What remains to be seen is whether a February news conference can lead to a sea change in fiscal policymaking in late June, when Democratic legislative leaders like to insert hundreds of millions in new spending into the state budget, without offsetting cuts or revenue raisers. @njspotlightnews.org

In an interview with @njspotlightnews.org, U.S. Rep. Rob Menendez says NJ's pension fund should divest its stake in a technology firm doing business with ICE that I wrote about last month.

The legislation moving this year's gubernatorial budget message to March 10 has now been approved by both full houses of the NJ Legislature. @njspotlightnews.org

As President Trump prepares to deliver the first State of the Union address of his second term, six in ten Americans say the country is in a worse place than a year ago. https://to.pbs.org/3OYgo69

‘People don’t know s—. A bunch of idiots out there’: Quinn Hughes defends brother jack after Olympic golden goal

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday struck down President Donald Trump's global tariffs, a key part of his economic agenda during his second term. Read more: https://to.pbs.org/4kIlmjo

Six Republicans voted to terminate President Trump's Canada tariffs. NJ Reps. Jeff Van Drew (R-2nd), Chris Smith (R-4th) and Tom Kean Jr. (R-7th) were not among them. They each voted to maintain the tariffs. @bhulac.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org

Work on the tunnel project is expected to resume next week, according to the Gateway Development Commission. The commission said it now has more than $205 million in hand, reports @bhulac.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org

The Gateway Development Commission, the project’s overseer, reported “an initial disbursement of $30 million” and expected to receive $205 million in total, according to a statement it issued late Friday afternoon. @njspotlightnews.org

The Trump administration fails in its attempt to block last week's order freeing up federal funding for the Gateway tunnel project. @njspotlightnews.org

. . . the federal government is now expected to run a $23.1 trillion shortfall over the next nine years . . .

Getting a hearing in the Senate on Monday was legislation that would return diverted money to the state Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund. An earlier attempt to do that stalled in NJ's majority Democratic Legislature at the end of last year. @bobby-brier.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org

More than $250M for NJ earmarks is coming after Congress passes a series of new spending bills, reports @bhulac.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org

“As the court correctly recognized, the Trump Administration’s attempts to freeze funding for the Gateway Tunnel project are plainly illegal, and they would cause grave harm to New Jersey and New York,” said Jennifer Davenport, New Jersey’s acting attorney general. @njspotlightnews.org

Just updated my super high-tech NJ property tax bill tracker with the 2025 data.

-New Jersey’s average property tax bill increased once again last year, rising to $10,570, setting another record high. -$36.1 billion was raised from New Jersey property owners last year to support spending by local school districts and municipal and county governments. @njspotlightnews.org

Dems DHS ask -clear identification for immigration agents -body cameras -requirement of warrants signed by a judge -language barring agents from entering sensitive locations, like schools, houses of worship and polling places -legal bar against racially profiling people to detain @bhulac.bsky.social

NJ acting Attorney General Jennifer Davenport and Gov. Mikie Sherrill discuss the lawsuit NJ has filed against the Trump administration over Gateway funding during a news conference at Newark Penn Station. @njspotlightnews.org

The funding worries come as prolonged record-breaking cold grips parts of the United States . . . In Toms River, an elderly homeless woman last month was found dead in her snow-covered car. Reporting by @bobby-brier.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org

“Time is not on our side and any delay is going to dramatically add to the cost of doing this project and, by the way, everybody knows we need to build this new tunnel.” said Tom Wright, president and CEO of the Regional Plan Association. @njspotlightnews.org

“Any of the laws and the rights of the people in our state, if they’re violated by law enforcement, regardless of if it’s state, federal or county, you name it, [that] is something that we would want to make sure that we’re taking seriously,” acting NJ AG Jennifer Davenport said @njspotlightnews.org

"One of the most important things that our state government can do, and any level of government, is to be thinking about the long-term, trying to improve peoples lives now, but also working to make decisions that protect our future generation,” Assemblyman Andrew Macurdy (D-Union) said.

As mounting economic pressures push more people into homelessness, volunteers and outreach workers traversed NJ this week for the state’s annual count of the homeless. NJ homelessness is on a five-year upswing, according to Monarch Housing Associates, and advocates expect another increase in 2026.

"I think what I was calling for and I still call for and will call for is the recognition of the dignity of human beings, no matter what their legal status may be." @pbsnews.org @njspotlightnews.org

NJ public-worker pension officials are being urged to divest a more than $130 million stake in a technology firm playing a key role in President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement. @njspotlightnews.org

“Will you contact your congressional representatives . . . Will you ask them, for the love of God and the love of human beings, which can’t be separated, to vote against renewing funding for such a lawless organization?” -- Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark @bhulac.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org

As the Trump administration refuses to disburse funding for an economically vital rail tunnel under the Hudson River between New Jersey with Manhattan, construction will come to a halt, putting up to 1,000 jobs at-risk in the near-term. @njspotlightnews.org

Food prices in December were up 2.4% for the year — and if you go back five years, they’re up about 25%.

