State Police chief’s confirmation set for Senate committee Thursday, nearly 8 months after her nomination

On the agenda: nothing in this report has been voted on. Jersey Intel will report the outcome from the Legislature’s official record.

The state Senate Judiciary Committee has put Jeanne Hengemuhle, Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s pick to lead the New Jersey State Police, on its agenda for Thursday, Oct. 22, nearly eight months after the governor named her and she took over the agency in an acting role.

The committee’s nominee list for the 10 a.m. meeting, posted on the Legislature’s website, shows one name: Hengemuhle, “to be the Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police,” replacing Patrick Callahan. It lists her as a nominee to be interviewed. She was not on the committee’s earlier lists of nominees this fall, including the 17 it took up on Oct. 15.

The meeting is set for Committee Room 4 on the first floor of the State House Annex in Trenton. The full Senate is scheduled to meet at 2 p.m. the same day. As of Wednesday morning, the Legislature’s site showed no bills or nominees on the Senate’s list for that session.

Eight months as acting superintendent

Sherrill announced Hengemuhle as her choice on Feb. 25. Her office said Hengemuhle, who spent 26 years in the State Police and rose to lieutenant colonel, would become acting superintendent on Feb. 26, taking over from Lt. Col. David Sierotowicz, who had served as interim superintendent since Jan. 1.

The governor’s cabinet page still lists Hengemuhle as acting, one of eight cabinet-level officials with that title as of Wednesday.

The pension bill still waiting on the Senate

A bill tied to her job has been ready for a Senate vote since June. A5034, and its Senate twin S4258, would make the superintendent hold the rank of colonel and wear the uniform. They would also let a retired member of the State Police Retirement System be appointed superintendent without reenrolling in that pension system.

The Legislature’s nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services wrote in its fiscal estimate that the bill “reaffirms that the superintendent is to receive a salary in the amount of $210,000.” It said the bill may reduce state pension contributions while the current superintendent serves, because she would not earn new pension credits.

The Assembly passed A5034 on May 18 by a vote of 61-14. The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee cleared the bills on June 4, 11-1 with one abstention. Neither has had a Senate floor vote since, according to the bills’ histories.

Questions for Thursday

• Will the committee vote on Hengemuhle Thursday, and will the full Senate take up her confirmation that afternoon?
• What has the State Police changed since she took over in February, and what does she plan next?
• Will the Senate move A5034 or S4258, which would settle her rank and pension status in law?
• Why did the nomination take nearly eight months to reach the committee?

Help us cover it

The committee meeting is open to the public, and the Legislature posts audio and video of its committee meetings on its website. If you watch or attend, or have documents about the State Police leadership, send them to jerseyintel@gmail.com.