Assembly Budget Committee member Al Barlas, a Republican representing New Jersey’s 40th Legislative District and incumbent Essex GOP chairman, accused Governor Murphy and legislative Democrats of having a dependency on spending after Tuesday’s bonkers budget address.
“Governor Murphy is unwilling to make the tough decisions to balance the budget,” said Barlas. “He proposed more than a dozen tax hikes in this budget and it still won’t pay for his spending habits. That’s being careless with other people’s money and doesn’t account for the automatic tax hikes people face like property taxes and payroll taxes.”
The ongoing Democrat governor’s final budget is approximately $22 billion larger than the one he inherited and includes taxes on everything from gambling and booze to interior design (!) and recreational sports. The Murphy Administration also continued to cut local school aid while simultaneously proposing a massive investment in benefits payments for politically-powerful state worker union. Ominously, the budget proposal also includes a $1.2 billion structural deficit at a time of economic uncertainty and a lack of appreciation of what federal spending cuts – including pertaining to sanctuary jurisdictions – could mean for New Jersey’s aid picture.
“Though the budget I present to you today is the final budget of our administration, it is one that reflects our ongoing — and unrelenting — commitment to building a state that is stronger, fairer, and more prepared for the future,” Murphy insisted on Tuesday.
Barlas disagrees.
“The governor paints a rosy picture,” Barlas continued. “What he failed to do was be honest with residents about how much more money he’s going to take from them to pay for his spending addiction. While the governor and his enablers in the legislature don’t want people to know the truth about this budget, we won’t let that happen.”
New Jersey is obligated to pass a FY 2026 budget by July 1st.
