Environmental Groups Slam Christie, New Jersey and Feds for Sandy Recovery

Most levels of federal and New Jersey’s state government received low grades for their performance after Hurricane Sandy from environmental groups who said Gov. Chris Christie showed strong leadership in the beginning but has not been transparent or accountable to storm victims since then.

For their overall performance, the report card gives Christie and his Office of Recovery and Rebuilding a D, the state Legislature a C-, the state departments of Community Affairs and Environmental Protection an F and President Obama and three of his federal agencies most heavily involved in Sandy recovery a C+.

Christie, who grabbed the national spotlight after Hurricane Sandy, scored high for his leadership immediately after the storm, but picked up mostly Ds and Fs from the environmental groups for his responsiveness, actions and policy and planning.

They pounded him and Marc Ferzan, head of the state’s newly created Office of Recovery and Rebuilding, for failing to hold public meetings or appear at special hearings called by the state Legislature. They said there was very little public input allowed during the development of the state’s rebuilding plan.