2010 – 2011
HEALTH CARE: Leading the state's largest consumer health advocacy coalition, NJ for HealthCare's, efforts to defend and implement national health reform including the establishment of a pro-consumer, state based Insurance Exchange and Payment and Delivery Reform initiatives.
TELEPHONE AND CABLE RATES: Organized the Don't Hang Up on New Jersey Campaign to successfully block NJ's telecommunications and cable industries' radical deregulation scheme which, if passed, would lead to higher corporate profits at the expense of quality services, affordable prices, good jobs and critical oversight needed to protect consumers against harmful mergers and asset sales.
INCOME SECURITY: Led NJ Time to Care's effort to pass the 2010 Ballot Question #1, a constitutional amendment protecting employee insurance benefit funds (including unemployment insurance, family leave insurance, temporary disability insurance and workers compensation funds), from the long standing practice of NJ state legislatures raiding these funds, in some cases to the point of bankruptcy. Made over 43,000 voter contacts to support passage of the amendment.
FINANCIAL REFORM: Celebrated historic passage of the Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act — one of the most significant policies of financial regulatory legislation passed since the Great Depression that protects homebuyers, creates new rules within the credit industry to protect families and small businesses, and establishes the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Fought at both state and national levels against "Robo-signings," providing clients a federal reserve board that works with the Attorney General and Chief Justice Rabner to correct abuses.
FORECLOSURE PREVENTION: Played a leading role in addressing the mortgage crisis by winning huge protections for tenants living in foreclosure properties, fighting for programs to prevent families from losing their homes to foreclosure, and provided foreclosure prevention counseling to 1,894 homeowners across the state.
COUNSELING: Provided individual counseling to 2,547 low and moderate income families (1,894 or 74% sought foreclosure prevention, 452 or 26% sought first time pre-purchase counseling).
FREE TAX PREPARATION: NJCA prepared over 2,400 tax returns for low-income workers during the 2009-2010 tax season, making us one of the largest VITA sites in Newark for the 4th year in a row!
ECONOMIC SECURITY FOR NJ FAMILIES: Through NJCA's Economic Security Center, provided free benefits screening and assistance to help low-income families gain an additional $1.4 million in benefits.
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT: Distributed candidate questionnaires to every major party Congressional Candidate running in the 2010 general election (26) as well as to candidates running in a special state senate seat election that included questions on the Healthy Families Act, Health Care Reform, Budget and Taxes and Social Security and in the case of the state election, NJ's Family Leave insurance program and the millionaire's tax.
GOOD GOVERNMENT: Testified at and monitored public hearings as part of NJ's state redistricting process and worked to organize support for the constitutional premise of one person one vote in the development of NJ's new legislative map.
2009 – 2010
FINANCIAL RE-REGULATION: Organized New Jerseyans for Financial Reform to lobby for new regulations to protect our economy from unscrupulous banks and Wall Street institutions, and organized for strong enforcement from our state and federal financial regulators.
BUILDING OUR COALITION: Organized the New Jersey Main Street Alliance, a new coalition of over 650 progressive NJ Small Business Owners who are fighting for Health Care and Financial Reform.
FORECLOSURE PREVENTION: Played a leading role in addressing the mortgage crisis by winning huge protections for tenants living in foreclosure properties, fighting for programs to prevent families from losing their homes to foreclosure, and provided foreclosure prevention counseling to 1,196 homeowners across the state — a 300% increase from the number of homeowners served in 2008.
HEALTH CARE: Led the state's successful grassroots campaign to win national health care reform that will provide access to affordable health care to millions of uninsured adults and children, end health insurance industry abuses and lower the overall costs of our health care system. Launching a new toll free NJ Consumer Health Helpline to educate consumers about federal and state health care initiatives, assist consumers in the private insurance market and to collect personal health care stories.
VOTER EDUCATION: Launched Get-Out-The Vote Campaigns in five New Jersey counties and made over 100,000 voter contacts.
FAIR BUDGETS AND PROGRESSIVE TAXES: NJCA and its allies are working together to stand up for State and Federal funding for Public Services, Public Schools, Public Colleges and Public Health Facilities and for progressive tax policies including the restoration of NJ's Millionaire's Tax.
FREE TAX PREPARATION: NJCA prepared nearly 2,200 tax returns for low-income workers during the 2009-2010 tax season, making us one of the largest VITA sites in Newark for the 4th year in a row!
ECONOMIC SECURITY FOR NJ FAMILIES: Through NJCA's Economic Security Center, provided free benefits screening and assistance to help low-income families gain more than $2.1 million in benefits.
2008 – 2009
FAMILY LEAVE INSURANCE: After a 12 year battle, legislation making New Jersey only the 2nd state in the nation to provide paid family leave to every NJ worker was signed into law.
FORECLOSURE PREVENTION: Lobbied to pass the NJ Mortgage Stabilization and Relief Act, a model program that provides loans to help homeowners in danger of foreclosure and helps non-profits buy houses from homeowners who cannot afford their mortgages and then leases the home back to homeowners for up to seven years while they recover financially. Assisted the NJ Attorney General and NJ Home Mortgage Finance Agency in developing and implementing the NJ Foreclosure Mitigation Program, offering distressed homeowners access to housing counseling, attorneys, and court-trained mediators.
HEALTH CARE: Launched the NJ for Health Care Coalition, currently a 47 member organization group representing over 2 million NJ residents. Passed an expansion of the NJ Family Care program to cover an additional 50,000 NJ children and 12,000 parents.
