Solar consultant getting $14,000 a month

The Sussex County solar scam has put taxpayers on the hook for $28 million and seen the county lose its "rainy-day" proceeds from the sale of the Homestead nursing home, but still new vendors are being hired. 

The latest contract to be uncovered is between Sunlight General Sussex Solar LLC, of New York City, and Joseph Jingoli & Sons, of Lawrenceville.  The contract is dated December 2, 2015, and was negotiated under the somnolent eyes of the old Freeholder Board leadership of Crabb, Vohden, and Mudrick (AKA Howard, Fine, and Howard).  It appears that the Wall Street bankers who came up with the solar scheme lack the know-how to oversee it to completion, so they've brought in an "owner's representative" in the form of Jingoli, a politically-connected contracting firm in New Jersey.

Jingoli is being paid a monthly sum of $13,990 to oversee the projects in Sparta Middle School, Sparta High School, Hardyston Middle School, Hardyston Elementary School, and Kittatinny High School.  According to the attached fee schedule, this amount provides for "a Project Manager for (1) one day per week and a Site Inspector/Superintendent (2) two days per week."  Additional fees will be charged at the rate of $1,000 per day for a Project Manager and at an $800 per day rate for an Inspector.

The contract makes clear that Jingoli has become the primary organization for providing information on the solar scheme to the taxpayers and their elected representatives.  Their duties include attending "monthly County Board meetings, prepare and present information -- as required -- at County Board meetings, prepare various reports -- including Solar Project Update Report -- for County Board, answer County Board questions, answer questions of Local Unit Facilities."

Taxpayers with questions on the projects should contact Jingoli directly so that they can be prepared with answers at the next meeting of the County Freeholder Board.  Jingoli's address is:  Joseph Jingoli & Sons, 100 Lenox Drive, Suite 100, Lawrenceville, New Jersey (08648).

http://www.jingoli.com/

Corporate Office
Joseph Jingoli & Son, Inc.
100 Lenox Drive
Suite 100
Lawrenceville, New Jersey 08648

Tel: 609.896.3111

Fax: 609.219.0799
Construction Management
Civil / Mechanical
Estimating / Project Management

Fax: 609.896.1131
General Construction

Regional Offices
Atlantic City, NJ / New York, NY / Las Vegas, NV / Highland, MD / Newtown, PA

"Back Room" Vohden

Beware the misinformation.  Freeholder Richard Vohden is trying to call the decision to investigate the bailout of the Sussex solar scam a "backroom deal".

This is the same Freeholder Vohden who for the last five years has supported every backroom deal hatched by Rich Zeoli or Phil Crabb or John Eskilson.  Case in point -- the decision in January 2013 to allow the then County Attorney to go from being an outside vendor to being a full-time county employee with benefits, just in time for him to get a nice pension bump that the taxpayers will pay for the rest of his natural life.

Who got advance warning of that deal when it popped up on the first day of business of the new Freeholder Board?  Who got to debate the merits of that scam?  In fact, a bullying Freeholder Vohden explained that it was not job of elected Freeholders to question the contracts put before them by County Executive "Boss" Eskilson, it was only their job to ratify them.

Beware the misinformation.  The entire Solar scam was a series of backroom deals notable for their extreme lack of transparency.  And for the five years that Vohden and his ideological storm troopers have controlled the Freeholder Board with shouts of "Boss Eskilson uber alles" they consistently shouted down any attempt at reform or open government.

The "shrunken heads" are attempting to blame the Sussex County Republican Committee headed by Chairman Jerry Scanlan and State Senator Steve Oroho (R-24).  This is a calculated lie and an attempt at misdirection.  

They should know that it was Morris County Republican politicians who came into Sussex County and who sold the solar scam to gullible Sussex County.  Beware the misinformation.

Did you get an illegal robo-call?

On Monday, January 25th, Sussex County residents got a prerecorded "robo-call" asking people to attend Wednesday's meeting of the Sussex County Freeholder Board and oppose an investigation of the Sussex solar bailout that has cost county taxpayers millions.  The recorded message repeats the argument advanced by Freeholder Richard Vohden -- that the Freeholders should hold off commissioning an independent county investigation until after the status of state and federal criminal investigations are determined. 

