Proposed Budget Highlights
The governor’s budget builds on historic investments to expand affordability and strengthen economic security, support the next generation, maintain fiscal responsibility, and build a “stronger and fairer” future. To achieve these goals, the budget proposes additional tax relief, lowering costs in health care and housing, investments in preschool and K-12 education, a range of economic development initiatives, and expanding apprenticeships and other vocational programs, while also taking steps to strengthen the state’s fiscal position, including spending reductions and tax policy changes to bring revenues more in line with expenditures. Highlights of the budget include:
Affordability and Economic Security
- Implements the Stay NJ program to reduce property taxes for more than 432,000 senior homeowners
- Introduces new sales tax exemptions for baby items such as cribs and strollers
- Provides funding for state employees to take parental leave with full pay
- Expands Family Connects NJ, a free home visitation program available to families with newborns
- Continues funding for the Down Payment Assistance Program
- Calls for legislation to codify the Office of Health Care Affordability and Transparency and permanently eliminate fees for consumer appeals against insurance companies
Support for the Next Generation
- Increases school formula aid and provides record-high school funding
- Caps losses in major school aid categories (equalization, special education, security, and transportation) at 3 percent to ensure no district sees a steep year-over-year decline in state aid
- Includes legislation to require every school district to provide full-day kindergarten
- Provides new grant funding to districts for high-impact tutoring and to incentivize districts to transition to a phone-free learning environment
- Proposes additional funding for preschool to continue movement towards free universal preschool
- Launches a new OB/GYN incentive program to attract reproductive health care providers to the state
- Provides largest ever investment in state history to protect reproductive rights
- Invests in mental health resources and services for students
Fiscal Responsibility
- Makes fifth consecutive full payment to the state pension system
- Proposes a robust surplus of $6.3 billion or 10.9 percent of state appropriations
- Largely caps new discretionary spending and incorporates appropriation nearly $2 billion in appropriation reductions
- Supports NJ TRANSIT with dedicated funding from the Corporate Transit Fee, approved last year
- Uses funds from the Debt Defeasance and Prevention Fund to construct a new female correctional facility
- Reforms technical parole violations, which will save taxpayers money
- Recommends codification of the Office of Innovation
- Proposes a range of tax policy changes to generate additional revenue, including but not limited to, expansion of current sales and use tax base, increases for the highest tier of assestment on real property greater than $1 million, and tax increases on sports betting, alcohol, adult-use marijuana, and cigarettes
Economic Future
- Continues funding for Strategic Innovation Centers (SICs) to attract innovative businesses and workers to the state
- Recommends legislation to align state tax code with federal tax treatment for Qualified Small Business Stock and reforms the Angel Investor Tax Credit
- Announces intention to create a new tax credit to incentivize global companies to manufacture next-generation products in New Jersey
- Doubles funding for the Office of New Americans to support recent legal immigrants as they settle in
- Includes funding for critical highway and bridge projects, as well as NJ TRANSIT capital projects
- Includes additional funding from the Clean Energy Fund to enhance the affordability of electric vehicles