Skip to main content

No timeline yet on liquor licensing reform

Your afternoon must-read briefing informing the daily conversation among knowledgeable New Jerseyans.
Apr 29, 2022 View in browser
 
Newsletter email logo for New Jersey Playbook PM

By Jonathan Custodio

Gov. Phil Murphy wants liquor licensing reform. He's just not sure when that will begin.

The governor's administration has spoken to lawmakers about the process though he remains uncertain about its timeline, emphasizing that reform should be done "responsibly."

"I don't [have a timeline]. We've spoken to lawmakers, we've started to engage more broadly. I'm a supporter of it, as long as it's done right. And done right means that it's responsible in the treatment of the folks who currently have those licenses," Murphy told reporters in Marlboro today after making an announcement regarding motor vehicle threats with Acting Attorney General Matt Platkin. "But when you look at other states and localities that have done liquor license reform, it's a game changer for Main Street economies."

Murphy expressed interest in lifting restrictions and reforming the liquor licensing system last week during WNYC's "Ask Governor Murphy" program, where he also noted a concern in ensuring fairness for businesses that have already purchased their licenses.

The state imposes caps on liquor licenses. They are awarded based on the population of a municipality, making licenses more expensive and tallying hefty six-figure sums.

Murphy didn't elaborate on which lawmakers his administration has spoken to or when a timeline can be expected, though during his WNYC appearance he said there would need to be a "runaway of time" to reform the liquor licensing system.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING — Republican redistricting Chair Doug Steinhardt has asked independent tiebreaker John Wallace Jr. to release all the data provided by the Princeton Gerrymandering Project, reports New Jersey Globe's David Wildstein.

The request from the former GOP state chairman follows a Princeton University probe into Sam Wang, one of its professors and an adviser to Wallace Jr., after members of staff alleged he manipulated data to favor Democrats and mistreated employees.

"If the data turns out to have been falsified, you should join us in petitioning the Supreme Court to invalidate the current congressional map," he said via email. Meanwhile, Democratic members of the redistricting commission held a meeting Thursday night on the allegations of partisanship against Wang.

COVID NUMBERS — New Jersey today reported 2,633 confirmed positive Covid-19 tests and six deaths from the virus. The state's seven-day average was up 20 percent from a week ago and 141 percent from a month ago.

ON THE BEATS

GRAND THEFT AUTO: NEW JERSEY — The governor and the acting attorney general announced a $10 million investment in license plate recognition technology during a press conference in Marlboro today.

The funding, derived from the federal American Rescue Plan State Fiscal Recovery Fund, is meant to curb motor vehicle thefts and violent crime through high-speed, automated camera systems that will be installed at fixed locations throughout the state and mounted on mobile units, according to a press release. Law enforcement agencies will be able to access images in a centralized database.

"The alarming uptick we are seeing in vehicle theft is unacceptable, and our administration is making investments to combat these occurrences statewide," Murphy said. "To aid law enforcement in this endeavor, an investment in ALPR technology will provide them with the tools they need to reduce these incidents and make our communities safer."

CASINO SMOKING BAN — Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. opposes legislation to ban indoor smoking in casinos.

"I'm against it," Small said when asked by POLITICO Thursday whether he supports legislative efforts in Trenton to outlaw lighting up in gambling arenas. "We had a perfect example of … banning smoking in a casino with the former Revel," Small said, in reference to the $2.4 billion facility that closed in 2014. Revel had been Atlantic City's only smoke-free casino, but reversed course after facing a myriad of financial issues. Small did not respond to requests for further comment.

The mayor's objection is notable as efforts in Trenton to ban indoor casino smoking gain momentum. New Jersey barred nearly all businesses from indoor smoking in a landmark 2006 law, but gave casinos as a carveout.

Legislation to eliminate the exception was dormant for years, but has recently seen a surge of co-sponsors supporting the bill, NJ S264 (22R)/ A2151 (22R). The governor has said he would support the move.

The casino industry has strongly opposed the measure, saying it could be detrimental to the local economy and Atlantic City's gambling facilities, putting them at a competitive disadvantage to a handful of Eastern Pennsylvania betting operations that allow indoor smoking.

The largest union in the area representing casino workers, Unite Here Local 54, also gave the measure a thumbs down, citing similar economic concerns. — Daniel Han

LABOR The New Jersey Department of Labor has updated its Unemployment Insurance application. The updates were done with the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL), U.S. Digital Service (USDS), NJDOL's Division of Information Technology and the New Jersey Office of Innovation.

