By Peggy Ackermann
Gloucester County Times
FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP, N.J. — Hundreds of police officers across the state could lose their jobs because towns simply cannot afford them, a survey released Tuesday said.
Nearly 617 officers could be laid off before the new fiscal year begins July 1, according to a survey by the New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association.
Dismissals are expected in all of the state’s 21 counties, in suburban and urban areas with varying demographics. The union noted, for example, that Franklin Township in Somerset County could let eight officers go; Mansfield Township, Burlington County, four; and Passaic, Passaic County, 18.
“We all realize that we are facing challenging economic times and that municipalities must make difficult decisions,” said Anthony F. Wieners, state PBA president. “However, the breadth and depth of the layoffs our front-line officers are facing is shocking, and the impact these layoffs may have on local public safety is very troubling.”
The survey was conducted during the last week of May and includes data from 315 communities, the state PBA said. The union represents officers in 423 of New Jersey’s 566 municipalities, about two-thirds of the state’s approximately 21,000 municipal police officers, said PBA spokesman Jim Ryan.
The survey also counted layoffs from January through May and found 67 officers have lost their jobs in communities such as Stafford Township in Ocean County, Cedar Grove in Essex County and Egg Harbor Township in Atlantic County.
Last year, 20 percent of towns responding said they could have layoffs; this year more than 50 percent said they could.
Wieners also said Gov. Chris Christie’s proposed 2.5 percent property tax cap would trigger more layoffs. “If a hard cap were to go into place, we would see massive cuts in services and large-scale layoffs,” he said.
Copyright 2010 Gloucester County Times