38 Facts About James Florio

James Joseph Florio was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 49th governor of New Jersey from 1990 to 1994.

James Florio was previously the US representative for New Jersey's 1st congressional district from 1975 to 1990 and served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1970 to 1975.

James Florio's father was of Italian descent and his mother was of Scottish, Irish, and German descent.

James Florio's father was a shipyard painter who used his poker winnings to help support his family.

James Florio dropped out of high school following his junior year, joined the US Navy, became a weatherman, and earned a high school equivalency degree.

James Florio served as an enlisted member of the United States Navy from 1955 to 1958 and continued to serve in the United States Naval Reserve as a commissioned officer until 1975, ultimately achieving the rank of lieutenant commander.

James Florio was the borough solicitor for the New Jersey towns of Runnemede, Woodlynne, and Somerdale from 1969 to 1974.

In both 1969 and 1971, Florio was elected to represent the 3rd Legislative District in the New Jersey General Assembly, covering portions of Camden County, each time with Democratic running mate John J Horn, whom Florio had served as a legislative aide while he was still in law school.

James Florio was elected in 1973, together with Ernest F Schuck, to represent the 5th Legislative District in the General Assembly, which covered portions of Camden County and Gloucester County.

In 1975, James Florio resigned after being elected to the USHouse of Representatives.

In November 1974, Florio was elected to the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey's 1st congressional district, defeating incumbent John E Hunt.

James Florio served in the House from January 3,1975, until January 16,1990, when he resigned to serve as governor of New Jersey.

In Congress, James Florio authored the Superfund legislation to clean up the most polluted sites in the country in 1980.

James Florio was the author of the Railroad Deregulation Law which saved the nation's freight railroads, including Conrail.

James Florio was cosponsor of the Exon-Florio Amendment, which created the Treasury Department's Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States and effectively removed Congress from the approval process on foreign takeovers of US industrial concerns.

James Florio was defeated by incumbent Democrat Brendan Byrne in 1977.

James Florio took office during the late 1980s recession and thus faced a budget deficit.

Also, James Florio wished to increase education aid to New Jersey's low-wealth school districts.

James Florio signed the tax package into law in June 1990.

James Florio eliminated 1,500 government jobs and cut perks for state officials.

James Florio redistributed hundreds of millions of dollars of school aid away from suburban districts to urban districts and rural districts.

Under James Florio's plan, known as the Quality Education Act, 151 suburban districts would lose almost all of their education funding and have to assume pension costs, Social Security payments, and retiree health costs; another 71 districts would have large reductions in aid and have to assume smaller portions of retiree benefits; and about 350 districts would see increases in aid.

James Florio was a regular topic on active anti-tax broadcasting from talk radio stations New Jersey 101.5 to Curtis Sliwa's AM radio talk show and Bob Grant's AM radio talk show, both based in New York City.

Bumper stickers with "Impeach James Florio" were seen around the state.

In May 1990, James Florio enacted the stiffest laws in the US on owning or selling semi-automatic firearms; in 1993, he vetoed a repeal bill passed by the Republican-led legislature.

James Florio made an effort for conservative support by putting in place tighter restrictions on welfare payments to mothers and enjoyed the strong support of President Bill Clinton.

In 2000, James Florio ran for the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate seat that was being vacated by Frank Lautenberg.

James Florio's opponent was businessman Jon Corzine, former chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs.

James Florio served as the chairman of the New Jersey Pinelands Commission from November 2002 to June 2005.

James Florio was a critic of the George W Bush administration and the Iraq War.

James Florio supported Hillary Clinton in the 2008 Democratic primaries for president.

James Florio served on the board of directors of Trump Entertainment Resorts until he and other board members were forced to resign following the company's entry into its third bankruptcy.

In 1984, James Florio met his second wife, Lucinda Coleman, a school teacher, while both were living in the same apartment complex in Pine Hill, New Jersey.

Jim and Lucinda James Florio married on Valentine's Day in 1988, and remained together until his death in September 2022.

Jim James Florio had three children from his first marriage - Chris, Gregory, and Catherine - while Lucinda James Florio had one son from her first marriage, Mark Rowe.

James Florio died on September 25,2022, from heart failure at a hospital in Voorhees, New Jersey, at age 85.

James Florio is buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia.

In 1993, Florio was awarded the John F Kennedy Profile in Courage Award, for his support for gun control.