Holiday mode

Good morning! Our team is taking a needed and much-appreciated day off today for the holiday weekend — happy Fourth of July (and Semiquincentennial), btw! — so let’s get right to it …

Trenton: From our team, “Several bills that have gotten lengthy hearings and hours of advocacy in the New Jersey Statehouse since January stalled this week on their way to passage, leaving them in limbo until at least the fall with legislators now on summer break.” Bills that stalled would have made polluters pay for environmental damage and widened the window to hold human traffickers criminally and civilly liable for their wrongdoing, among other things. Since lawmakers approved a state budget Tuesday, advocates and others also lamented ignored budget requests, flat funding, and cuts impacting everything from resource centers for Hispanic women to hazelnut farming to school facilities.

Group homes: Via Lilo Stainton, “New Jersey officials now have much sharper tools to protect people with disabilities from abuse and neglect in group homes, thanks to a law that took effect July 1 allowing for state penalties of up to $25,000 … Signed by former Gov. Phil Murphy in January, the new law follows news reports that documented abuse and neglect at group homes for people with disabilities and found flaws in the state’s oversight process.”

Rutgers: Via me, “A state judge has dismissed the lawsuit a former Rutgers University student filed seeking compensation for lost educational time after more than 9,000 faculty walked off the job in a weeklong strike in 2023 for better benefits and wages. Jeremy Li sued several faculty unions at the 71,000-student school in 2024, arguing that they were public workers barred by law from striking and accusing them of negligence and breach of contract. Thursday, union leaders celebrated the dismissal as the court’s recognition of the rights of public workers to free speech and collective action.”

Medicaid work rules: Via Shalina Chatlani at Stateline, “State Medicaid agencies are concerned that many sick and disabled enrollees will lose their coverage because the Trump administration is narrowing the definition of who is ‘medically frail’ enough to get an exemption from new work requirements.” You may recall New Jersey and about two dozen other states sued the Trump administration earlier this week to challenge the new requirements.

Black political clout: Via David Lightman in our DC bureau, “The April 29 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Louisiana v. Callais narrowing the scope of the federal Voting Rights Act, as well as this year’s aggressive Republican redrawing of congressional district lines in conservative states, is a serious threat to Black political momentum. Analysts see more than 20 caucus members possibly at risk of losing their seats. ‘Not since Jim Crow have we seen this level of systematic disenfranchisement of Black voters,’ Black Caucus Chair Yvette Clark, D-N.Y., said.”

Ticks: Via Amelia Twyman in our DC Bureau, “The prime time for ticks is here in the United States, and after an especially active start to the season, experts are urging the public to stay alert and take preventive measures. Monthly emergency department visits for tick bites in April spiked to their highest level since 2017 and continued to remain high throughout May and June.”