News List
Safe Routes to School: Back to School, Back to Safety
Safety isn’t seasonal. While school brings urgency to these reminders, the truth is: safer streets benefit everyone, every day. Whether you’re dropping off your child, biking to class, or commuting past a crosswalk, remember, our roads are shared spaces. Let’s keep them safe, welcoming, and calm.
After Stafford mobile home landlord jacked up rent 20%, is rent control the answer?
“Rents are the high, and they’ve gone up quite a bit, particularly since the pandemic,” said Eric Seymour, a Rutgers University professor who co-authored a study looking at rent control in New Jersey. “And so there’s interest in understanding the policy levers available to try to keep rents manageable.”
Edwards: Work from Home and Job Satisfaction
A new paper co-authored by Renée Edwards, Ph.D., Assistant Director at the Heldrich Center for Workforce Development and Managing Director of the Employer Disability Practices Center, analyzes how different measures of job satisfaction vary between people with and without disabilities, and the extent to which working from home moderates the relationship between disability and job satisfaction
Office vacancy issue in New Jersey will only get worse, experts say. Here’s why
“Today that office inventory is between 44 and 34 years of age. All the stuff built then was before the internet, before mobile technology,” Hughes said. “A lot of it was cheaply built. So now we have the aging, obsolete suburban inventory that we have to deal with today.”
NJSPL: The Trouble with Neighborhood Trash
Communities must be willing to address disparities in their policies, budgets, and priorities in order to address equal access to sanitation infrastructure, fair enforcement of polluting laws, and other waste-related decisions. Because clean streets shouldn’t be a luxury. They should be the baseline, no matter your zip code.
New Jersey is gearing up to dispatch a new round of ANCHOR property tax relief money to homeowners and renters
Hughes said, “They’re living on the edge right now, they’re really stretched,” he said. “We’re in a higher inflation era both now with high energy costs and for what may be coming, because of the [Trump administration] tariffs, any benefit they can receive will be helpful.”
Here’s what NJ’s latest economic data indicates
Rutgers professor Will Irving was less sanguine about the office market and the state’s economy. With respect to a hard or soft landing, he said, “it’s still a landing, and the landing that we’re seeing in New Jersey is a little ahead and a little harder than we’re seeing elsewhere.”
Xie and Smart Research Spatial Accessibility of PCPs
This study examines the spatial accessibility of primary care physicians (PCPs) in New Jersey and neighboring areas.
Progress & Poverty Institute Bloustein Scholarship Recipients
The Progress and Poverty Institute (PPI) and the Bloustein School are pleased to announce the recipients of the inaugural Progress of Ideas Scholarship Program. Established by PPI, the Progress of Ideas scholarship program was created to support graduate students in the areas of public policy and economic equity/justice, part of PPI’s organizational mission.
Funding for lawmakers’ pet projects largely flowed to Democratic districts
“If a legislator is threatened, if their district is more at risk, they get greater consideration,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a senior policy fellow at Rutgers University’s Center for Urban Research who has long experience in state and local government.
Can Trump tariffs, state aid spur NJ manufacturing resurgence? There are many hurdles
By 1943, over half of the jobs in New Jersey were manufacturing, said James Hughes, an economist at Rutgers University in New Brunswick.
Greenberg, Mayer Review DOE’s Nuclear Storage Collaboration
We examine the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s collaborative process to locate, build, and operate one or more federal consolidated interim storage facilities (FCISFs) for commercial U.S. spent nuclear fuel—instead of continuing to store the material at over 70 nuclear reactor sites.
NJ’s credit rating just improved again. Here’s why it matters
The rating upgrade announcement is “very reputational,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a senior policy fellow at Rutgers University’s Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, who studies local government in New Jersey.
NJSPL Summer Intern Presentation Videos
Last week, the New Jersey State Policy Lab’s most recent cohort of summer interns presented on their respective areas of public policy research on August 6th, and the recordings of these presentations are now available.
