NJCAEF Accomplishments and Highlights — 2001
NJCAEF was originally called the Citizen Policy & Education Fund of NJ (CPEF) until May 2004, when the name was legally changed, but our mission and programs remain the same.
Overview
In 2001, we initiated a major voter registration effort, launched our new Technology Center in Newark, exposed a massive predatory lending and loan flipping scheme, enforced agreements to improve community reinvestment, educated consumers about quality health care and lead-free environments, counseled tens of thousands of residents about their rights, and helped over a thousand families become first-time homebuyers. CPEF also produced key research about access to health care, paid family leave programs and campaign finance reform. We expect that these efforts will strengthen families’ self-sufficiency and enhance political power in communities around New Jersey.
Community Reinvestment and Rehabilitation
Predatory Lending Scam Exposed
Working with key allies, CPEF uncovered a widespread predatory property scheme affecting first-time homebuyers in Northern New Jersey. CPEF identified over 85 families as victims, all low-income people of color living primarily in Essex County. CPEF filed a RICO case against Barry Fauntleroy, president and owner of Neighborhood Properties Group and Eon Institute. The scam was featured as an exclusive 3-day front-page series in The Star Ledger and received statewide coverage, resulting in hundreds of additional complaints from victims of other predatory lending scams. CPEF is working with these families, their lenders, Essex County, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Fannie Mae to make sure the homeowners do not lose their homes and have adequate resources to make much-needed repairs. All of the Fauntleroy victims are participating in CPEF’s loan counseling service to repair their damaged credit.
Predatory Lending Solutions Proposed
CPEF’s work resulted in major media coverage about predatory lending, causing State and Federal officials to respond to this crisis. The Homeowners Protection Act was introduced in to both houses of the State Legislature, as were four other pieces of legislation. CPEF analyzed these bills for their impact on consumers, and publicized this information to our allies and policy makers. U.S. Senator Jon Corzine joined CPEF’s fight to help the victims of the Essex County property flipping scam by sending a letter to U.S. HUD Assistant Secretary Mel Martinez, urging his department to work with CPEF and our allies to help solve the situations faced by the Fauntleroy victims. Sen. Corzine has now become directly involved in finding solutions to this problem.
Chase Bank Picketed
CPEF is working with mortgage holders to renegotiate the Fauntleroy mortgages, so they are affordable for the victims. Some of the lenders have cooperated in this process, becoming part of the solution instead of the problem. CPEF is organizing to bring to the table those financial institutions that have refused to participate in solving the crisis. We conducted an informational picket at the Newark office of J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, which delayed possible resolutions for more than twenty-three predatory lending victims whose loans it now services. CPEF led community groups and victims in its holiday picket, featuring Chase as the "Grinch" who stole Christmas from these families.
Prudential Proposal Analyzed
CPEF partnered with the Washington, D.C. based Center for Community Change and other organizations around the country to analyze Prudential’s proposal to demutualize. This analysis was presented to the NJ Department of Banking & Insurance’s at its hearing on the proposal. CPEF worked with Prudential to develop an executive summary of its plan mailed to all of its policy holders, so that these consumers would be able to cast an informed ballot when they voted on the proposal. We continue to monitor this major insurance company conversion as it progresses. As a result of our work, CPEF’s CRA Organizer, Leila Amirhamzeh, was selected as one of thirteen funded consumer representatives serving on the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, giving us the opportunity to voice consumer-related concerns regarding the insurance industry.
Financial Education Center Expanded, Tech Room Opened in Newark
After less than a year in our original location, CPEF’s Financial Education Center expanded to a larger space to accommodate a new Technology Room. In the Technology Room, up to 10 consumers at a time can take advantage of small group trainings to learn more about computers and master the Internet for on-line banking and other monetary services. The on-line training is part of the Center’s workshop series, which help residents better understand basic financial services, including basic banking, money management and consumer education topics. Curriculum topics include: Protecting Your Money, Keeping the Money You Make, Getting Credit and Keeping Your Credit, Predatory Lending, and Investment Strategies. Staff are available conduct these trainings at our Center as well as on site for community organizations and social service providers. In 2001, we conducted more than 200 trainings for over 3600 people.
Major CRA Agreement Signed
CPEF negotiated a $1.12 billion dollar Community Reinvestment Act pledge with Washington Mutual, the Seattle-based bank that will enter the New Jersey market following its acquisition of The Dime Savings Bank of NY. In addition to commitments for below market rate loans, construction & permanent financing for non-profit affordable housing developers, and small business loans for women and minority owned businesses, the agreement outlines Washington Mutual’s commitment to neither make nor purchase predatory loans, and is the only state-specific CRA pledge that has been negotiated by WaMu to date.
