Murphy kills housing bill — Sweeney rips ‘cold act on the coldest day’

TRENTON — Phil Murphy on Thursday became the second New Jersey governor in as many years to reject legislation that would have provided as much as a year and a half of emergency assistance to low-income residents, including recovering addicts, homeless veterans, abused mothers and their children, and the chronically ill and disabled and their caretakers.

NJ.com reported that Chris Christie allowed a similar measure to lapse before leaving office in early 2018. The bill's current incarnation, S1965, passed the state Senate 35-0 and the Assembly 70-9 prior to Murphy's veto.

Murphy, who is set to deliver his budget address March 5, argued New Jersey does not have the money to pay for a program would provide recipient households with $600 to $1,000 per month. The nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services characterized the legislation's financial impact as "indeterminate," according to a statement released by Murphy explaining the veto.

State Senate President Stephen Sweeney, the bill's primary sponsor in the Senate and someone who often finds himself at odds with the governor, called Murphy's veto "a cold act on the coldest day of the year," the report said.

Patrick Lavery is Senior Producer of Morning News and Special Programming for New Jersey 101.5, and is lead reporter and substitute anchor for "New Jersey's First News." Follow him on Twitter @plavery1015 or email patrick.lavery@townsquaremedia.com.

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