Prof. Cantor Discusses Housing as a Public Health Issue
Homelessness nearly doubled in 2025 with the lifting of the COVID-era eviction moratorium. Cantor noted that New Jersey has focused additional resources to support residents, but needs federal help. He’s also concerned that President Donald Trump’s recent executive order punishing homelessness as a crime will make things worse.
Relocate or repair question creating post disaster cracks
“Our study reveals that residents and officials across all levels of government are concerned about the financial implications of coastal risk strategies – underscoring the need to clearly demonstrate the long-term economic benefits of alternatives like voluntary relocation and to bolster both household and local fiscal resilience to climate and political shocks.” said Geronimo
Cultural Factors Driving Severe Repetitive Flood Losses
A central debate was whether public resources should support staying or leaving the island. Key concerns included the economic impacts of strategies on household and public finances, the effectiveness of strategies to mitigate future flood damages, and fairness in the distribution of costs and responsibilities.
NJSPL Report: Supporting Aging in Place in New Jersey
Our key findings indicate that the model faces significant regulatory, labor market, and financial challenges. These challenges prevented the ALPs from growing in the past decade, resulting in many older low-income New Jerseyans remaining underserved.
Stamato Commentary: Who cares? A murderer roams free, courtesy of Trump’s deportation policy
The Trump administration is exporting people from America not because they committed a crime, although, admittedly, some have, but because he needs “the numbers” — so ICE aims, even, now, at courthouses, to grab those that are in the process of following the legal route to acceptance, a process that can take years, adding to their vulnerability, because the nation has too few immigration judges.
Edwards: Disability, Job Satisfaction, and Accommodations
A new paper co-authored by Renée Edwards, Ph.D., Assistant Director at the Heldrich Center for Workforce Development and Managing Director of the Employer Disability Practices Center, examines the extent to which job satisfaction, requests for accommodations, and the likelihood of a request being granted vary by disability status. We further analyze whether being granted workplace accommodations moderates the relationship between work satisfaction and disability.
New city chatbot makes information more accessible, mayor says
“For local governments, chatbots create exciting opportunities to improve customer service, automate tasks and cut costs,” according to Marc Pfeiffer. “Residents routinely need information on topics like garbage collection, parking permits, construction projects and event schedules. Chatbots can provide 24/7 automated self-service for these frequent citizen inquiries.”
New Report – State of the Climate: New Jersey 2024
New Jersey 2024 Summary of Climate Trends The year 2024 was the warmest on record globally and the second warmest year on record in New Jersey. This year represented a continuation of the long-term climate change trend in global temperatures that drives regional effects and hazards in New Jersey. As such, this report focuses on changes in temperature, sea-level rise, precipitation, and extreme events in New Jersey.
Dean Shapiro Comments on Trump’s Firing of BLS Official
“The Trump administration … has made no secret about its desire to get rid of people who are trained in their jobs if they are not loyal to the current president,” says Stuart Shapiro, dean of the public policy school at Rutgers University and author of “Trump and the Bureaucrats: The Fate of Neutral Competence.”
NJSPL: How E-Bikes Could Bridge the Healthcare Gap
E-bikes offer a promising alternative solution for individuals to access healthcare more easily, including reaching preferred providers. Researchers’ analysis found that, with an e-bike, nearly every census tract can reach at least one primary care physician within 30 minutes.
TECH UPDATES: Technology Policies for Your Community
The key is to stay informed and use technology to better serve your residents. Regular assessment of technology needs and impacts will help you develop policies that truly benefit your community.
RideKC installed leaning benches at bus stops. Kansas City riders call them ‘insulting’
“Leaning benches may technically meet ADA requirements, but they aren’t usable for many people — including disabled people, older adults, pregnant people, children, and those recovering from injury,” DiPetrillo said. “In trying to prevent unhoused people from sleeping or lingering, we’ve created a new barrier for those who may need a place to rest the most.” said DiPetrillo
“Work Trends RU” Podcast with Rachel Korberg
This week’s guest on the Heldrich Center’s Work Trends RU podcast is Rachel Korberg, Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Families and Workers Fund. Rachel is also a member of the Heldrich Center’s National Advisory Board.
