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New Jersey to spend $400M to improve college and university buildings
New Jersey will borrow $400 million to build and improve facilities at colleges and universities around the state, the first new state funding for higher education infrastructure since 2015, Gov. Phil Murphy announced Tuesday. Public officials hope the funding will help persuade more students to attend college in New Jersey — and stay here after […]
Bills to expand harm reduction programs and decriminalize syringes advance
Two bills that would expand New Jerseyans’ access to safe-needle sites and decriminalize syringes advanced Monday in the Legislature, despite opposition from Republicans. The first bill would allow entities like nonprofits and health care providers to open harm reduction centers, with approval from the state health commissioner — and allow only the commissioner to close […]
N.J. bill would add safe-syringe sites statewide
When Domenick Scrivanich was homeless and addicted to heroin, he could think only of his next fix. “The number one goal was to get drugs and to be as high as often as possible,” Scrivanich said. “It didn’t matter if we had clean needles or dirty needles, we were going to get them into our […]
Lawmakers seek to enhance protections for domestic violence survivors
Amid reports of domestic violence abuse surging during the pandemic, state lawmakers will consider new measures to strengthen protections for New Jersey’s domestic violence survivors. Three bills on the docket Monday would require domestic violence training for prosecutors, certain judges and judicial personnel, and law enforcement officers. Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen) is a primary […]
Murphy sets earlier goal to cut state-produced greenhouse gas emissions
Gov. Phil Murphy on Wednesday accelerated the state’s goal to cut its greenhouse gas emissions 50% by 2030, signing an executive order that requires the state to meet its carbon reduction target two decades faster than initially planned. Speaking at solar farm in Budd Lake, the governor also announced millions in funding to electrify government […]
Sweeney concedes stunning loss to Republican Durr
Democratic Senate President Steve Sweeney conceded his stunning loss to Republican Ed Durr on Wednesday, blaming his defeat on a Republican wave that swept him, his running mates, and a handful of other Democrats out of office. Durr, meanwhile, celebrated his unlikely win at a press conference in Turnersville, saying he was motivated to run […]
Report: Hundreds of non-public workers improperly enrolled for state pensions
More than 240 independent contractors are improperly enrolled as public employees in New Jersey’s pension system, and the state Treasury Department is too understaffed and powerless to clear its nine-year backlog of investigating such cases, the State Comptroller said Wednesday in a report. The Treasury Department’s Division of Pensions and Benefits has saved taxpayers about […]
Bill that would require N.J. schools to teach Asian American history advances
For Christina Huang, racism isn’t an abstract concept. She still remembers her classmates erupting in laughter as their school bus approached Huang’s grandmother, practicing her zaocao, or morning exercises, as she waited for her granddaughter at the bus stop. “I will never forget walking off the bus past my classmates as they stretched their eyes […]
A record-setting election for Republican women in N.J.
Claire Swift is a busy working mom. She’s an attorney and mother of three whose kids’ school and sports schedules keep her bouncing all over South Jersey. Swift has little time for anything else — but felt called to run for public office after the pandemic started, when friends and strangers alike bombarded her Northfield […]
Appellate court upholds public’s rights in police search warrant case
Even if police officers have a search warrant, they cannot use evidence obtained during the search if they violate a requirement that they first knock and announce themselves, a New Jersey appeals court ruled Wednesday. Such behavior violates the constitutional rights of citizens to be free of unreasonable search and seizure, and police shouldn’t “profit” […]
Murphy, Ciattarelli locked in tight race for governorship
The race for governor is too close to call. Gov. Phil Murphy and former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli were locked in a tight race Thursday night, and it’s unclear whether late-reported votes in Democratic counties like Passaic, Somerset, and Mercer will be enough to hand the incumbent a win. Less than one point separated Murphy and […]
On election eve, Murphy holds 8-point lead over Ciattarelli in latest poll
With just one day to go before the election, Gov. Phil Murphy leads Republican challenger Jack Ciattarelli by eight percentage points, with half of likely voters saying they support Murphy, compared to 42% who side with Ciattarelli, according to the latest Rutgers-Eagleton Poll. “If we look at the several statewide polls conducted in the last […]