Cleaning up

Good morning!

It looks like New Jersey may get to dry out a bit today after 48 hours of often-torrential downpours that hit the Jersey Shore particularly hard.

A dock on the Keyport waterfront was damaged. A boat at a Point Pleasant Beach marina sank. Beaches up and down the shoreline experienced heavy erosion.

Meteorologist Joe Martucci said parts of the Shore saw the highest tide in at least 10 years, and for parts of the state south of Atlantic City, the highest tide since Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

A handful of school districts will remain closed today, while state workers will start their day late.

Trenton: Camden County Assemblyman Bill Moen (D) is behind a bill that could establish an outpost of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library here in New Jersey. The late, great Parton’s group partners with others to put free books in the hands of children everywhere, but its footprint in New Jersey is limited. Moen’s bill would establish a similar program in the Department of Education that would partner with Imagination Library or a college to mail a free book to every participating child once a month. Moen said he’s not a die-hard fan of Parton’s music (impeach?), but “if New Jersey can figure out the way to tie ourselves to that legacy of getting books in the hands of every child under 5, then I’m absolutely a fan.”

NJ-7: Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R) and Rebecca Bennett (D) met Sunday for their only debate in the closely watched House race in the 7th District. I don’t think these kinds of things move the needle for many voters, but I think it was notable that Kean made numerous references to backing bipartisan legislation and Bennett touted that she agrees with Republican leadership in Roxbury in their opposition to a Trump administration plan to place a migrant detention center in that tiny Morris County town. Independent voters may be the ones to keep this district in Kean’s hands or to swing it to Bennett’s. I’d say Kean’s worst moments came when he backed some of the president’s most unpopular initiatives, tariffs and the war in Iran. Bennett’s worst moment came when she repeatedly dodged a question about her net worth.

Commentary: I have some thoughts on last week’s New Jersey Supreme Court hearing about a woman who lost her East Orange property to foreclosure and is now fighting to get back some of the money the city made when it sold it. The city took all of the $101,000 it received from the sale, even though it concedes the woman did not owe even close to that amount in back taxes. The U.S. Supreme Court in 2023 banned towns from doing this, but the city and state are arguing in court that it was legal at the time it did it so the city shouldn’t have to return any money.

Dale Caldwell: I’m not sure how you could have missed this, but Dale Caldwell, our now-former lieutenant governor, stepped down Friday after a report from the Sherrill administration accused him of several ethical lapses, including making gross remarks to women and trying to get his girlfriend a promotion at her state job. I have some thoughts on L’Affaire Caldwell.

Health benefits: Also from Friday, the School Employees Health Benefits Commission approved massive health premium hikes for school workers after repeatedly deadlocking on this during the summer. Teachers union officials say the hikes could lead more school districts to pull out of the state-run plan, which would lead to even more hikes and more departures.