President Joe Biden signed legislation to make Juneteenth a federal holiday, enshrining June 19 as the national day to commemorate the end of slavery in the U.S. Juneteenth’s name stems from June 19, 1865, when Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger in Galveston, TX, issued General Order No. 3, which announced that in accordance with the Emancipation Proclamation, “all slaves are free.” Months later, the 13th Amendment was ratified, abolishing slavery in the final four border states that had not been subjected to President Abraham Lincoln’s order. The New York Times
Sen. Bob Menendez and Rep. Mikie Sherrill commended President Joe Biden for delivering a message to Russian President Vladimir Putin that he will be held accountable for his and his country’s actions on the world stage by the U.S. “This was a necessary reality check for Putin and a welcome departure from the past four years of (former President Donald) Trump’s coddling,” stated Menendez. “From human rights to cybersecurity and cyberwarfare, President Biden stood strong and declared that there will be consequences when Putin disregards international norms,” added Sherrill. North-JerseyNews.com
The Supreme Court threw out a lawsuit threatening the entirety of the Affordable Care Act, finding that Republican-led states behind the case did not have legal grounds to challenge the landmark healthcare law. The red states challenging the law, led by Texas, argued that Obamacare’s individual mandate became unconstitutional after Congress zeroed out the law’s penalty for not having health insurance in a 2017 tax cut package and the entire law should fall because the mandate to purchase insurance, which remains on the books, was central to the law’s functioning. But in a 7-2 ruling, the Supreme Court wrote that the states failed to show how they were hurt by a mandate that had been rendered ineffective. Politico New Jersey
The New Jersey legislature will have a say over how the state spends federal dollars made available through the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill President Joe Biden signed into law in March, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Paul Sarlo (D-36) said. “The American Rescue Plan, how those dollars are spent, the legislature will play a significant role. It’s been ironed out. It’s just getting it into language,” stated Sarlo, adding the provisions giving the legislature oversight over billions in federal aid would appear in the budget bill expected to be introduced next week. New Jersey Globe
The percentage of workers at New Jersey long term care and assisted living facilities getting vaccinated is on the rise. Seven weeks ago only 56% of long term care workers had received a vaccine, but Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said the latest data shows 64.7% of those employees have now been vaccinated. NJ1015.com
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced May marked the fifth consecutive month of job growth in New Jersey as it recovers from the economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Another 13,600 jobs were added in May, largely concentrated in the private sector, the federal data shows. Since March 2020, New Jersey has regained 403,000 jobs, or roughly 56%. The state’s unemployment rate also fell by 0.3 percentage points in May, bringing the unemployment rate to 7.2. NJ.com
A State Senate committee approved a proposal to retroactively and moving forward pay workers who had to miss time due to issues related to the coronavirus pandemic. The Senate’s Labor Committee passed a bill that would require employers to provide paid earned sick leave on a temporary basis to address employee leave issues and alleviate other pressures resulting from the pandemic. “(This bill provides) workers with easy access to these safety-net programs during a health crisis that still continues (and) will allow them to care for themselves and their families, and allow them to make stressful decisions without concerns about leave time,” said Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg (D-37). North-JerseyNews.com
Gov. Phil Murphy doesn’t agree with the Randolph Board of Education’s decision to remove the names of holidays from its school calendar. “These holidays exist as they do for a reason, and I’m on the side of keeping it the way it is,” Murphy said about the board’s vote that school holidays, including Christmas and Veterans Day, would simply be listed as a “Day Off,” with no mention of the holiday name. NJ.com
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka announced an artist’s design for the Harriet Tubman monument has been chosen to replace a statue of Christopher Columbus in Washington Park next Summer. The park and the surrounding area, which includes the Newark Museum of Art and Newark Public Library, will be renamed Tubman Square. News12 New Jersey
A landmark bill making New Jersey one of the first states in the nation to outlaw sexual harassment in political campaigns is back under consideration in Trenton three months after sponsors pulled it amid disagreements over what it should say. The heart of the proposed law (S3389) calls for spending $2 million in state funds to create the Office on Discrimination and Harassment Prevention inside the state’s nonpartisan Election Law Enforcement Commission, which oversees campaign finance and lobbying laws. The three-person office would investigate claims of sexual harassment and sexual misconduct, as well as develop an anti-sexual harassment policy that campaigns would be required to adopt. NJ.com
Legislation sponsored to supply funding to maintain Lake Hopatcong, Greenwood Lake and other lakes in the Highlands and Pinelands regions has been approved. The bill introduced in both the State Senate and Assembly makes a supplemental appropriation of $10 million for grants for certain lake management activities for recreation and conservation purposes. “Our lake communities have been devastated in back-to-back years by the financial impact of algal blooms and the coronavirus pandemic,” said State Sen. Steve Oroho (R-24). “After they’ve suffered so much, it is even more critical that the state step up to meet the need. With this substantial appropriation, we will help these important lakes remain healthy and open to the public.” North-JerseyNews.com
Garfield made it easier for elected officeholders to get paying jobs with the city once they are out of office. The council voted unanimously to repeal restrictions requiring that an elected official be out of office for at least 18 months before taking a job with the city. The restriction had been put in place only last year, when three of the five current City Council members voted in favor of it. The move came as two of the city’s most high-profile jobs, city clerk and city manager, became vacant for the first time in decades. The Record
The New Jersey Democratic State Committee elected Essex County Democratic Chairman LeRoy Jones to lead the state party. Jones will replace Passaic County Democratic Chairman John Currie, who has helmed New Jersey’s Democratic Party since 2013. Somerset County Democratic Chairwoman Peg Schaffer was re-elected as the party’s vice-chair. The state committee picked Middlesex County Commissioner Claribel Azcona Barber as its secretary and Medinah Muhammed, who is Assemblywoman Britney Timberlake’s chief of staff, was selected to be the organization’s treasurer. Insider NJ
Hoboken secured an agreement to acquire the final piece of its waterfront needed to create a contiguous city-long park, the conclusion of a standoff with current property owner New York Waterway that had planned to use the land for boat repairs. The two parties agreed to a $18.5 million sale for the Union Dry Dock site, between Ninth and 10th streets, that the city will pay for through its Open Space Trust Fund and a separate bond. The Jersey Journal
Jersey City will now offer free medical exams and legal services for refugees and asylum seekers wanting to obtain Lawful Permanent Residence or ‘Green Card’ status. Jersey City’s Health and Human Services City Clinic will offer free medical exams, which is a requirement for those applying for a Green Card, and the HHS Division of Immigrant Affairs, the country’s only municipal office accredited by the U.S. Department of Justice to offer immigrants free legal services, will provide free help preparing an application. Hudson Reporter
And finally…Morristown swimmer Nic Fink qualified for the Olympics being held this Summer. NJ.com