TELECOMMUNICATIONS: Stopped telecommunication giants' attempt to eliminate all regulation for basic phone service, ensuring rate protections for all consumers, particularly people with disabilities, seniors on fixed incomes and low-income workers.
ECONOMIC RECOVERY: Mobilized grassroots support for President Obama's economic stimulus package by organizing a town hall in Newark, a march in New Brunswick and thousands of comments into congressional offices from NJCA members and allies.
FREE EITC TAX PREPARATION AND FAMILY ECONOMIC SECURITY: Incorporated benefits counseling into our Newark EITC Center and expanded our free tax preparation program to Camden, increasing our capacity to improve the economic security of low-income residents. Over the last year alone, these programs have assisted nearly 5,000 families and generated close to $7 million in benefits.
VOTER EDUCATION & EMPOWERMENT: Organized an aggressive non-partisan campaign to turn-out nearly 60,000 voters in underrepresented areas of the state to vote in NJ's February 5, 2008 Presidential Primary. During the general election, hundreds of NJCA volunteers made over 100,000 voter contacts, through phone banks and door to door canvasses, encouraging voter to Get Out the Vote in the historic 2008 Presidential and Congressional election.
COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT: Negotiated a $1 billion Community Reinvestment Agreements with PNC Bank and a $676 million Community Reinvestment Agreement with TD Bank, increasing mortgage, consumer and small business loans in low and moderate-income New Jersey communities.
2007
FAIR AND CLEAN ELECTIONS: Won passage of the 2007 Fair and Clean Elections Pilot Program, which overwhelmingly succeeded in meeting the Legislature's thresholds for future expansion.
EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT: Passed legislation to increase NJ's Earned Income Tax Credit that assists low income working families, dispensing tens of millions of more dollars to financially strapped families. NJCA opened up a free EITC tax preparation site, which helped thousands of New Jerseyans get their taxes done for free and receive their EITC credit.
BANKING & INSURANCE: Worked with national organization, NCRC, to defeat Wal-Mart's attempt to enter into the banking industry.
2006
HEALTH CARE: Won passage of the NJ Prescription Drug Price Registry law that allows consumers easy access to a state run website where they can comparison shop by pharmacy and zip code for prescription drugs at the lowest price.
UTILITY RATES: Organized a broad based coalition that stopped the $16 billion takeover of PSE&G by the Chicago-based Exelon Corporation that would have increased ratepayers' electricity bills by up to $2.3 billion a year.
COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT: Negotiated an $8 billion Community Reinvestment Agreement with Wachovia Bank to provide mortgage, consumer and small business loans in low and moderate-income New Jersey communities.
VOTER EDUCATION & EMPOWERMENT: Made 200,000 in person, mail and phone contacts to New Jersey voters about issues important to working families and seniors during the 2006 House and Senate campaign.
2005
MINIMUM WAGE: On April 12, 2005, Gov. Codey signed legislation to increase the state's minimum wage for the first time in 6 years, taking the rate up from $5.15 to $6.15 / hour in October 2005 and $7.15 / hour in October 2006.
SOCIAL SECURITY: Organized and led the Keep the Promise Campaign, New Jersey's successful grassroots effort to stop President Bush's scheme to destroy Social Security.
HEALTH CARE: Working in coalition with other health care advocates, successfully expanded NJ's Family Care Program and blocked another attempt by Horizon Blue Cross/Blue Shield to convert from a non-profit to a for-profit insurer.
GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT: Won passage of legislation to restore NJ's Department of the Public Advocate, which is dedicated to making government more accountable and responsive to the needs of average citizens.
2004
FAIR AND CLEAN ELECTIONS: In June 2004, the NJ Legislature passed the New Jersey Fair and Clean Elections Pilot Project, crafted with the help of NJCA.
PROPERTY TAXES: In June 2004, the NJ Senate and Assembly passed the property tax relief plan, long supported by NJCA and the Fairness Alliance as part of our Fair Tax Campaign.
2003
UTILITY RATES: Our input helped shape the $15 million interim energy Universal Service Fund, adopted by the Board of Public Utilities after four years of planning.
PREDATORY LENDING: NJCA helped organize 26 groups to be a part of the Fair Lending Coalition, which passed The Home Loan Protection Act, one of the strongest anti-predatory lending laws in the country.
2002
HEALTH CARE: NJCA mobilized a State House rally in support of lower prescription drug costs — over 150 people cheered on 50 seniors who "Got on the Bus" to Washington, DC demanding an affordable prescription drug plan.
FAIR TAXES: Organized over 50 groups to pass a fair Corporate Business Tax, leveling the playing field between big corporations and working families and preventing huge budget cuts. Our work saved NJ taxpayers over $700 million and prevented drastic budget cuts.
2001
FINANCIAL EDUCATION: Opened Financial Education Center in Newark to provide one-on-one and classroom training on financial issues. Expanded to include state-of-the-art Technology Facility.
PAID FAMILY LEAVE: Introduced groundbreaking legislation to provide financial assistance for parents to take time off from work to care for their newborn or adopted children.
2000
LEAD POISONING PREVENTION: Increased lead inspectors in Newark to prevent childhood poisonings.
VICTIMS' RIGHTS: Organized NJ coalition to stop Congressional bailout of asbestos manufacturers.