Briefs
Workers urge lawmakers to ban smoking in casinos
A group of Atlantic City casino workers urged legislative leaders to advance a bill that would bar indoor smoking at the gambling mecca Thursday, and asked Gov. Phil Murphy to exert pressure to get the stalled bill moving. Smoking was already disallowed at workplaces and indoor public spaces in the state under the 2006 Smoke […]
Sussex County asks voters to OK potential legal fight with Murphy over nursing home docs
The Sussex County Board of Commissioners could be forced into a legal battle with the state over information on COVID-19 deaths in the state’s long-term care centers, but only if voters decide that’s a good idea. The lone county referendum on the ballot in Sussex this year would, if approved, require the commissioners to “consider […]
Activists troubled that N.J. cities sought DEA surveillance of 2020 protests
Activists are concerned about reports showing three New Jersey law enforcement agencies requested the federal government provide surveillance operations during Black Lives Matter protests last summer. The Asbury Park Police Department, Newark Police Department and Essex County Sheriff’s Office all reached out to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in hopes of collecting intelligence on “radical […]
22K new jobs in New Jersey in September, unemployment at 7.1%
New Jersey added 21,500 jobs in September, the ninth consecutive month of gains, according to the latest job gains report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The latest gains mean New Jersey has recovered 68.1%, or 488,100, of the total 717,200 jobs lost statewide during the pandemic, the data shows. While that lags behind […]
Groups blanket two legislative districts with millions in outside funds
Outside groups have blanketed New Jersey’s two most competitive legislative races with millions in spending on television ads and mailers this fall, and two groups that have often found themselves opposed to one another appear to have split up the load. American Democratic Majority, a super PAC with ties to Democratic South Jersey power broker […]
Judge reprimanded for making sexual comments to woman defendant
A former judge who alluded to sexual acts while speaking to a woman defendant has been publicly reprimanded by the state’s highest court. Hector L. Rodriguez, a former Franklin Township judge, violated three tenets of state judicial ethics rules during a Dec. 5, 2017 hearing involving an unnamed woman who was charged with multiple drug offenses, […]
Ciattarelli bashes Murphy, urges supporters to lure voters to polls
GOP gubernatorial hopeful Jack Ciattarelli called on supporters to help get out the vote at a packed Republican rally Tuesday in Medford, where he was joined by Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel. “We can win this race. Do not let anybody stay home because they think it’s rigged,” urged Ciattarelli, who has trailed Gov. Phil […]
N.J. finalizes expanded protections under paid-leave law
More New Jersey workers will be protected for taking time off for family leave due to COVID-19 under new rules related to the state’s Family Leave Act, the state Attorney General’s Office announced Monday. The rules expand the law’s job protections to people who, during a state of emergency, need to care for a family […]
Lawsuit alleges N.J. vaccine mandate violates constitutional rights
A group of New Jersey public workers allege in a new federal lawsuit that Gov. Phil Murphy’s mandate that they and other public employees get vaccinated against COVID-19 or submit to regular testing violates their constitutional rights. The seven-count complaint, filed the same day as the deadline for state and school workers to be vaccinated, […]
Betting on college sports, raffle proceeds for nonprofits on the November ballot
New Jersey voters will be faced with two statewide referendums on the ballot this year, both aiming to amend the constitution to change gambling rules. The first ballot question will ask voters whether to allow betting on all in-state college sports. While sports betting was legalized in 2018, this question would amend that law to […]
State board expands access to abortion in N.J. through regulation changes
The New Jersey State Board of Medical Examiners unanimously agreed Wednesday to repeal several restrictions on abortion, effectively expanding access by allowing medical providers other than physicians to terminate pregnancies. The move comes six weeks after Texas lawmakers enacted a controversial abortion ban that drove abortion-rights advocates across the country to rally to preserve women’s […]
Kamala Harris greeted by pro-immigrant protests in Newark, Montclair
Vice President Kamala Harris visited the Garden State Friday, touring an Essex County COVID-19 vaccination site and chatting with preschoolers in Montclair while making a push for increased child care funding. Harris was also greeted by dozens of activists who rallied outside both sites and urged the nation’s second in command to demand Democrats approve […]