Research.
Data Analysis.
Policy Solutions.
Garden State Initiative strengthens New Jersey by promoting solutions that promote new investment, the growth of jobs, the creation of economic opportunities, and innovation to the benefit of all New Jerseyans.
GSI Featured Updates
Our Focus
Between the Lines:
NJ State Budget Annual “Extras”
Learn more about the hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars within the NJ state budget awarded to local governments and nonprofit organizations without any public process or merit-based criteria.
Recent Appearances and Video
Latest Work
New Jersey’s Spending Problem: How New Jersey’s Budget Process Undermines Fiscal Accountability and Sustainability
Over the past eight years, New Jersey’s state budget has grown at nearly twice the rate of inflation. From FY2018 to FY2026, New Jersey’s budget…
A September Bounce Back for New Jersey’s Labor Market
Unemployment rate down to 4.2%–matching the nation for the first time in nearly 4 years. Gain of 14,900 jobs reverses much of the June-July plunge,…
Q2 New Jersey GDP Trails Nation, but Income was Stronger
GDP growth gap of .5 percentage points in line with long-term trend. Personal income performance one of the best in the nation. 2025 household spending…
The Governor Thomas Kean Leadership Award
The Governor Thomas Kean Leadership Award recognizes individuals who have best displayed the principled, inclusive, and collaborative characteristics which Governor Kean displayed throughout his life and work.
