> Labor Market Shows Signs of Reawakening in New Data (02/05/2010)
The American unemployment rate dipped from 10 percent to 9.7 percent in January, the Labor Department reported Friday, buoying hopes that the worst job market in at least a quarter-century is finally improving. more...

> U.S. loses 20K jobs in January, unemployment rate fell to 9.7 percent (02/05/2010)
WASHINGTON — The U.S. unemployment rate dropped unexpectedly in January to 9.7 percent from 10 percent while employers shed 20,000 jobs. more...

> Where Jobs Are Likely to Grow And Decline This Year (02/05/2010)
Health-care and consumer-services jobs will lead a slow jobs recovery this year, but overall employment will be kept in check by continued declines in local government and construction jobs, economists say. more...

> Transportation Infrastructure Bank Plan Would Cost $4B (02/02/2010)
WASHINGTON — President Obama in his fiscal 2011 budget yesterday proposed a $4 billion infrastructure bank to fund or finance worthwhile transportation projects. more...

> A budget that puts recovery foremost (02/02/2010)
WASHINGTON - Trying to balance increased spending on creating jobs with the need to slow runaway deficits, the Obama administration yesterday proposed a $3.83 trillion federal budget for 2011 that would spend $1.27 trillion more than the government expects to take in. more...

> Obama 2011 Budget Plan Would Cut Most Construction Programs (02/01/2010)
President Obama has proposed a $3.8-trillion budget for fiscal year 2011 that would freeze total "non-security" domestic discretionary spending--the category that includes most federal construction programs--and result in cutbacks in most of the key construction accounts. more...

> N.J. Gov. Chris Christie says he won't increase or add highway tolls (02/01/2010)
TRENTON — Gov. Chris Christie today said he won’t put tolls on roads that do not have them now because the state's residents already are overtaxed. more...

> Transportation report suggests new toll roads, raising N.J. gas tax (01/31/2010)
Interstates 78, 80, 195, 287 and 295 are likely targets to become toll roads, transportation experts predict in response to a report submitted to Gov. Chris Christie that suggests that the state explore placing tolls on certain highways. more...

> U.S. Economy Grew at Fastest Pace in 6 Years Last Quarter (01/29/2010)
The United States economy grew at its fastest pace in over six years at the end of 2009, but a sluggish job market is still souring economists on the sustainability of the recovery. more...

> Jobless claims hint at weak growth (01/29/2010)
WASHINGTON — Evidence that the economic rebound remains sluggish emerged from reports Thursday on new claims for unemployment aid and orders to U.S. factories. more...

> Wages and benefits rise weak 1.5 percent in 2009 (01/29/2010)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Wages and benefits paid to U.S. workers posted a modest gain in the fourth quarter, ending a year in which recession-battered workers saw their compensation rise by the smallest amount on records going back more than a quarter-century.

more...

> New York City Transit Chief Cites Worsening Budget Problems (01/28/2010)
The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority is facing its worst budget crisis in its history‹and it will only get worse if a six-year transportation bill waiting to be reauthorized is cut as the Obama Administration vows to rein in domestic spending, said its chairman and CEO. more...

> LAUTENBERG, MENENDEZ ANNOUNCE MORE THAN $38 MILLION IN NEW FUNDING FOR MAJOR RAIL BRIDGE BETWEEN KEARNY AND SECAUCUS (01/28/2010)
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Frank R. Lautenberg (D - NJ) and Robert Menendez (D - NJ) today announced $38,500,000 in new federal Recovery Act funding to complete the final design for a new rail bridge over the Hackensack River between Kearny and Secaucus. more...

> Rise in jobless claims signals bump in recovery (01/21/2010)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A surprising jump in first-time claims for unemployment aid sent a painful reminder Thursday that jobs remain scarce six months into the economic recovery.

more...

> Jobless rate rises past 10% in N.J. (01/20/2010)
New Jersey’s unemployment rate broke the 10 percent mark in December for the first time since 1977, the labor department said. more...

> Construction in 2010 will be sluggish, but stronger than ‘09 (01/15/2010)
Next year will mark a “transitional but sluggish year on the road to recovery” for the commercial construction industry, according to a forecast released today by Associated Builders and Contractors. more...

> White House, Congress Working on $400B-$500B Measure (01/14/2010)
The Obama administration is working with Congress on a multi-year transportation bill that it expects will cost between $400 billion to $500 billion, Transportation Department Secretary Ray LaHood said at a conference here yesterday. more...

> Eased federal rules a boon for local transit plans (01/14/2010)
Proposed rail projects on the Philadelphia waterfront and in South Jersey got a significant boost yesterday when federal transportation officials announced plans to rescind Bush administration restrictions on transit spending. more...

> New jobless claims rise more than expected (01/14/2010)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of newly laid-off workers requesting unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week as jobs remain scarce amid a sluggish economic recovery. more...

> White House Pegs ARRA Construction Jobs Impact at 168,000 (01/13/2010)
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has produced or saved an estimated 168,000 construction-sector jobs through the end of 2009, the White House Council of Economic Advisers says in its latest update on the impact of the stimulus legislation. more...

> State funnels $44M in additional aid to distressed N.J. cities (01/12/2010)
TRENTON - A state Legislative committee Monday funneled $44 million to a fund for distressed cities, on top of $117.4 already budgeted and just in time for a vote to distribute the money. more...

