N.J. immigrant group will likely narrow agenda to fit Gov. Chris Christie's ideals
By Jeff Diamant/The Star-Ledger
February 16, 2010, 9:00PM

NEW BRUNSWICK -- A state commission designed to help immigrants, created by former Gov. Jon Corzine last month during his final week in office, will likely narrow its agenda to reflect Gov. Chris Christie’s opposition to many of its ideals, its chairman said today before its first official meeting.

“There’s no sense banging our heads against the wall and asking for things that we know the governor has already stated he’s in opposition to," said Frank Argote-Freyre, chairman of the Commission on New Americans, citing, as one example, permission for illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition rates for college, which Christie opposes.

The commission, meeting tonight in New Brunswick, voted unanimously to criticize the governor’s budget cuts that take away health care from 12,000 legal immigrants now insured under the NJ FamilyCare program, the state’s insurance plan for low-income families.

The commission will send a letter to the governor asking him to protect the targeted $7.4 million from the FamilyCare program, as well as another $12.6 million from the state’s Charity Care program, which the state pays hospitals to partially reimburse them for accepting uninsured patients.

“We ought to be very clear about who we represent, who we stand for,’’ said Argote-Freyre, a Kean University history professor, during the meeting. “If we don’t take a position on this, what is it that we would take a position on?’’

The 23-member commission, an advisory board in the Department of the Public Advocate, includes six members of the governor’s administration and 17 volunteers, but the only members attending today were volunteers, all appointed by Corzine.

It was a different panel, convened by Corzine in 2007, that recommended the formation of the Commission on New Americans. The Governor’s Blue Ribbon Advisory panel had also recommended, in its final 119-page report released last March, to let illegal immigrants obtain driver’s licenses and pay in-state tuition rates for college. Neither of those recommendations became reality, though bills based on the latter one passed committee votes in both legislative houses during last month’s lame-duck session.

The Commission on New Americans is supposed to advise the governor on ways to help immigrants -- legal and illegal -- receive needed services in a cost-neutral manner, and try to integrate other recommendations of Corzine’s blue-ribbon panel.

The Christie administration did not return calls seeking comment today.

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