Steve Lonegan

Steven Mark Lonegan (born April 27, 1956) is an American businessman and politician who served as mayor of Bogota, New Jersey, from 1996 to 2007.

[2] He served as the organization's national spokesman on monetary policies of the Federal Reserve System and directed the Fix the Dollar project until January 2016.

[4] In August 2015, through American Principles Project, Lonegan hosted an international monetary conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming that included leaders from around the world and was held directly opposite the Federal Reserve's annual economic symposium.

He was the unsuccessful nominee in the October 2013 special election to fill New Jersey's open U.S. Senate seat following the death of Frank Lautenberg.

Lonegan ordered the municipality to hire civilian dispatchers to answer telephones at police headquarters at lower pay than uniformed officers, angering the local police union; successfully fought the implementation of LOSAP (Length of Service Award Program), which extended pension payments to volunteer fire and rescue personnel; and required that local union contracts exceeding inflation be put to voters for approval.

[14] Lonegan then became a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1998, challenging freshman Democrat Steve Rothman in New Jersey's 9th congressional district.

The public question was rejected by the County Clerk's office, which is partly responsible for officiating elections, on legal advice that it violated state and federal law.

First, that the debt was issued to finance a constitutional mandate: the requirement that "The Legislature shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of free public schools for the instruction of all children in the State between the ages of five and eighteen years" (Article VIII Section IV).

Second, that the debt was technically not backed by the full faith and credit of New Jersey, and future lawmakers could refuse to honor that contract at any time.

[25] Lonegan ran for the Republican nomination for governor in the state's 2005 election and finished fourth, in a field of 7 with 8.08% of the vote after the nominee, businessman Doug Forrester, former Jersey City Mayor Bret Schundler and Morris County Freeholder John Murphy and defeated Assembly Majority Leader Paul DeGaetano, Former Freedholder Todd Caliguire and Assemblyman Robert Schroeder.

Lonegan promised to cut the size of state government by more than 20% and said he would run on the issues of property taxes, school funding and affordable housing.

[32] In 2017, Lonegan announced his candidacy for the 2018 elections in New Jersey's 5th congressional district against Democratic incumbent Josh Gottheimer.

Steve Lonegan attends AFP "Maxed Out Spending Tour."
Steve Lonegan addresses protestors at the Philadelphia Tea Party protest on April 18, 2009.