October 20, 2025

Anchor Property-Tax Relief Deadline Approaching October 31st for New Jerseyans – NJ State Policy Updates

Economics

The New Jersey Economic Development Authority Requests Redevelopment Proposals for Camden’s Waterfront – On October 14, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) released a Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEOI) to solicit proposals for the redevelopment of almost 16 acres of property along the Camden Waterfront. The acreage is comprised of two former properties, the Riverfront Prison and Weeks Marine sites. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) is the owner of the Weeks Marine site and has started the process of planning a waterfront park along the property with the intention of joining it with ongoing recreation development projects in the area. A redevelopment plan first adopted in 2014 established a framework to guide future development of the waterfront area north of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge.

 

Housing

Anchor Property-Tax Relief Deadline Approaching October 31st for New Jerseyans – The application deadline for New Jersey residents to apply for state-funded property-tax relief benefits closes October 31st, which can total up to $1,750 per household in tax savings. Additionally, officials with the New Jersey Department of the Treasury are urging seniors to make sure they fill out a new application form called PAS-1 by the same deadline to ensure they continue to receive benefits not only from the Anchor program but also Senior Freeze and Stay NJ. Eligible homeowners and renters who have yet to receive an Anchor check or direct deposit can check on the status of their benefits by using an online portal set up by the Treasury’s Division of Taxation. Homeowners making up to $250,000 annually and tenants making up to $150,000 annually are eligible to receive Anchor benefits, which start at $450 for tenants and can total as much as $1,750 for senior homeowners.

 

Transportation

Federal Funding for Gateway Program Terminated by Trump Administration – October 16, NJ Spotlight News reported that the Trump administration had halted funding for the Gateway Program, a massive railroad and tunnel project many years underway in New Jersey. This $16-billion-dollar public works project was intended to add two new tunnels beneath the Hudson River between New Jersey and Manhattan. This leaves the project in limbo, as it is not yet clear if the president has the authority to cancel the project, which is expected to be the largest railroad project in the Western Hemisphere and intended to bring a significant economic boom to the northeast.

 

Environment 

Gov. Murphy Conditionally Vetoes Bill Requiring Data Centers to Report Water and Electricity Use – On October 20, Gov. Phil Murphy conditionally vetoed legislation that would require data centers to report their water and electricity use, requesting that lawmakers add in provisions to direct state regulators to weigh whether those data centers’ power and cooling needs are unduly burdening other utility ratepayers. The redrafted bill would require the Board of Public Utilities to study whether New Jerseyans are unreasonably subsidizing the cost of data centers’ energy usage and examine whether they are funding infrastructure that is solely or mostly serves data centers. Murphy also instructed BPU to study how much of residents’ utility bills are attributable to data centers’ electricity and water demands. As originally drafted, the bill would have required data center operators to report their utility use within six months of the bill’s signing. The governor’s conditional veto would extend that timeline, requiring those reports to be filed by January 2027.

 

Education

Latest U.S. Department of Education Layoffs Raise Concerns – On October 20, NJ Spotlight News reported on the latest news that the Trump administration had moved to lay off thousands of employees during the current government shutdown, which included nearly 500 employees in the federal education department. These cuts included the near total elimination of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, which has renewed concerns for advocates worried about the impact this will have on students with disabilities across the nation. Additionally, the administration had eliminated much of the remaining staff in the Office for Civil Rights, which enforces anti-discrimination laws. The Department of Education already lost approximately half its staff in March through layoffs and buyouts.