Push to end ‘religious exemption’ for vaccines faces uphill battle – Politico

Good Monday morning!

If anything could move at least one vote in Trenton on a major piece of public health legislation, you’d think it would be a pandemic that killed tens of thousands of New Jerseyans.

New Jersey Democrats think it’s possible. The push to eliminate the long-abused religious exemption from some mandatory immunizations for public school students may be back on (the last effort stalled in late 2019 amid anti-vaccine protests). This latest effort seems to be just starting to take shape.

But Sam Sutton interviewed the man who was the pivotal vote on the exemption: State Sen. Joe Lagana (D-Bergen), whom Senate leadership tried to win over last time amid audible chants from hundreds of people, urging him to vote against it. Lagana refused to budge last time, and so far, he remains unswayed.

Read more about it here.

WHERE’S MURPHY? — In Trenton for a 1 p.m. coronavirus press conference

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “He led his followers right into a trap on January 6. Even though he tried to say he just wanted peaceful protest he was trying to do something that could not be done.” — Seth Grossman on former president Donald Trump

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — Bergen County Surrogate Michael Dressler, Camden Councilman Angel Fuentes, Town of Clinton Mayor Janice Kovach. Murphy advisor Kaylee McGuire. Missed Sunday: NJHC’s Jenna Mellor

MAP TO BE DECIDED BY PENALTY SHOTS — Rabner’s deadline passes with no agreement on redistricting tie-breaker, by POLITICO’s Matt Friedman: Democrats and Republicans have failed to come to a consensus on a congressional redistricting tie-beaker by the deadline state Supreme Court Chief Justice Stuart Rabner set for them. Rabner, seeking to avoid having to make a politically-charged decision, had asked the two sides to reconvene and try to come up with a consensus choice after they deadlocked between two candidates the six Democratic and six Republican redistricting commissioners had named on July 15: former state Supreme Court Justice John Wallace for Democrats and former state Superior Court Judge Marina Corodemus for Republicans.

NETLIX AND NOT CHILL ABOUT THE VOTING LAW — “Netflix eyes large portion of Fort Monmouth,” by The Two River Times’ Laura D.C. Kolnoski: “Actions taken at last week’s monthly meeting of the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA), held via teleconference, could pave the way for major entertainment production companies to bid on at least 289 acres of Fort Monmouth, including the high-profile 80-acre site known as Parcel B along Route 35 in Eatontown … In April, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy sent a letter to film and entertainment companies doing business in Georgia – including Netflix, Disney and Warner Bros. – after that state enacted a controversial restrictive voting law. Murphy offered tax and other incentives to lure their Georgia operations to New Jersey … Netflix responded to Murphy’s outreach, sources said, and the first public signs of a major production company’s interest in Fort Monmouth appeared during FMERA’s July 21 meeting. The authority’s voting members, including local, county and state officials, unanimously passed a resolution revoking a previous Request for Offers to Purchase (RFOTP) for Parcel B. FMERA has had difficulty finding the right developer to create a “gateway” town center-style mixed-use development there.”

THE NAME PEOPLE SEE WHEN THEY’RE ABOUT TO GET RELIEF — “New Jersey renames its rest stops as a nation rethinks monuments” by NPR’s Scott Simon: “Of course it’s irresistible to ask, ‘But what about Buzz Aldrin from Montclair?’ He was the second man to step on the moon, and really, doesn’t going to the moon rate getting your name on a New Jersey rest stop? It’s farther than Parsippany … The naming of the service areas comes at a moment when we’re reconsidering who to commemorate and how, as statues of some onetime heroes are removed and stowed away … As Elizabeth Samet, author of Soldier’s Heart: Reading Literature Through Peace and War at West Point, reminded us, ‘The unforgivable sin of one generation will be eclipsed by a new one’ … Maybe a rest stop exhibit will be easier to change around than a cast-bronze equestrian statue. But Samet points out that most people don’t rush into rest stops in Bloomfield or South Amboy to learn history, but just get to the restroom and maybe buy a tube of beef jerky.”

VACCINES — Murphy: Workers in ‘highest risk environments’ may be required to get vaccinated, by POLITICO’s Daniel Han: New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said Friday that people working in the “highest risk environments” would receive mandatory vaccines if the state were to impose a vaccine requirement for certain employees. That category, the governor said, would include people working in health care settings, long-term care facilities, veterans homes and prisons. “Those are our highest area of focus right now and my guess is if we take steps as it relates to mandating on the vaccine side, it will be first and foremost in those types of communities,” Murphy said during an appearance on CNN‘s “New Day.“ It was not immediately clear if he was referring only to state employees working at those facilities. Administration officials did not immediately respond to a request for clarification.

