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by John Reitmeyer – NJ Spotlight June 30, 2023

Gov. Phil Murphy, just hours before the start of a new fiscal year, signed off on a new state budget that calls for another big increase in year-over-year spending. An election-year spending bill approved in both houses of the Legislature on Friday includes more money for K-12 public schools, child tax credits and senior property-tax relief, among other key initiatives. All 120 seats in a Legislature now controlled by Democrats are on the November ballot. Murphy signed the spending bill into law just after 8:30 p.m. During a State House event, he said it wouldhelp address the “affordability challenges” faced by many middle-class residents. “Everything in this budget is about growing and strengthening the middle class,” Murphy said. READ MORE

The winner of last night’s Democratic primary election for mayor of Highland Park was Elsie Foster, the current mayor, who attracted 1,269 votes, 64 percent of the ballots cast. Her opponent, Monique Coleman, a member of the Highland Park School Board, had 707 votes, 36 percent of the ballots cast. Therefore, Foster will be on the ballot as the Democratic candidate for mayor of Highland Park in the November 7, 2023 General Election. In January, the Borough of Highland Park raised the curtain on a political drama that was inspired by the resignation of former Mayor Gayle Brill Mittler from her mayoral position on January 1, 2023. Several individuals vied for the council appointment as mayor to finish out Brill Mittler’s term. READ MORE

Sheryl Lee Ralph, an Emmy Award-winning actress, Broadway star, TV sitcom star, and one of the first women admitted to Rutgers College more than 50 years ago, encouraged members of the Class of 2023 to chase their dreams and find their voice in a passionate speech that started with her singing and taking a selfie with the crowd. “Don’t chase money. Money will come,” said Ralph who made history in 2022 when she won the Emmy for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as kindergarten teacher Barbara Howard in ABC’s hit sitcom Abbott Elementary. “Figure out what makes you happy. If you enjoy what you do, it doesn’t feel like a job.”

Before Ralph, only the second Black woman to win that Emmy, delivered the commencement address, President Jonathan Holloway bestowed upon her an honorary degree of humane letters during the 257th Anniversary Commencement of Rutgers University-New Brunswick and Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences (RBHS). READ MORE

Highland Park NJ Porchfest 2023 is back by popular demand for its 3rd year. This Sunday, May 21, 2023, 12 to 6 p.m. several porches in town will be alive with the sounds of music. Last year was a huge success with over 13 porches and a ton of very talented musicians. For exact locations, go to Facebook.com and search for Highland Par NJ Porchfest 2023.     Main Street Highland Park’s annual Downtown Planting Days are back for two more fun-filled days of downtown beautification! READ MORE

FROM NJ SPOTLIGHT 21 APRIL 2023

Today marks the one-year anniversary of legal sales of marijuana for recreational use in New Jersey. Some 25 dispensaries are now open to the public, double the initial number approved as of last April; all are major retailers who already held licenses to sell medical marijuana in the state. According to the latest figures from the N.J. Cannabis Regulatory Commission, recreational marijuana users have spent more than $325 million, yielding more than $20 million in tax revenue. ——————————————————————————————————–

FROM NJ SPOTLIGHT 20 APRIL 2023

RUTGERS strike still threatens the health and well being of the University. Leaders of faculty unions at Rutgers University said today that their members could renew their historic strike in the absence of progress on remaining contract issues in negotiations with management. READ MORE

PLAY BALL- HIGHLAND PARK HIGH SCHOOL VARSITY MEN’S BASEBALL HAS HIGH HOPES

Highland Park Middle School baseball hadn’t won a game in at least five years and were down six runs in their next-to-last at bat against Timothy B. Christian in May 2021. Then, there were a couple of walks, then a hit, a few more walks, a double, and a wild pitch. Finally, Lucas Weinberg raced home to score the go-ahead run and three outs later, they secured the long-awaited win. That team was cobbled together in the wake of the worst of the pandemic with more than half the kids having barely ever played organized baseball. These team members now make up the bulk of the current Highand Park High School team. READ MORE

Daylight Saving Time makes its return on Sunday, March 12 at 2 a.m.– time to move the clocks forward one hour. The much debated annual process of changing clocks back in fall and ahead in spring began during World War I as a way to conserve energy. In 1966, the Uniform Time Act established the current practice of Daylight Saving Time, which runs from March through November. The Energy Policy of 2005 made Daylight Saving Time four weeks longer. Only Congress or the Secretary of Transportation can make a time-zone adjustments. READ MORE

Highland Park School District came out a big winner in Gov. Phil Murphy’s $531 billion budget proposal with an increase in funding of 34.2 percent. The proposed state aid for 2023/24 HP School District is $6,416,165, an increase of $1,636,138 or 34.2 percent. The biggest slice of Gov. Phil Murphy’s  budget proposal for the next fiscal year is state funding for public education. And the biggest slice of that is direct aid to local schools. Funding is set to increase for 400-plus districts, but 157 districts face cuts. READ MORE

“It’s really awesome when some crazy idea I have in my own mind comes true, and I meet someone else out there who also really likes it, no matter how strange It seems.”  READ MORE