Report Release: R/ECON Forecast Summer 2025
R/ECON’s economic forecast for New Jersey as of mid-2025 continues to show a slowing trajectory. Annual GDP growth is projected at just 0.5% for 2025, significantly lower than prior forecasts and markedly below the national rate of 1.5%. The Garden State’s real estate market shows tentative signs of stabilization, though persistently elevated mortgage rates and high home prices continue to limit the strength of the rebound. Nationally, tariff increases are expected to put upward pressure on prices, with inflation projected to reach 3.7% in the second quarter of 2026.
New Publication from Payne: Digital Twin or Digital Kin?
The authors argue that questions around interoperability and profit and tensions with democratic deliberation and socially beneficial outcomes necessitate best-practice “digital kin” models. These models are inclusive of different urban realities and diverse communities, as well as more closely integrated across platforms locations for use in participatory planning to advance social equity outcomes.
Prof. Clint Andrews Receives IEEE PES Robert Noberini Award
“I have spent a career encouraging the transition to a cleaner, more affordable, and more secure energy system. This is a domain where engineering professionalism plays a mixed role. It helps us avoid costly errors, but it also slows down progress.” – Prof. Clinton Andrews
Heldrich Report Examines Effect of New Jersey TAG Program
A new report, Building a Comparison Group for Tuition Aid Grant Recipients Using the New Jersey Statewide Data System, examines the effect of the New Jersey Tuition Aid Grant program on college graduation.
NJSPL: Report of Child Well-Being in New Jersey
New Jersey has ranked 7th in the nation for overall child well-being, according to latest data from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The foundation has released their 36th Kids Count Data Book, which assesses child well-being in all 50 states using key indicators organized into categories which include education, health, economic well-being, and family and community.
Elizabeth (Libby) Vinson (MPAP ’02) Named CEO of NJACP
“This feels like a full-circle moment,” said Vinson. “I have had the privilege of working with NJACP through efforts like the Coalition for a DSP Living Wage and the NJ Legislative Disability Caucus – experiences that deepened my commitment to the field. Now, in this role, I’m grateful for the opportunity to dive deeper into this meaningful work: lifting the voices of individuals with disabilities, their families, and the dedicated community-based providers who support them. I recognize the challenges facing the field and am committed to meeting this moment by listening, learning and leading, all with compassion and collaboration.”
From Fear to Freedom and Hope: Rafael Escalante (UG PP ’26)
“My goal was college,” said Escalante, who hopes to attend law school. “That was my dream in Venezuela, and my goal was to continue following on my dreams as much as I could.”
NJSPL: Mapping Corporate Landlords in New Jersey
Using parcel-level property tax data, we tracked changes in ownership from 2012 to 2022 to understand where corporate landlords are active, how they are acquiring properties, and what this might mean for housing access and stability.
Samuel and Colleagues Examine the Rise of AI Phobia
Contemporary public discourse surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) often exhibits a disproportionate level of fear and confusion relative to AI’s factually documented capabilities and implications. This study examines how the systematic use of alarmist and fear-inducing language by news media outlets contributes to negative public perceptions of AI.
Ralph, Johnson-Rodriguez Research ASE Perceptions
We found that many respondents did not believe that speeding was particularly dangerous, and that people with these beliefs were less likely to support automated speed enforcement. However, providing a message about the dangers of speeding was effective in increasing support for automated enforcement, especially among people who did not hold extreme beliefs about the (lack of) danger of speed.
