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N.J. Guard deployment worries state lawmaker

TRENTON, N.J. — About half the New Jersey National Guard will be deployed overseas within six months, and that has a top senator worried that their absence might leave the state vulnerable.

“There is a great need for our citizen soldiers to serve our country overseas, and although I fully support the troops and their families during these difficult times, I am concerned that the deployments may jeopardize the safety of New Jersey residents,” Senate Budget Chairwoman Barbara Buono said Wednesday.

The upcoming deployment will be the largest in the 6,200-soldier New Jersey National Guard’s history. It will include soldiers from the 2,400-member 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, which was previously deployed to Iraq in 2004.

Training and deployment are expected to last 18 to 20 months, Maj. Gen. Glenn Rieth, the state’s adjutant general, told a Senate budget hearing Wednesday.

Rieth said the department remains ready for emergencies.

“The remaining troops will be fully prepared and ready to respond to any homeland security or natural disaster,” Rieth said.

Buono said she was pleased to hear Rieth explain how state homeland security, state police and National Guard officials are ready to work together.

Still, she expressed concern.

“Overseas deployments can take away from the main purpose of the Guard, which is to respond to emergencies in New Jersey. With half of our Guard members on deployment, I want to continue to monitor our state’s homeland security resources to make sure that we will be prepared for any disasters that may strike,” Buono said.

Since Sept. 11, 2001, New Jersey has mobilized about 7,000 National Guard troops, either overseas or in the U.S.