Vohden knows that means holding off on a county investigation indefinitely because the state and federal investigations now underway are criminal investigations.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Justice Department, the NJ State Police, and the NJ Attorney General's office are not permitted to comment on active criminal investigations.

The reason Sussex County needs a independent investigation is simple.  The solar scam cost $88 million.  Sussex taxpayers are on the hook for $24 million and they just borrowed another $7 million and the bill for that is coming due shortly.  It will likely cause a sharp increase in property taxes.

It is not the job of those law enforcement agencies to protect the interests of Sussex County.  They could even cite Sussex County officials for malfeasance and who would pay for that?  The federal authorities will try to claw back the federal money involved in the scam.  Who is looking out for Sussex County taxpayers?

That's where an independent county investigation comes in.  It is a fact-finding mission to build a case to get some of those millions back through civil action. 

The FBI and State Attorney General's office are looking for criminal indictments.  That may punish those responsible, but it won't get our money back.  That is why the investment in an independent county investigation is money well spent.

Vohden is joined in his opposition to the independent county investigation by the corporate vendors, legal counsel, consultants, and political players who made millions off the solar scam.  Unfortunately for whoever paid for the call, they appear to have not followed the law under which robo-calls are permitted.

First, "the prerecorded message must truthfully disclose who is responsible for the call and the telemarketing-related purpose of the call."

Second, "the prerecorded message must disclose a call-back telephone number which would allow the recipient to call back within normal business hours and make an opt-out request."

The prerecorded message sent into the homes of Sussex County residents did not abide by these legal rules.  In fact, it could be argued that the call was deliberately misleading and made it appear to come from the County Clerk's office.  A prosecutor would have to determine if the robo-call was an attempt by those who paid for the call to hide their identity and to impersonate an innocent party.  In 2009, the State Attorney General brought a successful prosecution against a similar incident in Bergen County. 

In any case, there is enough to warrant action by the Federal Communication Commission under the expanded Telephone Consumer Protection Act regulations that came into force in June of last year.  So look for this issue to figure in the Freeholder races in both Sussex and Morris counties.

If you would like to add your name to those reporting this robo-call to state and federal authorities, please contact Watchdog at:  info@sussexcountywatchdog.com

Update on Tuesday, January 26, 2016 at 2:06AM by Sussex County Watchdog

Update:  Apparently, the robo-call was sent from the Philadelphia area.  It may be entirely unconnected, but readers will remember that in preparation for the reorganization of the Freeholder Board and Freeholder Vohden's initial attempt to delay the solar investigation, Vohden travelled down to Philadelphia to huddle with former Freeholder Director Richard Zeoli, the politico who first introduced the Morris County solar operators into Sussex County. 

Sussex solar scam and presidential politics

Some of you have been emailing Watchdog for more on how the Sussex solar scam is relevant to this year's campaign for President of the United States.  Here, listen to it for yourself, here is the moment when presidential candidate Chris Christie focused national media attention on the public-private solar energy scam hatched by people close to him for many years, from his home county:

Ever since Christie mentioned these words in a nationally televised debate hosted by CNBC in October, the Watchdog website has been getting visits and emails from the national media.  He brought it up, so they checked it out, and guess what?  They found this scam, run by some of his closest associates from the old days, centered in his home county, where he was Freeholder.

Of course, the history of solar in New Jersey (and in America, for that matter) is one of a series of private-public "partnerships" in which professional scam artists get very rich and the taxpayer is left with the bill.  Solar doesn't appear to get built without a whole lot of corruption and a whole lot of insiders striking it rich.  It has an unusual economic model to say the least.

And we got to warn Freeholders Vohden and Crabb.  You make perfect "central-casting" old white guys for the national media's purposes.  Add a conservative talk-show host from the Philadelphia media market to that mix and you'll be making MSNBC very happy.  It has all the elements to make this Christie's own Solyndra.

