News: POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Murphy to sign rushed budget... 5 days later

Tuesday, June 29, 2021

POLITICO New Jersey Playbook: Murphy to sign rushed budget... 5 days later

Jun 29, 2021

Presented by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey

Good Tuesday morning!

Gov. Phil Murphy will sign the budget today in Woodbridge at 10 a.m. — five days after the Legislature sent it to him.

The only real question is, given the leisurely pace between passage and Murphy's signature, why the rush to pass it? Why did the public have less than 13 minutes to peruse the budget before the Assembly and Senate committees voted on it, sending it on to a vote in both houses two days later?

I could understand the haste if, like some previous years, the Legislature was bumping up against a deadline and risked a state government shutdown. But that wasn't the case here.

Some lawmakers say that the press complains about the process because there's nothing in the budget to pinpoint as a problem. That's not it. It's that when the budget process is so shortened, we don't find its faults until after passage.

WHERE'S MURPHY — At a school in Woodbridge to sign the budget at 10 a.m. Media: Bloomberg TV at 4:30 p.m.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "With all due respect I don't accept the premise of that question of so-called pork." — Gov. Phil Murphy on the budget.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Gottheimer aide Max Virkus, former House candidate Adam Gussen

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WHAT TRENTON MADE

I WILL NOT MISS THE BICKERING OVER THIS — New Jersey won't require masks when school resumes in the fall, by POLITICO's Carly Sitrin : New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is preparing the state for a near-pre-pandemic school year in the fall, with all districts expected to operate with full-day, in-person instruction — with no masks required for students or staff. The governor, along with the Department of Education and Department of Health issued new joint recommendations Monday for school reopenings that suggest — but do not mandate — social distancing, daily disinfection, improved ventilation and other familiar Covid-preventative strategies. The indoor mask mandate will be lifted for schools overall, Murphy said, but districts will be able to decide whether to institute their own mask policies. Masking on buses, however, will be mandatory.

THE ARC IS HISTORY BUT IT BENDS TOWARDS GATEWAY — Buttigieg, Schumer voice commitment to completing long-delayed Gateway Program, by POLITICO's Danielle Muoio: — Fresh off a tour of the dilapidated rail tunnels underneath the Hudson River, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said Monday "now it is time" to advance a $11.6 billion Gateway Program to repair and upgrade the only rail connection between New York and New Jersey. Buttigieg's remarks highlight a renewed commitment to a project first conceived in 2015, but that faced severe delays under former President Donald Trump — who refused to advance the massive infrastructure effort without funding for a border wall with Mexico. Transit experts have warned the tunnels are in danger of collapsing because of the damage they incurred during Superstorm Sandy. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a major proponent of the project, has been pushing Buttigieg to release the tunnel from its "hostage" situation ever since — and the two appeared together on Monday to announce progress on that front.

—"Gateway project could begin in 2022, Schumer said after Buttigieg toured tunnels"

NJ REGULATES CARNIVAL GAMES MORE STRICTLY — "New Jersey's primary election ballots are rigged," by Ronald Chen and John Farmer Jr.: "The importance of the June primary elections is thus clear: because most of the seats are 'safe,' the winner of the June party primary becomes a prohibitive favorite to win in November's general election. If, in turn, the primary winner is also a foregone conclusion, voting in New Jersey would be an empty charade of democracy. Yet the evidence is compelling that that is precisely the intention and the effect of the 'county line' primary ballot … When an incumbent member of the Legislature does lose her seat these days, it is usually not as the legitimate result of the voters' rejection, but rather because whoever controls the county line, often the party's county chair, simply decides for some unexplained reason to give the line to someone else, which has occurred three times in this year's primary season alone. The implications of this for democracy in New Jersey are disturbing. It enables entrenched political machines to remain in power and frustrate the ambitions of emerging and historically marginalized groups. A candidate, even an incumbent, must tailor his or her positions to satisfy the party establishment rather than the voters whose wishes a primary election is ostensibly designed to measure."

