Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is in Washington to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House and address a joint session of Congress Dec. 21, seeking support to counter Russia’s invasion. Zelensky’s visit, his first trip abroad since the start of Russia’s February invasion, is taking place at the invitation of President Biden who first discussed the idea in a phone call he had with the Ukrainian leader on Dec. 11. The visit comes after U.S. lawmakers unveiled a spending bill that carries an additional $44.9 billion in aid to help Ukraine and North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies. The Wall Street Journal
The Internal Revenue Service failed to audit former President Donald J. Trump during his first two years in office despite a program that makes the auditing of sitting presidents mandatory, a House committee revealed on Dec. 20. Trump filed returns in 2017 for the two previous tax years, but the I.R.S. began auditing those filings only in 2019—the first on the same day in April the Ways and Means Committee requested access to his taxes and any associated audits. The I.R.S. has yet to complete those audits, it said, and the agency started auditing his filings covering his income while President only after he left office. The New York Times
Passaic Public Schools are requiring masks starting today due to rising COVID-19 cases. Superintendent Sandra M. Diodonet told parents that, under a school board policy, masks are required “during periods of a High Activity Level” of COVID-19 as documented by the state health department. “Therefore, effective Wednesday, December 21, 2022, all employees, Pre-K through grade 12 students, and visitors are required to wear face coverings in all district facilities, school grounds, and buses,” Diodonet wrote in a letter. NJ1015.com
New Jersey health officials reported 2,207 new COVID-19 cases and 28 confirmed deaths on Dec. 20, the highest number of fatalities reported on a single day since Feb. 16. There were 1,457 patients with confirmed or suspected coronavirus cases reported across the state’s 71 hospitals. Of those hospitalized, 170 are in intensive care and 47 are on ventilators. The statewide rate of transmission was 1.10. NJ.com
According to State Sen. Michael Testa (R-1) Christmas came earlier this year for hand-picked recipients who shared in hundreds of millions of dollars stemming from the state budget adopted in June. Testa argued that Gov. Phil Murphy’s recent budgets were skyrocketing in costs and allowing for more pork projects in recent years. “Santa Murphy has established a new standard in gifting, handing out multi-million-dollar packages to friends, mostly in North Jersey, like candy canes. Taxpayers, and those without direct connections to the front office in Trenton, have had to settle for stockings full of coal,” said Testa. North-JerseyNews.com
Jessica Ramirez and John Allen have reportedly won the backing of the Hudson County Democratic organization to run for two Assembly seats in 2023 on a ticket headed by current Assemblyman Raj Mukherji (D-33) for the 32nd legislative district. Ramirez is Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop’s choice, while Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla chose Allen, his former chief of staff, over current Assemblywoman Annette Chaparro (D-33). New Jersey Globe
Assemblyman Ralph Caputo (D-28) will pursue reelection in 2023. “I have every intention of running, and of seeking and pursuing the support of the Essex County Democratic Committee,” said Caputo, a Nutley resident. Due to redistricting, Caputo will resurface next year in the 34th District, where the Essex County Democratic Committee intends to support Assemblywoman Britnee Timberlake (D-34) to succeed a redistricted State Sen. Nia Gill (D-34). InsiderNJ.com
The New Jersey Turnpike Authority commissioners approved a funding agreement to make billions of dollars in annual loan payments to finance the Gateway Hudson River rail tunnel project. Under the unanimously approved agreement, the state treasurer will make an annual $124 million loan payment on behalf of the state for its share of the $16 billion project to build two new rail tunnels under the Hudson River and to rehabilitate the existing 112-year-old tunnels. NJ.com
Paying for the cleanup of the Passaic River took another key step recently. The U.S. Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on Dec. 16 that a proposed consent decree with 85 potentially responsible parties, requiring them to pay a total of $150 million to support the cleanup work and resolve their liability for discharging hazardous substances into the Lower Passaic River, which is part of the Diamond Alkali Superfund Site. Rep. Bill Pascrell said he will be reviewing the consent decree “with a fine-toothed comb” as he has concerns that costly and lengthy litigation might further delay the restoration of the river. North-JerseyNews.com
