Today, Congressman Van Drew issued the following statement after a new report from the Office of New Jersey’s Corrections Ombudsperson detailed overcrowding, extreme heat, and unsanitary conditions at Bayside State Prison in Cumberland County.

“For weeks, officials across New Jersey have been outraged over conditions at Delaney Hall,” said Congressman Van Drew. “They have held press conferences, staged protests, and demanded investigations. But now a state watchdog has documented overcrowding, extreme heat, and unsanitary conditions inside a prison by the State of New Jersey itself. Where is the outrage now? According to the report, inmates are living in overcrowded cells, eating meals on their beds because the dining hall is closed, and enduring temperatures that reached into the 90s. Meanwhile, the American correctional officers who show up to work every day are expected to do their jobs in these same conditions.

Assemblywoman Alixon Collazos-Gill (D-Essex, Passaic) issued the following statement on today’s advancement of Bill A3735, better known as the “Polluters Pay to Make New Jersey More Affordable Act” in the Assembly Appropriations Committee:

“Today’s passage of the Polluters Pay to Make New Jersey More Affordable Act through the Assembly Appropriations Committee is an important step toward ensuring that the corporations responsible for environmental damage help cover the costs of climate resilience and recovery, not New Jersey taxpayers.

“I am proud to serve as the prime sponsor of this legislation and grateful to my colleagues for advancing this critical bill. As climate-related costs continue to rise, this legislation will help protect our communities while easing the financial burden on hardworking families across our state.”

As we have seen in a number of recent legislative efforts, historic preservation reviews are increasingly being targeted in the name of accelerating infrastructure projects. The recently introduced Build America 250 Act is the latest example, containing provisions that would exempt a large number of transportation projects from important historic preservation review requirements.

Today, Congressman Van Drew issued the following statement regarding House Democrats’ forum on the conditions at Delaney Hall detention center in Newark, New Jersey.

“What we saw today was not a serious effort to tell the truth,” said Congressman Van Drew. “It was another attempt to push a political narrative, demonize ICE, and mislead the public. I have seen Delaney Hall with my own eyes, and the people making these claims know better. They know the facility is clean, well-run, and provides medical care, recreation, and other basic services. But those facts do not fit their narrative. All their rhetoric does is create chaos, fuel hostility toward law enforcement, and make an already difficult job even more dangerous for the men and women enforcing our immigration laws. The American people deserve leaders who support law enforcement and put American citizens first.”