At a time when firefighter associations nationwide are struggling to keep afloat, nearly $245 million sits untouched in a fund designed to help New Jersey firefighters — thanks to an “antiquated” law restricting its use, the state comptroller asserted Wednesday.
The money — collected through a tax and intended for the New Jersey State Firemen’s Association, as well as the state’s 538 local relief associations — has barely been touched in decades, and the state nonprofit’s monitoring of its use has been flawed, according to Comptroller Philip James Degnan.
“The accumulation of substantial money, combined with a lack of appropriate oversight, has resulted in waste, and could lead to fraud or theft," a report by his office concluded.