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Associated Press
Bruce Shipkowski
July, 19 2009

TRENTON, N.J. - Like most states, prosecutors and law enforcement officials in New Jersey are struggling over how to deal with teens who engage in racy online behavior, including sending explicit photos over their phones , so-called "sexting."

Their actions technically amount to distribution of child pornography, a charge that could carry severe, lifelong penalties.

But one Garden State lawmaker has recently introduced legislation aimed at curtailing "sexting" and similar problems, hoping it will make teens and parents better educated about the activities and the potential problems they can create.

"Kids may be kids, but they can be forced to grow up in a hurry when an explicit photograph meant only for one person gets forwarded and reforwarded throughout their school," said Assemblywoman Pamela R. Lampitt, D-Cherry Hill. "Young people, especially teen girls, need to understand that sending inappropriate pictures is not only potentially illegal, but can leave an indelible mark on them socially and educationally."

According to a 2008 survey by the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, roughly one-in-five teens , including 11 percent of girls aged 13 to 16 , have sent a nude or seminude picture or video of themselves to friends or posted one on a Web site.

Philadelphia Inquirer
Jonathan Tamari and Adrienne Lu
June 23, 2009

TRENTON - Property-tax rebates would be restored for about 500,000 New Jersey homeowners under state budget revisions approved yesterday.

The latest spending proposal would reinstate at least partial rebates for those earning up to $75,000 and also allow more households to deduct all or some of their property-tax bills from their state income tax returns.

The changes, made possible by a more than $400 million windfall from a tax amnesty, will provide rebates for many homeowners who were expected to get no checks this year, and expand the deduction eligibility to reach about 200,000 more people.

Households with incomes up to $250,000 would be eligible for the deduction, up from $150,000.

For many homeowners, the new budget, now at $29 billion, represents a swift change from the one that was supposed to be voted on Thursday. That proposal would have eliminated the rebate program for everyone but senior citizens and the disabled.

Now, most homeowners earning up to $50,000 can expect the same rebate as last year, an average of $890. Households making between $50,000 and $75,000 can expect two-thirds of last year's rebate, $670, on average.

The changes bring the program for homeowners back up to what Gov. Corzine proposed in March.

But it will still be significantly smaller than a year ago. About 500,000 fewer homeowners will receive rebates compared with 2008, when checks went to those earning up to $150,000.

Courier Post
Adam Smeltz
June 12, 2009

When the state Supreme Court last month shot down local residency restrictions on sex offenders in Cherry Hill and other towns, Assemblywoman Pamela R. Lampitt didn't accept defeat.

Instead, the Cherry Hill Democrat said, the court ruling gave the issue renewed urgency. She and legislative allies in Trenton worried that the residency question "would go away" if left alone too long.

This month, she and a half-dozen other Assembly members have signed on as primary sponsors of a fresh attempt to limit where sex offenders can live. The bill, now under consideration in the Assembly, would give municipalities an option to ban the most serious convicted sex offenders from living within 500 feet of any school, playground or child-care center. Those with low-level convictions -- classified as Tier 1 offenders -- would not be affected.

"During the lengthy period of hours when (offenders) are home, we want to make sure they're not in a playground or near a child-care center where kids congregate," Lampitt said.

She said a registered sex offender lives in her Cherry Hill neighborhood. And "when you find out that sort of information, you take an interest in it," she said.

Phialdelphia Inquirer
Adrienne Lu
June 9, 2009

A bill to allow municipalities to restrict where convicted sex offenders may live was approved by the Assembly Judiciary Committee yesterday by a unanimous vote.
The release of the bill follows a ruling by the state Supreme Court last month invalidating about 120 municipal ordinances limiting where sex offenders may reside.

Under the statewide Megan's Law, those convicted of sex crimes are required to register with local authorities. Towns have tried to weigh in on the issue with various ordinances spelling out where such offenders may live, but the courts have said the local ordinances interfere with Megan's Law.

The Supreme Court decision overturned ordinances in Cherry Hill and Galloway Township, Atlantic County. The Cherry Hill ordinance - nearly identical to Galloway Township's - banned convicted sex offenders from living within 2,500 feet of areas where children might gather, including schools, parks, and churches. In Cherry Hill, that restriction covers most of the township.

The bill approved yesterday establishes limitations for municipalities that wish to enact such ordinances.

The bill would allow municipalities to prohibit offenders from living within 2,000 feet of schools, parks, playgrounds, public libraries, and day-care centers, for example. The bill would bar municipalities from prohibiting offenders from living in every residentially zoned area within a municipality.

Courier Post
Staff Report
May 25, 2009

Offices will be short-staffed in the 6th Legislative District later this week as employees take the first of two unpaid furlough days.

Assemblyman Louis Greenwald and Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt, both D-Camden, said staff will be furloughed one day each on May 27-28 and June 9-10.

Offices will remain open, with staff scheduled on a staggered basis. The district office is at 1103 Laurel Oak Road, Suite 142, Voorhees. The district includes Audubon Park, Berlin Borough, Berlin Township, Chesilhurst, Cherry Hill, Collingswood, Gibbsboro, Haddonfield, Haddon Township, Oaklyn, Pine Hill, Pine Valley, Tavistock, Voorhees, Waterford, and Winslow.