TRENTON — Governor Mikie Sherrill announced that New Jersey has established a statewide system intended to ensure veterans experiencing a housing crisis can quickly access stable housing and support services.

The milestone was reached through the Bringing Veterans Home initiative, a coordinated effort involving the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, the Department of Veterans Affairs, federal agencies and veterans service organizations.

State officials said the initiative has created enough permanent housing capacity for veterans to enter stable housing faster than new homelessness cases occur. The program is designed to make veteran homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring across New Jersey.

“No veteran in our state should endure the hardship of homelessness,” Sherrill said. “We are proud that New Jersey is a leader in ending veteran homelessness, and we stand ready to serve as a model for other states on this critical issue.”

Bringing Veterans Home launched in November 2024 with more than $30 million in state and federal funding committed over two years. Since its launch, the state has helped permanently house more than 2,500 veterans, including eligible members of active-duty and reserve components.

Six regional coordination hubs have also been established across New Jersey to improve access to housing assistance and standardize services for veterans experiencing or at risk of homelessness. Each hub is managed by a social service organization specializing in homelessness intervention.

Available resources include Veterans Affairs Supported Housing vouchers, State Rental Assistance Program vouchers, HOME program assistance, Supportive Services for Veterans and Families, rapid rehousing, street outreach and emergency shelter.

“If a New Jersey veteran experiences a housing crisis, Bringing Veterans Home is the backstop preventing full-scale homelessness,” Department of Community Affairs Commissioner Jacquelyn A. Suárez said. “Our work is more than housing placement. It is about long-term stability.”

Veterans can refer themselves to the program through its online form, by contacting NJ Vet2Vet or NJ 211, by visiting an affiliated housing provider or by speaking with a Bringing Veterans Home street outreach team. Community partners and existing service providers may also submit referrals.

The program requires veterans to be contacted within 24 hours of a referral and establishes a goal of securing stable housing within 30 days of the initial contact. Staff members assess each veteran’s housing needs, identify potential barriers and develop an individualized placement plan.

Property owners interested in participating in the initiative may contact the Department of Community Affairs at (609) 376-0811. Additional information and referral resources are available at bvh.dca.nj.gov.

NEWARK — Governor Mikie Sherrill signed the Fair Price Protection Act into law, protecting New Jersey shoppers from discriminatory surveillance pricing. The law prevents businesses from using personal information, such as online activity, location or purchasing history, to charge different prices for identical products based on what an algorithm predicts a shopper is willing or able to pay.

“New Jersey families are already feeling the pressure of higher costs,” Sherrill said in a statement. “The last thing they need is companies secretly using their personal data to charge them more than someone else for the exact same product. This law puts New Jersey shoppers first by protecting their privacy and ensuring fairness in pricing.”

Attorney General Jennifer Davenport said the price shoppers pay at the grocery store should be based on the cost of a product, not on what invasive data collection suggests they may be willing to pay, and that her office is committed to enforcing the new law.

Surveillance pricing uses consumer data, often gathered through large-scale data collection and artificial intelligence, to set prices for individual shoppers. While retailers have long adjusted prices based on market conditions, surveillance pricing allows them to tailor prices based on the characteristics of individual shoppers, often without their knowledge.

The Fair Price Protection Act prohibits retailers from using personal data to set individualized prices on groceries and other necessities, but does not ban loyalty programs or discounts. It also places a one-year moratorium on new use of electronic shelf labels while the New Jersey Innovation Authority studies the technology’s effects, though existing labels may still be used, repaired or replaced.

“Surveillance pricing is an abuse of modern technology where artificial intelligence is used to set different prices for different customers,” said Senator Joe Cryan, a Democrat representing Union County. “Consumers are being hurt at a time when families are already struggling to pay their bills.”

Assemblyman Onyema, a Democrat representing Essex and Union counties, said the law establishes clear protections to ensure that pricing is based on the product being sold rather than on data collected about the buyer.

Ademola Oyefeso, international vice president of the United Food and Commercial Workers union, praised the law’s moratorium on electronic shelf labels as an important step to ensure the technology does not harm shoppers or workers, noting large grocery chains nationwide are rushing to adopt it.