> U.S. Private-Sector Job Loss Exceeds Forecast (01/06/2010)
Private employers in the United States shed 84,000 jobs in December, fewer than the 145,000 jobs lost in November but more than economists had forecast, a report by a private employment service said on Wednesday. more...

> Private Sector Cut Only 84,000 Jobs in December (01/06/2010)
More progress on the U.S. employment front, as the private sector cut just 84,000 jobs in December -- the fewest since March 2008, according to data compiled in the ADP National Employment Report. more...

> ISM: Service sector returns to growth in December (01/06/2010)
NEW YORK (AP) -- A measure tracking the U.S. service sector returned to growth last month, helped higher by the holiday season's retail sales, but the slight expansion wasn't enough to kick-start hiring. more...

> If the Fed Missed This Bubble, Will It See a New One? (01/05/2010)
If only we’d had more power, we could have kept the financial crisis from getting so bad. more...

> N.J. holds second-highest exit rate (01/05/2010)
Steeper estate taxes. Fewer jobs. Higher property taxes.

For a variety of reasons, people are still leaving New Jersey.
more...

> N.J. weekly unemployment cap rises to $600 (01/04/2010)
The caps have increased for weekly unemployment benefits and other government support programs for New Jerseyans, according to the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development. more...

> New Jersey businesses to see new tax increase (01/01/2010)
James Bellis is already in a bind.

As an employer, he pays higher state unemployment taxes than many because he lays off about a dozen workers from his tree maintenance business every winter.
more...

> Jobless claims drop unexpectedly (12/31/2009)
WASHINGTON — The number of newly laid-off Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits dropped unexpectedly last week, a sign the job market is healing as the U.S. economy slowly recovers. more...

> Transportation Debt Burdens N.J. (12/28/2009)
New Jersey Gov.-elect Chris Christie will take office next month, and along with confronting high property taxes, a heavy debt burden, and the issue of encouraging shared services at the local level, the new administration will face a transportation funding spigot set to dry up by mid-2011. more...

> Ailing Banks Not Buying School Construction Bonds (12/27/2009)
Dec. 27--Congress made a tantalizing offer to local governments this year, with no-interest loans for school construction and renovation. more...

> U.S. jobless rate declines to 10 percent in latest survey (12/04/2009)
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released on Friday its latest summary of national employment, showing a slightly improving picture as the overall jobless rate dropped 0.2 percentage points. more...

> U.S. Economy Lost Only 11,000 Jobs in November (12/04/2009)
In the strongest jobs report since the recession began two years ago, the nation’s employers all but stopped shedding jobs in November, the government reported on Friday, and they appeared to be on the verge of finally rebuilding the work force. more...

> Obama: Jobs plan will 'jump-start' hiring (12/04/2009)
Even as he trumpeted a slowdown in the nation's job losses Friday, President Barack Obama put finishing touches on a proposal he'll unveil next week to "jump-start" business hiring across America. more...

> This Is Progress? Jobs Data Optimism Obscures Harsh Reality (12/04/2009)
If you still have a job, maybe Friday's numbers from the Labor Department will give you a chance to exhale.
more...

> 5 Surprises in the November Jobs Report (12/04/2009)
In a sign that employers are beginning to dip their toes into the hiring waters, a rising number of temp jobs helped shrink November's total job losses to 11,000, a figure small enough for officials to consider employment numbers essentially unchanged for the month. The unemployment rate fell by 0.2 percentage point to 10 percent. The data were far better than economists' forecasts of 125,000 jobs lost and an unchanged unemployment rate. more...

> Jersey to hold $21M in town aid (12/01/2009)
To help close an unexpected budget gap, the state plans to withhold $20.7 million in aid payments to municipalities, a move that could force cuts in services or higher property taxes, according to three legislative sources briefed on the move. more...

> Budget gap forces N.J. to seek out more cuts (11/27/2009)
Gov. Jon Corzine said yesterday he will once again scour the state's budget to fill another unexpected shortfall that reared its head this year. more...

> Federal lawmakers push for increase in gasoline tax (11/26/2009)
Drivers may have to pay more at the pump so train riders can have an easier commute into New York City -- as well as improved highways and repaired bridges. But they likely won't have New Jersey to blame for raising taxes on gasoline. more...

> U.S. deficit sets October record of $176.4 billion (11/12/2009)
WASHINGTON - The U.S. government deficit hit a record for October as the new budget year began where the old one ended, with the government awash in red ink. more...

> Stimulus Funds Kick Off A Slow Comeback After Market Bottoms (11/11/2009)
The decline in construction activity this year was broader, steeper and faster than many economists anticipated as private non-residential building markets succumbed to the credit crunch and many public markets waited for stimulus funding to be delivered. more...

> Construction Unemployment Rate Rises to 18.7% (11/06/2009)
Construction's unemployment rate climbed again in October, hitting 18.7%, up from 17.1% in September, as the industry lost another 62,000 jobs during the month, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported. more...

> Corzine to chop budget $400M (11/06/2009)
Gov. Jon Corzine is preparing to cut $400 million from the state budget and wants legislators to shelve any new spending plans during their upcoming lame-duck session, all to offset revenue shortfalls blamed on the poor economy. more...