DOL says these changes allow workers to apply easily from a mobile phone and increase accessibility for residents who are using screen readers or other assistive technologies. More changes are imminent, including re-wording of the application questions. Katherine Landergan

Around New Jersey

"Push for pay increase: Shortage of aides hurts quality of life for disabled N.J. residents," by The Record's Gene Myers: "Advocates for New Jerseyans with disabilities and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle continued their push this week for higher wages for the home health aides who make daily life possible for some of the state's most medically fragile residents.

"During Wednesday's Department of Human Services budget hearing, Assemblywoman Carol Murphy, D-Burlington, said she has been 'bombarded' by families pleading for help as staff shortages affect quality of life for thousands of state residents with developmental disabilities.

"Murphy used the hearing to rally support for home aides — known in the industry as direct support professionals, or DSPs — who assist with daily needs, including bathing, clothing and feeding around the clock. It's a grueling task for which they are underpaid, advocates said."

"'Big oil is ripping off the American people,' Pallone says in announcing bill to target industry," by NJ Advance Media's Jonathan D. Salant: "With the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline up 44 percent in a year, Rep. Frank PalloneJr.joined other congressional Democratic leaders Thursday in announcing new legislation that would increase government oversight of the oil industry.

"Pallone, chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, joined House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Commerce Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., in blaming the industry for the rise in gas prices to an average of $4.141 for a gallon of regular fuel from $2.885 a year ago, according to AAA."

"NJ immigrant fund has distributed $18M," by WNYC News' Karen Yi: "Six months after New Jersey launched a fund for immigrants excluded from other forms of pandemic aid, only about 20 percent of applicants have received their checks, and thousands more are awaiting approval, state officials said.

"The state Department of Human Services, which is overseeing the Excluded New Jerseyans Fund, said $18.1 million has been distributed to about 8,000 applicants. Another 28,000 applications are pending review or missing paperwork, DHS spokeswoman Eva Loayza-McBride said. Four hundred were denied."

"New poll shows majority of N.J. residents experiencing mental health issues," by NJ Advance Media's Brianna Kudisch: "A new poll released Friday showed a majority of New Jersey adults or someone they know has experienced mental health issues, and the problems have gotten worse during the pandemic.

"Out of 640 respondents in the state, 58 percent reported that they or someone close to them has experienced mental health issues, according to the poll taken by the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University. Thirty-nine percent said they have not and 2 percent said they were unsure."

Odds and ends

— This nonagenarian climbs New Jersey's tallest lighthouse every week. 

An ATM was yanked from a Middlesex County bank.

— Cumberland County is paying a corrections officer $315,000 to settle a wrongful termination lawsuit.

 

Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family

Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  California Playbook PM  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  New York Playbook PM

View all our political and policy newsletters

Follow us

Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Instagram Listen on Apple Podcast
 

To change your alert settings, please log in at https://www.politico.com/_login?base=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.politico.com/settings

This email was sent to rouf@idiot.cloudns.cc by: POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA

Please click here and follow the steps to unsubscribe.

Comments

Popular Posts

The costs of Healey's budget cuts

Lisa Kashinsky and Kelly Garrity's must-read rundown of what's up on Beacon Hill and beyond. Jan 09, 2024 View in browser   By Kelly Garrity and Lisa Kashinsky MAKING ENDS MEET — Gov. Maura Healey’s plan to slash $375 million from the state budget to help plug a $1 billion revenue hole came as something of a surprise after she initially said she had no plans to scale back spending. But some budget watchers say the move to control costs was inevitable — and that the governor...

📷 Zaib Khan added a new photo

  See the photo that he shared.           Facebook                 📷 Zaib Khan added a new photo. 16 October at 20:23   View Photo       Abdul Karim Jam likes this.             This message was sent to ludomallam@idiot.cloudns.cc . If you don't want to receive these emails from Facebook in the future, please unsubscribe . Facebook, Inc., Attention: Community Support, 1 Facebook Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025         To help keep your account secure, please don't forward this email. Learn more.      

