Legislative Director, NJ
Amy Crawford
dslnj@cbyca.org
Governor Sherrill presented her first budget to the joint NJ legislature on March 10. In her $60 billion proposal, the Governor proposed to spend $1.7 billion than the State will take in through fees and taxes. Her budget removes legislative funding additions and cuts to a property tax relief program. Her proposal would leave NJ’s surplus at $5.4 billion.
The changes to the property tax relief program, which reduces Senior Citizens property tax bills by 50%, include reducing the maximum amount from $6,500 to $4,000, and cutting the income eligibility cap from $500,000 to $250,000.
Her budget would put a temporary cap on the amount businesses may deduct from their taxes as a loss at $1 million; another change limits the alternative business deduction calculation based on a business’s pre-income tax. A third change would impose a per-employee fee on businesses with 50 employees or more in NJFamily Care (NJ Medicaid). The fee would be $325 to $725, based on the number of employees.
The Governor’s budget proposes about $2.4 billion in cuts to existing items. About $700 million of that are items in the current budget that were not due to recur. NJ’s four-year colleges would see a $136.4 million reduction in operating support.
The next step in the budget process is for the Governor’s plan to go to lawmakers, who will host budget hearings over the next several months. Lawmakers will send their own budget plan back to the Governor for her signature, or her veto. The State must have a budget in place.
Of the 19 boating related bills pre-filed on January 13, 2026, only one bill has moved: A1318/S309, which requires Department of Environmental Protection to provide public access for boats to certain State-and county-owned lakes and reservoirs.* It was Introduced, Referred to Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee on 1/13/26. On 2/19/26 it was reported out of Asm. Comm. with Amendments, and Referred to Assembly Appropriations Committee for a fiscal estimate. On 3/5/26 The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) estimated that this bill would result in a State expenditure increase between $900,000 and $3.6 million within two years following enactment for the Department of Environmental Protection to provide for the construction of public boat access to State- and county-owned lakes and reservoirs, as well as to identify the lakes and reservoirs at which it is not feasible to construct public boat access.