OH GOOD A CHESS ANALOGY — "Should N.J. hire an outsider to run state prisons? The job is like 'playing chess on a three-dimensional board,'" by NJ Advance Media's Blake Nelson: "For the second time in three years, the man in charge of New Jersey prisons has stepped down amid a growing scandal at the state's only women's facility. The opening offers Gov. Phil Murphy an election-year challenge: Should New Jersey continue to promote from within or hire an outsider? Even without allegations of abuse by staff, the job requires oversight of thousands of officers and about 12,000 prisoners in nearly a dozen facilities, some of which are more than a century old, while simultaneously negotiating with skeptical unions, nonprofits that help people reenter society and a growing advocacy community. 'I've likened it sometimes to playing chess on a three-dimensional board' said Terri McDonald, a former top prison official for California who helped reform Los Angeles jails. 'You're running cities' In interviews, corrections leaders around the country, advocates for reform and formerly incarcerated women discussed a variety of models New Jersey could follow, from North Dakota to New York, at a time when criminal justice issues are near the top of the national agenda."

TRAFFIC — " Car caravan blocks N.J. Turnpike at rush hour in call for undocumented immigrant funding," by NJ Advance Media's Sophie Niet-Munoz and Noah Cohen: "In a demonstration demanding more funds for undocumented immigrants in the state, protesters blocked a section of the New Jersey Turnpike for about 10 minutes Monday, slowing traffic during the evening commute. A caravan of vehicles waving red flags stopped around 5:45 p.m. along the Turnpike's northbound car lanes between Exits 12 and 13. Video footage from the scene showed people holding signs on the road and stopped traffic before state troopers arrived and ordered them back to their cars. New Jersey State Police confirmed the cars left without incident after drivers were sent back to their vehicles. Some residual traffic slowed the Turnpike for about 30 minutes."

256 MASTROS — "Records show: NJ spending on COVID-19 response tops $2.3B," by the Associated Press' Mike Catalini: "New Jersey has spent $2.3 billion, about 5% of the state's overall budget, in expenses related to COVID-19, according to public documents obtained by The Associated Press. That's up from $222 million in expenses early this year. The spending goes from the start of the outbreak in March 2020 through this month, with the biggest expenditures coming from the departments of health, law and public safety, and human services. Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday he anticipates the spending will be covered by federal aid disbursed to the state. "I think you can pretty much assume that the $2.3 billion will be covered by federal funds," he said during a remote news conference."

—Rutgers, unions spar over mandatory vaccines for health care worker

—Lawmaker proposes permanent remote work for New Jersey state employees

—Baraka: "This bill is not a threat to police"

—Stile: "Did faith in democracy take another hit with Trenton's backroom deal?"

—Egea: " Government spending has increased 35% in 4 years. Has your income?"

—Golden: "Murphy beats Ciattarelli in a walk? Not so fast"

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BIDEN TIME

TAXES — Supreme Court declines to take up Covid-related tax dispute over telework, by POLITICO's Bernie Becker : The Supreme Court said Monday it would not take up New Hampshire's challenge to Massachusetts' policy of taxing out-of-state workers, a blow to efforts to bring more nationwide clarity to how states can tax telecommuting employees after Covid scrambled work arrangements. Massachusetts decided last year to keep taxing out-of-state commuters who work for companies in the state, even if those employees were now telecommuting. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu quickly filed suit. New Hampshire's challenge drew the support of more than a dozen other states — including New Jersey — after the pandemic and the increase in people working from home exacerbated longstanding questions about how much leeway to allow states to tax out-of-state workers. However, the Biden administration asked the high court not to get involved. Outside groups that wanted the court to take up the case noted the issue won't be going away, with more employees expected to continue telecommuting even as the country's coronavirus restrictions continue to loosen.

STILL SOME JUICE IN THAT ORANGE — "Chris Christie's book 'Republican Rescue' coming this fall," by The AP : "The next book by former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is addressed to his fellow Republicans. 'Republican Rescue: Saving the Party from Truth Deniers, Conspiracy Theorists, and the Dangerous Policies of Joe Biden' will be published Nov. 16, Threshold Editions announced Monday. Threshold, a conservative imprint of Simon & Schuster, is calling the book a timely and urgent guide to moving the party forward.' … 'As a Republican insider, Christie feels compelled to weigh in on the past four years, but especially the past few months, and explain how these falsehoods, and the grievance politics they support, cost his party the House, the Senate and the White House in two years, for the first time since Herbert Hoover,' Threshold announced … 'Republican Rescue' is the first of a two-book deal, with the second release to be determined."

