Published in the Asbury Park Press 12/16/04
By JONATHAN TAMARI
GANNETT STATE BUREAU
TRENTON -- Acting Gov. Richard J. Codey signed a bill Wednesday freezing the amount of money donors can give to organizations largely responsible for bankrolling political campaigns.
Codey also pledged to quickly bring back pay-to-play legislation that stalled this week. The pending bill would codify an executive order by former Gov. James E. McGreevey meant to curb the practice of rewarding campaign contributors with government contracts.
The bill signed Wednesday overturns regulations requiring the state to raise campaign contribution limits every four years. Codey called those rules, which allowed donors to keep giving more money to political parties and committees, "absurd."
"We cannot talk about government reform if we're not doing everything possible to eliminate the influence of money," Codey said. "There's already too much money in politics."
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