> Recession over? Sure doesn’t feel like it (10/29/2009)
Even though the nation's economy showed growth in the third quarter for the first time in more than a year, don't assume that the Great Recession of 2008-09 is over. more...

> First-time jobless claims drop less than expected (10/29/2009)
WASHINGTON - The number of Americans claiming jobless benefits for the first time dropped less than expected last week, evidence that the labor market remains weak even as the economy is recovering. more...

> U.S. economy grew at 3.5 percent pace in third quarter, marking end of long deep recession (10/29/2009)
WASHINGTON -- The economy grew at a 3.5 percent pace in the third quarter, the best showing in two years, fueled by government-supported spending on cars and homes. more...

> Economy growing but recovery could be at risk (10/29/2009)
WASHINGTON - Fueled by government stimulus, the economy grew last quarter for the first time in more than a year. The question now is, can the recovery last? more...

> Stimulus jobs in U.S. overstated by thousands (10/29/2009)
WASHINGTON — An early progress report on President Obama's economic recovery plan overstates by thousands the number of jobs created or saved through the stimulus program, a mistake that White House officials promise will be corrected in future reports. more...

> 9 signs that America is in decline (10/28/2009)
The sky isn't falling, exactly. America isn't on a fast track to irrelevance. Even in a state of total neglect, we could probably shamble along as a disheveled superpower for a few more decades. more...

> Early reports: Job gains signal stimulus impact (10/28/2009)
WASHINGTON — States have reported using stimulus money to create or save more than 388,000 jobs so far this year, buttressing the Obama administration's claim that the $787 billion plan has had a significant impact on the economy. more...

> Privately run infrastructure deals dry up (10/28/2009)
A rush by state and local governments to sell roads, bridges and airports to private operators in return for eye-popping upfront sums has all but collapsed in the recession. more...

> New Jersey continues to lead nation in property taxes (10/28/2009)
CENTRAL JERSEY — Any way you care to look at it, New Jersey still leads the nation in property taxes.

And its really not even a close race. more...

> Gov't may say recession over but not job losses (10/27/2009)
It's about to become official: The recession is over _ but not the pain.

The government will release figures this week expected to show that the economy has awakened from its deepest slump since the 1930s and is in the early stages of a recovery. But the following week, the government will issue another set of figures expected to show unemployment continuing to rise toward and possibly above a clearly recessionary 10 percent.
more...

> Newark Airport to enlarge, modernize Terminal B (10/23/2009)
NEWARK — The growth of Newark Liberty airport continues with the award of a $58.9 million contract by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to modernize and enlarge Terminal B. more...

> Senate fails to pass three month extension: $8.7 billion rescission takes effect (10/23/2009)
The Senate adjourned last night without taking action on a three month extension of SAFETEA-LU. Disagreement over the source of funds to pay for repeal of the $8.7 billion rescission slated to go into effect upon the expiration of SAFETEA-LU on Sept. 30, 2009 torpedoed the legislation. more...

> Federal Deficit Hits All-Time High of $1.42 Trillion (10/16/2009)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The federal budget deficit has surged to an all-time high of $1.42 trillion as the recession caused tax revenues to plunge while the government was spending massive amounts to stabilize the financial system and jump-start the economy. more...

> Teachers, laborers add jobs (10/13/2009)
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama's stimulus plan spared tens of thousands of teachers from losing their jobs, state officials said Monday amid a nationwide effort to calculate the effect of Washington's $787 billion recovery package. more...

> Gov. Corzine would consider gasoline tax increase for transportation projects (10/13/2009)
TRENTON -- Governor Corzine said Monday he’ll consider raising the state’s gasoline tax during a second term or diverting money from other programs to keep the fund that pays for transportation projects afloat. more...

> Corzine sketches out plan on budget (10/09/2009)
After spending months accusing his Republican rival of having no plan to solve New Jersey's financial woes, Gov. Jon Corzine revealed for the first time yesterday details of his own proposals to close a looming budget gap. more...

> New Jersey Governor Tightens Control of Hudson Tunnel Project (10/08/2009)
With bids due soon for an estimated $8.7-billion tunnel project between New Jersey and Manhattan, the governor of New Jersey has announced tough new measures to control costs and potential fraud. more...

> Employers Begin Rehiring the Laid Off (10/05/2009)
With the economy showing modest signs of improvement, a number of companies that shed jobs during the recession are beginning to rehire the very same employees. more...

> $14.4M in stimulus funds for NJ energy programs (10/04/2009)
TRENTON - New Jersey will use a $14.4 million federal stimulus grant to help fund several energy efficiency and conservation programs.
more...

> Ten views of unemployment around the world (10/03/2009)
In the 30 countries comprising the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), unemployment is as low as 3.2% in the Netherlands and as high as 17.6% in Spain, as of July 2009. more...

> Construction's Unemployment Rate Rises to 17.1% in September (10/02/2009)
Despite a pickup in federal stimulus projects, construction's unemployment rate grew worse in September, rising to 17.1%, from 16.5% in August, as the industry lost another 64,000 jobs, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. more...

> Obama Signs One-Month SAFETEA-LU Extension (10/02/2009)
President Obama signed legislation on Oct. 1 that provides a one-month extension for the federal highway and transit programs as well as the appropriations for nearly all federal agencies. Obama also signed a separate bill that extends Federal Aviation Administration programs, including airport construction grants, for three months. more...

