OPRA Safe (for now), Momentum for Abolishing the Line grows, Pre-Schools Get More Support, ADU’s Get a Boost, A Different Perspective on the Affordable Housing bill

The Public Successfully Fights Back Legislators on OPRA Overhaul

New Jersey Monitor

A hotly debated bill to overhaul the state’s public records law was pulled from consideration Thursday after days of fiery complaints from concerned taxpayers, activists, labor unions, journalists, and good government advocates. Read More

Support Grows for Abolishing “the Line” & making NJ Elections Fair

The Jersey Vindicator

New Jersey primary ballots are unlike those of any other state. Other states organize their primary ballots around the electoral position being sought, with candidates listed beneath or immediately to the right of each electoral position. But in New Jersey, primary ballots are organized around a group of candidates endorsed by either the Democratic or Republican Party. These groups of candidates endorsed by county party leaders are referred to as the “county line” or the “party line,” because they are presented on the ballot as a vertical or horizontal line of names, with a candidate included for every office. The county line receives a prime location on the ballot as the first column or row on the ballot. Candidates not on the county line are placed in other columns or rows, sometimes far away from the county line candidates. Read More

Murphy Beefs Up Aid to Pre-Schools in 16 Districts

NJ Education Report

Governor Phil Murphy was joined by Acting Commissioner of Education Kevin Dehmer at Millridge School in Secaucus to highlight the impact access to preschool is having on New Jersey families as part of his administration’s record investment to expand access to preschool statewide. The visit coincides with the announcement of another round of Fiscal Year 2024 (FY2024) Preschool Education Aid (PEA) that will allow an additional 16 school districts across the State to establish or expand high-quality preschool programs. Read More

ADU’s Get A Boost

northjersey.com

“ADUs can give homeowners a new source of income, create more housing options to help ease our overburdened rental market, and enable multigenerational living,” wrote the authors, which included AARP New Jersey, the Housing & Community Development Network of New Jersey and the Regional Plan Association.

“They create more affordable housing units and allow seniors to age in place by giving elderly homeowners the ability to have a live-in caretaker or more income to pay expenses,” the group wrote. Read More

A Different Perspective on the Affordable Housing Bill

NJ.com

The opposition is coming from towns that are resisting infringement on their powers of home rule, which is seen as sacred to many people in New Jersey.

If you’re deciding where to build a park or a new school, home rule makes sense.

But it can be a curse as well. It’s enabled wealthy white suburbs to exclude the poor for generations, a key reason our schools are more segregated than those in Alabama. It’s left us with unplanned sprawl as towns grapple to lure businesses and wealthier homeowners. It’s reinforced every inequity. Read More

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State Representatives for Berkeley Heights Residents

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