Murphy freezes $235M in spending, including $100M for distressed cities and millions for NJ colleges

Aid for New Jersey’s distressed cities, money for cancer and program and funding for four-year colleges are among the $235 million in budget items Gov. Phil Murphy is freezing until the state comes up with revenue to pay the bills, his administration announced Wednesday.

The Democratic governor explained Sunday, as he signed the $38.7 billion state budget into law, that he is taking this step to guarantee the state closes this fiscal year with about $1.3 billion in surplus. While these are programs and nonprofits he wants to fund, ones favored by Democrats, Murphy said, he isn’t sure the state can pay for them without dipping into that surplus.

Murphy froze programs in all corners of the state, including big ones in South Jersey, the home base of his political rival, state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester.

And while Murphy’s state Treasury Department said the list was rooted in fairness, Sweeney accused the governor of engaging in political retribution that goes beyond former Gov. Chris Christie’s now-famous Bridgegate scandal.

Read more: https://www.nj.com/politics/2019/07/murphy-freezes-235m-in-spending-including-100m-for-distressed-cities-and-millions-for-nj-colleges.html