> U.S. Consumer Spending Jumps; Jobless Claims Up (10/01/2009)
The government’s “cash for clunkers” program jump-started personal spending in August as car buyers took advantage of taxpayer-financed rebates, the government reported on Thursday. more...

> I.M.F. Upgrades Forecast for World Economies (10/01/2009)
FRANKFURT — The International Monetary Fund on Thursday forecast that the world economy would expand 3.1 percent next year, after a 2009 in which much of the world struggled through a recession. more...

> US economy to grow again by year end, IMF says (10/01/2009)
The U.S economy will be growing again by year end, but tight credit conditions for consumers and businesses will hamper the recovery, the International Monetary Fund said Thursday as it raised its forecast for growth next year to 1.5 percent from 0.8 percent. more...

> Full job recovery unlikely before 2017 (10/01/2009)
While the recession appears to be over, the job market is still eight years away from full recovery two Rutgers economists said Wednesday.
more...

> Report: National job losses continue to moderate (09/30/2009)
Businesses continued to hemorrhage jobs in September, with 254,000 jobs disappearing, but the pace of losses continued to slow, according to the ADP National Employment Report released Wednesday. Small and medium-sized companies continued to lead the way in losses, according to the report, prepared by ADP, the Roseland-based payroll processing firm, and Macroeconomic Advisers LLC. more...

> Economic growth seen slowing by year's end (09/30/2009)
WASHINGTON – The unfolding economic recovery will probably lose some momentum in the final three months of the year as rising unemployment and still hard-to-get credit weigh on consumers. more...

> Rutgers report: It will take years to work out economic woes linked to job losses (09/30/2009)
RUTGERS — The U.S. is in for a long, hard slog over the next 10 years as it recovers the millions of jobs lost during the Great Recession of 2007-2009, according to a pair of Rutgers researchers who calculated the time it will take for the nation to fill its employment
deficit. more...

> Taxes, tolls or debt must rise to cure N.J. highway headache (09/30/2009)
All right, New Jersey voter, which would you prefer, higher taxes or more debt? more...

> FHWA issues order to rescind $8.7 billion in state highway funds (09/24/2009)
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has notified state DOTs that, as required by SAFETEA-LU, $8.7 billion in budget authority will be rescinded from their unobligated Federal aid highway balances on September 30, 2009. more...

> EDA awards grants for companies to add 700 jobs, keep 300 (09/09/2009)
Insurance companies, an India-based pharmaceutical company and an iced-tea maker are among those that could be adding New Jersey jobs with the help of state grants approved Tuesday. more...

> Ailing economy aids public construction (09/09/2009)
Public construction projects, usually an exercise in cost overruns, are getting cheaper as material prices fall and builders compete for contracts just to stay afloat, a silver lining for cash-strapped governments but a worry to some contractors who risk lowballing themselves out of business. more...

> Worst recession since 1930s appears to be over (09/09/2009)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A new government survey finds the vast majority of the country reporting economic activity is stabilizing or improving, as the worst recession since the 1930s appears to be over. more...

> Construction Unemployment Rate Improves, But Job Losses Still Cut Deeply (09/04/2009)
Construction's unemployment rate declined in August to 16.5%-- the industry's lowest jobless rate in eight months--the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Construction's August rate was an improvement over the 18.2% reported for July, but it was more than double the August 2008 rate of 8.2%. more...

> U.S. Raises Estimate for 10-Year Deficit to $9 Trillion (08/25/2009)
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration, citing an economic downturn that has been deeper than it had first thought, raised its estimate on Tuesday of the government’s deficit over the next decade to $9 trillion from $7.1 trillion. more...

> U.S. employers see hires in year ahead (08/25/2009)
NEW YORK (Reuters) - More than half the employers in a new poll say they plan to hire full-time employees in the next 12 months, according to research released on Tuesday that could spell relief for unemployed U.S. workers. more...

> Construction spending rises unexpectedly (08/03/2009)
WASHINGTON — Construction spending rose for the second time in three months in June as residential building increased, fresh evidence that the housing sector may be recovering. more...

> Officials seek to extend jobless benefits (08/03/2009)
WASHINGTON — President Obama's top economic advisers say the administration will work with Congress to extend unemployment benefits for millions of Americans. more...

> White House: No Middle-Class Tax Hike (08/03/2009)
WASHINGTON (Aug. 3) -- The White House spokesman said Monday that President Barack Obama is committed to not raising taxes on U.S. families earning less than $250,000. more...

> Latest factory, construction data points to recovery (08/03/2009)
The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index revealed an improving manufacturing sector in July, while the U.S. Commerce Department announced that construction spending rose on signs of housing sector stabilization in June.
more...

> Stimulus cash lifts states, localities (08/02/2009)
A huge influx of federal stimulus money to state and local governments more than offset a sharp drop in tax collections, helping to put the brakes on the nation's economic decline, new government data show. more...

> Congress Passes $7-Billion Rescue Of Highway Trust Fund (07/31/2009)
With the Highway Trust Fund facing a shortfall within weeks, Congress has approved a $7-billion infusion for the fund's highway account, a move that backers of the legislation say will be enough to keep the account solvent through Sept. 30. more...

> Stimulus: Gains Continue in Road, Transit Projects (07/29/2009)
The number of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act highway and transit projects out to bid, under contract and under way, as well as their dollar value, is climbing, but actual outlays still are low. more...

