While Oct. 18 was the day state workers were mandated to be vaccinated or face weekly testing, Gov. Phil Murphy surprisingly revealed not all workers had to immediately return to their offices. The Murphy Administration has decided on a more gradual roll out of returning employees to their offices. Some state employees did come back to the office Monday morning in different departments, while others will be phased in over the next month. “Like all other big steps taken (during the pandemic), this is not a straight line,” said Murphy. “We decided … to focus on (the bigger agencies) first, particularly on the ones that have a high customer-facing reality.” The bigger agencies Murphy referenced included the Motor Vehicle Commision, Department of Labor, and Department of Children and Family offices. Employees in Murphy’s office returned as well. North-JerseyNews.com
A group of New Jersey public workers allege in a new federal lawsuit that Gov. Phil Murphy’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate or submitting to regular testing violates their constitutional rights. The seven-count complaint, filed the same day as the deadline for state and school workers to be vaccinated, seeks to have Murphy’s order declared unconstitutional. The roughly two dozen plaintiffs argue they should be exempt from the directive for a host of reasons, including it violates their religious beliefs, conflicts with their vegan lifestyles, and causes them anxiety. New Jersey Monitor
RWJBarnabas Health terminated 118 employees for failing to comply with the health system’s deadline to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The company, which had set a deadline of Oct. 15 for all employees to get immunized, said 99.7% of its staff had been vaccinated, granted an exemption or deferral. “At RWJBarnabas Health, we have an ethical and professional responsibility to protect our patients and ensure a safe, COVID-19 free environment,” the statement said. “It is for that reason that we expanded our vaccine mandate to include all staff members and physicians, and established a deadline…for completion.” News12 New Jersey
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Nearly 80% of those eligible in New Jersey for a booster shot have not gotten one, according to state data. The low rate appears to have raised concerns among state officials, who publicly encouraged the 1.1 million eligible New Jerseyans to schedule a booster shot via a state website, even though many providers offer walk-in shots. Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said it was extremely important for seniors and those with compromised immune systems to get a COVID booster shot before the holidays, when indoor gatherings provide much easier transmission of the coronavirus. The Daily Record
The Food and Drug Administration reportedly is planning to allow Americans to receive a different COVID-19 vaccine as a booster than the one they initially received, a move that could reduce the appeal of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and provide flexibility to doctors and other vaccinators. The government would not recommend one shot over another, and it might note that using the same vaccine as a booster when possible is preferable. But vaccine providers could use their discretion to offer a different brand, a freedom that state health officials have been requesting for weeks. The Wall Street Journal
New Jersey’s Pension Fund is reporting its highest investment returns in two decades. Treasury’s Division of Investment reported that the state pension fund generated a final, unaudited return of 28.6% for the 12-month period ending June 30—a rate of return that far eclipses both any annual return on record for the last 20 years and the 7.3% statutory assumed rate of return for fiscal year 2021. The strong showing by the state’s pension fund came days before the state Department of Treasury announced increased revenue collections as New Jersey took in $4.6 billion in revenue from the major taxes for September, up $1.1 billion, or 31.6%, above September 2020. North-JerseyNews.com
New Jersey’s sports betting industry became the first in the country to take in more than a billion dollars’ worth of bets in a single month as football season sent more gamblers to sports books and their phones. Figures from the state Division of Gaming Enforcement show Atlantic City’s nine casinos and the three racetracks that take sports bets collectively took $1.01 billion worth of wagers on sports , in September, setting a new monthly record for both the state and the nation. Of that lofty total, over $82 million was kept by the casinos and tracks as revenue after winning bets and other expenses were paid. The Meadowlands Racetrack in East Rutherford accounted for half that total. NJ1015.com
Key Democratic negotiators in budget talks met face to face for the first time. In separate appointments, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) had private talks with Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), the chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, to discuss the plan and told reporters he met with Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), chairman of the Budget Committee, who has been particularly critical of Manchin’s views. The New York Times