Gov. Murphy Signs New Pedestrian/Cyclist Safety Bill in Maplewood
“This bill marks a crucial step in advancing awareness of New Jersey’s Safe Passing Law and, in particular, ensuring drivers fully understand their responsibility to protect pedestrians, bicyclists, and other vulnerable road users when they’re behind the wheel,” said Leigh Ann Von Hagen, AICP,PP, Executive Director, Voorhees Transportation Center.
Herb Op-Ed: Government funding for resilient infrastructure, warning systems is vital
“At a time when our country grieves for the loss of life in Texas, this tragedy serves as a stark reminder of the critical importance of proactive disaster preparedness.”
Planning Alumni Take Part in Landmark Greenway Project
Julia Wong is the Special Projects Manager for NJ Department of Environmental Protection. Other alumni mentioned in the press release include Ayla Schermer (MCRP ’21), President of Bike Jersey City, and Sofia Barandiaran, New Jersey & New York Greenway Manager, East Coast Greenway Alliance.
NJSPL: Declining STEM Expertise in U.S. State Legislatures
Unfortunately, this latest update in data reflects a decline in the overall representation of scientific, engineering, and healthcare professionals in U.S. state legislatures. Out of the 7,523 total lawmakers currently serving, 231 were identified as having science-based backgrounds, representing 3.07% of total lawmakers. This marks a full percentage point drop from the 4.09% recorded in September 2024, and represents a 25% proportional decline in less than a year.
Dan Kennedy (MCRP ’07): CRE Roadmap for Next Governor
As New Jersey prepares to elect its next governor, NAIOP NJ, the commercial real estate development association, has published a comprehensive roadmap for economic revitalization and sustainable development for the consideration of both candidates for governor.
Stamato Commentary: Remembering Bill Moyers, an uncommon man guided by Common Sense
Moyers, who died last month at age 91, was a PBS icon, author, adviser to President Lyndon Johnson, deputy director of the Peace Corps, newspaper publisher, and an ordained minister who firmly believed in the separation of church and state.
Op-Ed by Justin Auciello (MCRP ’05): Why New Jersey must treat information as infrastructure
Let’s embed civic signal into our plans, our budgets and our collective sense of readiness. The next storm, outage or institutional failure isn’t a question of if, it’s when. And when it happens, civic signal is the thread that holds us together. Let’s plan like we know that.
“Work Trends RU” Podcast with WorkingNation’s Jane Oates
Zhang et al. Study Street-View Greenspace and Exercise
In this prospective cohort, momentary street-view exposure to trees and grass was inversely associated with PA, while exposure to other greenspace was positively associated. Future research should confirm these results in other populations and explore the mechanisms through which specific greenspace components influence PA.
The Housing Market Was Built for a Baby Boom. What Happens in a Baby Bust?
“Housing, I think, in terms of facing contraction, is still pretty far off,” says Hughes. But while demand might hold, it will likely be for a different kind of housing entirely.
More than 100k people lost power during NYC’s heatwave last week. Experts say get used to it.
“Many of those [transmission lines] are maxed out, especially due to electric vehicles and also due to the increased presence of air conditioning and heat pumps,” Andrews said. “Many of them are a century old and not only outdated, but woefully under capacity.”
JPMorgan Chase plans fourth round of NJ layoffs in 2025
James Hughes, an economist at Rutgers University, previously told NorthJersey.com that white-collar jobs in banking and finance have become saturated after a two-year hiring spree that followed the COVID-19 pandemic.
NJSPL: Some College, No Credential Population in NJ
During the 2023-2024 academic year, over 757,000 working-age New Jerseyans were part of the “Some College, No Credential” population, a 1.9% increase from the previous year.
Loh and Noland Explore Public Charging Station Disparities
ontrary to the general notion of unequal access to public charging stations across different income groups, we found that the disparity was minimal. Assuming a full fleet of EVs and the current level of charging infrastructure, the success rate for all income groups is low but similar using 2035 trip-level data.