> Minimum wage hike takes effect today (07/24/2009)
New Jersey's minimum wage will rise today to $7.25 an hour from $7.15 an hour as part of a federal law that has bumped up wages three times since 2006. more...

> The new minimum wage: Will it just increase layoffs? (07/24/2009)
Big financial events bring economists and analysts out of the wood work, anxious to give their opinions and get their names in the media. The increase in the minimum wage, which is effective today, is a prime example. The federal minimum wage will go from $6.55 to $7.25. That is an 11 percent hike, which is a pretty healthy bump. more...

> Jobless Checks for Millions Delayed as States Struggle (07/23/2009)
WASHINGTON — Years of state and federal neglect have hobbled the nation’s unemployment system just as a brutal recession has doubled the number of jobless Americans seeking aid. more...

> Greed, betrayal, shame (07/23/2009)
The federal investigation that snared the mayors of Ridgefield, Secaucus and Hoboken uncovered a familiar pattern of corrupt public officials willing to sell their offices for cash and greedy businessmen eager to launder dirty money, authorities said Thursday. more...

> New jobless claims rise to 554K, total rolls fall (07/23/2009)
WASHINGTON – The number of newly laid-off workers seeking jobless benefits rose last week, though the government said its report again was distorted by the timing of auto plant shutdowns. more...

> Oberstar Proposes $3-Billion Highway Trust Fund Remedy (07/23/2009)
House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-Minn.) has recommended a $3-billion infusion for the struggling Highway Trust Fund, a sum that Oberstar says will be enough to carry the trust fund through Sept. 30. Oberstar, who made his proposal July 23 during a House Ways and Means subcommittee hearing, said that the boost for the trust fund should come through a transfer from the general fund. more...

> N.J. faces $10B deficit next year, report says (07/22/2009)
New Jersey faces a projected budget deficit of $8 billion in its next fiscal year, as well as a shortfall of more than $2 billion in its unemployment compensation fund, a report said Tuesday. more...

> Bernanke says Fed can take on supercop role (07/21/2009)
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke ran into skepticism Tuesday from lawmakers wary of expanding the Fed's duties to police big financial companies. They argued that the Fed failed to spot problems that led to the financial crisis in the first place. more...

> Baucus Proposes $26.8-Billion Trust Fund 'Fix' (07/21/2009)
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) has introduced a bill that would repair the looming revenue hole in the Highway Trust Fund. Baucus's bill, introduced July 20, would provide a total of $26.8 billion in new revenue for the trust fund, with $22 billion designed for the fund's highway account and $4.8 billion for its transit account. more...

> DOT Flooded With High-Speed Rail Requests (07/20/2009)
Demand for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grants for high-speed rail far outstrips the $8 billion available. The U.S. Dept. of Transportation's Federal Railroad Administration reported on July 16 that it had received 278 "pre-applications" for the rail grants, with applicants requesting a total of $102 billion. The department expects to award the first batch of economic-stimulus rail grants in the fall. more...

> NJ transit approves budget, doesn't raise fares (07/08/2009)
NJ Transit approved a $1.79 billion budget today that doesn't raise fares but also freezes some wages and requires furloughs. more...

> Review: Saying no to stimulus would have cost New Jersey $5 billion (07/08/2009)
New Jersey could have missed out on nearly $5 billion in federal stimulus funding if the state declined to take money with conditions attached by the federal government, according to a nonpartisan review. more...

> Lost along the way: Stimulus funds for local road projects (07/08/2009)
While many state and county roads across New Jersey are undergoing makeovers, municipal officials say they are struggling to maintain their local streets because federal stimulus dollars aren't trickling down to them. more...

> U.S. Job Losses Rise in June as Unemployment Reaches 9.5% (07/02/2009)
The American economy lost 467,000 jobs in June and the unemployment rate edged up to 9.5 percent in a sobering indication that the most painful downturn since the Great Depression has yet to release its hold. more...

> Work begins on $2.5B project to end NJ Turnpike bottleneck (07/02/2009)
EAST WINDSOR, N.J. (AP) — Motorists on the New Jersey Turnpike face more pain before they gain from a widening project. more...

> Ten Minutes with Norman Mineta On the Highway Trust Fund Crisis (07/02/2009)
ENR Washington, D.C. Bureau Chief Tom Ichniowski caught up with former U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta on June 29 to ask him what Congress may do to fix the Highway Trust Fund's problems and how the battle over reauthorizing highway and transit programs might be resolved. Mineta led DOT from 2001 to July, 2006 under President George W. Bush, and then moved to Hill & Knowlton, a public relations and lobbying firm, where he is vice-chairman. more...

> Governor approves $29B tab (06/30/2009)
Gov. Jon Corzine signed into law yesterday the $29 billion state budget that was approved by both houses of the Legislature last week. more...

> Fed Board Maintains the Status Quo (06/24/2009)
WASHINGTON — Facing an economy that is perking up slightly but still deep in recession, the Federal Reserve left its rescue policies unchanged on Wednesday and said that it would keep interest rates low for “an extended period.” more...

> U.S. Jobless Claims Fall for First Time in 21 Weeks (06/18/2009)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The total number of people on the unemployment insurance rolls has dropped for the first time since early January, while first-time claims for benefits rose slightly. more...

