Gibbons Law Alert

Gibbons Law Alert

Author: Courtney A. Johnson

New Jersey Has Spoken: It’s Sherrill vs. Ciattarelli for the Governor’s Race

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Posted in Elections / State Government

On June 12, 2025

Please note the below polling numbers are reflective of the time of publication and are subject to change. The Gibbons Government Affairs team will continue to monitor the primary election results. On Tuesday, June 10, 2025, New Jersey voters went to the polls to select their party’s nominees for Governor and the General Assembly, as well as county and local officials. New Jersey’s 2025 primary resulted in wins for the gubernatorial front-runners, Democrat Mikie Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli. Sherrill currently serves as the U.S. Representative for the 11th congressional district and will not have to give up her congressional seat while running for Governor. Ciattarelli served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 2011 to 2018, representing the 16th legislative district. This will be his third time running for governor, having lost to Governor Phil Murphy in the 2021 gubernatorial election and to Kim Guadagno in the 2017 Republican primary. The 2025 primary is the first election to have taken place since the U.S. District Court of New Jersey issued a preliminary injunction in Kim v. Hanlon. This caused the Legislature to redesign the ballot and replace the “party line” with an office block design. Governor’s Race At the top of the ticket, 11 candidates ran for their party’s nomination – five on the Republican...

“We’re from Jersey, Baby!” Governor Murphy Delivers the 2025 State of the State Address

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Posted in State Government

On January 15, 2025

Yesterday afternoon, Governor Phil Murphy delivered his seventh State of the State address at a joint session of the New Jersey Legislature. This address re-invoked the “stronger and fairer” New Jersey theme that marked Governor Murphy’s first term, imbued with the subtext of innovation. During the address, the Governor looked back at some of the events that have occurred while he has been in office, including a global pandemic, record high inflation, and the outbreak of two international conflicts. He also highlighted the State’s accomplishments as the “medicine chest to the world,” its growing entertainment and film industry, and its winning bid to host the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final. In all, Governor Murphy presented a broad scope of issues his administration seeks to work on during his final year in office. Those priorities include affordability and economic opportunity; childcare and education; healthcare and reproductive rights; transportation and infrastructure; the environment; the protection of fundamental rights; and criminal justice reform. Affordability and Economic Opportunity The Governor acknowledged the rising cost of living and efforts to make New Jersey more affordable. He highlighted programs such as ANCHOR (geared toward property tax relief) and RetireReady NJ (a publicly run retirement savings program), as well as a higher minimum wage rate that has nearly doubled since he took...

Governor Murphy Proposes FY 2025 Budget Centered on Opportunity, Affordability, and Shared Responsibility in New Jersey

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Posted in State Budget / State Government

On February 28, 2024

Yesterday afternoon, Governor Murphy presented his State FY 2025 Budget to a joint session of the Legislature in Trenton, New Jersey. The proposed budget totals $55.9 billion, keeping total spending growth below 1 percent from the FY 2024 adjusted appropriations ($55.43 billion). It includes a $6 billion surplus. The proposal does not include any new taxes but does include a new 2.5 percent corporate transit fee that will apply to many of the large businesses operating in New Jersey and other smaller revenue raisers (discussed below). The Governor’s budget address was centered around themes of opportunity and affordability. The budget proposal stressed that opportunity is available to all who call New Jersey home and those who may be newcomers to the State. Affordability/Property Tax Relief Governor Murphy addressed rising costs, supply chain snarls, and inflation in his address. The proposed budget aims to improve affordability in the State by addressing property taxes and increasing access to housing. The budget proposal includes $3.5 billion dollars directed toward property tax relief through programs such as the Affordable New Jersey Communities for Homeowners and Renters (ANCHOR) Property Tax Relief Program, which provides property tax rebates to both homeowners and tenants, and the Senior Freeze Program, which provides property tax relief to seniors and differently abled New Jerseyans. The...

A Look Ahead: The 221st Legislature and State of the State Address

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Posted in State Government / State Legislation

On January 10, 2024

On Tuesday, the 221st Legislature commenced in Trenton. The Senate welcomed 10 new Senators to the chamber, namely: Sen. Carmen Amato, Jr. (LD9); Sen. John Burzichelli (LD3); Sen. Owen Henry (LD12); Sen. John McKeon (LD27); Sen. Angela McKnight (LD31); Sen. Paul Moriarty (LD4); Sen. Raj Mukherji (LD32); Sen. Parker Space (LD24); Sen. Britnee Timberlake (LD34); and Sen. Latham Tiver (LD8). Senators McKeon, McKnight, Moriarty, Mukherji, Space, and Timberlake each moved over to the Senate after serving in the General Assembly during the last session. Sen. Nick Scutari, of Union County, was elected to continue as Senate President, and Sen. M. Teresa Ruiz, of Essex County, will continue as the Senate Majority Leader. Sen. Shirley Turner, of Mercer County, has been named President Pro Tempore, a position she previously held twice, and Sen. Anthony Bucco, of Morris County, will continue as the Senate Minority Leader.

