News
Announcement of mask mandate in N.J. schools greeted with cheers, boos
New Jersey teachers and students getting ready for school this fall will have to add one more thing to their back-to-school lists: masks. New Jersey will reinstate its mask mandate for all K-12 students, teachers, and staff, regardless of vaccination status, for the upcoming school year, Gov. Phil Murphy announced Friday. “I want as much […]
N.J. courts announce vaccine mandate
New Jersey Courts are enacting their own vaccine mandate. The judiciary will require all staff and judges presiding over state courts provide proof of their immunization or submit to weekly virus testing, acting Administrative Director of the Courts Judge Glenn Grant said. The announcement comes only days after the courts fully re-opened to the public […]
As school year nears, calls grow for a vaccine mandate for teachers
With school set to start in-person in most New Jersey districts in a month, superintendents are busy announcing all the safety measures they hope will keep COVID-19 away and prevent a return to remote learning. Largely missing from that messaging is any report on how many teachers are still not vaccinated — and whether they […]
Feds make deal with N.J. over voter law violation
County and state transportation services for residents with disabilities will be required to offer voter registration services after New Jersey reached a consent decree with national authorities over violations of the National Voter Registration Act, acting U.S. Attorney Rachael Honig announced Thursday. Under the agreement, Access Link and Community Transportation — both transit services geared […]
N.J. courts adjourning some eviction cases for 60 days
On the heels of major changes to the state’s eviction moratorium, eviction cases in New Jersey courts will be adjourned while applications for rental assistance are processed. The New Jersey Judiciary said Thursday the adjudications will allow time for parties to resolve the cases using rental relief funds, if possible. In order for the eviction […]
‘Big and bold’ infrastructure bill still falls short on helping states fight climate change
The Senate is poised to pass a massive $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that would upgrade state transportation networks, electric grids, water systems and more. It’s a major spending boost and potential job-creator that yet falls short of the administration’s goals to address climate change and reduce its effects in the states. The White House worked […]
In Allen, Ciattarelli finds a champion for women
Diane Allen was already a trailblazer when she first ran for the Legislature in 1995. Allen, now Republican gubernatorial nominee Jack Ciattarelli’s pick for lieutenant governor, had given up her role as a news anchor at a Philadelphia-based CBS news affiliate a year earlier after reaching a settlement with the broadcaster over age and gender […]
As eviction moratoriums change, who is protected in N.J.?
Moratoriums and executive orders put in place to keep renters in their homes during the coronavirus pandemic are expiring across the country while health concerns and high unemployment rates continue. But even as the Centers for Disease Control reinstates a 60-day eviction ban for parts of the country — a ban President Joe Biden has […]
Court monitor gives N.J. child welfare system positive review
Twenty-two years after advocates filed a sweeping class-action lawsuit to reform New Jersey’s overburdened, mismanaged, and occasionally deadly child welfare system, a court-appointed monitor Wednesday reported that the system has improved so much it’s now regarded as a model nationally. The state Department of Children and Families (DCF) met 44 of its 48 performance targets, […]
Black women with children excluded from federal cash assistance program, report finds
WASHINGTON — A new research paper reviewed how each state implemented a federal program that has provided cash assistance to low income families over the last 25 years—and found that Black women with children repeatedly were excluded. On a call with reporters Wednesday, policy experts at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities outlined how […]
From public art to police oversight, N.J. looks to right its racist past
New Jersey may not be the first state that springs to mind when considering the history of slavery and systemic racism. But the ugliness emerges after even a cursory probe into the past. The Garden State was the last of the Northern states to abolish slavery, initially rejecting the Thirteenth Amendment. Perth Amboy was one […]
Business groups opposed to vaccine passports — but resistance is softening
New Jersey’s business leaders aren’t prepared to embrace vaccine mandate and passport policies similar to those announced in New York City Tuesday. New York City is preparing to implement a broad mandate that will require customers and workers at indoor restaurants, gyms, and performance venues to show proof of receiving at least one vaccine dose […]