> Mixed employment data: jobless claims rise, but continuing claims fall (06/18/2009)
Another mixed bag regarding the most recent labor market data. While initial jobless claims rose by 3,000 to 608,000, continuing claims fell 148,000 to 6.69 million, the U.S. Labor Department announced Thursday. Meanwhile, the 4-week moving average decreased 7,000 to 622,250.
more...

> Leading economic indicators up more than expected (06/18/2009)
NEW YORK (AP) -- A private research group's forecast of economic activity rose in May by the largest amount in more than five years, the latest sign that the recession is easing. more...

> Middlesex County in smart pursuit of "green-collar" jobs (06/17/2009)
Middlesex County government has been a leader among its peers in the push to go "green" in all of its operations. But beyond hybrid-powered vehicles driven by county workers or solar-paneled roofs sitting atop public buildings, officials are eyeing more: the creation and attraction of private enterprise with those same earth-friendly goals as part of the bottom line. The cause is a laudable one. Potentially lucrative, too. Middlesex could become not only a cleaner county but a more wealthy one. Still, it's a long haul. But first, the plan. more...

> Doubt cast on funding for new tunnel (06/16/2009)
Funding for New Jersey's second commuter rail tunnel to Manhattan may be $3 billion short of its price tag, which could leave the state few options -- such as higher tolls and taxes -- if the federal government fails to provide that money. more...

> IMF likes U.S. economic prospects (06/16/2009)
The International Monetary Fund is joining the chorus of organizations and experts who believe that the U.S. is rising from the recession faster than expected. more...

> War Funding Bill Provides $4.4 Billion for Construction (06/12/2009)
House and Senate negotiators have agreed on a $106-billion supplemental spending bill for fiscal 2009 that most funds the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq but also contains about $4.4 billion for defense and non-military construction, much of it in the U.S. more...

> SOUTH JERSEY: No federal funds for commuter rail line expansion (06/11/2009)
CAMDEN -- The Delaware River Port Authority announced Wednesday it has given up hope that it will receive federal funding to build a diesel-powered, light-rail passenger service between the Walter Rand Transportation Center in Camden and Glassboro. more...

> Jobless claims drop to 601,000; retail sales rise (06/11/2009)
WASHINGTON — The number of newly laid-off Americans filing jobless claims fell more than expected last week and retail sales grew in May for the first time in three months, fresh evidence that the worst of the recession may have passed. more...

> Deal with union to save Jersey $300 million (06/11/2009)
Gov. Jon Corzine's tentative labor deal with state workers frees up millions of dollars in the short term, but taxpayers still will wind up paying in the future. more...

> New Brunswick breaks ground on $150M Transit Village project (06/10/2009)
NEW BRUNSWICK — Gov. Jon S. Corzine and other high-ranking state officials joined city and business leaders this morning to launch a $150 million mixed-use Gateway Transit Village in the city. more...

> Highway Trust Fund Faces New Shortfall (06/10/2009)
The Highway Trust Fund is in trouble again. Last September, Congress rescued the fund’s highway account with an $8-billion injection. Now a new shortfall, estimated at $5 billion to $7 billion, is looming in August. The picture is even darker for 2010, when an additional $8 billion to $10 billion will be needed. The search is on for more revenue, but the White House is insisting that any new money for the trust fund must be offset, presumably by spending cuts or a revenue-raising mechanism. more...

> Construction Jobs Trickle Back But Losses Are Not Over Yet (06/10/2009)
Even as the Obama administration looks to pump more stimulus money into the marketplace, contractors are pointing to challenges of turning existing funds into new or saved jobs. Firms report some stimulus progress in stabilizing their workforce, but nonresidential construction job losses won’t end in 2009. more...

> Work begins on rail tunnel under Hudson (06/09/2009)
The nation's largest current public works project began yesterday when state and federal officials ceremonially broke ground in Hudson County on a second passenger rail tunnel under the Hudson River. more...

> Obama promises more than 600,000 stimulus jobs (06/08/2009)
WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama promised Monday to deliver more than 600,000 jobs through his $787 billion stimulus plan this summer, with federal agencies pumping billions into public works projects, schools and summer youth programs. more...

> $891M in stimulus aid will help New Jersey education budget (06/08/2009)
New Jersey's application for $891 million in education funding from the federal stimulus package has been approved. more...

> Report: Overall pace of job losses slows, but small-business cuts on rise (06/03/2009)
Job losses across the nation continued to mount in May, but the pace slowed somewhat, according to a report issued this morning by Roseland’s Automatic Data Processing. Small-business cutbacks accelerated during the period, though, as the credit crunch and other issues took their toll. more...

> America facing a retirement crisis (06/03/2009)
Insufficient savings is just part of the problem, experts say. When traditional pensions were jettisoned, so was the assurance that money would last until death. more...

> Bernanke sees recession ending soon; warns on debt (06/03/2009)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke sounded a cautiously upbeat note on the U.S. economy on Wednesday but warned that corralling government debt was vital to ensuring the nation's long-term health. more...

> Big Apple Firms and Unions Will Cut Costs To Boost Work (06/03/2009)
In an effort to jump start building projects in New York City and put idle union construction workers back on the job, the leaders of more than 40 different building trades and union employer groups announced on May 29 what they termed a “historic compact” to cut wages of both labor and management and end expensive work rules. more...

