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.
Topic
New Jersey State Policy Lab
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.