Of course, the national media will lose interest if Christie fails in New Hampshire.  If he does well there, or even better than expected in Iowa, if his political stock continues to rise, look for some intense unwanted scrutiny. 

 The Christie people are not happy with the timing.  An investigation would not be done in time to affect the outcome of the presidential contest, but Freeholders Vohden and Crabb (with an assist from former Freeholder Zeoli) have delayed the investigation.  The Herald's Rob Jennings reports that it might not even happen.

NOTE to the Herald:  This could be a chance to land a journalism award or two.

That's good for the national media, because they will be free to write that "Republicans" (last time we checked Sussex, Morris et al have ALL Republican Freeholder Boards) are covering up what could be illegal activity.  It is certain that, whether legal or not, this activity hasn't benefitted taxpayers.

And guess what?  Republican primary voters HATE solar anyway.  Even when it works right and nobody gets ripped-off.  We will leave you with these two facts from a polling memo floating around Sussex County:

In Sussex County, 48 percent of all voters OPPOSE "using taxpayer money to build solar energy projects on public buildings."  Just 42 percent  off all voters -- Democrats, Independents, Undeclared, and Republicans -- support the idea.

Among Republicans in Sussex County, 68 percent oppose solar even when it works right.  Only 23 percent support it.

Somebody is gonna get pregnant!

Vohden: Scared witless of an investigation

Freeholder Richard Vohden is stuck between a rock and a hard place.  On the one hand he has politically-connected insiders from Morris County pressuring him to stop the independent investigation into the county's failed solar program (an investigation that both Vohden and his remaining ally on the Freeholder Board, Phil Crabb, publicly supported last year).  On the other he has the taxpayers of Sussex County who are demanding to know the facts behind how their money was wasted and why more was wasted in the bailout that followed the program's failure. 

There's polling data circulating around Sussex County that has some eye-popping numbers if you happen to be a Freeholder facing re-election this year.  In a clear reflection of Eskilson-Vohden-Crabb circus that's become county government, half the voters think Sussex County is "on the wrong track" with another 20 percent "not sure".  The solar bailout is opposed by voters 81 percent to 9 percent, while an investigation is supported 86 percent to 10 percent.  Yep, it sounds like somebody is going to get pregnant.

The Morris County insiders who sold the corporate-get-rich-quick solar scam to the Sussex County Freeholder Board are trying to bury an investigation before the national media links it to the presidential campaign of a certain Governor, because once it's national news a whole lot of people are going to get pregnant. You got to know that while you might be able to threaten a reporter from the Daily Record or from the Herald or from one of the weeklies, there's not a whole heck of lot you can do once the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, New York Times, ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, and CNN have it.  They won't be impressed and they employ plenty of legal muscle.  Those news organizations have pieces of boys like those insiders from Morris County in their stool. 

 In preparation for yesterday's reorganization of the Freeholder Board and his no-holds-barred attempt to delay (if only for two weeks) the solar investigation the voters demand, Freeholder Vohden travelled down to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to huddle with former Freeholder Director Richard Zeoli, the politico who first introduced the Morris County toxin into the bloodstream of Sussex County.  They also had a prominent county lobbyist (a former Republican elected official from a leftish tribe of Democrats) busy making phone calls to Tea Party members and others in a desperate attempt to delay finding out who robbed the taxpayers of Sussex County.  You see, these people argue no investigation is needed because they know perfectly well who ripped-off Sussex County.  And let's not forget the dupes they have done favors for who will post a negative comment or two against the right of free people to question their government about how their tax dollars are spent.  Let's call them the "shrunken heads" because in a way they occupy the same role as those captive spirits.

So while everyone in Sussex County is surprised that the Freeholder Boards hasn't "buried the hatchet" and sung a chorus of "Kumbaya", those in the know understand that the Morris County insiders who sold the scam and who call the shots cannot allow peace unless it is on their terms -- no investigation, no more talk about the solar rip-off, just make the taxpayers pay and pay and we'll see how well it spends.