> N.J. ranks 31st for real GDP growth (06/02/2009)
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis today released the 2008 real gross domestic product growth statistics by state, and New Jersey weighed in at No. 31. more...

> Highway Trust Fund Faces New Hole, Lawmakers Say (06/02/2009)
The Highway Trust Fund, which had to be rescued last September, is facing another big shortfall this summer and will need a new infusion of $5 billion to $7 billion by August to avoid a slowdown in spending, key senators say. more...

> Stimulus Contracting Picks Up In Highway, Transit Markets (05/22/2009)
The pace of contracting for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds is picking up in the highway and transit sectors. A new House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee report on the economic-stimulus legislation shows that 2,901 highway and transit projects, valued at almost $10 billion, have been put out for bid in 50 states, territories and the District of Columbia as of April 30. more...

> 11 Transit Projects Share $743 Million in Stimulus Aid (05/12/2009)
The U.S. Dept. of Transportation has said that it is allocating $742.5 million in economic-stimulus funds to speed construction of 11 transit projects in nine states. more...

> New US jobless claims unexpectedly plunge to 601K (05/07/2009)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- New applications for U.S. jobless benefits plunged to the lowest level in 14 weeks, a possible sign that the massive wave of layoffs has peaked. Still, the number of unemployed Americans getting benefits climbed to a new record. more...

> New jobless claims drop unexpectedly to 610,000 (04/16/2009)
WASHINGTON — New jobless claims fell more than expected for the second straight week, but the number of Americans continuing to receive unemployment insurance benefits climbed above 6 million for the first time. more...

> N.J. approves $956M in energy infrastructure projects (04/16/2009)
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities today green-lighted a broad range of infrastructure projects designed to add jobs to the state's economy, but the approval will result in an average $12 increase in yearly electric and gas bills for five of seven utility firms, including PSEG. more...

> DOT Outlines High-Speed Rail Plan (04/16/2009)
The Dept. of Transportation has released a blueprint aimed at developing high-speed rail in 100- to 600-mile-long corridors around the country. The plan, released April 16, does not say which projects will be funded, but it does include a map of high-speed rail corridors that could qualify for federal aid. The program could provide significant design and construction opportunities. DOT's Federal Railroad Administration will start awarding the first round of grants by late summer. more...

> Recession's grip tight on jobs, housing markets (04/16/2009)
WASHINGTON - The number of people receiving jobless benefits exceeded 6 million for the first time, the government reported Thursday, and housing construction unexpectedly plunged to its second-lowest level on record — fresh evidence that the recession is far from over. more...

> NJ will spend $77.5 million to ease travel in region (04/14/2009)
TRENTON — Outdated bridges, roads that need a new coat of asphalt and tricky intersections that need detangling in southern New Jersey will see at least $77.5 million from the state’s $3.6 billion transportation spending plan, according to the project list announced by Gov. Jon S. Corzine and filed Monday by the state Department of Transportation. more...

> Construction Stimulus Special Section (04/14/2009)
The 2009 Stimulus Package is the most important piece of legislation in the history of the A/E/C industry—and no one can match McGraw-Hill Construction’s ability to help you benefit from it. Our special section includes news and analysis from our 17 publications, plus BusinessWeek and Standard & Poors. You’ll also find the most comprehensive list of shovel-ready projects and in-depth market forecasts and economic research. more...

> Governor unveils $3.6B plan for roads and rails (04/14/2009)
Gov. Jon Corzine said yesterday that improving New Jersey roads and rails are "part of our strategic future" as the state embarks on its largest-ever capital construction program. more...

> Bernanke sees 'tentative signs' of improvement (04/14/2009)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Tuesday there's been "tentative signs" that the recession may be easing. But he also warned that any hope for a lasting recovery hinges on the government's success in stabilizing shaky financial markets and getting credit to flow more freely again. more...

> $27 million road project announced (04/09/2009)
MILLVILLE -- The state is launching a $27 million road improvement project designed to increase safety and decrease congestion at the intersections of routes 49 and 55, and Route 49 and Wade Boulevard in this Cumberland County city. The project is estimated to create 130 construction jobs. more...

> Jobless Rate Hits 8.5% After 663,000 Jobs Lost in March (04/03/2009)
The American economy shed another 663,000 jobs in March, the government reported Friday, bringing the toll of job losses during the recession to 5.1 million. more...

> Unemployment rates on the rise in every U.S. metro area in Feb. (04/02/2009)
WASHINGTON -- Unemployment rates rose in all of the nation's largest metropolitan areas for the second straight month in February. more...

> DOE Rolls Out $9.2 Billion From Economic-Stimulus Statute (04/01/2009)
The Dept. of Energy has announced how it will spend more than $9 billion in federal funds under the recently enacted economic-stimulus measure, with much of the money aimed at construction projects. DOE on March 31 released its plans for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's $6 billion to accelerate environmental cleanup work at former nuclear-weapons sites across 12 states around the country. Five days earlier, the agency disclosed its breakdown of $3.2 billion for a new Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program that the stimulus statute created. more...

> Shovel-ready for stimulus funding (03/30/2009)
Six weeks after President Barack Obama signed the federal stimulus package into law, New Jersey already has lined up dozens of shovel-ready projects, some of which are now seeking bids. more...

