Marie "I'm not local" Bilik exposes herself... again

Marie Bilik has spent a lot of time trying to convince Sussex County voters that she is from here.  But for every step she takes, she takes two backwards.

Take a look at her campaign expense reports filed with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (NJELEC).  She has no expenditures in Sussex County or anywhere near the 24th Legislative District. She spends money on a switch-hitter consultant from Florida (works for both Democrats and Republicans) and she spends money at Staples -- but not the Staples in Newton, like we would.

No, the Staples Marie Bilik spent money at is the Staples in Alexandria, Virginia.  Take a look at the page from her report, below.  You can't make this stuff up!

NJELEC PAGE

But wait, it gets better.  The Bilik campaign sends out a negative mailer attacking Gail Phoebus today that invites voters to call her.  Guess which telephone number she prints on her mailer?   Nope, it's not a Green Township exchange, or even a 973 area code.  Marie Bilik has a 609 area code with a 218 telephone exchange.  Here's the data on that:

AreaCode/Prefix (Exchange) 609-218

AreaCode/Prefix 609-218 Details

NPA/Area Code:	609	NXX Use Type:	WIRELESS
NXX/Prefix:	218	NXX Intro Version:	2005-12-12
City:	TRENTON	New NPA:
State:	NJ	Latitude:	40.2215
County:	MERCER	Longitude:	-74.7559
County Population:	366513	LATA:	222
ZIP Code:	08609	Overlay:
ZIP Code Pop:	13999	Rate Center:	TRENTON
ZIP Code Freq:	-1	OCN:	6391
Time Zone:	Eastern (GMT -05:00)	FIPS:	34021
Observes DST:	Unknown	CBSA Code:	45940
CBSA Name:	Trenton, NJ
Prefix Status:	Active
Carrier/Company:	CELLCO PARTNERSHIP DBA VERIZON WIRELESS - NJ

That's some local gal, huh?  You can't make this stuff up!

Bilik continues to fumble on residency

What is it this week?  Is it Virginia or New Jersey?  Marie Bilik can't seem to make up her mind.  

In January, Sussex GOP Chair Ailish Hambel repeated what Bilik told her (Herald, 01/05/15):  "Bilik works in Alexandria, Va., as chief operating officer of the National School Boards Association, but maintains a residence in Green." 

Sometimes Marie Bilik claims to live in New Jersey and to make a 4 1/2 hour commute each way to her job as a Washington, DC based lobbyist.  But then there are these stories:

"Bilik said she will retire from the national association this year and return home full time."

The Easton Express-Times

January 11, 2015 

"She said she stays in Virginia during the work week and returns home to Green Township in Sussex County."

The Hackettstown Warren Reporter

January 16, 2015

"While Bilik works in Alexandria, Va., as chief operating officer of the National School Boards Association -- she maintains a residence in Green -- she said she had arranged to work from home throughout May in order to focus more closely on her campaign."

NJ Herald

March 29, 2015 

“I do work for a firm in Alexandria, Virginia.  I commute. It is 250 miles and I travel extensively, but my family is here and I'm home almost every weekend.”

NJ Herald

May 13, 2015 

We get it.  Marie Bilik considers Sussex County her home.  We undersatnd that.  But it is one thing to consider a place your "home" and to actually live there.

Bilik's photo-shop campaign

Assembly candidate Marie Bilik lives in Alexandria, Virginia, and is employed by a Washington, DC lobby group.  Bilik travels 4 1/2 hours back and forth to New Jersey on the weekends. 

This is an obvious problem for her political campaign for elected office in Sussex, Warren, and Morris counties.  She's not around and it shows.

Take a look at her campaign website.  Why would a candidate who lived in Sussex County need to photo-shop her image onto a background of High Point?  

Why would a candidate who lived in New Jersey need to photo-shop her image onto a background of the State House in Trenton?

If Bilik was around, she would do what everyone else who lives in Sussex County does when they want to take their photo at High Point -- drive to High Point and take a photograph. 

