| | | | | |  | | By Matt Friedman | Good Monday morning! There is no better time to bury news than a Friday afternoon in mid-August. So, since it's Monday morning, let's start the week fresh with two things you might have missed. As the governor vacationed in Italy, the Murphy administration told employers to check out their new unemployment tax rate and — surprise! (not really) — it's going up. This $250 million increase was triggered by the rise in unemployment during the pandemic, and it's spread out over the course of three years under a new law. But 24th District Republican lawmakers, who highlighted the "Friday the 13th" move in a press release, said that the state should have used federal rescue money to replenish the fund, something the governor and Legislature could have worked together to do. The gas tax is also potentially going up, according to revenue figures released Friday. That's because of low gas tax collections in 2020, also caused by the pandemic. It's hard to blame Murphy for this one, since the automatic hike stems from a law former Gov. Chris Christie signed before he took office. But given that it effects so many New Jerseyans, a little more communication about it — such as, say, acknowledging it in the revenue collections announcement — would probably be no more politically fraught than not acknowledging it at all. Well, Murphy still has the progressive Democrats on his side, despite some recent moves that put them off. Oh, but with the bill to ban new ICE contracts sitting on his desk for weeks, a private jail in Elizabeth renewed its ICE contract. There's nothing wrong with taking a vacation . But if the administration is worried about how this looks, I'd argue it's worse to make it look like you're trying to pretend these things aren't happening. If, say, gas taxes go up, people will notice. And hey, if they don't and you've warned about it, you can try to take credit for heading it off. WHERE'S MURPHY? Italy. Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver is in New Brunswick at noon for a discussion with, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra et. al. HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Former U.S. Rep. Dick Zimmer, Vision Media's Paul Swibinski QUOTE OF THE DAY: "We'll address the hazards as they come … But a hundred years from now? I don't know, I won't be here to worry about it." — Avalon Mayor Martin Pagliughi on sea level rise |  | WHAT TRENTON MADE | |
VETERANS HOMES — "Federal investigation into NJ veterans homes moves ahead with family interviews," by The Record's Scott Fallon: "Families of residents who died from COVID-19 at the Menlo Park and Paramus veterans homes have begun to be interviewed by federal prosecutors as part of the Justice Department's investigation into the high death toll at the state-run facilities, sources said. The interviews come as the Justice Department confirmed in a July 23 letter that the probe into the two homes was still active despite the agency's decision to drop a wider investigation launched under the Trump administration into public nursing home deaths in New York, Pennsylvania and Michigan. Families have also been interviewed in a separate investigation by the state Attorney General's Office. Few nursing homes in the nation were as devastated by COVID-19 as those in Paramus and Menlo Park, with 192 resident deaths along with two staff members during the height of the pandemic in spring 2020."
REMOTE LEARNING — "In latest guidance, NJ 'encourages' educators to prepare for remote learning options," by The Record's Mary Ann Koruth: "A memo from the state Department of Education that was issued Wednesday calls on K-12 educators to consider providing remote instruction to students who might have to quarantine during the school year … Peg Kinsell, a policy director at SPAN (Statewide Parent Advocacy Network), a federally funded nonprofit that supports parents of school-going children, said she took exception with language in the memo because it does not mandate providing virtual learning for quarantining students." DIVERSITY: THE ANCESTORS OF NJ'S TOP 3 ELECTED OFFICIALS MAY COME FROM DIFFERENT PARTS OF IRELAND — "With new Census count, 17 districts have non-white majorities — and most are represented by white senators," by New Jersey Globe's David Wildstien : "Seventeen legislative districts that have non-white majorities are currently represented by nine white Democrats in the New Jersey State Senate, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released on Thursday. These new numbers are expected to be part of the redistricting process as the state redraws the legislative map for the 2023 election. Just three districts where a majority of voters are white elect a non-white senator: the Camden County-based 5th, where Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D-Barrington), a Latina, represents a district that is now 50.9% following the 2020 census; and the Burlington-based 7th, which is 57% white and elects a Black senator, Troy Singleton (D-Delran); and the 11th in Monmouth, where Vin Gopal D-Long Branch), who is a South Asian American, holds a seat in a district that is 59% White, 19% Hispanic, 12% Black and 4% Asian." NEXT YEAR: WALLY WORLD — "Phil Murphy vacations in Italy while COVID spikes again. Does anyone care?" by The Record's Charles Stile: "Murphy's departure also seemed head scratching given that his European escape comes as his opponent, Republican Jack Ciattarelli, pokes at Murphy's lack of a true Jersey pedigree. He depicts Murphy as a wealthy dilettante who doesn't even know how to properly eat pizza. 