NJ court: Governor can’t abolish housing agency yet

New Jersey’s Supreme Court says Gov. Chris Christie cannot abolish the state’s Council on Affordable Housing on his own — at least not until a later court decision.

The court issued an order Monday denying the governor’s request to stay an appellate court ruling from March. That lower-court ruling, which stands for now, found that it was illegal for the governor to unilaterally eliminate the affordable-housing agency.
The court could still overturn the ruling, but only after accepting briefs and hearing arguments from the two sides.

The Council on Affordable Housing was established by lawmakers to enforce court rulings that found New Jersey towns have to provide the opportunity for low- and moderate-income people to live in them.