Measures on climate polluters, antisemitism definitions, opioid funding, voting rights, property tax appeals, budget stress testing and parole reform must be reintroduced in the new legislative session that started Tuesday.

As lame duck comes to an end, NJ's majority Democratic lawmakers approve spending millions on World Cup marketing and pet projects, as well as new tax breaks for the operators of the Prudential Center in Newark. @njspotlightnews.org

"This is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions — or whether instead monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation," Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said. https://to.pbs.org/4jI4s46

"I think it’s a great for young women to see a woman treasurer,” said Elizabeth Maher Muoio, NJ's longest serving woman treasurer, as she looked back on her tenure during a recent interview with @njspotlightnews.org.

The first draft of history, expertly composed by @bhulac.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org.

NJ motorists are paying higher tolls in 2026, seemingly at every turn. In many cases, these increases are the result of policies that generally allow public agencies to enact modest, annual hikes to keep up with inflation, and head off the need for larger, one-time increases. @njspotlightnews.org

Some news today from Gov.-elect Sherrill: NJ deputy treasurer Aaron Binder is her pick to serve as state treasurer. Binder will succeed Elizabeth Maher Muoio, who has served as treasurer for Gov. Phil Murphy's full tenure. Binder is a former budget director for the Assembly Budget Committee.

New Jersey’s minimum wage ramp-up -- the hourly rate is now hovering just under $16 -- has won praise from advocates for low-income residents as a policy that helps bridge income gaps in a high-cost state with a lower rate of overall income inequality than the nation as a whole. @njspotlightnews.org

Gov. Murphy spent $22M+ of his own money campaigning for governor. Was it worth it? "The honor, the responsibility, the substance of the work, the way the state has, I would argue, has been transformed, measured by a lot of different ways … Worth every penny and then some." @njspotlightnews.org

“We did what we said we would do, and in politics, that is not often the case. We campaigned on an agenda that we actually, when we got into office, we actually executed and stayed true to,” Gov. Murphy said during a final sit-down interview with @njspotlightnews.org

"You’re seeing the financial services struggling, the public sector struggling to hire,” said Adam Kamins, senior analyst with Moody’s. “All of that is putting NJ in a precarious spot where it’s not quite in recession yet, but it is dangerously close.” @bflanagannj.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org

While property taxes are at a record high in NJ, it's relatively inexpensive to appeal an assessment, and that can lower your bill. But state lawmakers now want to hike the filing fees for such appeals, which are charged by county tax boards and have been held flat for decades. @njspotlightnews.org

Rising energy costs and the Trump tariffs have added to the affordability concerns of many NJ businesses this year, and that's making it harder to maintain prices paid by consumers, according to the latest edition of a long-running poll of NJ business owners and top executives. @njspotlightnews.org

In a statement Monday, Alina Habba said she was stepping down to protect the “stability and integrity” of the office, but said her decision shouldn’t be mistaken for “surrender.” 📷 : AP Photo/Evan Vucci

For more on this issue, including a recap of the raucous first committee hearing for the bill seeking to slash comptroller oversight powers, check out this comprehensive coverage by @bflanagannj.bsky.social

Affordability concerns helped foster the establishment of NJ's independent state comptroller's office. Today property tax bills average more than $10,000 in NJ, but a state senator who voted to establish this office in 2007 now wants to reduce the comptroller's oversight power. @njspotlightnews.org

The fate of a plan to create a permanent and dedicated source of funding for a state hotline that helps people experiencing mental health emergencies by taxing phone lines in NJ remains uncertain in the remaining weeks of Gov. Phil Murphy’s tenure. @bobby-brier.bsky.social @njspotlightnews.org

Why the holiday shopping season has become a make-or-break time of the year for many of NJ's small businesses in an era of inflation and tariffs. Nice reporting by Raven Santana @njspotlightnews.org

It's been a tough year for those of us in public media, but we continue to cover New Jersey with unbiased local news. This includes all of my reporting on taxes and state government finances. Please consider helping @njspotlightnews.org offset the funding cuts during this Giving Tuesday campaign.

NJ's gas tax is going up by 4.2 cents per gallon on Jan. 1, according to the Dept of the Treasury. This increase pushes the total gas tax up to 49.1 cents. All the revenue goes into the state's Transportation Trust Fund. For more context, check out my prior reporting for @njspotlightnews.org

As the roster of NJ locations certified as “film ready” has grown, many small businesses are cashing in amid record overall spending on in-state film productions. Still, not everyone is convinced offering tax breaks to incentivize these film productions is smart policy. @njspotlightnews.org