Author
Bergen County Jail transfers last ICE detainees to facility 300 miles away
For the first time in 30 years, the Bergen County Jail no longer holds any detainees under the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The last 15 detainees were transferred out Friday, a week before Bergen County had said they would clear the Hackensack facility of all detained immigrants. Advocates from Pax Christi and […]
Tenants seeking N.J. rental relief have until Dec. 15 to apply
A program providing rental relief for struggling New Jersey tenants during the coronavirus pandemic will close applications on Dec. 15, the Department of Community Affairs announced. Since the COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Program launched in July 2020, more than $500 million has been distributed to residents: $92 million to 15,000 families during the first phase […]
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 […]
Jack Ciattarelli concedes NJ governor’s race, but plans to run again in 4 years
After 10 days of counting ballots, Republican Jack Ciattarelli conceded the race for governor Friday afternoon to a crowd of supporters in his hometown of Raritan, saying he no longer had a path to victory after thousands of mail-in ballots were counted. And just minutes later to resounding applause, the 59-year-old announced his plans to […]
More than 3,000 people apply for N.J.’s excluded workers fund
Just two weeks after it launched, the state’s excluded workers fund has received nearly 3,600 applications, according to the Department of Human Services. The $40 million fund was long anticipated by the state’s undocumented residents and others who were excluded from pandemic relief like stimulus checks and unemployment benefits. Announced by Gov. Phil Murphy in […]
Murphy vetoes bill assigning staff to help lawmakers with jobless claims
A bill that would have assigned 100 full-time Department of Labor employees to help legislative offices handle unemployment claims was vetoed by Gov. Phil Murphy this week. In a statement, Murphy said he nixed the measure largely because federal labor officials warned the state that the bill, if enacted, would have violated federal rules, including […]
Sweeney still won’t concede, says results will be known Tuesday
Senate President Steve Sweeney on Monday again refused to concede his apparent re-election loss, saying there are too many votes uncounted in his district. “They’re counting the votes as we speak, right now, so I’m not going to make any call on it before they’re all counted,” he told the New Jersey Monitor. “One way […]
N.J. Democrats clash over message sent by voters
Nearly a week after Election Day, New Jersey Democrats are at odds over what the results mean. Should the loss of seats in the Legislature for the second cycle in a row spur some soul searching about the party’s direction? Or should Democrats celebrate a gubernatorial victory despite GOP victories in other parts of the […]
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 […]
Some in-person unemployment services might start in 2022
By the end of November, all state offices are scheduled to be open, including New Jersey’s One-Stop Career Centers. But those centers still won’t offer services for people seeking help with unemployment — until some point in 2022 at least. Gov. Phil Murphy said there’s no timeline for when those services begin, or what they […]
207k N.J. voters cast in-person, early ballots
The nine days of early in-person voting in New Jersey attracted about 207,000 people across 139 polling locations, representing 3% of the state’s roughly 6.6 million registered voters, according to New Jersey Secretary of State Tahesha Way. This was the first year voters had the option to vote early on a machine in the Garden […]
Local ballot questions pit neighbor against neighbor across N.J.
In every community across New Jersey on Tuesday, elected officials — and people who want to be elected officials — will ask for your vote. Depending on where you live, you also may be asked your opinion on all sorts of other things, from overnight parking and pot sales to fire trucks and turf fields. […]