—"N.J.'s 'Radium Girls' have been subject of book, play and movie. Now U.S. Senate may honor them"

—"N.J. asks FBI to add 'X' gender to represent nonbinary residents in crime stats"

LOCAL

FOR THOSE WHO LIKE SEEING THEIR PUBLIC SERVANTS USE THE BATHROOM — "Lots of people tuned in to public meetings on Zoom. That may be coming to an end," by The Record's Stephanie Noda: "Paramus school board meetings used to attract just a handful of regulars. Then came the pandemic. With new virtual options like Zoom in place, participation at the meetings exploded. Sessions that once barely filled a room instead maxed out the 500-personZoom capacity … That scenario was mirrored in many towns during the pandemic. Meetings that had been sparsely attended in person saw a surge in online attendance and engagement. It was true for school board meetings, planning board hearings and council sessions. Now, as towns begin to bring back in-person meetings, they are at a crossroads. How do they maintain this increased level of participation from the public? And how important is it to accommodate parents, seniors and others who face barriers to in-person attendance?"

A STRAINED BALL METAPHOR — "Morris County is a red rubber ball," by InsiderNJ's Fred Snowflack: "'The morning sun is shining like a red rubber ball.' So sang a 1960's rock band known as the Cyrkle in what was their biggest hit. One doesn't know if Morris County Commissioner John Krickus is an aficionado of that era in music, but he's no stranger to talking about red balls. 'We are a red ball that has held up,' Krickus said near the end of last week's county commission meeting. Referring, obviously, to the Republican-controlled county, Krickus seemed to be speaking about a bright red ball in the murky, blue sea of New Jersey … It is true it has not happened in regard to county government, but Joe Biden did win Morris County last year. There was some relevance to Krickus' speech. The board had just been urged by some members of the public to oppose state legislation regarding reproductive rights. The board declined to act, suggesting the issue was not in its lane."

AC — "Atlantic City's 2 newest casinos nearing top of market," by The AP's Wayne Parry: "Three years ago, when two shuttered Atlantic City casinos came back to life, there was more than a little skepticism over whether it was a good idea to add two casinos to a market that had just lost five of them. But now there is little doubt that those two casinos — Hard Rock and the Ocean Casino Resort — have succeeded in grabbing their share of a cutthroat market and giving visitors new reasons to come to Atlantic City. Both casinos had their first full day of operations on the same day: June 28, 2018. In terms of the amount of money won from in-person gamblers, Hard Rock ranked second out of the nine casinos last year with $224.8 million. Ocean was third at $183.5 million."

—"Middlesex County park named for first Black man to vote in US — a Perth Amboy resident"

—"'This is reprehensible': Emotions bubble over as Wayne school board mulls curriculum"

—"Ex-Morristown mayor, 75, heads to court to make his 24th run for public office"

—"Toms River councilman refuses appointment to marijuana committee"

—"A tale of two leaders? Asbury Park library faces power struggle over operations"

—"George Floyd protester admits setting Trenton, NJ cop car on fire"

—" Would change in admission policy at 2 Jersey City schools discourage Black students from applying?"

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EVERYTHING ELSE

A CASE THAT TOUCHES ON TWO TYPES OF LABOR RIGHTS — "An unmarried Catholic schoolteacher got pregnant. She was fired," by The New York Times' Tracey Tully: "When a Catholic school art teacher was asked to take on extra responsibilities, she requested a raise, explaining that she was about to have a baby. Weeks later, she was fired from her New Jersey elementary school. The principal, a Roman Catholic nun, told her she was being terminated 'because she was pregnant and unmarried,' court records show. The woman sued. Her daughter is now 7, but the lawsuit remains in limbo, caught in a yearslong back-and-forth between New Jersey's trial and appellate courts. An appeals court has twice sided with the ex-teacher, Victoria Crisitello. But last month, the state's highest court, acting on an appeal by the school, agreed to hear the case, signaling a willingness to wade into the highly charged debate over the relationship between the government and religion … The principal acknowledged in depositions that she made no effort to determine if other staff members, including men, were engaged in extramarital sex, court records show. Because the school's only proof of a violation of its morals code was the pregnancy itself, 'only a woman could be punished, not a man,' [attorney Thomas McKinney said. 'If you're going to punish someone for doing something,' he said, 'it has to be applied equally and evenly.'"

—"Federal prosecutors in New Jersey arrested high-ranking members of the Pagan's Motorcycle Club""

—"U.S. Track & Field Olympic Trials: Sydney McLaughlin world record; Ajee' Wilson headed to Tokyo"

—"Head of Sparta private school barred minorities, ran a 'dysfunctional' entity, suit claims"

—"Project predicted to cause 'carmageddon' on Lincoln Tunnel route is almost done"

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