'New Jersey is where I vacation, on LBI, while Phil Murphy jets off to his villa in Italy. This is where I root for the Yankees, while Phil Murphy is cheering for the Red Sox,' Ciattarelli said the night he won the Republican primary in June. Yet, despite his career as a wealthy, Goldman Sachs-groomed executive, the issue of his life in the fast lane of 1-percenters has never harmed Murphy that much. That his elite biography is baked into the minds of voters who have come to know him, primarily, as the governor who guided the state through the COVID-19 crisis, for better (improved economy, higher vaccination rates than most states) or worse (staggering death rate at long-term care facilities and state run veterans homes)." HE'S VACCINATED — New Jersey lawmaker claims legislative immunity from defamation lawsuit, by POLITICO's Matt Friedman: A New Jersey lawmaker is seeking to be removed from a defamation suit by a former Department of Health official who is also suing Gov. Phil Murphy and his administration. In court papers filed Wednesday, Assemblymember Christopher DePhillips (R-Bergen) said his statements about former Assistant Health Commissioner Christopher Neuwirth were based on media reports and are protected by legislative immunity, among other things. "As an elected legislator, I have of course been concerned about and closely followed the State's response to the pandemic, which is a matter of legislative concern for a variety of reasons — self-evident reasons, I would say," DePhillips wrote in a legal document dated Aug. 3, but filed on Aug. 11. "I felt at the time, and feel now, that it was not only my right to make inquiry into the circumstances of the plaintiff's termination and his private consulting activity while Assistant Commissioner, and I was entirely within my legislative function doing so." Legislative immunity is a legal doctrine that protects lawmakers from "actions taken in the sphere of legitimate legislative activity." NJEA COMES AROUND — Ciattarelli says teachers unions oppose vaccine mandate; NJEA fires back, by POLITICO's Daniel Han: Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli on Friday criticized teachers unions for what he said was their lack of support for a vaccine mandate for educators. "Here is [Gov. Phil] Murphy, doing everything he can to get people to get vaccinated," Ciattarelli said during an interview on 1210 WPHT radio. "I'm vaccinated, I encourage people to get vaccinated, but you know who's bucking him? Teachers unions [that] do not want vaccine mandates as employees of school districts. ... But at the same time, the teacher unions are putting a great deal of pressure on Murphy to have the student mask mandate. I just don't think you can have it both ways." The National Education Association, the umbrella organization of the New Jersey Education Association, on Thursday announced support for a vaccine-or-test mandate for teachers. The NJEA later followed the NEA's lead. —Moran: "In Cuomo scandal, echoes of Team Murphy" —" Diane Allen's racist rant is shameful and dangerous | Opinion" —"New Jersey can put an end to the PennEast Pipeline | Opinion" —" NJ Transit's bus redesign plan debuts to mixed rider reviews about changes and cuts"
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| | BIDEN TIME | |
GOTT 9 PROBLEMS AND A HEIMER IS ONE — 9 Democrats threaten mutiny over Pelosi's budget plan, by POLITICO's Heather Caygle and Sarah Ferris: A group of nine moderates is threatening to withhold their votes from Democrats' $3.5 trillion budget resolution later this month, endangering Speaker Nancy Pelosi's two-track plan to push both a massive infrastructure bill and social spending agenda through the House in the coming weeks. That missive — which was made public Friday — quickly escalated tensions across the Democratic caucus, with anxieties already running high about how the tightly divided House will be able to muscle through both of President Joe Biden's priorities in short order. Several of those moderates, led by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), had been issuing similar veiled warnings for weeks, calling on Pelosi to bring the bipartisan Senate infrastructure bill up for a vote as soon as it's ready. But this is the first time the lawmakers have explicitly said they're willing to block the budget resolution in an attempt to force Pelosi's hand — the latest setback in what is becoming a painful August recess for House Democrats. "We will not consider voting for a budget resolution until the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passes the House and is signed into law," the group wrote.
