By Leslie Brody, Patricia Alex and Juliet Fletcher. Staff Writers. The Record.
Governor Christie and lawmakers are pressing to redraw the state’s higher education system by the end of the month but on Monday the Supreme Court checked the governor’s power to unilaterally dismantle state agencies and a second university board rejected parts of the merger.
Rowan University’s governing board said Monday that it wants to partner with Rutgers-Camden in offering programs, but balked at lawmaker’s calls for a joint governing board that would supersede its own authority.
The state Supreme Court, ruling in a case brought after Christie dismantled the Council on Affordable Housing, rejected an appeal for a stay and said the governor must immediately reinstate the board and its authority over municipal housing obligations.
Lawmakers watched that decision closely because it impacts down-to-the-wire negotiations as Christie looks to use $200 million in affordable housing funds to balance his proposed budget.
But the court’s ruling rests on whether governors can dissolve or dismantle any organization created by state legislators, and it means the court appears unlikely to allow Christie to use the same executive powers to complete the higher education merger, a plan he wanted completed by June 30.
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