Check Cashing Fee Stopped
CPEF publicized PNC Bank’s plan to charge a $3 fee to non-customers who wished to cash their payroll checks, drawn on PNC Bank, at its branches. After a series of negotiations, CPEF succeeded in getting PNC to withdraw the fee for workers who endorsed a signature card provided to them by their employer. The bank will file these cards and use them to verify workers’ signatures to reduce fraudulent check cashing.
Hundreds of First Home Buyers Assisted
Over 1,000 families became first-time home owners through CPEF’s Loan Counseling Program. Families get assistance with budgeting, credit, and below market rate mortgages and grants. With 4000 families actively involved in this and our home improvement counseling program, the project continues to be extremely popular and successful. We added an on-line registration process via our website to complement our toll-free telephone service in order to meet the growing need for loan counseling. Working in conjunction with our campaign to end predatory lending, CPEF’s loan counselors are now training potential homebuyers to be wary of mortgages and homes that sound too good to be true.
Women’s Housing Initiative Expanded, Mentors Recruited
CPEF continues to work with the McAuley Institute, a national faith-based, non-profit organization, to increase the number of Women’s Housing Initiatives held in New Jersey. CPEF expanded our "Home of Her Own" events in 2001, reaching more women (and men) than ever before. We held five seminars around the state, in Trenton, Perth Amboy, Paterson, Plainfield and Newark. Two thousand people, mostly female heads of households, attended these standing room only events to hear new home owners talk about the challenges they overcame to purchase a home of their own. These inspirational stories encouraged the majority of the audience to enroll in CPEF’s Loan Counseling Program.
Our mentoring program "Been There, Done That" pairs women who have purchased homes through us with women who are entering counseling and face long-term credit repair. Twenty-five mentors are now working with loan counseling clients and another twenty five will be trained early in 2002.
Lead Poisoning Prevention
Community Leaders and Homeowners Educated on Lead Poisoning
CPEF trained over 50 community leaders and agency staff in Newark and Camden on lead poisoning prevention in 2001. This adds to our ever-growing infrastructure of lead poisoning prevention advocates throughout the state. Additionally, as part of our efforts to increase abatements, CPEF held two "Lead Abatement Financing Forums" in Trenton informing property owners of their responsibilities and of below-market rate loans available. Over sixty homeowners attended the forums and CPEF continues to work with them to abate their lead hazards.
Community Leaders, Service Providers Trained
CPEF conducted three Train-the-Trainer sessions in Camden and Newark, reaching nearly 50 community leaders and social service providers with critical information to prevent childhood lead poisoning. These newly minted lead-experts are part of our growing infrastructure of lead poisoning prevention advocates throughout the state. CPEF continues to be a leading member of the Newark Partnership for Lead-Free Children, coordinating two of the Partnerships Committees and providing expert training on the issue to the 80 other participating Partnership organizations.
Inspections on Request Pushed
CPEF worked with the City of Newark to devise and implement an inspection on request policy to prevent lead poisoning. CPEF publicized the needs for a pro-active policy at a New Jersey Citizen Action event, where dozens of community leaders, parents and children presented the City Council with bags of paint chips. The audience demanded that the City Council, which had not made a decision on an inspection policy, test the chips for lead poisoning to protect the city’s children. The event was widely covered in the media.
Excellent Work Acknowledged
CPEF won the Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental Quality Award in April 2001.
Utility Advocacy and Customer Education
Phone Deregulation Opposed, Low-Income Service Urged
CPEF challenged Verizon New Jersey’s petition, filed with the Board of Public Utilities (BPU), which attempts to deregulate services to small businesses, non-profits and community groups. CPEF testified at three public hearings around the state about the need to protect small businesses and social service providers from volatile market conditions. CPEF also urged the BPU to adopt the state’s Lifeline program, which is supposed to make phone service available for low-income residents. CPEF’s analysis compared similar programs in other states and found New Jersey’s severely lacking. Our specific recommendations were widely reported in the media. The Board has yet to render a decision on this issue.
Long Distance Competition Fought
CPEF also fought Verizon’s proposal for permission to enter the long distance market in New Jersey. We worked to educate policy makers about the lack of local phone competition, a requirement for the Company’s long distance entry, and the impact the change would have on consumers. The BPU refused to permit any public testimony during these proceedings. CPEF mobilized organizational allies and individual consumers to stage a silent protest against the public’s exclusion. We also coordinated a media effort to raise consumers’ concerns about the process and the potential outcome. As a result, the BPU delayed making its decision until 2002.