Governor Murphy Delivers His Fifth State of the State Address

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Posted in Elections

On January 11, 2023

For the first time since 2020, Governor Murphy delivered his State of the State address yesterday in person at a joint session of the New Jersey Legislature. Unlike his prior State of the State addresses, which focused on his first-term theme of a “stronger and fairer” New Jersey, this fifth address brought a new refrain – New Jersey as a State of Opportunity. A significant portion of the Governor’s speech focused on the areas where the state is providing opportunities or leading. He identified areas such as economic development, criminal justice reform, reproductive freedom, youth mental health, opioid use recovery, and clean energy as major policy initiatives in this regard. The Governor painted New Jersey as a “business friendly” state, highlighting New Jersey’s job growth over the past two years and the current unemployment rate, which is below the national average. The Governor also touted New Jersey’s growing gross domestic product, asserting that the state’s third quarter 2022 growth was the highest in the northeast region and 10th highest in the nation. Governor Murphy stated that New Jersey is a leader in new and emerging industries, such as wind energy, cannabis, online gaming, and financial technology, while continuing to cultivate legacy industries, such as life sciences, that have long had a presence here. In his...

2022 Elections Result in Close Races but Less Turnover Than Expected

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Posted in Elections

On November 10, 2022

With mid-term elections serving as a referendum on the party-in-power, Democrats braced for losses and Republicans sought to catch a “red wave” both in New Jersey and nationwide. Although votes are still being counted in some races, both sides can claim victory, as Republicans were able to pick up some seats and Democrats were able to blunt significant Republican gains. New Jersey’s congressional delegation will remain a Democratic majority, as only one of the hotly contested races resulted in an incumbent Democrat’s loss. In New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District, Republican Tom Kean, Jr. and Democrat Tom Malinowski faced off in a rematch of the 2020 election to represent Central Jersey residents. Mr. Malinowski defeated Mr. Kean then by less than 1 percent, but redistricting made the 7th District more Republican. With a more favorable map, Mr. Kean was able to defeat Congressman Malinowski by about 4 percentage points. In the 3rd Congressional District, Democratic incumbent Andy Kim won nearly 55 percent of the vote against Republican challenger Bob Healey. It was unclear if the newly redrawn district would present a challenge for the sitting congressman; however, by midnight, the election returns demonstrated that Mr. Kim was safely re-elected. Other congressional races, such as the contests in the 5th and 11th Districts, were also viewed as...

Governor Murphy Presents His Fiscal Year 2023 Budget

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Posted in State Government

On March 9, 2022

Governor Murphy presented his Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 Budget to a joint session of the State Legislature in a live address for the first time since February 2020. The proposed budget totals $48.9 billion – a $2.5 billion increase over the FY 2022 budget – and includes a $4.2 billion surplus, which is nearly double the surplus included in last year’s budget. The proposal does not include any new taxes or fees. In fact, the Governor’s spending plan includes a one-year fee holiday to waive fees typically assessed for driver’s license renewals, marriage licenses, state park entry, and license fee applications or renewals for roughly 130,000 professionals across the health care spectrum. The Governor themed his budget address around one word: Affordability. This became a key issue in the 2021 gubernatorial and legislative election, and is something both the Governor and legislative leaders identified as their priority for the current legislative session. The budget proposal looks to improve affordability in the State by addressing property taxes and access to housing. It appropriates $900 million for the Affordable New Jersey Communities for Homeowners and Renters (ANCHOR) Property Tax Relief Program, which proposes to provide property tax rebates to both homeowners and tenants. Additionally, the Governor’s budget allocates $300 million to the Affordable Housing Protection Fund to...

A Look at the 220th Legislature and Annual State of the State Address

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Posted in State Government

On January 14, 2022

On January 11, 2022, New Jersey began a new legislative session marked by the Legislature’s reorganization and the Governor’s State of the State Address. Legislative Reorganization Democrats retained control of both houses, albeit with much smaller margins after Republicans managed to win back several seats in the November elections. Democrats now hold a 24 to 16 majority in the Senate and a 46 to 34 majority in the General Assembly. The Senate has new leadership for the first time in twelve years, with Senator Nicholas Scutari of Union County being sworn in as the Senate President and Senator Teresa Ruiz of Essex County becoming the Senate Majority Leader. Senator Sandra Cunningham of Hudson County remains the Senate President Pro Tempore. Senator Steven Oroho of Sussex County is now the Republican Leader, replacing Tom Kean, Jr., who did not run for reelection in order to focus on his campaign for the 7th Congressional District. The Senate also welcomed five new members. Senators Jon Bramnick (R-21), Gordon Johnson (D-37), Jean Stanfield (R-8), and Andrew Zwicker (D-16) all previously served in the General Assembly. Senator Ed Durr (R-3) has not previously held elective office. In the Assembly, Craig Coughlin of Middlesex County and Louis Greenwald of Camden County will continue as Speaker and Majority Leader, respectively, for another...

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