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Revolving Door Exposes Christie Pro-Business Failed Environmental Policy

Legacy of Slashing “Red Tape” and Enforcement

A Red Tape Slasher at DEP, there to promote corporate interests from Day 1. Siekerka appears with Lt. Gov. “Red Tape Czar” Guadagno at a March 2010 Chamber event, shortly before joining DEP. (photo source: Star Ledger)

According to Politciker NJ – that bastion of journalism established by none other than Wally Edge, aka David Wildstein of GW Bridgegate Fame – DEP Deputy Commissioner Michele Siekerka is leaving to head the NJ Business and Industry Association, see:

• NJDEP’s Siekerka tapped to head NJBIA (did they manage to put 2 double entendre’s in that short headline?)

Anyway, getting back to business:

Siekerka joined DEP in June 2010 as part of the Christie Administration’s “cultural revolution” at DEP.

Seriously – DEP Commissioner Martin’s first priority was to “change the DEP culture” – his words, not mine.

That change in “culture” included a new DEP role:  to “promote economic growth” and to provide “customer service” –

Really, I am not making this up, I am using Martin’s own words – words he was comfortable with after a 25 year career as a business consultant at Accenture.

In case you never heard of Accenture, they are the firm that was spun off from the criminal indictment and collapse of the Arthur Anderson accounting firm of Enron scandal fame.

So Martin did bring rather unique institutional values, ethics, and training to his new DEP gig.

Anyway, getting back to the Siekerka business.

As a former pro-automobile lawyer and lobbyist (AAA), and then CEO of the Mercer Chamber of Commerce, Siekerka – who knew all about the corporate view of “red tape” and “job killing regulations” – was a perfect choice to head the new Martin DEP Office of Economic Development and Green Energy.

The Christie Administration’s across the board failed record on “Green Energy” speaks for itself – I need not rehash it here.

In February 2012, Sierkerka was promoted to Assistant Commissioner of Water Resources, which I wrote about here.

Like her predecessor John Plonski, her legacy is to promote business interests – her key “accomplishment” in that office was to preside over the Gov.’s failed “Barnegat Bay” plan.

Again, the Christie failure to address critical water resource issues – which I’ve frequently written about in detail here and won’t repeat –  speaks for itself.

Siekerka was named DEP Deputy Commissioner upon the departure of Irene Kropp, who retired after marrying a landfill owner, which relationship prompted an unresolved ethics complaint involving the notorious Fenimore landfill fiasco.

Really, you can’t make this stuff up.

My mom used to say something like “measure a person by who they surround themselves with”.

This blatant revolving door abuse is the perfect illustration of everything that’s wrong with the anti-government crony capitalism Christie Team.