The editorial board of The Record was not very impressed with the agreement announced by Governor Murphy and public employee union leaders that could save taxpayers $500 million over 2 years by making adjustments to the health care benefits the state provides to public employees and retirees.

“…the state is spending $15,680 this year on health care for the average employee and $12,988 for the average retiree, according to figures from the state treasurer's office. Private-sector employers in New Jersey spend an average of $4,747 per employee for health insurance, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.”

“This is progress, yes, but it is more nibbling at the edges, when far greater steps toward a more affordable, sustainable future are in order…This is a start, but more substantive fiscal responsibility must come before it’s too late. Instead of calling the health plan changes a “win-win,” we would call it a “partial win” that will be short-lived if other substantive changes aren’t brought soon.”

In an opinion piece published in the Daily Record, Courier News and Home News Tribune, GSI’s President Regina M. Egea responded to an editorial published in those respective news outlets entitled “No, we’re not losing all the good people” that was based on a report issued by New Jersey Policy Perspective and researched by Rutgers students, that sought to downplay the flight of millennials and others from New Jersey.

In an appearance before the editorial board of the Press of Atlantic City, Senate President Steve Sweeney offered a candid assessment of the main opponents to true pension and benefit reform - public employee unions:

“He said public sector labor unions have made their pensions unsustainable and have targeted for re-election defeat leaders who have sought to fix them instead of just pouring more money into them.

Sweeney’s blunt message to the public unions now: “You’re the problem here. You gamed your pensions, you legislated your pensions, you pushed through things that shouldn’t have been done,” he said. “You didn’t pay for it and you have the gall to stand out there saying, ‘We’ve paid what we were supposed to pay.’ Not true.””

The editorial board of the Press of Atlantic City takes New Jersey government to task over the real reason behind their opposition to the federal cap on state and local (SALT) tax deductions:

“This sort of progressive taxation is much like the millionaire’s tax sought by Murphy and some fellow Democrats. The fact that they’re against it when the revenue goes to another branch of government shows their concern for revenue outweighs that for working and middle-class families.

And that’s the key to why high-taxing states are trying to void the deduction cap. Wealthy people who can no longer write off a significant percentage of their state and local taxes are much less likely to support tax increases and more likely to start demanding that spending be cut in order to balance state budgets.

Working and middle-class families have born the full brunt of repeated increases in New Jersey taxes. They should be glad to have affluent families join them and start demanding that state officials reform state spending to make the burden tolerable for residents and the economy.”

It takes a lot to be known as a metaphor for the worst tax climate in the country. In a blistering editorial, the Wall Street Journal presents New Jersey as a cautionary tale for the voters of Arizona as they consider two ballot initiatives aimed at increasing the tax burden to benefit public employee unions.

In an op-ed published on NJ.com, Scott Shepard, the author of a new study on New Jersey pensions published by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, paints a bleak picture of New Jersey's ability to meet its pension obligations and advocates for measure that will provide immediate and long-term savings. 

Garden State Initiative President Regina M. Egea was quoted in an ROI-NJ piece by Anjalee Khemlani on reactions to the report released by the Economic and Fiscal Policy Review Workgroup created Senate President Steve Sweeney: 

“What was striking in the report was a lack of a plan of action,” she said. “Recommendations that do not include costs to implement and expected savings, along with a timeline of implementation, is not really a plan; but, rather, another committee report.

“Without a commitment to implement, residents and business leaders are likely to see this as just another report that will take its place on a shelf collecting dust,” she said. “It was heartening to see to the report include the recommendations on health benefits made by the Byrne-Healey Commission, albeit without mentioning their report.

“Unless we are willing to tackle the 800-pound gorilla in the room, which is the unsustainable level of payment of pension benefits, which this report fails to do, things like … consolidation and shared services are distractions that just nibble at the edges of our financial crisis.”

The editorial board of the Asbury Park Press takes a dim view of the chances of meaningful reform coming from the report issued by Senate President Steve Sweeney and his New Jersey Economic & Fiscal Policy Working Group citing the power of public employee unions and the reluctance of Governor Phil Murphy to “to alienate the unions or to take steps to relieve the property tax burden in New Jersey. “

In an op-ed that appeared on NJ.com, Thomas J. Healey, a co-chair of the Pension and Health Benefits Commission (PHBC) formed by former Gov. Chris Christie and assistant secretary of the Treasury under President Ronald Reagan, addresses the very deep hole that New Jersey faces in coming years due to health benefits and pensions owed to public employees.

In an op-ed that appeared on NorthJersey.com, Tom Byrne, who was Chairman of the State Investment Council and served as a member of the New Jersey Pension and Health Benefit Study Commission in 2014-17, offers a dire warning on what the state’s continued failure to address the pension and benefits crisis will mean for the state’s long-term fiscal solvency.