What’s in store for the New Jersey economy for the rest of this year? It turns out nobody is quite sure because right now there’s a hodgepodge of different economic signals. Rutgers University economist James Hughes said as is often the case, “we have really...
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Economists question lawmakers’ plans to address inflation
As consumers nationwide grapple with increases in the cost of rent, gas, and groceries, New Jersey lawmakers have offered a slew of plans they say will address skyrocketing inflation. Sales tax holidays on certain items, moratoriums on toll increases, and a revamp of...
Should Holmdel voters dump parties and elect the mayor? They decide next week
According to Julia Sass Rubin, professor of public policy at Rutgers University, who gave a presentation to the commission, candidates on the “county line,” which is the column for candidates endorsed by the local Democratic or Republican party committees, have an...
Routine Traffic Stops Too Often Turn Deadly, And Jayland Walker Is The Latest Victim
Police experts are still looking for ways to circumvent deadly chases and fatal traffic stops. One way, according to Kelcie Ralph, a transportation scholar at Rutgers University, are traffic cameras. Traffic stops are the most common interactions between police and...
Consumers in ‘very sour mood’ as inflation outpaces wages
The prices of gas, home energy and food all spiked by double digits over the past month, but wages aren't keeping up, with annual inflation now topping 9%. "It’s leading to a very sour mood,” said James W. Hughes, dean emeritus at Rutgers University’s Edward J....
Traffic cameras could reduce racial profiling, Rutgers study finds
Perceptions among state and federal policymakers that the public opposes the installation of speed cameras has made the technology rare despite the fact it could reduce racial profiling and minimize police-driver interactions, according to a Rutgers study recently...
NJ employee payout limits lack legal enforcement
When the Legislature passed laws in 2007 and 2010 designed to save taxpayers money by limiting sick leave cash-outs for local public employees, it did not explicitly add an enforcement mechanism. And that may be one of the reasons why the Office of...
Cameras to catch speeding on NJ roads? Illegal now but public could support it
The idea of automated speed cameras along roadways may get more support from the public, as well as policymakers, if the technology were promoted as a way to reduce racial profiling by law enforcement. That's according to a new study out of Rutgers University. But it...
NJ alleges familiar benefits fraud in Wildwood
When we saw the words "health benefits fraud" in a headline recently, our first thought was finally, a step toward justice in the massive kickbacks to public employees in South Jersey for submitting bogus prescriptions to their lavishly funded state health...
Equity implications of electric bikesharing in Philadelphia
Recent PhD grad Or Caspi examines how the integration of e-bikes influenced Indego’s usage in disadvantaged areas. In these regions, the users use shared e-bikes for commute, leisure, and other utilitarian purposes, while in the rest of the city, users use e-bikes...