail remain detained.

If voters approve the amendment, it would take effect in 2017.

The Legislature also passed, and Christie signed into law, a bill that moves New Jersey away from a system that primarily uses bail to determine who can be released from jail toward one that focuses more on the risk defendants pose to the community.

Under the new law, the state will create a pretrial assessment program for judges to use to determine whether defendants should be jailed or released before trial. The system is meant to ensure that defendants accused of nonviolent crimes aren't jailed before trial simply because they cannot afford to post bail.

The law also sets time frames for how long defendants can be jailed before trial without the option of bail: for no more than 90 days before the return of an indictment, and for no more than 180 days after the indictment.

There are exceptions to those guidelines, however. Some legislators questioned whether the law provides adequate protection for defendants.

If the second ballot question is approved, New Jersey's open-space preservation program would be revived, and funding for land purchases would be supplied for a longer period than previous initiatives allowed.

Four percent of the corporation business tax revenue currently spent on environmental programs would be reallocated, with the bulk of the money assigned to the preservation of open space, farmland, and historic properties while the amount spent on several other programs would be decreased.

In 2019, the tax revenue spent on all those programs would increase to 6 percent.

Environmental groups say the measure is needed to supply a stable source of funding for New Jersey's open-space preservation program, which has traditionally been paid for through bond issues. The most recent - for $400 million - was approved by voters in 2009, but that money has since been obligated.

If the ballot question is approved, the Office of Legislative Services estimates, $71 million in corporation business tax revenue would be dedicated each year to open space, farmland, and historic preservation. In 2019, that figure is projected to increase to $117 million a year.

The measure would result in less funding for water and site remediation programs.

Opponents say devoting more money to land preservation is irresponsible at a time when the state's budget is spread thin.

At a news conference last month, Christie - who plans to vote against the measure - said lawmakers "complain about not having enough money in the general fund, and then they take money out of the general fund and dedicate it."

Tom Gilbert, chairman of New Jersey Keep It Green, a coalition of environmental groups that support the ballot question, said the additional spending on open space would be small in the context of the state's $32.5 billion budget.

In 2019, when the percentage of corporation business tax revenue dedicated to environmental programs would rise from 4 percent to 6 percent, "what we're talking about is $50 million more," Gilbert said. "If revenues continue to grow as they have over the long term, that's going to come out a wash."

The measure, if voters approve, would take effect in July.