GOP Candidate Nick Cuozzo (MPP’14) wins Primary for Somerset County Commissioner
“I am looking forward to building on the momentum and great enthusiasm our campaign generated this past year,” Cuozzo said. “I will continue to make the case for a more affordable Somerset County, to fight overdevelopment that harms our communities and our environment, and to prioritize public safety and security for all residents.”
Heldrich Center Releases New Work Trends Brief and Website
A new research brief, Exploring 2024 and 2020 Election-Year Longitudinal Trends in Support for Minimum Wage, College Loan Forgiveness, and Paid Leave Among U.S. Workers: Republicans Appear More Supportive of Policies for Some Americans Over Time, features findings from a December 2024 survey of U.S. workers about policy proposals related to the economy, education, and work.
How much can I deduct for my local taxes? Congress just decided
“What Trump and Congress did at that point was dramatically increase the standard deduction but decrease the amount you could deduct for state and local taxes,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a senior policy fellow at Rutgers University’s Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, who studies local government in New Jersey.
NJSPL Report: Analyzing the Use and Equity of ARPA Funds
The study’s findings have two key implications for future federal aid programs. First, many local governments allocated ARPA funds in alignment with the policy’s primary goals—responding to the economic and health crises. This suggests that maintaining flexibility in future federal aid programs would enable local governments to tailor spending to their unique needs. Second, ARPA funds were allocated to more distressed local governments, demonstrating a potential model for future federal aid programs to ensure resources reach areas with the greatest need.
Why are New Jersey housing costs continuing to rise — and who should pay for affordable housing?
Hughes said if federal immigrant deportations continue, home construction costs could soon rise even higher in the Garden State.
“The builders are heavily dependent on immigrant labor, particularly roofing, so they’re facing significant labor shortages,” he said.
He said tariffs could also cause housing price increases, depending on how they ultimately wind up.
“We import a lot of lumber, we import a lot of drywall, a lot of washing machines, appliances and the like,” Hughes said.
Dr. Grafova Presented Posters from the VSR Research
“It was an honor to represent our amazing research team — Pamela de Cordova, Jennifer Polakowski, and Jessica Anderson. Huge thanks to the New Jersey State Policy Lab for funding this research and making this work possible.”
Heldrich Report: Analysis of NJ Life Sciences, Tech Sectors
Norcross machine Democrats file suit against Cherry Hill progressives over their election loss
“The voters overwhelmingly chose the progressives,” said Julia Sass Rubin,
“That means the … CDCC-endorsed candidates lost. That’s how democratic elections work. There is no consolation prize.”
Restrepo-Mieth Researches Tree Inventories in Galápagos, Ecuador
Through a review of provincial and municipal plans and national policies, as well as interviews with key informants in Galápagos, Ecuador between 2023 and 2024, Dr. Andrea Restrepo-Mieth looks at what motivates urban governments to pursue a tree inventory.
Stamato Commentary: Preparing for a New Age: Artificial Intelligence, the American Workforce and the G.I. Bill
“Modern manufacturing requires high technology, requiring different skills from those needed in the 20th century. We can innovate in pharmaceuticals, clean-energy technology, robotics and semiconductors, but those innovations will require “infrastructure” to support its development, education and workforce training, and, frankly, cooperative alliances with global partners.”
A Progressive Perspective: New Jersey primary results reflect triumph of political party organizations
Professor Julia Sass Rubin, the acknowledged guru on the effects of the party line on New Jersey politics, thought the elimination of the county line would reduce the influence of party leaders and politics in New Jersey.
Who were the real losers in the 2025 NJ primary? County machines and bosses | Opinion
“If they can demonstrate that they still wield a lot of power, that will potentially ricochet to fewer candidates running in the future, and we’ll be back to largely where we were before,” Sass Rubin said.
