TRENTON-- While the recently passed ban on dual office holding is a big step for New Jersey, a new report makes clear that more is needed.

How Much is Enough? Drawing the Lines on Multiple Public Job Holding in New Jersey examines the more than 700 elected state, county, and municipal officials who hold another, non-elected position in the public sector. Written by Tom O'Neill (author of NJPP's report on dual office holding last year) and former State Sen. Bill Schluter, the new report is one of several NJPP research projects funded by a grant from The Schumann Fund for New Jersey. The series of reports will examine key aspects of the state's political and governmental systems.

Among the report's findings:

• 600 men and women elected to municipal office have at least one other job on a public payroll besides their elected positions-more than 30 percent are employed in public education either as teachers or administrators; 20 percent work in county government; 14 percent for public authorities.
• In the state's 10 most populous municipalities, just over half of council members have their day jobs in the public sector.
• At least 56, or more than 40 percent, of the state's 137 county freeholders hold at least one other public sector job. Some 23 freeholders hold another elected office.
• A dozen men and women in the 40-member State Senate in 2006 held at least one non-elected public job, and 26 of the 80-member State Assembly earn at least part of their living from public sector employment.

When the same people hold multiple elected and non-elected jobs the system suffers from less accountability, fewer checks and balances and less competition. Those who hold these dual offices may skimp on their duties in one of the positions. Their independence may be constrained by the need to keep the favor of the political leaders whose approval is needed to keep not just their elected position but also the job that provides their principal source of income.

• The supervisor of an elected official may well be deferential when it comes to attendance and performance.
• The checks and balances built into the system by the doctrine of separation of powers can be violated when, for instance, a law enforcement officer serves as a legislator.
• An elected official who enjoys the perquisites of a low-show job in a public agency is shielded from competition that could open up the system to competitors.
• When a Jersey City school superintendent spends part of the week in Trenton as an Assemblyman it is clear that he is spending less time as superintendent than his $210,520 salary should require.

Clearly New Jersey needs some general rules to be used in guiding the way through the wide range of incompatibilities and conflicts created by combining elected and non-elected positions.

New Jersey has chosen for years to deal with this problem by ignoring it. Such a policy is no longer tolerable. The first step forward is for the public and political leaders to recognize the threat the current system poses to government accountability, performance and perception. The study includes a detailed analysis of the problems created by legislators who are employed as undersheriffs, as 3 have been in recent years.

Now is the time for New Jersey to make combined elected and non-elected job holding the exception rather than the rule. Some states, such as Louisiana, explicitly forbid holding many dual offices that place officials in an unresolveable conflict of obligations. New Jersey should follow that course.

The full text of How Much is Enough can be viewed at www.njpp.org/rpt_enough.html

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