newjerseynewsroom.com

Cost of registering a burial goes from $15 to $5,

BY TOM HESTER SR.

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

No, Gov. Chris Christie is not going after New Jersey's coveted graveyard vote but he is keeping the state registar from permently tagging mourning families with a $15 funeral cost.

As his last act before taking a two-week vacation from Trenton, Christie has vetoed a bill that would have kept the cost of registering a burial or casket removal or transporting at $15 rather than reverting back to the original cost of $5.

Christie said the veto of bill (A-2921) stresses the need for increased efficiency in delivering services rather than continually raising costs on New Jersey families. The bill would have eliminated the 2010 sunset provision under a 2007 law that provides funds for the state Electronic Death Registration System (EDRS). The bill would have allowed the registrar to continued to charge a $15 fee rather than reverting back to $5.

"The economic crisis affects every citizen of the state,'' Christie said. "I reject the mindset that renewing, prolonging, or extending temporary fees is the way to solve our problems. Although I fully support the maintenance of the EDRS, I will not sign this bill into law. It is not fair to make the citizens of New Jersey continue to pay increased fees for the burial of their loved ones."

The governor said the state Department of Health and Senior Services has sufficient resources to maintain the EDRS without further burdening citizens with an enhanced fee.

"State government must live within its means," Christie said. "We must increase efficiency, and find ways to deliver essential services without raising costs. By declining to sign Assembly Bill No. 2921, I am affirming my administration's commitment to these principles."

The New Jersey Electronic Death Registration Support Fund was created in 2004 to meet the developmental and operational costs of the EDRS and to reimburse local registrars involved in the process.