Two Seeking District 4 Freeholder Seat in Primary

Longtime Cedar Grove Councilman Joseph Chiusolo is running for the District 4 Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholder seat being vacated by Linda Lordi Cavanaugh.

Chiusolo, a Republican, will face Democratic opponent Leonard M. Luciano of West Caldwell, in the November general election. But first, the unopposed candidates will represent their political parties in the Tuesday, June 7 primary.

The District 4 Freeholder represents 11 municipalities, including Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Essex Fells, Fairfield, Livingston, Millburn, North Caldwell, Roseland, Verona, West Caldwell and West Orange.

Chiusolo owns Totowa- and Jersey City-based Turn Out Uniforms, which provides uniforms and protective gear for police, fire and other emergency personnel.

He was first elected to the Cedar Grove Council in 1997, and served three years as mayor.

Chiusolo previously mounted an unsuccessful bid for Essex County Executive against Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr. in 2005.

What follows is a candidate statement where Chiusolo details his platform, and shares his vision for the county.

I am running for freeholder because I want to bring financial responsibility to my freeholder district and to Essex County has a whole.

The current all-Democratic rule on the Essex County freeholder board has led to excessive and unnecessary spending that has sent taxes skyrocketing. The county budget now exceeds $740 million – nearly three quarters of a billion dollars.  Yet, the freeholder board goes on spending and borrowing to fund non-essential items.

This year the freeholders, without debate or a pause to consider the consequences, approved almost $9 million in new spending for the county zoo. That spending comes on top of the $5 million the county spent last year on a miniature golf course at the zoo.

I submit to my constituents and to all residents of Essex County that county government does not need to be in the business of running zoos, building multi-million dollar housing for exotic animals and operating a miniature golf course at a time when unemployment is high and homeowners are having trouble paying their mortgages.

As a business owner, I set priorities for my business. I pay only for things I can afford and that are in line with my business objectives. On the Essex County freeholder board there is no effort at all to establish priorities for county government and no thought to fund only those services that are essential to running government. The freeholder board spends money recklessly, without regard for the impact on taxpayers – which is why Essex County residents pay the second highest percentage of their income in property taxes in the nation.

 As a veteran councilman for Cedar Grove, I have had to struggle with the financial burdens that all small towns do. Our council limits spending and borrowing and has held the line on taxes. But each year our efforts to cut taxes are eclipsed by ever rising county taxes. Other suburban municipalities in the district struggle with the same issue year after year.

While small towns are grappling with ways to lower the cost of health insurance benefits to employees, Essex County government this year approved an outrageous insurance package that will cost more than $70 million. There has been no freeholder debate about having county employees contribute more to their insurance coverage – just  the way people working in the private sector must do, yet many suburban towns are cutting their insurance costs to help our beleaguered taxpayers

The taxpayers need a voice of reason on the freeholder board, someone who will ‘say no’ to spending. And District 4 needs a freeholder who is a visible and outspoken advocate for our region.  Unfortunately, we never see our freeholder representative and have never heard her speak out against county spending. If I am elected to the freeholder board, I will be the voice of fiscal reason, I will speak out against spending and I will be seen and heard in every community in District 4. 

Luciano provided insight into his own campaign goals in an interview. 

“I am very humbled to have been selected to run for the vacancy created by Freeholder Cavanaugh. Freeholder Cavanaugh has an outstanding career as a public servant and has served the residents of District 4 with care, concern, and compassion. Her absence will be missed amongst the Board of Freeholders,” Luciano stated in a release.

Luciano noted that his first priority is to maintain the Essex County portion of the property tax bill.

“The taxpayers of the district are being affected by the financial demands placed upon their budgets due to the downswing in the economy and the continuous rise in taxes," he stated. "I am committed to exhaust all measures to find ways to reduce future spending in order to cap taxes while not reducing the excellent services provided to the residents.”

Luciano is currently serving his second term as Commissioner of the Essex County Utilities Authority. As Commissioner, he has supported and voted for the reduction of garbage “tipping fees” charged to all Essex County municipalities for the disposal of their solid waste. According to Luciano, his votes and support has saved Essex County about $2.5 million in 2010 thanks to a newly negotiated solid waste disposal contract with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey.

The savings will be result of a new five-year contract in which Essex County municipalities will continue to send their solid waste to the Essex County Resource Recovery Facility in Newark. These reduced charges trickle down to lower taxes.

Along with solid waste removal, Luciano stated his tenure on the Essex County Utilities Authority Board has shed light on the importance of resident recycling. The Essex County Utilities Authority reinforced residence recycling this year by providing municipalities with thousands of blue recycling containers free of charge to any resident.

Luciano voted in support of the grant and distribution of these containers.

“I will continue to use the skills of tax reduction from serving on the Utilities Authority to the role of serving as a District 4 Freeholder once elected,” Luciano stated.

Luciano was selected by the Essex County Democratic Chairman Philip Thigpen and the Democratic screening committee. He had an unsuccessful run for West Caldwell Council in November 2010.

He is employed by Newark Public Schools as a library media specialist.