DMV WORKERS ARE NOT KNOWN FOR BEING RUDE — “Hurdles persist for undocumented immigrants seeking N.J. driver’s licenses,” by New Jersey Monitor’s Sophie Nieto-Munoz: “It’s been three months since New Jersey implemented a law allowing undocumented immigrants to get driver’s licenses and members of that community say they face multiple hurdles trying to obtain them. From being denied translators to getting turned away despite possessing valid documents to a booked-solid appointment system, advocacy groups argue too many people keep running into the same problems with the state Motor Vehicle Commission. Hera Mir, of the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, said it all ‘feels like discriminatory behavior’ ‘What we’re seeing is certain agencies seem to have some ‘internal policy’ of asking for another document. They’ve been rude to people who may not understand English right away. They ask for tax returns that aren’t required,’ Mir said.”

—“New Jersey courts to reopen to the public next week,”

—“Will eviction relief efforts in New York and New Jersey be enough?”

—“New Jersey must do better on housing policy to aid low-income families | Opinion”

—Snowflack: “A little something on masks and politics”

DEREVICTION OF DUTY — ‘Down the drain’: Millions face eviction after Biden lets protections expire, by POLITICO’s Katy O’Donnell: As the clock runs out on a nationwide eviction ban for what’s expected to be the final time, millions of tenants are staring at the prospect of losing their homes as they wait for emergency rental aid that the government has failed to deliver. The federal eviction moratorium in place since September is set to expire Saturday, after the Biden administration refused to extend it and Democrats in Congress couldn’t muster the votes to intervene. Now lawmakers and activists fear an unprecedented surge in evictions in the coming months just as the highly transmissible Delta variant causes a spike in coronavirus cases.

BEFORE NEW LAW, TEENS WERE FAMOUS FOR THEIR RESPECT FOR AUTHORITY — “Avalon police once rounded up teens in a white bus. Wildwood police patrolled the beach with a breathalyzer. Why this summer is different,” by The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Amy S. Rosenberg: “In past summers, Avalon police used a repurposed white school bus dubbed the ‘Magic Bus’ to round up teens at parties where alcohol was being served. Wildwood police famously patrolled their beaches with a breathalyzer, with mixed results. But this summer, even as large groups of teenagers gather night after night on beaches and boardwalks in Jersey Shore towns, the cops are being … chill. The police departments are not happy about it. They blame New Jersey’s new law that legalizes adult-use cannabis and a Dec. 3 directive from the attorney general, both of which seek to set limits on how police interact with juveniles, particularly juveniles suspected of drinking or smoking marijuana, or violating local ordinances … Ocean City Police Chief Jay Prettyman says the new law has emboldened the youths who gather nightly, some in town on family vacations, others taking NJ Transit from towns on the mainland. ‘We’ve accurately predicted the juveniles we’re dealing with have very little fear of any ramifications for their actions,’ said Prettyman.”

SWIMPLY HAVING A TERRIBLE SUMMER TIME — “Swimply, the pool-renting company, is making waves in NJ, but is it legal here?” by The Asbury Park Press’ Jean Mikle: “Business is booming at Swimply, an online site that’s been dubbed the “Airbnb” for swimming pools. That’s no thanks to towns like Toms River, where township officials say private pool rentals violate the law. The township recently cracked down on homeowners renting their pools, citing 11 Toms River properties where pools were advertised for rent. Count Brick, Jackson and Lakewood among Shore towns that also have pushed back against short-term pool rentals. Toms River’s actions mark the latest front in a dispute over a company that’s part of the new sharing economy, where transactions take place between private individuals, very often with the government standing on the sidelines.”

TWITTER STILL AWFUL — “Paterson guaranteed income program begins giving $400 payments to residents,” by The Paterson Press’ Joe Malinconico: “Monserate Reyes — one of 110 residents who received $400 debits cards earlier this month through the city’s experimental guaranteed income program — says she has already spent most of her money on food. “Food is very expensive now,” said Reyes, 55, who said she works two part-time jobs — one as a home health aide and another going door-to-door encouraging people to get COVID-19 vaccines. Reyes was one of the lucky winners in what city officials say was a lottery to select which people would get the monthly payments from among more than 5,000 low-income Paterson applicants. More than 20 cities around the country are participating in the initiative, which is mostly funded by a $15 million donation by Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, officials said.”

