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Republican budget calls for permanent tax cuts amid surging revenue
Senate Republicans released a budget proposal Thursday that calls for $8 billion in tax relief using excess revenue the state is projected to collect in the current and coming fiscal year. Many of their proposals appear to create recurring increases in spending and structural tax reductions that may necessitate spending cuts or tax hikes in […]
Bill to OK early vote counting is temporarily torpedoed by Senate absences
A measure that would have allowed election officials to count early votes before the polls close on Election Day failed to advance Thursday after opposition from Republicans and a single Democrat. The bill stalled after a 20-16 vote in the upper chamber but was pulled from the agenda without the voting period being closed, a […]
Governor Murphy renews call for more gun control following Texas massacre
In the wake of the deadly attack at a Texas elementary school Tuesday, Gov. Phil Murphy again urged action on legislators to advance a stalled package of gun control measures. His proclamation follows a similar call issued last week after 10 people were killed by a white supremacist gunman in Buffalo. Tuesday’s attack left 21 […]
Assembly panel advances bill package aimed at lowering drug prices
Over the objections of business and industry groups, an Assembly panel approved a package of bills meant to rein in prescription drug prices after a roughly four-hour hearing Tuesday. The bills include measures that would require increased reporting from sectors of the health care industry, cap out-of-pocket costs for certain prescriptions, and create a board […]
Republican budget plan calls for updated tax brackets
Assembly Republicans want New Jersey to go big on tax relief using a voluminous surplus fueled by better-than-expected tax collections in the current and coming fiscal years. On a press call Tuesday, they pitched direct payments to consumers to offset high inflation, tax bracket tweaks that would account for more than two decades of inflation, […]
N.J. Supreme Court among country’s most diverse. That’s not saying much
Even with multiple seats vacant, New Jersey’s Supreme Court is among the most diverse in the nation, but its diversity still lags behind that of its citizenry, according to a new report. A study released Friday by the Brennan Center for Justice found nine states have more diverse supreme courts than New Jersey. That figure […]
Governor Murphy wants state workers automatically enrolled in student loan forgiveness program
New Jersey’s state workers should be automatically enrolled in a federal student loan forgiveness program, Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday. The governor announced the tentative plan alongside federal education officials during a roundtable at the College of New Jersey on the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which has a history of underperformance. Murphy said his […]
Woman fired for posting anti-Black Lives Matter comments loses appeal
A company that fired an employee after she criticized the Black Lives Matter movement online did not break the law, an appellate panel ruled Friday. Heather McVey sued the AtlantiCare and Geisinger health systems, alleging the First Amendment did not allow them to fire her because of her Facebook posts. But the appellate judges’ Friday […]
Chief justice raises alarm as court vacancies reach ‘highest level in the history’
New Jersey Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner urged lawmakers and the governor to speed the approval of new judges Friday, warning the broad swath of vacant seats had stopped some counties from scheduling certain types of trials altogether. Seventy-five of the 433 seats on the Superior Court bench are vacant as of Friday, Rabner […]
Assembly panel moves forward with tax credit plan to offset unemployment tax hikes
An Assembly panel unanimously advanced a bill Thursday that would award tax credits to offset rising unemployment taxes on businesses, with the move winning plaudits from business groups and boos from a progressive advocate who said the measure would lead to a lopsided economic recovery. The bill would provide $375 million to pay off federal […]
N.J. moves to license cops in bid to increase public trust in policing
New Jersey will move to license its police officers in a bid to increase public trust and accountability, Gov. Phil Murphy announced Wednesday with legislators and police union officials. The move, if approved by lawmakers, means New Jersey would join the 46 states that already license law enforcement officials, and supporters say it would provide […]
Measure would use swelling cash surplus to offset unemployment tax hike
Assembly lawmakers are set to advance a bill to defray unemployment insurance tax hikes on businesses Thursday, their bid fueled by the state’s ample surplus cash. The automatic tax hikes are intended to replenish New Jersey’s unemployment trust fund, which pays out benefits to laid-off workers and was drained by skyrocketing jobless claims in the earliest […]