The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee and the Assembly Budget Committee are scheduled to meet again on Friday, June 27 at 8 p.m. to finalize decisions and vote on the SFY2026 budget. The League last reported that it was possible the full membership would vote on the budget on Friday. However, as discussions continue, it is anticipated that a final vote in each chamber will occur on Monday, and signed by Governor Murphy, to keep with the constitutionally mandated deadline to have the state’s fiscal year budget in place by July 1 of each year.
According to Senator Paul Sarlo, Chairman of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, the Office of Legislative Services (OLS) was working on changes to the budget document into the evening on Thursday and nothing would be available until Friday. Although language changes are not available yet, the budget is expected to include increased taxes on cigarettes, online gambling and realty transfer fees on homes over $2 million. Additionally, a contentious budget proposal being considered in recent days is to find $100 million in savings from the State Health Benefits Program (SHBP).
This situation is fluid and likely to change over the next 72 hours. We will report accordingly as details warrant.
Contact: Erin Knoedler, Legislative Analyst, eknoedler@njlm.org, x116.