N.J. Gov. Murphy pledges to help struggling families in State of the State address. GOP says he’s overspending

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New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivered his latest State of the State address Tuesday, reviewing past accomplishments, including raising the minimum wage, and unveiling his priorities for the next 12 months to create what he described as a stronger and fairer Garden State.

The Democratic governor said his top priority is delivering economic security and opportunity to every New Jerseyan, which is why his administration has provided billions of dollars in property tax relief through the ANCHOR program.

He announced starting this year, as part of first lady Tammy Murphy’s Nurture NJ initiative, a new paid parental leave policy will go into effect for tens of thousands of state workers.

“This will ensure that these workers can continue earning a full salary while caring for a newborn during one of the most crucial stages of development,” he said.

Murphy stressed “while we are providing this new benefit to our state’s public sector workers, we hope that it will become a new norm for all of our state’s workers, in every sector and every industry.”

He also called on lawmakers to reform the state’s zoning and permitting laws to make it easier to build new housing.

“By cutting red tape and easing outdated restrictions, we can build potentially thousands of new, affordable housing units over the next decade,” he said.

The governor said many Garden State residents have expressed concern about Republican President-elect Donald Trump being sworn in. He said once it happens, “I will never back away from partnering with the Trump administration where our priorities align.”

He also promised “just as importantly, I will never back down from defending our New Jersey values — if and when they are tested.”

Murphy announced a continued effort to expand full-day pre-K for all kids, updated driver education programs to make the roads safer and voiced support for a new proposal to ban cell phones in public school classrooms.

“If you ask just about any educator, they will tell you that mobile devices are a distraction in the classroom, they are fueling a rise in cyberbullying,” he said.

Murphy said cell phones are making it difficult for kids not only to learn, but to retain the substance of what they learn.

“Honestly, is it any surprise that the rise in smartphone usage has coincided with a growing youth mental health crisis?” the governor asked.

“Every parent knows the damage that these devices can cause. Enough is enough. It is time for action,” he said.

The governor called on legislators to pass a measure to expand public contracting opportunities for minority businesses, to support a proposed measure that will scrap out-of-pocket costs for abortion procedures, to green-light a bill to allow same-day voter registration and to pass legislation to allow New Jerseyans to obtain mobile driver’s licenses on their smartphones.

Murphy also voiced support for pending legislation that will reform penalties for technical parole violations. He said many other states, including deep red states like Louisiana and South Carolina, have already done this.

“By enacting these reforms, we can uphold our responsibility to restore trust in our criminal justice system — and our system of government, more broadly,” he said.

During his speech he also called on Republicans and Democrats to support a wide range of policies designed to help working families.

“This is about paying what we promised, supporting our most vulnerable, and lifting up our families,” he said.

He ended his speech by proclaiming “We don’t try, we triumph. We don’t waiver, we win. And we don’t settle, we soar. We are going to show the world that New Jersey is the state where big dreams come true. We’re from Jersey, baby. We never slow down. And together, we are going to run through the tape.”

Many Jersey Republicans gave a thumbs down on the governor’s speech, including state Senate leader Tony Bucco.

He said Democrats usually will not work with Republicans to lower costs for families.

“More and more people are living paycheck to paycheck. If we don’t get this affordability crisis under control, we’re going to be in real trouble,” he said. “The revenues are not coming in like they were projected to, and the federal [COVID] money is gone. This is where the rubber is going to meet the road.”

Assembly GOP minority leader John DiMaio said there are many ways to save money for taxpayers and too much is being spent by Democrats on programs that are not essential.

“We could properly fund education and make sure property taxpayers were helped, but they don’t want to hear it,” he said. “They want to keep growing government bigger and broader and wider, and eventually it gets kicked back to the locals, and it hits property taxes.”

Murphy will deliver his state budget address in six weeks.