Protest Planned For Sweeney Visit With Ocean County Mayors

TOMS RIVER, NJ — New Jersey Senate President Stephen Sweeney is scheduled to meet with the Ocean County Mayors Association in Toms River on Tuesday, and two groups of protesters have vowed to be there to voice their frustration over two issues: school funding cuts and a vaccinations bill.

The mayors association announced Sweeney's scheduled appearance on the association's website. The mayors association, which includes all 33 towns in the county, meets at The Grove restaurant at Howard Johnson motel, 955 Hooper Ave. in Toms River.

The mayors association website says the meeting check-in begins at 8:30 a.m. The meeting is not open to the public.

Groups opposed to a state bill that would remove religious exemptions for vaccinations for school children announced they will gather near the restaurant at 7:30 a.m. to protest.

"Tuesday is the opportunity for us to see Sweeney face to face!" the Facebook event titled "Sweeney Showdown" said. "Let's show him that we are not going away! We will not consent!" The event is being led by the group New Jersey for Medical Freedom.

The vaccinations bill, S2173/A3818, was passed by the state Assembly in December but stalled in the Senate. Sweeney has said the Senate will revisit the bill this month, before the legislative session ends. There are two voting sessions left for this session, scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 9, and Monday, Jan. 13, NorthJersey.com reported. The bill, which passed the Assembly 45-25 in December, would have to go back to the Assembly for a second vote if the Senate approves it, for procedural reasons.

Joining the vaccine bill protesters will be protesters who are fighting state aid cuts to the Toms River schools. Parents sharing the information on social media are urging parents in other districts affected by the cuts to come out on Tuesday morning as well.

The cuts to so-called adjustment aid were put in place by S2, the law championed by Sweeney going back to at least 2017. The Toms River, Brick, Jackson, and Lacey school districts in Ocean County and the Freehold Regional High School district in Monmouth County all are seeing severe aid cuts as a result of the passage of S2 in 2018.

Sweeney has repeatedly insisted the school districts that are losing adjustment aid — nearly 200 districts statewide — are not paying their fair share of property taxes to support their schools. His assertion is based in part on wealth calculations made by the state Department of Education through a formula that the state has so far refused to release to anyone, despite multiple Open Public Records Act requests from media, from school districts and from the general public. Read more: Toms River, Brick Seek 'Secret' Math Equation In School Aid Fight

"Join those that are fighting for their medical rights and fight for our school system and community," a post on the Facebook page TR Our Community Deserves Better said. "We urge others to stand up for their school districts and communities."

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