You can't find a single photograph taken in the 24th District on Bilik's website.

And it doesn't help matters that she's hired a Florida campaign consulting group to do her opposition research, design her website, and run her campaign.

For a campaign that complains about consultants so much the Bilik campaign is certainly loaded with them.  There's an opposition researcher from Florida, a web designer from Florida, a campaign consultant from Florida, and a couple energy company consultant/lobbyists from New Jersey.  And then there's the candidate herself,  who works for a Washington, DC area lobby group.

Update on Thursday, April 30, 2015 at 2:01PM by Sussex County Watchdog

With photo-shop Marie Bilik can be anywhere!

Bilik less than honest again?

Marie Bilik is a candidate for Assembly who was recruited by a couple of energy company lobbyists to challenge Assemblyman Parker Space and Freeholder Gail Phoebus.  Why? It is a way for the energy lobbyists and county insiders to get back at Space and Phoebus for calling for an investigation of the Sussex County solar bailout that cost taxpayers millions.

Marie Bilik is a Washington, DC lobbyists herself.  She resides and works in Virginia and claims to make a 260 mile, 4 1/2 hour trip each way, several times a week, to a property she owns in Sussex County.  Based on the time she stays in New Jersey, Bilik is claiming residency and the right to run for office to represent Sussex, Morris, and Warren Counties in the Legislature.

A few days ago, candidate Bilik was asked by an anxious voter to clarify her residency situation. 

April 11 at 8:58pm

I heard that you live in Virginia now ( easily confirmed) I thought only people who resided in NJ can run in NJ. Please explain if I am wrong, I seriously would like to get this straight before voting. Thank you.

This is how Bilik herself responded on Facebook to this voter:

Marie S. Bilik Candidate for NJ Assembly District 24   You are absolutely correct. Only people who reside in NJ can run in NJ. I reside in Green Township. I have an efficency apartment in VA that I stay in two or three nights per week while I am at the HQ for my job. I am certified for all criteria, including residency, by the Secretary of State of the State of NJ. I commute...a lot! I am looking forward to my retirement and a short drive to Trenton!

An "efficiency apartment"?

That isn't how the Virginia assessors describe it.  First of all, the condo Bilik resides at in Virginia is worth more than her property in New Jersey.  It has two bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms and is located in an exclusive section of a fashionable suburb of Washington, DC.

Property Type:	CONDOMINIUM
Municipality:	LEE
Assessor's Parcel Number:	081-2-11-5935-B
Assessor's Parcel Number Unformatted:	812115935B
Living Building Square Footage:	1,244
Year Constructed:	1995
Number Of Bedrooms:	2
Total Numbers Of Rooms:	4
Number Of Bathrooms:	2.00
Number Of Partial Bathrooms:	1
Basement Finish Type:	NONE
Construction Type:	FRAME
Exterior Wall Type:	BRICK/STONE
Fireplaces Present:	Y
Number Of Fireplaces:	1

This does appear to be at variance with what candidate Bilik has claimed.  So which is true, her statement to the voter or the claims made by the assessor's office?

Of course, if candidate Bilik wishes to dispute anything here we of course will publish her rebuttal in full.  Watchdog exists as a means of getting to the truth and we always invite any public figure we criticize to dispute what we post.

While in Texas, Bilik attacks Parker Space in New Jersey

Washington, DC lobbyist/ Virginia resident/ New Jersey Assembly candidate Marie Bilik attacked Assemblyman Parker Space on the pages of TAPinto.net a blog run by a former Sparta school board member and liberal activist.  On the same day Bilik's attack came out on Space, whose family has owned and operated Space Farms since the 1920's, it was reported on the Texas website, Your Houston News, that Bilik was in Texas to give a school there an award on behalf of the lobby group she works for.

Here is a picture of Bilik taken in Texas and published in the Houston media, while she was attacking Assemblyman Parker Space here in Sussex County.  Weird, isn't it?