The Democrat-led New Jersey Senate Budget Committee, headed by chairman Paul Sarlo, center, begins taking a roll call vote on the state’s fiscal year 2025 budget, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in Trenton, N.J. The committee and its Assembly counterpart agreed …TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy signed a $56.
For taxpayers, the spending plans includes billions for K-12 education, property tax relief, public pensions and a host of other programs. For businesses making over $10 million a year, the budget carries a tax increase, hiking the top corporate rate to 11.5% for those firms, up from 9%. The spending plan is up about 4% from the budget Murphy signed last year, a modest increase compared to past years.
The budget pays for all aspects of state government, from the executive departments to public universities. The Legislature this year passed a 67% pay raise for lawmakers, their first since 2002, which goes into effect in 2026. It includes a number of expenditures - sometimes called Christmas tree line items since they’re seen as gifts for specific constituencies.