—" Supreme Court blocks part of New York's eviction moratorium" —"Hugin slams Biden, Kim on Taliban surge in Afghanistan" | | LOCAL | |
MURPHY, IN ITALY, TAKES UMBRAGE — "ICE quietly extends Elizabeth detention center contract with CoreCivic," by Documented's Giulia McDonnell Nieto del Rio: "Despite the regional pull back from immigration detention, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has extended its contract with the private company that runs the Elizabeth Contract Detention Center in New Jersey until August 31, 2023, the ICE-ERO Newark office confirmed. In an earnings call on Tuesday, CoreCivic President and Chief Executive Officer, Damon T. Hininger, said that the company had recently entered into a new two-year contract extension with ICE. The company runs the facility in Elizabeth, which currently houses 115 detained immigrants. The extension happened "shortly after" the company's second quarter ended, Hininger said, which finished on June 30, according to financial documents from the company. … The news of the contract extension between ICE and CoreCivic came as an unwelcome shock to many activists who have been at the forefront of putting pressure on New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy to sign a bill which would ban new, renewed and expanded ICE detention agreements in the state."
MEANWHILE SOME PEOPLE HAVE SERVED PRISON TIME FOR GROWING WEED — " 'Remorseful' ex-Mahwah councilman gets probation for child porn charge," by The Record's Tom Nobile: "Former Mahwah councilman Charles Jandris was spared prison time on Friday after pleading guilty to possessing child pornography. A Bergen County judge sentenced Jandris, 56, to five years of probation over the illegal images authorities found on his computer. Jandris had faced a maximum of 10 years in prison, but reached a plea deal with no jail time in February due to the length of the case, and because authorities couldn't access all the pictures on his hard drive after some were deleted, prosecutors said. 'If this happens again, you're not going to be looking at probation. You're going to be looking at a lot of prison time,' Judge Christopher Kazlau told Jandris on Friday … Jandris served as a councilman in Mahwah from 2011 to 2014 … At the time of his arrest in February 2019, Jandris worked as the financial director at the Children's Learning Center of Mahwah. He is no longer employed there, nor does he volunteer as an EMT, his attorney said Friday." WHEN IT COMES TO POPULATION, PATERSON FALLS IS LYING TO YOU — Paterson's population grew by 9%, 2020 census results show, by The Paterson Press' Joe Malinconico : "Mayor Andre Sayegh got what he wanted this week with the news that the 2020 census count raised Paterson's population by more than 9%, to 159,732 residents. 'I was awestruck when I saw that number,' said the mayor, who organized pep rallies to encourage Paterson residents to fill out census forms. Sayegh is predicting the city's latest population data will provide Paterson with an infusion of federal funding for its schools, police department, road repairs and community groups. But the mayor on Friday wasn't ready to cite any specific dollar amounts regarding the extra funding, saying the city still has to 'wait on calculations.'" "Andre Sayegh may veto the Paterson City Council's anti-legal weed ordinance" IT AIN'T HIM. HE AIN'T NO FORCHIONATE ONE — "Trenton plans to outlaw marijuana sales downtown. Weedman says he'll keep selling," by NJ Advance Media's Kevin Shea: "The state Motor Vehicle Commission's regional center on South Stockton Street in downtown Trenton is about two blocks from NJ Weedman's Joint. People on their way to or from the center often stop off at the joint, owner and longtime weed activist Ed 'NJ Weedman' Forchion says. Sometimes it's for pot, sometimes for the chicken wings. 