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State comptroller scolds Egg Harbor for selling water systems ‘in violation of law’
Egg Harbor City failed to hire an independent financial adviser, as state law requires, in the sale of its water and wastewater systems, and instead improperly paid its municipal engineer to do the job, according to the New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller. But the municipal engineer was far from independent: In 2018, in […]
Homelessness highest in Essex County, annual count finds
Nearly 8,100 people experienced homelessness on a single January night this year in New Jersey, with nearly a quarter of them living in Essex County, according to a new report on the federally mandated annual enumeration known as the Point in Time Count. The numbers seem to show homelessness has decreased from last year, when […]
With little hope of winning, third-party candidates aim high anyway
Brian Kulas is an engaged citizen, by any measure. Kulas has testified before the Legislature on everything from wage theft to the minimum wage to earned paid sick leave. He has given speeches beside lawmakers at bill signings. He was among the hundreds of people arrested in 2018 during Capitol protests and sit-ins before Brett […]
Business owner can get names, addresses of dog owners, N.J. top court rules
In a win for advocates of governmental transparency, the New Jersey Supreme Court on Monday sided with a dog-fence vendor who fought for the names and addresses of Jersey City dog owners, declaring such information is public record regardless of who asks and why. Justice Faustino J. Fernandez-Vina rejected Jersey City’s argument that businesses shouldn’t […]
Court slaps N.J. judge with 30-day suspension for ‘misogynistic’ comments
A New Jersey municipal judge has been suspended without pay for 30 days for commiserating with a domestic violence suspect in 2019 about getting “frustrated with the women human beings” and advising the suspect to “let them know you’re the man, and you’re in control.” In an order filed Thursday, the New Jersey Supreme Court […]
As more people grow old without children, advocates demand a stronger safety net
Steve McIntyre and his husband Keith Miller don’t have children. Together for 35 years, they never longed for parenthood. And legal protections for the LGBT community have lagged so far behind other marginalized groups that same-sex marriage wasn’t federally protected until 2015, and same-sex adoptions even later, in 2017. “Given the state of equal rights, […]
Food assistance expanded for Ida-impacted residents in 11 counties
Some New Jersey residents impacted by Ida now can get disaster food assistance through the end of the month. The expanded benefits are available to residents enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in Bergen, Essex, Gloucester, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Passaic, Somerset, and Union counties, where federal authorities have made Major Disaster […]
Case of Jersey City cop highlights lack of police transparency
It was a fight that started stupidly enough, as fights at boozy bashes tend to do. The party’s host got mad at a guest packing leftovers into a cooler to take home. The host threw tomatoes at him — and then went and grabbed a shotgun. “Today is your day!” he shouted at a few […]
Free, discounted Uber and Lyft rides for N.J. residents who lost cars due to Ida
New Jersey residents who lost their vehicles in last week’s deadly flooding can get free or discounted rides in the next two weeks under a new partnership between Uber, Lyft, United Way Worldwide, and NJ 211, Gov. Phil Murphy’s office announced Wednesday. Anyone who lost a vehicle in the deadly storm can text NJIDARIDE to […]
Extreme heat could cost N.J.’s outdoor workers $2.2B in lost earnings, researchers warn
With many still recovering from Hurricane Ida and the seven twisters it spawned in New Jersey last week, the summer’s sweltering heat might seem like a distant discomfort. But a new report warns extreme heat could cost up to $2.2 billion in lost earnings for New Jersey’s outdoor workers by the end of the century, […]
Report calls for protections, says job gains exclude N.J.’s most vulnerable workers
Even as some parts of the economy have rebounded, New Jersey’s job market continues to lag behind its pre-pandemic levels — and gains haven’t been evenly distributed, leaving those hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis behind, according to a new report released Monday by New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP). New Jersey has recovered 62% of […]
Unemployment benefits, intended to offset pandemic impact, to end this weekend
Federal unemployment benefits expanded during the coronavirus pandemic will expire Saturday in New Jersey. The benefits, which supplemented regular unemployment assistance and were extended to those who typically were ineligible, were established under the federal CARES Act in March 2020 and renewed twice, in December 2020 and again in March. Programs that will expire are: […]