MORRIS COUNTY — Keeping with the nation’s oldest rivalry, Assemblyman Ryan Peters, a U.S. Naval Academy graduate will be shaving the head of Assemblyman Brian Bergen, a West Point graduate, at his legislative district office in Lumberton on Friday.

Chalk one up for Midshipmen after Bergen lost an early summer bet. The Morris County lawmaker bet that a bill he introduced (A4147) to limit Gov. Phil Murphy’s executive order authority would pass the state legislature before September 1, but it did not.

The measure would have required the full state legislature to vote on any of the governor’s executive orders within two weeks or else the order would expire.

“In theory, this should’ve been a bipartisan bill that puts the power back in the hands of the people and the legislators they voted for to represent them. All this would have done is bring back the system of checks and balances our founding fathers created,” Peters (R-Burlington) said.

“But the Democrat legislators are obviously intent on sitting back and letting the governor make every decision for them and everyone else in the state for six months and counting. I was fairly certain that would be the case,” he continued.

“I made a bet expecting good policy that enforces checks-and-balances would triumph over politics,” said Bergen (R-Morris).  “Unfortunately, that isn’t the case in New Jersey where Democrats view checks-and-balances as obstruction of power instead of a fundamental American principle.  Next time I will take a safer bet, like who will win the Army versus Navy football game this year!”

Bergen will stop by Peters’ office on 668 Main Street in Lumberton at 9:30 a.m. on Friday, September 4. Peters will shave his head with a straight razor and shaving cream.

“The Democrat legislators in this state had a chance to join Republicans and choose democracy over a monarchy, and they went with the latter,” Peters said. “Now we’re going to go through with our bet to highlight how absurd this New Jersey monarchy has become.”

MORRIS COUNTY — Drivers will pay an extra 9.3 cents per gallon on gasoline and diesel fuel when the gas tax is raised on October 1, the state treasurer announced.

The gas tax will increase — from 30.9 cents to 40.2 cents for gasoline and 34.9 cents to 44.2 cents for diesel fuel — to generate enough money to support the state’s Transportation Trust Fund under a 2016 law signed by former Governor Chris Christie. The increase will ensure compliance with the 2016 law that requires a steady stream of revenue to support the state’s Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) program

After Governor Phil Murphy announced a stay-at-home order in March and closed nonessential businesses to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, residents spent less on gasoline and fuel. The Treasury Department estimated that gasoline consumption declined 38.7% from March to May, and diesel fuel declined by 16.5%.

Under the 2016 law signed by former Governor Chris Christie, New Jersey’s TTF program is required to provide $16 billion over eight years to support infrastructure improvements to the state’s roadways and bridges. As a means of guaranteeing that the state has the necessary funds to support these projects, the law outlines that the Petroleum Products Gross Receipt (PPGR) tax rate must be adjusted accordingly to generate about $2 billion annually.

MORRIS COUNTY — The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development submitted an application to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for Lost Wages Supplemental Assistance (LWA), which provides limited additional benefits to many of the state’s unemployed workers.

LWA allows for temporary supplemental financial support to those whose jobs or wages have been adversely affected by COVID-19. LWA provides up to $300 per week to eligible individuals, in addition to the weekly benefit amount they receive from other unemployment compensation programs.

In New Jersey, the first tranche of the federal grant would provide up to $300 per week to claimants collecting unemployment for the weeks of August 1, August 8, and August 15. Only people whose unemployment is COVID-related are eligible, under terms of the memorandum the President issued on August 8. Additionally, those receiving less than $100 in weekly unemployment benefits are excluded from the supplemental benefit.

“We are looking into every option to ensure that every single penny will be in pockets of countless New Jersey families seeking benefits,” said Governor Murphy. “However, even as we do this, we still need the federal government to reauthorize the $600 federal unemployment benefit to ensure that we provide the financial security desperately needed during this pandemic.”

“We will always do whatever we can to get more money into the pockets of our unemployed workers,” said Labor Commissioner Robert Asaro-Angelo. “But, it’s important to note that this is not an extension of the successful federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program, which provided an extra $600 to everyone receiving unemployment. LWA will end as soon as the funds dry up, it excludes some of our lowest-wage earners and part-time workers, and, perhaps most importantly, adds another layer of red tape that workers in need have to cut through.”

Of the states that have applied, 93 percent have sought grants at the $300 level, which the federal government pays, rather than kick in an extra $100, which would have cost New Jersey approximately $80 million a week.

As of Tuesday, FEMA had approved 28 states’ applications for $300 payments and 2 states’ applications for $400 payments. One state, South Dakota, has declined to participate.

This new program must be created from scratch, and run separately from New Jersey’s existing state and federal unemployment programs. This is not something New Jersey or any state will be able to do quickly or easily.

“This is not the answer for unemployed workers around the country who have been hit hard and fast by COVID-19. It is our hope that Congress extends the $600 supplement so that workers, especially those in high cost-of-living states like ours, can keep food on the table and a roof over their heads until we can get beyond COVID and they can get back on their feet,” Asaro-Angelo said.

The FEMA grant has a spending cap of $44 billion. Once the allocation is exhausted, benefits will end. Thus, states must reapply after the first three weeks, giving FEMA the opportunity to calculate the program’s remaining balance after the first round of grants. The program also would be halted if FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund balance drops below $25 billion.