State law that would guarantee severance protection for some workers, stalled for more than two years by the pandemic, may soon finally go into effect. The State Senate earlier this week approved a bill that would make the law go into effect immediately with Gov. Phil Murphy’s signature. The law requires businesses to notify workers affected by layoffs 90 days before they go into effect—up from 60 days—and provide those workers with a week of severance per year of employment. The severance protections were inspired by the plight of thousands of Toys R Us workers laid off following the retail giant’s 2018 bankruptcy. New Jersey Monitor
New Jersey is adding another $5 million to a program meant to help both struggling restaurants and hungry residents. The program, called Sustain and Serve NJ, was born during the pandemic to help eateries that had to shut down or limit operations for months on end, but has since proved popular. Under Sustain and Serve, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority awards grants to local nonprofits, which in turn buy meals in bulk from restaurants hit hard by the pandemic, donating them to residents who need food. The Daily Record
According to a Rutgers Eagleton Poll, 71% of New Jersey residents support some degree of healthcare for all New Jerseyans, regardless of age or employment status. Additionally, 93% of New Jersey residents who support expanding the federally mandated Medicare program are in favor of moving ahead with a statewide program in providing basic healthcare coverage to all state residents, instead of waiting for the federal government to expand its own program. The poll found expanding healthcare within the Garden State is supported equally by all residents regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, income, education and age but differences in political identification. North-JerseyNews.com
New Jersey may soon require community violence prevention services be covered by Medicaid, a help to people who have survived gun violence in their community and are now struggling with the lingering impact of that violence. A bill passed by the State Senate committee would require Medicaid coverage for survivors of community violence who have been referred by a doctor, nurse, physician assistant, licensed clinical social worker or counselor to receive community violence prevention services from a certified violence prevention professional. The referral from the health care and social service provider would come if they determined that the survivor is at risk of more violent injury or retaliation. NJ Spotlight News
A pre-trial hearing on the status of discovery evidence and other details related to the hit-and-run charges against Jersey City Councilwoman Amy DeGise has been scheduled for Jan. 10, 2023 in the Essex County Special Remand Court. DeGise is charged with two motor vehicle summonses, leaving the scene of an accident and failure to report an accident, in the July 19 incident in which a man making a food delivery at 8 a.m. was struck by DeGise’s SUV at the intersection of Martin Luther King Drive and Forrest Street. The Jersey Journal
Lori Ciesla is slated to become the first woman in 22 years to lead the Warren County Board of Commissioners when county government reorganizes in January. A former Lopatcong council president, Ciesla was elected to the freeholder board in 2020 and then defeated Democrat Theresa Bender Chapman by 12,348 votes, 60%-39%, in the general election. The last woman to lead county government in Warren was Democrat Ann Stone, who held the post in 2000 and then lost her seat to Republican Michael Doherty. New Jersey Globe
The Mahwah Town Council is considering a proposal to ban non-commercial signs—political ones and others, like real estate signs—in public rights of way. The sign ordinance cites “increasing instances where individuals place signs in Township rights-of-way without receiving approval” as the reason for the proposal. The impact, says the ordinance, is “degrading the aesthetic environment by littering public and private property, and blocking sight lines at intersections.” The Record
Jersey City’s municipal hall is being refurbished inside and out, and city officials have announced a one-acre park in front to create open space and a sense of community. Mayor Steve Fulop and the Department of Infrastructure announced the plans to build a four sided perimeter park last week, which includes plans to build out an unoccupied fourth floor space to add employee offices and conference rooms for the newly created Department of Infrastructure. Hudson Reporter
Elon Musk said he would resign as Twitter’s chief executive when he found “someone foolish enough to take the job,” two days after he had asked his 122 million Twitter followers whether he should step down as the leader of the social media site. Musk tweeted that he planned to resign after finding a successor as chief executive. “After that, I will just run the software & servers teams,” he said. Musk had said he would abide by the result, and more than 57% of the 17.5 million users that voted agreed that he should step down. The New York Times
And finally…The New York Mets overnight signed free agent Carlos Correa to a 12-year, $315 million deal. The Record