Multiple protesters were arrested for trespassing at Rep. Josh Gottheimer’s home Oct. 18 as the congressman’s family members feared for their safety, according to a Gottheimer spokesperson. Eleven members of the Sunrise Bergen County, a self-described “youth movement” that has clashed with Gottheimer before, were detained by police on Oct. 18. The protestors accused the three-term Democratic lawmaker of compromising progressive goals and bowing to monied interests, most recently in budget talks. “Today, local law enforcement arrested several individuals for trespassing and refusing to leave Josh’s home,” said Gottheimer’s spokesperson. “Occupying a Congressman’s property crosses a line of basic decency.” The Record
Gov. Phil Murphy defended his maskless appearances at various events over the last two weeks. “I don’t think anyone in the state wears a mask indoors more than I do,” Murphy said at a press briefing Oct. 18. “When I speak, I take my mask off. I sat at a table … with people who I know were vaccinated. I got up and spoke, I had it on when I came in, and I put it on when I left.” The governor has been pictured at campaign events hosted by Garden State Equality and Monmouth County Democrats, both taking place indoors where pictures did not show masks being worn by attendees. New Jersey Globe
The state does not have to pay the owner of a shuttered kickboxing business in Sussex County losses arising from executive orders issued by Gov. Phil Murphy during the coronavirus pandemic, an appeals court ruled. A three-judge panel ruled that arguments made by Darlene Pallay were “without merit” when she claimed the governor violated her state and federal constitutional rights when the governor’s order closed the Franklin Borough business. She also unsuccessfully argued that when Murphy ordered non-essential businesses to close to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the governor failed to empanel emergency boards to award her money, as required under the Disaster Control Act. New Jersey Herald
New Jersey’s program to buyout flood-prone houses is being redesigned to include properties that are expected to flood in response to climate change as well as those that are already eligible for state purchase because of repeated flooding in the past. A new version of the Blue Acres program will add a proactive element to its existing policy which reacts to events like Tropical Storm Ida by buying and demolishing flood-prone properties whose owners have voluntarily offered them for sale to the state. Department of Environmental Protection Acting Commissioner Shawn LaTourette called the updated program “Blue Acres 3.0” because it’s a progression from the first version that began in the 1990s and the second one that sharply expanded the program after Superstorm Sandy in 2012. NJ Spotlight News
Teens and other student drivers who’ve been frustrated by a lack of appointments to take driver’s license knowledge tests at a state Motor Vehicle Commission agency will get another chance to make an appointment to be tested at Rowan College this weekend. MVC officials announced that a limited number of driver knowledge tests will be administered at Rowan College at Burlington County on Saturday, Oct. 23, by appointment only. Rowan is the second off-site facility that the MVC has worked with to stem the high demand by first time drivers for testing and permits since a pilot program was conducted last month at Passaic County Community College. NJ.com
A bipartisan bill signed into law that prohibits police departments from using the number of tickets issued or arrests made by officers in their performance evaluations. “Not only is it unfair to factor the volume of citations and arrests into an officer’s performance evaluation when we did away with quotas decades ago, but there are much more effective performance measurements like decision-making abilities, response times and work ethic,” said Assemblyman Hal Wirths (R-24), a co-sponsor of the bill. “This law allows our dedicated police officers to focus on protecting and serving the public.” North-JerseyNews.com
Less than two months after stepping down due to stress, a former Englewood Cliffs deputy municipal clerk has been rehired by the borough. Laura Borchers, rehired by the borough, resigned on Aug. 27 after about four months on the job due to being “under immense stress and pressure” since taking the post, and after consulting her doctor she decided “it was time to take care” of her mental and physical health. When Borchers was hired by the borough for the first time, in April, it was for one year at a salary of $70,000; she is now being brought back for a three-year posting at $75,000 per year. The Record
The Hoboken Business Alliance launched a mural arts program Oct. 18 with the unveiling of a seven-story mural that features city founder John Stevens. The 70-by-45-foot mural, by world-renowned artist Beau Stanton, at the corner of Newark and Hudson streets, depicts Hoboken’s founder Stevens peering through the Tiffany-stained glass that intermingles with the beaux-arts ornamentation prominently featured in the Hoboken Terminal. Hudson Reporter
And finally…More hints from The Boss himself point to a Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band tour coming in 2022. NJ.com