U.S. Cyber Command and NSA partner to shield midterms from hackers / Global ransomware damages set to exceed $30B / India's newest airline could have leaked customer data

Plus: Microsoft Azure Virtual Machines have suffered an outage Inside.com Part of   Network August 30, 2022 Presented by The U.S. Cyber Command has partnered with the NSA to shield midterm elections from hackers. The two federal agencies made the announcement in a joint statement. More: The two agencies have  created a joint task force named the Election Security Group. Officials from the NSA and U.S. Cyber Command have stated that the group comprises the best team members that the two agencies have. ESG will receive and share information with other domestic and international authorities to ensure it achieves its goal of protecting the midterm elections from foreign threat actors. The task force will also help U.S. allies to protect their electoral campaigns from actors that want to undermine them. Zoom Out: CISA has collaborated ...

Q&A: Bergman on pushing the FDA on psychedelics

The ideas and innovators shaping health care Aug 08, 2024 View in browser   By Ruth Reader , Erin Schumaker , Daniel Payne , Toni Odejimi and Carmen Paun WASHINGTON WATCH Bergman | Francis Chung/POLITICO ...

8 Best Diabetes-Friendly Meal Delivery Services in 2024

Plus: Identifying and Treating Diabetes Joint Pain ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌     ­ ͏ ‌   ...

📷 MD Monir Ambulance added a new photo

        📷 MD Monir Ambulance added a new photo. 12 April at 17:59   View Photo               Facebook                 📷 MD Monir Ambulance added a new photo. 12 April at 17:59   View Photo               This message was sent to ludomallam@idiot.cloudns.cc . If you don't want to receive these emails from Facebook in the future, please unsubscribe . Facebook, Inc., Attention: Community Support, 1 Facebook Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025         To help keep your account secure, please don't forward this email. Learn more.      

Sabir Khan wants to be friends on Facebook

  1 mutual friend - Works at Facebook - Islamia University - Bahawalpur - 2,123 friends - 5 photos - 7 groups           Facebook             Sabir Khan wants to be friends with you on Facebook.   Sabir Khan Works at Facebook · Islamia University · Bahawalpur 1 mutual friend · 2,123 friends · 5 photos · 7 groups               Confirm request     See all requests             This message was sent to ludomallam@idiot.cloudns.cc . If you don't want to receive these emails from Facebook in the future, please unsubscribe . Facebook, Inc., Attention: Community Support, 1 Facebook Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025         To help keep your account secure, please don't forward this email. Learn more.      

Spectrum Equity closes $2B fund

Plus, Audacity launches $60M fund Inside.com Part of   Network July 28, 2022 Presented by Spectrum Equity, an investment company based in Boston, has closed its new fund valued at $2B . The fund will be officially named Spectrum Equity X, L.P. More: The firm received funds from previous investors as well as first-time outside investors. Spectrum focuses on backing internet-based companies that aim to disrupt a number of different verticals such as education, financial services, healthcare, and logistics.  Founded in 1993, the company manages $8B in assets, while its average equity investment is $25M-$150M. Audacity has launched a new $60M fund. The India-based VC firm will focus on media tech companies that are raising their Series A round. More: Besides media tech, the firm will also focus on SaaS, g...

A 2022 recap of platform updates and new tools

Startups that raised funding in 2022 Inside.com Part of   Network December 28, 2022 Presented by Android and Apple updates announced in 2022:  Google introduced a pilot program with Spotify to explore user choice billing.  Google released Android 13 (Go edition) with improvements to user experience and technical functionalities.  Android 13 for TV was made available to developers on ADT-3 and the Android TV emulator.  Google announced memory safety vulnerabilities in Android dropped after announcing support for Rust last year.  Google shared its plans to launch the beta version of Privacy Sandbox for Android early next year.  Apple announced changes to its pricing structure, offering developers 700 additional price points and pricing tools.  Apple allowed reader apps to provide in-app links to alternative payment methods. In Apr...

Changes to Google’s end user-facing Terms of Service

Changes to our end user-facing Terms of Service effective March 31, 2020. Hello Administrator, We're writing to let you know about changes in our end user-facing Terms of Service (Terms) that may affect users in your domain. These changes do not impact the terms that govern the agreement between Google and your organization. If you have disabled Google Additional Services for users in your domain, these changes will not impact them. What's Changing? We're improving our Terms and making them easier to understand. The changes will take effect on March 31, 2020, and they won't impact the way your end users use Google services. As the United Kingdom (UK) is leaving the European Union (EU), Google LLC will be the service provider for end users in your domain that are based in the UK. Google LLC will be responsible for all user information and data in Additional Services, and for complying with applicable privacy laws. For more detail...