NJ, NY lawmakers slam Senate tax bill and its strict SALT deduction cap
“What Trump and Congress did at that point was dramatically increase the standard deduction but decreased the amount you could deduct for state and local taxes,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a senior policy fellow at Rutgers University’s Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, who studies local government in New Jersey.
NJSPL: Georeferencing Historical Maps for Geospatial Analysis
As part of ongoing research to create a dataset of historical water bodies in New Jersey, researchers have begun locating and charting these historical water bodies with the use of atlases from the David Rumsey Map Collection. The digitized maps in these atlases were then georeferenced, a process of determining the precise location of these maps on the Earth’s surface. The ultimate goal is to trace water bodies in order to evaluate flood vulnerability across the state.
Job Opportunity: Asst. Professor in Urban Planning
The Bloustein School seeks to hire a full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor for appointment beginning July 2026. Candidates should have a specialty in housing and quantitative methods.
Atlantic Yards’ broken promises loom over another major Brooklyn development plan two decades later
A new megadevelopment proposed for the Brooklyn Marine Terminal and surrounding blocks could reshape the future of Red Hook and the Columbia Street Waterfront. But for many residents, the project and the process for winning its approval recall an earlier plan gone wrong.
“Work Trends RU” Podcast with Urban Institute’s Todd Greene
NJ primary 2025: Results highlight weaker party machines
Julia Sass Rubin noted that for decades, the county line had been the key tool enabling political machines to dominate elections, but this year’s results—where party-endorsed candidates lost in multiple counties and Assembly races—demonstrated that voter choice was no longer being structurally constrained.
Pfeiffer participates in Rowan’s “Future of Journalism” Conference
Marc Pfeiffer, Senior Policy Fellow and Assistant Director of the Bloustein Local Government Research Center, recently participated in Rowan University’s conference on “The Future of Journalism: New Models, Digital Transformations and the Public Interest” on Wednesday, May 21.
Will Payne Maps NYC’s “Gourmet Gentrification” Trends
Using a novel dataset assembled from print Zagat Survey guidebooks, the first crowdsourced restaurant guide and the direct antecedent of contemporary local review platforms like Yelp and Google Maps, this article traces the contours of ‘gourmet gentrification’ in New York City using quantitative and spatial analysis from 1990 to 2015.
If the primary election was an ‘earthquake’ for New Jersey, the epicenter was in Camden County
Julia Sass Rubin described the June 2025 New Jersey primary as a historic turning point in state politics, signaling the erosion of long-entrenched county party control following the elimination of the controversial county line system.
Lessons from COVID-19: Students Can Thrive During Hardship
Sustaining Innovation in New Jersey Climate Policy
Armstrong Reflects on How Quinlan Case Shaped NJ End-of-Life Choice
NJSPL: Examining Property Transitions in New Jersey
Approximately 19% of Trenton’s one- to four-unit housing properties transitioned to corporate ownership between 2012 and 2022, totaling just over 4,000 properties in the Garden State capital. Researchers have been in the process of examining corporate home ownership in New Jersey, in particular how much exists today and which communities have the highest or fastest-growing rates of corporate and other investor ownership in the past decade.
Katie Brennan (MCRP ’12) Wins LD-32 Primary Election for Jersey City
Katie Brennan (MCRP ’12) Wins LD-32 Primary Election for Jersey City
Williams, Cantor, et al. Examine Black-White Death Inequities
This longitudinal study analyzed 2010-2020 US Census of Governments-tracked state and local government expenditures and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-tracked years of potential life lost (YPLL) to suicide and police-perpetrated killing.
Geisha D. Ester Appointed Executive Director of NTI
NJ Democrats hold their breath as the primary unfolds without the county line | Opinion
“If they can demonstrate that they still wield a lot of power, that will potentially ricochet to fewer candidates running in the future, and we’ll be back to largely where we were before,” Sass Rubin said.
