New Jersey lawmakers are scheduled to vote Monday on a spending plan that, despite deep cuts to programs and services, also earmarks more money for the overwhelmed unemployment system and public colleges and universities.
The $7.7 billion plan authorizes government spending for thee months, beginning July 1 through the end of September. Lawmakers typically would have to pass a 12-month budget by the end of June, but this year, they moved that deadline to the end of September citing the life-altering impact of coronavirus. They need to pass a stopgap spending plan in the meantime and send it to Gov. Phil Murphy to sign it into law.
For the first time in months lawmakers plan to return to the Statehouse in Trenton to cast their votes in person. They had been conducting business remotely and via teleconference during the height of the coronavirus pandemic.
Here's what you need to know about the state's spending bill.
What's in the NJ budget
New Jersey's unemployment systems repeatedly crashed under the weight of record-setting claims as businesses, restaurants and industries shut down because of coronavirus. Lawmakers want to spend an extra $4 million for the Department of Labor and Workforce Development to modernize the system and make it run quicker and smoother.
Public universities and county colleges will get another $52 million and $14 million in aid, respectively. New Jersey's halls of higher education sent students home during the coronavirus pandemic and, like the state, are suffering financial losses. Rutgers instituted a hiring freeze and spending constraints in April, for example.
Lawmakers also stuck in language that allows Treasury officials to remove spending items — called de-appropriations in budget parlance — but only after giving a panel of lawmakers a chance to weigh in first.
What's out
There are no tax increases in this budget, as Murphy at least temporarily abandoned his prior push for higher income tax rates for millionaires and a fee on companies that don't offer their employees affordable health care plans.
But reduced income means cuts totaling more than $4 billion across the board to state departments.
Many cuts proposed by Murphy are enacted in the budget. Lawmakers will not restore funding for property tax payment programs including Homestead Benefit and Senior Freeze, which help more than 600,000 seniors and low-and-middle-income residents pay their bills each year.
While state funding for schools across the state is held steady, school districts that have traditionally been underfunded won't see the boost of an additional $336 million in funding that Murphy planned to spend.
And training programs that reduce bias and discrimination, and a handful of other racial justice programs, aren't saved by the Legislature's spending bill, despite lawmakers' concerns about the cuts.
Also cut is $80 million in spending to remove lead water pipes, a dangerous but often hidden problem that the state has failed to eradicate over two decades. Lead can leach from the pipes into water, and if consumed even in small quantities can have lifelong negative impact on a child's development and behavior.
SEE GUIDELINES FOR SCHOOLS: NJ schools reopening in fall with students back in classrooms
CORONAVIRUS NEWS: NJ says 1,854 additional residents likely died of coronavirus after review of death records
What people are saying
“We have developed a three-month budget plan under crisis conditions that requires hard decisions to get us through the next stage of an extremely difficult economic recovery," Sen. Paul Sarlo, D-Bergen, and chair of the Senate Budget Committee said in a statement. "This budget is not what we want to do, but it is something we have to do."
“We are in the midst of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression," said Assemblywoman Eliana Pintor Marin, D-Essex, who chairs the Assembly Budget Committee. "Difficult choices had to be made. This bill ensures a balanced budget for the State and it does that without tax increases."
Republicans on the Assembly and Senate budget committees, which vetted the spending plan in hearings last week, voted against it. The 110-page budget wasn't made publicly available until Thursday morning.
“There is a complete failure to be transparent leading up to a very important vote,” said Assemblyman Hal Wirths, R-Sussex. “To cut all property tax relief specifically designed to help seniors and the disabled make ends meet is something that should never be voted for.”
Others critiqued the limited time for public review of a complicated bill.
"This is a mockery of the democratic and legislative process — one we have all become far too comfortable with — and completely shut out the families harmed most by the pandemic who will now bear the brunt of budget cuts that could have been avoided," said Brandon McKoy, president of the left-leaning think tank New Jersey Policy Perspective.
Story continues below gallery
What happens next
Murphy needs to sign off on the plan before Wednesday. Last week he acknowledged "a good amount of common ground and working relationships with both the Assembly and the Senate" on the bill, a signal he's likely to sign the bill into law and avoid the drama of a potential government shutdown.
The governor could also line-item veto some items in the bill, removing specific items while allowing the rest of the bill to go into effect.
Once the bill is signed, the state's financial minds in the Department of the Treasury will shift focus to a budget for the upcoming, 9-month fiscal year that begins in October.
That budget may include more drastic cuts to spending as the state continues to see the economic fallout of the virus. By law, Murphy must release his spending proposal by Aug. 25 and the Legislature must make changes and sign off by Sept. 30.
Stacey Barchenger is a reporter in the New Jersey Statehouse. For unlimited access to her work covering New Jersey’s lawmakers and political power structure, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: sbarchenger@gannettnj.com Phone: 732-427-0114 Twitter: @sbarchenger
"plan" - Google News
June 29, 2020 at 03:33PM
https://ift.tt/31qUNIX
Here's what's in and what's out of NJ $7.7B spending plan reflecting 'crisis conditions' - NorthJersey.com
"plan" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2un5VYV
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Here's what's in and what's out of NJ $7.7B spending plan reflecting 'crisis conditions' - NorthJersey.com"
Post a Comment