The Fair Price Protection Act complements the Sherrill administration’s recent actions on junk fees and algorithmic rent-setting, establishing guardrails for emerging technologies while protecting shoppers from discriminatory pricing practices based on their personal information.

TRENTON — Senator Joe Pennacchio (R-Morris, Passaic) called on Governor Mikie Sherrill to fully cooperate with federal authorities investigating New Jersey’s noncitizen voter registration issue and to support legislative efforts to hold those responsible accountable.

On a recent episode of “Ask Governor Sherrill,” the governor dismissed calls for a bipartisan select committee with subpoena power as a witch hunt and again described the issue as a software error. IDEMIA, the vendor responsible for the Motor Vehicle Commission’s software, has said the automatic voter registration of noncitizens was a setting approved by New Jersey officials.

“This is a stunning revelation from IDEMIA that demands accountability from Murphy administration officials. The Governor stated this situation requires answers, but those answers will not come from wasting taxpayer dollars, dismissing legitimate questions from lawmakers as a witch hunt, or obsessing over the President. New Jerseyans deserve to know the full scope of this administrative malpractice. Is the state-led investigation examining only the so-called software error or is it looking into broader concerns raised by IDEMIA, the 75,000 or more noncitizens reportedly summoned for jury duty every year, and the significant discrepancy between the state’s 6,600 figure and the Department of Homeland Security’s estimate of 35,000 noncitizens on our voter rolls? That is why I called on the U.S. Attorney to expand its investigation and ensure every possible avenue is being pursued. Taxpayers deserve an investigation that follows the facts wherever they lead, not one limited by partisan convenience,” said Senator Pennacchio.

Last week, Pennacchio called on Assistant U.S. Attorney Harmeet Dhillon to expand the investigation after reports that 75,000 noncitizens are summoned for jury duty each year in New Jersey.

During the episode, Sherrill dismissed the jury duty concerns, as reported by Insider NJ, noting that various state databases are used to compile the state’s jury pool.

“The Governor offered to ‘educate’ me, but the facts already did. Here’s a refresher: the Administrative Office of the Courts confirmed that jury lists are compiled using records from the Division of Elections, MVC, and the Division of Taxation. The simple fact is that the same state systems contributed to multiple government functions, and this scandal proves those systems deserve scrutiny. Instead of lecturing lawmakers, the Governor should focus on providing answers,” Pennacchio said.

TRENTON — The Sherrill Administration released $165 million in Fiscal Year 2027 County Aid to fund infrastructure improvements on the local level. The program is funded through the New Jersey Transportation Trust Fund.

“Every New Jerseyan deserves safe roads, reliable bridges, and modern infrastructure. This investment gives counties the resources they need to repair the transportation networks that families, commuters, and businesses rely on every day. We are partnering with county leaders to deliver reliable travel, support economic growth, and keep New Jersey moving forward,” said Governor Mikie Sherrill.

“Governor Sherrill and the New Jersey Department of Transportation are committed to ensuring New Jersey’s entire transportation network is safe, reliable, and modern, whether you are on a state highway or on county or municipal roads and bridges. County Aid provides millions of dollars to ensure our local infrastructure is maintained in a state of good repair without burdening local taxes,” said New Jersey Department of Transportation Commissioner Priya Jain.

The state’s twenty-one counties, including Morris County, will share the total $165 million through the County Aid program, which helps maintain roads and bridges under county jurisdiction for the thousands of motorists who count on them each day.

County Aid was increased by $15 million in Fiscal Year 2027. On March 26, 2024, legislation was signed to renew the state’s Transportation Trust Fund for five more years. With that renewal, funding for Local Aid programs to counties and municipalities will increase by $15 million for the County Aid program this fiscal year.

County Aid funds are apportioned based on population and road mileage in each county, and each county selects the projects that receive funding. Counties are required to submit eligible projects, identified in the county’s annual Transportation Program, to the New Jersey Department of Transportation for approval prior to December 1. State law requires counties be informed of their allotments for the current fiscal year by July 31 to help them better plan future projects.

Morris County’s specific allotment was not broken out in the state’s release. A full county-by-county list is available from the New Jersey Department of Transportation.