Universal Energy Service Adopted
After a three year effort, CPEF won approval from the Board of Public Utilities for our proposal to create a comprehensive Universal Service Fund for low-income energy customers. The fund will allow eligible customers to pay an affordable portion of their utility bill. This will reduce shut-offs and make utility access a reality for thousands of New Jersey families. The initial program received $15 million in funding to begin arrearage forgiveness for customers in debt. The permanent program, in which bill payments will be based on a percentage of a customer’s income, is slated to start in mid-2002.
Energy Program Extended Statewide, Thousands Educated
CPEF expanded its energy education outreach program to include work in all utility service areas around the state. Our effort, educating consumers on their rights and opportunities under energy deregulation, reached over 500 organizations this year, bringing the project total to more than 2000 since its inception. In 2001, we reached over 41,000 people with energy education information. Energy education staff members contacted more than 3100 additional organizations to make them aware of this opportunity. We conducted more than 50% of our presentations in urban areas of the state to organizations that represent low and moderate-income residents.
Telecommunications Initiative Widened
We also increased our telecommunications education project, reaching seniors and low-income residents in Northern and Central New Jersey. Customers at these presentations learn how to understand their phone bills, make smart telecommunications decisions and protect themselves from fraud. This project has reached more than 100 organizations and their over 3500 members in 2001, bringing the total to over 200 groups since its inception.
Major Savings Negotiated for Oil Heat Customers
Over 6,000 members saved as much as 17% on their annual heating costs through our Oil Group, which pools buying power to negotiate for lower oil prices. The Oil Group is working to expand its membership base and increase its buying power.
Rising Rates Criticized
CPEF continued to speak out against rising natural gas prices and attempts to further deregulate the gas industry. CPEF’s concern about the impact of higher and unpredictable gas prices on working families and seniors appeared in dozens of news articles. CPEF also spoke out about rising rates in cable television service, which have gone up more than four times the rate of inflation since deregulation in 1996.
Access to Quality Health Care and Family Issues
Prescription Drug Needs Spotlighted
In response to President Bush’s proposal to reduce income taxes, CPEF co-released with Families USA the report "Bad Policy, Bad Medicine," detailing the impact that such cuts would have on plans for a Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit. We conducted an extensive outreach campaign, First Things First, mobilizing 10,000 voters to urge their political leaders to enact a Medicare benefit prior to passing a tax cut for the wealthy. CPEF collected over a 1,000 postcards in one day, showing support for prescription drug relief. CPEF educated consumers about the "Senior Gold Prescription Discount Program," an expanded prescription drug program. Senior Gold is targeted to moderate-income seniors and people with disabilities who exceed New Jersey’s existing program’s eligibility income by up to $10,000. CPEF also took this opportunity to make the public and key policy makers aware of the high costs of prescription drugs by releasing national reports detailing the prices of the top 50 prescribed drugs, which have risen in price far exceeding the rate of inflation. Throughout the year, CPEF worked with the Prescription Access Litigation (PAL) campaign to file lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies for misrepresentation in their advertising, overcharging and manipulating the Average Wholesale Price.
Paid Family Leave Urged
CPEF publicized the need for a statewide paid family leave benefit, that will allow workers to take much needed time off to care for a new child and to care for a sick family member without sacrificing their income. We began a documentation process to collect and publicize the anecdotal experiences of workers who have a paid leave benefit through their employer, as well as those who do not. CPEF shared these stories with the media and policy makers. We started a research effort to show that higher paid employees are more likely to receive paid family leave as an employer-provided benefit than low-income workers. Additionally, CPEF worked with Michele Naples, College of New Jersey and Meryl Franks, Bush Center for Child Development and Social Policy, to release a new report "The Fiscal Viability of New Jersey’s Family Leave Insurance." The report proves the additional cost of family leave insurance would be approximately a $1.00 a week per worker.
Insurance, Hospital Conversions Opposed
Continuing our four year campaign to stop non-profit health institutions insurer from converting to for-profit companies, CPEF monitored an amended plan submitted by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey to convert from a non-profit, charitable institution to a for-profit insurance provider. CPEF educated consumers about the impact of this plan, through public speaking engagements, letters to the editor and opinion editorials. Although this proposal was modified to meet some of our concerns, CPEF remains opposed to the selection method for the board of directors of the non-profit foundation that will result when HBCBSNJ converts. CPEF also began working with local community organizations in rural Salem County, where Memorial Hospital has submitted plans to convert to a for-profit hospital under the Columbia Health Care System (CHS). Working with local leaders, CPEF has trained community activists and health care providers about their rights for community input under the Community Health Assets Protection Act, a bill passed in 1999 by CPEF ally New Jersey Citizen Action. CPEF filed regulatory comments with the Department of Health and Senior Services opposing this conversion, due to concerns with CHS’ fiscal viability.