'I'm a destination place for so many people - I'm like Disney for potheads,' Forchion said. People interested in marijuana already come to Trenton, which is why Forchion says he's stumped as to why the Trenton City Council's ordinance on legal weed, as it currently is written, will leave out the Capital City's downtown. The council introduced an ordinance earlier this month, after changes, that sets forth five dispensaries - down from 10 - and in three city zones. The downtown shopping areas are not included." —Mulshine: "In Trenton, marijuana legalization is lost in the weeds" RESIDENTS HOLD PRAYER VIGIL FOR AUNTIE ANNE — " Jersey City sees its future. And it doesn't appear that Newport mall is a part of it," by The Jersey Journal's Joshua Rosario: "It was the driving force behind the renaissance of Downtown Jersey City. But now Jersey City is reimagining the future without it. A draft of a new Jersey City master plan suggests a Downtown without the Newport Centre Mall as a way to create better access to the waterfront by repurposing the area with the traditional city street grid. The 35-page chapter is part of a voluminous draft plan also envisions redevelopment on the west side of the city without the Hudson Mall and Stadium Plaza, both on Route 440. 'These areas are auto-oriented and rely heavily on surface and/or structured parking, with their large footprints breaking up the city's fabric,' the plan says, referring to the malls as walls that block access and connectivity." AFTER SHUTTING DOWN NEEDLE EXCHANGE, AC PROUDLY HOSTS CONCERT KNOWN FOR FANS' SOBRIETY — "Atlantic City develops a taste for Phish this weekend," by The Press of Atlantic City's Bill Barlow: "Melissa Oliver and Harriet Nucci were not friends before they sat in the shade of a tall barrier on the Boardwalk on Sunday afternoon, but after a few minutes of people watching and chatting, they both said they are friends now. They are both from out of town, both regular visitors to the Atlantic City Boardwalk, and just happened to be enjoying the day near one of the entrances for the temporary center of the Phish universe, where tens of thousands of fans have spent the weekend basking in the quartet's jams. About 37,000 fans crowded a half-mile of beachfront for the first two nights, and about as many were set to be back for the third on Sunday night." —"Jersey City downtown Ward E population skyrockets, causing huge imbalance with other wards" —"[Sayreville] Police officer who reported his chief for using the N-word has been harassed ever since, lawsuit says" —"'Encourage residents to destroy': Invasive spotted lanternfly confirmed in Morris County"
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SAVE ISLAND BEACH STATE PARK GOVERNOR'S BEACH HOUSE — "The long, slow drowning of the New Jersey shore," by The New York Times' Andrew S. Lewis: "This alluvial coastal plain is stratified with quartz and glauconite sands, silt, clay and at least eight different aquifers going down beyond 6,000 feet before there is any semblance of solid earth — a slab of bedrock formed between 550 million and 300 million years ago. Geologists like to say that New Jersey's coastal plain sits "unconformably" atop this Paleozoic base. Most unstable are the handful of delicate barrier islands at its edge, which shift naturally with the push of waves and tides, currents and winds … Over the last century, the sea level at the Jersey Shore has risen twice as fast as the global average, because the land here is also sinking. The water's upward climb — 18 inches in New Jersey — has increased nuisance flooding up and down the coast, just as it has in low-lying communities around the world … You could be forgiven for thinking the Jersey Shore's local governments are not terribly concerned by such warnings. According to a report from Climate Central and Zillow, some 4,500 homes, worth $4.6 billion, were built in New Jersey between 2010 and 2016 in areas where, even if global greenhouse gas emissions decrease moderately, there will be a risk of flooding once per decade, at a minimum, starting in 2050."
—"We must condemn the misrepresentation of workers at N.J. Hindu temple as religious volunteers | Opinion" —"Meet the woman behind NJ's funniest memes and popular Instagram account" — "'I actually changed my mind.' Why one N.J. woman decided it was time to get the COVID vaccine" —"NJ student prisoners to receive significant boost in special education services"
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