TRENTON, N.J. – Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz criticized the Murphy administration’s plans to raise NJ Transit fare prices by 15% and then 3% indefinitely. The same tact was taken for the Turnpike Authority, which has the power to raise tolls 3% annually. “Gov. Murphy said he will fix New Jersey...
TRENTON, N.J. – The budget process has been opaque the past few years, facing criticism for introducing the appropriations act and passing it without a fully public process. Last week, Gov. Phil Murphy said he would like to change that process, but doubted it would happen this year, according...
TRENTON, N.J. – An initiative spearheaded by Newark Mayor Ras Baraka that received funding in the state budget hosted an event honoring a former poet laureate identified as anti-Semitic by the Anti-Defamation League, and featured two speakers also identified as anti-Semitic by the ADL. Assemblywoman Aura Dunn says the...
TRENTON, N.J. – Assembly Republicans are highlighting a few of the excessive budget add-ons championed by Democrats in a new song fittingly released on Christmas in July. The legislative last-minute spending, known in Trenton as Christmas tree items, is set to the tune of the holiday classic “My Favorite...
TRENTON, N.J. – An outspoken advocate for upgrading Salem County’s antiquated emergency call center, Assemblywoman Beth Sawyer is celebrating the $2.5 million in the state budget to modernize the 911 system. “I have been fighting for this funding since I took office in January 2022,” Sawyer (R-Gloucester) said, “I promised...
TRENTON, N.J. – Democrats in the Assembly and Senate passed a $54.3 billion state budget Friday afternoon that differed from the one they passed late Wednesday night in their respective budget committees. Amendments were not offered to avoid a government shutdown. “The budget we are voting on today is...
TRENTON, N.J. – A new program that is advertised as a property tax cut for people aged 65 or older was announced this week by Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin. It would purportedly cut property taxes in half for eligible seniors at a cost of $1.2 billion by 2025. “This...
TRENTON, N.J. – During Monday’s Assembly Budget hearing with the Department of Higher Education and representatives from the state’s public, private and community colleges, Assemblywoman Aura Dunn asked why Middlesex County College is getting special treatment. The college is getting a $20 million boost in the budget over last...
TRENTON, N.J. – Assemblymen Rob Clifton and Alex Sauickie are slamming Gov. Phil Murphy, his administration and Trenton’s Democrat majority for cutting funding from suburban school districts, which is failing to provide students with transportation and a thorough and efficient education. “Parents and stakeholders must know who is responsible for...
TRENTON, N.J. – Record-high rates of suicide, depression and poor mental health indicators among teens should be met with increased funding for in-school services, not an outsourced experiment, say Assemblywomen Kim Eulner and Marilyn Piperno. The Monmouth County lawmakers are specifically criticizing Gov. Phil Murphy’s $43 million proposal to...