Uninsured Problem Highlighted
Working with the Urban Institute, we released two reports discussing the success of KidCare, New Jersey’s Child Health Insurance Program, insuring children with special medical needs. CPEF worked with children who have participated in KidCare to get their stories to the press. When the state closed enrollment for FamilyCare, a program that provides health insurance for working poor adults, CPEF responded with a study, co-authored by Families USA, to draw attention to the need for comprehensive access to quality health care. CPEF coordinated the public education and outreach aspects of Getting Less Care, and drew media attention to affected families who lack much needed coverage.
Patients Rights Advocated
CPEF collected HMO horror stories of patients whose health was adversely affected by insurance company decisions. During the national debate over the Patient’s Bill of Rights, we regularly released these stories to the press and interested decision makers to emphasize the need for genuine reform. Our proposals to improve in-hospital care, including the elimination of mandatory overtime for nurses, were incorporated in to legislation enacted in December 2001. The Mandatory Overtime Act eliminates forced overtime for health care workers and allows workers to improve their performance resulting in better care for patients.
Social Security Privatization Criticized
CPEF researched and publicized the impact of proposals made by President Bush’s Privatization Commission to privatize of Social Security.
Campaign Finance Reform and Democratic Participation
Fair and Clean Elections Effort Started
CPEF and our allies announced our Fair And Clean Elections Campaign (FACE) to passengers on the Annual Chamber of Commerce Train to Washington, D.C. We passed out bars of soap and an analysis of campaign contributions to the policy makers and officials on the Chamber Train, telling them to "lather up" for campaign finance reform. Over 40 organizations have endorsed the FACE concept, which calls for the establishment of full public financing system for legislative and gubernatorial elections similar to those enacted in Maine, Arizona, Massachusetts and Vermont.
Campaign Cash Analyzed
CPEF released a study showing over $200,000 in campaign contributions to Acting Governor DiFrancesco from building interests and developers, while DiFrancesco debated signing critical legislation that gives municipalities only 10 business days to act on requests for zoning permits. Environmentalists expect this will lead to increased sprawl. Acting Governor DiFrancesco favored the builders and signed the legislation. CPEF and Public Citizen released a report on how the U.S. drug industry spent an unprecedented $262 million on political influence in the 1999-2000 election cycle: $177 million on lobbying, $65 million on issue ads and $20 million on campaign contributions. These contributions are preventing a much needed discourse on the high cost of prescription drugs and possible solutions, including a Medicare benefit for seniors and people with disabilities.
NJ State and Local Government Records Made Public
Working with journalist and good government organizations, CPEF worked to spotlight problems with New Jersey’s outdated and restrictive laws that govern access to public records, and to identify solutions. Our recommendations for updating the process by which citizens can access their government’s records were included in the landmark passage of a new Open Public Records Act. In addition, CPEF participated in the formation of the NJ Foundation for Open Government, a technical support network for citizens and advocates who need assistance accessing public records.
Base Building Activities Conducted
CPEF organized 5 leafleting and petition events in the Bergen County area, as part of the national effort spearheaded by Public Campaign to build support for comprehensive campaign finance reform in key areas. We collected thousands of signatures for federal and state action to get private money out of politics, showing the breadth of support there is for this issue.
Innovative Voter Registration and Mobilization Effort Launched
CPEF kicked off a statewide voter registration drive aimed at organizing the state’s mass transit riders. Transit Vote NJ was endorsed by 50 other concerned organizations, including civil rights, disability advocacy, labor unions and environmental groups. Over the summer, we held 45 separate voter registration drives at bus and train stations throughout the state. On October 3, CPEF mobilized more than 100 volunteers to register new voters at 25 key transit locations. The effort brought 5,000 new voters in to the political process. CPEF educated these voters about the critical social issues at stake in the November 2001 election, by publicizing surveys of candidates’ positions. We mailed and called all of the Transit Voters before Election Day, urging them to go to the polls and answering their questions about their voting site or registration.
Elections Protected and Polling Places Monitored
CPEF participated in the People for the American Way’s non-partisan "Election Protection" campaign, placing volunteers and staff at 30 polling places in Essex County on Election Day. These poll watchers helped people exercise their right to vote on the spot, in order to prevent disenfranchisement of voters of color. We also surveyed all of the polling locations for the NJ Developmental Disability Council’s polling place access effort. The Council is publicizing the lack of barrier-free polling places, which inhibits the rights of voters with disabilities to cast their ballots in person. CPEF received the Alliance for Disabled in Action’s "Community Partner of the Year" award for our work with people with disabilities.