—Moran: “In Paterson, an inspiring success against Covid”

NEW MARIJUANA LAW PROBABLY TO BLAME — “Three decades of police reports detail interactions with Mount Laurel hate-crime suspect,” by The Burlington County Times’ Jim Walsh: “A white man recently accused of harassing Black neighbors here had more than 150 contacts with township police spanning more than three decades, records show. And police calls concerning Edward Cagney Mathews were intensifying before his much-publicized arrest in July after multiple racial incidents, according to the records. They show 28 police calls involving Mathews this year and 22 in 2020. Fourteen incidents in those years involved allegations of harassment, while a dozen were over claims of criminal mischief. The reports were released Friday in response to a public-records request made shortly after Mathews’ arrest July 5 on charges of bias intimidation, New Jersey’s equivalent of a hate crime. ‘Researching these records and putting them together in an organized structure took weeks,’ a police department representative said in releasing the documents.”

MAN DEAD FOR 500 YEARS INSPIRES PEOPLE WHO LONG IGNORED SCHOOL BUDGETS AND EDUCATION POLICY TO RUN — “Candidates step up to challenge embattled Randolph BOE. Half Morris County races uncontested,” by The Daily Record’s William Westhoven: “In Randolph, four contenders have filed to challenge two incumbents for three seats on a board that drew national attention in the spring for a school calendar controversy. The backlash in Randolph began in May after the board decided to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous People’s Day on the district calendar. Faced with a group of angry residents and representatives of Italian-American groups, the board chose to alter the calendar again, eliminating references to all specific holidays in favor of the generic phrase ‘day off.’ … Tom Duffy is teaming with Michael LoCascio and Peggy Kurtz to challenge those board incumbents. Their “For the Kids” ticket is still in its infancy and comprised of Randolph residents who had not met before the calendar controversy began. Since then, Duffy and LoCascio have spoken out at meetings and in TV interviews about the controversy, which Duffy said led to positive community response, support and encouragement.”

—“Newark slow to vaccinate eligible youth, with only 30% getting first COVID shot”

—“Bhalla signs order mandating COVID-19 vaccine or weekly testing for Hoboken employees”

—“‘Permanently devastated.’ Family sues Paramus school board, another family for racist bullying”

—“Memorial benches at the Jersey Shore are so popular that towns have waiting lists”

R.I.P. — “Trenton mayor’s handyman killed in ‘domestic dispute’ in 13th murder of 2021”

GOD’S PUNISHMENT FOR NAMING REST AREAS AFTER BON JOVI AND CONNIE CHUNG — “Final count shows 5 tornadoes hit N.J. during Thursday’s wild storms. Here’s where this outbreak ranks,” by NJ Advance Media’s Len Lemlisurgo: “Damage survey teams from the National Weather Service have confirmed that five tornadoes touched down in New Jersey during Thursday’s rare outbreak of violent thunderstorms known as supercells — making this one of the state’s biggest tornado outbreaks on record.After inspecting the damage, reviewing photos and checking radar data, the weather service’s regional forecast offices in Mount Holly and New York determined two tornadoes struck in Ocean County, two in Mercer County and one in Essex County … The grand total of five twisters on a single day makes this tied for the second biggest tornado outbreak in New Jersey during the past 71 years, according to records from the National Weather Service’s Storm Events Database, which go back to 1950.”

NJ FACING EPIDEMIC OF UNRULY ADULTS HARASSING TEENS — “Middle fingers, servers in tears. How N.J. pandemic dining got ugly,” by NJ Advance Media’s Jeremy Schneider: “Once the middle fingers started flying, Stacey Chiarolanza knew she had to do something. The owner of Aunt B’s Ice Cream in Brigantine posted on social media in mid July, and in the shop itself, asking customers to be more patient — moreover to stop harassing and throwing garbage at her largely teen-aged staff — as the shop dealt with long lines and favorite flavors out of stock … NJ Advance Media spoke to multiple restaurant owners and workers about customer behavior since COVID-19 capacity restrictions were lifted in May. While many emphasized most customers have been polite, they admitted others are loudly unsympathetic and have caused scenes rarely seen in pre-pandemic dining.

—“Now criminally charged, former Cardinal McCarrick hit with 5th NJ child sex abuse suit”

—“Port Authority to eBay and Craigslist: No more fake paper license plates”

—“Back to school and masking up is no big deal. ‘As long as my masks match my outfits.’ | Opinion”