The Political Machine Won’t Decide NJ’s Next Governor
“The political machines adapt. They’re about surviving. If this is all very effective for them, they will do the same thing again,” Rubin said. “If it doesn’t work, if their preferred candidates don’t win, I fully expect them to change the rules again to make it even easier for them to control the outcome.”
Tariff Uncertainty and its Impact on Economic Forecasting
R/ECON’s next economic forecast is slated for release in mid-summer, followed by another forecast in the fall. As we track the latest state data and national outlook, we have been closely following the news on tariffs, the Fed’s potential actions, and associated fluctuations in the financial markets.
Heldrich Center: Using Data to Help Bolster Workforce Initiatives
NJSPL Announces 2025 Summer Interns
She reviewed a Tampa restaurant on Yelp. Then came a lawsuit.
“Work Trends RU” Podcast with First Lady Tammy Murphy
NJSPL: Chatbot for NJ SNAP Services
Built on OpenAI’s API and leveraging the Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) model, the chatbot bridges the gap between users and SNAP resources by delivering answers in English and Spanish (among other languages).
Some Studies Challenge Long-Held Views on Rent Control
TECH UPDATES: “Hey AI, Write a Report on Innovation in Local Government”
A gamechanger for local governments, tasking an AI chatbot with research and writing projects saves you time and trouble, at least for the first draft.
Bloustein School announces faculty promotions
Promotions reflect the high standards of teaching and research for which the Bloustein School is known.
MPI Grad Students Present MOMCare with AI
This paper presents MOMCare, a chatbot designed to support mothers navigating the challenges of PPD. MOMCare has a retrieval-augmented architecture with an end-to-end pipeline from data preprocessing to response generation. It employs hybrid classification, a dual embedding system, a dual verification guardrail, and a medical domain-specific reranking mechanism to generate empathetic and relevant PPD responses.
Samuel Researches Gambling Harm Reduction in Online Spaces
Our exploratory analyses suggest that this reddit forum provides important information on how users communicate motivations to gamble, interpretations of gambling experiences, and define potential harms related to gambling online as well as how to avoid or remedy those harms.
Studio: Newark’s EWR Transit-Oriented Community
The Graduate Planning Studio of Spring 2025 is essential because it marks a significant shift in how Dayton and the South Ward of Newark are recognized within the broader regional transit network. Historically, these areas were invisible regarding transit access and public investment.
Could absence of party line lead to primary election surprises?
“I would say the two most notable impacts so far are that so many Democrats and Republican candidates, including pretty legitimate candidates with a shot at winning, [are] choosing not to go for an endorsement. That would have been unheard of before,” said Rubin, an associate dean at Rutgers University’s Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy.
Stamato Commentary: Rocking the boat for democracy: Public media, under siege
Of course, the Trump administration is determined to end public support not only for PBS, but for NPR as well. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting receives and distributes over $500 million in taxpayer money to public TV and radio stations annually. Eliminating millions of dollars in federal funding to the two public media organizations amounts to a significant threat.
Research from Ralph: The Deal Breaker Theory of Cycling
Most locations across the world have a large un-tapped pool of people who do not bike at all and an even larger pool who do not bike for transportation. To increase cycling, we must better understand this group and the reasons they do not ride. I propose a new theory that suggests everyone has a list of “must-haves” that must be in place before they will bike. While there are many possible cycling needs, I introduce five in this paper: Safety, Comfort, Relative Convenience, Availability of Tools, and Social Approval.
Candidates for NJ governor are using AI in their ads in new ways
“There are a lot of people who are more than happy to use AI for entertainment,” Samuel said. “But when it comes to decision making, a lot of people go back to fundamental information based, fact-based decision making.”
House SALT proposal would raise cap on deduction to $30K, but some Republicans balk
Smart weighs in on possible NJ Transit rail strike
NJSPL: Snapshot of NJ Undergrad Degree Earners
According to the report, more than 59,300 students in New Jersey earned an associate or bachelor’s degree during the 2023–2024 academic year—a 0.5% decrease from the previous year.