Ceberio Running for Spot on County Freeholder Board

Fiscal responsibility, shared services, and government efficiency.

Robert Ceberio is running on the Passaic County Regular Republican Organization’s (PCRRO) ticket in this year’s county freeholder primary election. Ceberio is running with fellow Freeholder candidate Frank Fusco and surrogate candidate Lawrence Tosi.

Ceberio is president of the Wayne Board of Education. He said he is frustrated watching the county and the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders irresponsibly spend taxpayer dollars.

“If you look at Passaic County, it has the distinction of having the highest tax rate in the United States based on income,” Ceberio said.

The county freeholder board is composed of four Democrats and three Republicans. The Democrats on the board wanted to issue a bond and the Republicans would not do it; five affirmative votes are needed to bond.

“The Republicans stood their ground and the Democrats found a way of finding the money they needed rather than bonding for it,” Ceberio said. “If we can get a majority on the board, it allows for a whole series of financial reforms to take place.”

Wayne, Ceberio said, pays approximately 22 to 25 percent of the county taxes; out of a $400 million dollar budget, $56 million of it is for outstanding debt.

“That was enough for me,” Ceberio said. “They’ve used their credit cards long enough for operating expenses. You just can't keep putting in appropriation after appropriation, earmark after earmark and expect that it's not going to come back to bite you, because it is. In government, the status quo isn't acceptable anymore."

The county could, and should, share more services with municipalities.

“I’ve seen so many other counties in New Jersey step up and talk about helping their municipalities with municipal services. That’s unheard of here,” Ceberio said.

A service audit agency needs to examine, department by department, what county services are working and what are not working, Ceberio said.

“If you’re spending $1 million on a program and it’s not working or measuring up, it either has to be eliminated or significantly changes or consolidated with something else to make it efficient.”

Ceberio used to be executive director of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission, an organization dedicated to the preservation, protection, and “comprehensive development” of the Hackensack Meadowlands. While there he implemented an equipment co-operative that saved money and shared services with municipalities.

He helped make the commission a self-sustaining organization. Since 1992, it has continued to operate without any state aid.

“Are you living within your means,” Ceberio asked. “That’s the message: the efficiency of government. How do you become more efficient? By having a smaller, more transparent government.”

The county must give back more to residents. Making people understand not only how county government works, but how it can give back to constituents, is essential to successfully running any governing entity.

“If I can find $1 million for each municipality and say to them, I’m going to hire a truck and every town is going to use that truck for the same amount of time to repair potholes, people understand that,” Ceberio said. “It’s a way of letting them know that government can work for them and improve their lives in a very relatable way. That’s what this election is about: the education of the public on asking ‘What does Passaic County do on behalf of its residents?’”