> Federal government to invest additional $75.5M in N.J. energy-efficiency projects (03/27/2009)
The Garden State will receive approximately $75.5 million in additional funding from the federal stimulus package for local energy-efficiency improvements as part of a $3.2 billion federal investment in such projects nationwide, the White House announced Friday. more...

> Unemployment fund gets $200M booster shot from federal stimulus (03/27/2009)
New Jersey today became the first state to receive federal stimulus money from the U.S. Department of Labor. The Garden State received $206.8 million that will immediately be used to bolster the state’s dwindling Unemployment Insurance Trust fund, Gov. Jon S. Corzine and U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis said this morning. more...

> Federal stimulus will drive N.J.'s clean-energy plans (03/24/2009)
New Jersey is poised to receive millions in federal stimulus dollars to train a green work force to weatherize the state’s 3 million buildings, install wind farms off the Jersey Shore and cover roofs with solar panels, according to a green jobs symposium at Rutgers on Tuesday. more...

> N.J. borrows cash to pay claims for the jobless (03/24/2009)
New Jersey has joined the list of states unable to pay the escalating number of unemployment insurance claims without borrowing from the federal government, Gov. Jon S. Corzine said Monday.

more...

> Bridges and roads to get a lift from stimulus funds (03/13/2009)
The leaders of the state Department of Transportation and NJ Transit yesterday told lawmakers their agencies have identified $892 million in transportation projects that are ready to be funded by federal stimulus aid headed to New Jersey. more...

> 5,000 “Ready-To-Go” transportation projects could put millions to work (03/10/2009)
With a pledge to put 2.5 million Americans to work and an eye toward stimulating the U.S. economy, President-elect Barack Obama wants to jump-start the economy in a stimulus effort that will center on rebuilding roads and bridges, and modernizing schools. In addition, his spending plan will work toward developing alternative energy sources and more efficient cars. His aides and congressional leaders have been discussing the outlines of a measure that could exceed $500 billion over two years. more...

> State to inject $180M into school projects (03/07/2009)
Stressing the importance of keeping the construction trades working in a worsening recession, Gov. Jon Corzine announced the state will pump $180 million into hundreds of school repair and construction projects. more...

> Corzine outlines $900M in transportation projects (03/06/2009)
Aging buses and rail cars will be rehabilitated. Pocked roads will be resurfaced. Bridges will be built, and others will be painted to extend their lives. more...

> New figures show more Jersey job losses (03/05/2009)
New Jersey's job market looked even bleaker yesterday after the state Labor Department issued revised unemployment figures showing steeper job losses occurred last year as the recession strangled business. more...

> White House: $652M in transportation money headed to NJ (03/03/2009)
WASHINGTON - The White House says New Jersey will receive $652 million in transportation funding under the $787 billion economic stimulus plan President Barack Obama signed into law last month. more...

> Stimulus Flows Into Patchwork of State Transport Projects (03/03/2009)
Kansas will widen U.S. Route 69 to remove a bottleneck outside Kansas City, along with three other expensive projects. Maryland will spend its money in smaller pieces, resurfacing dozens of rutted roads and highways. Colorado will build an interchange on Elk Creek Road in Jefferson County, complete with an underpass for the elk. more...

> DOT Releases Highway Stimulus Funds to States (03/03/2009)
Beating its congressionally imposed deadline, the U.S. Dept. of Transportation has released the $27.5 billion provided for highway projects in the recently enacted economic-stimulus package. The release of the funds, announced March 3 by President Obama, followed the Federal Highway Administration's formal apportionment the day before of $26.7 billion of that total among the states. more...

> Will This Recession Become a Depression? (03/02/2009)
WASHINGTON (March 2) - A Depression doesn't have to be Great — bread lines, rampant unemployment, a wipeout in the stock market. The economy can sink into a milder depression, the kind spelled with a lowercase "d." more...

> Downhill economy gaining speed in wrong direction (02/28/2009)
WASHINGTON -- The economy is moving in reverse faster than the government can measure. more...

> N.J. gets its first piece of $787B stimulus pie (02/28/2009)
Newark will repair its high-rise public housing complexes for the elderly, where heat now seeps through the failing walls.

Jersey City's housing authority will avoid laying off employees.
more...

> Economists question budget's economic assumptions (02/27/2009)
The administration insists it isn't so, but some private economists are wondering if the Obama administration has brought "Rosy Scenario" back to town. more...

> Economy shrinks at fastest pace in 26 years (02/27/2009)
WASHINGTON - The economy contracted at a staggering 6.2 percent pace at the end of 2008, the worst showing in a quarter-century, as consumers and businesses ratcheted back spending, plunging the country deeper into recession. more...

> New jobless claims keep rising, with N.J. in lead (02/27/2009)
New requests for unemployment benefits rose again last week, defying expectations, while the number of Americans continuing to receive jobless aid topped 5.1 million, fresh evidence the recession is increasingly forcing employers to shed jobs. more...

> Economy suffering 'maximum recession stress' (02/27/2009)
The economy contracted at a staggering 6.2 percent pace at the end of 2008, the worst showing in more than a quarter-century, as consumers and businesses ratcheted back spending, plunging the country deeper into recession. more...

> BUDGET CRISES PUT TAX REFUND CHECKS ON HOLD (02/27/2009)
You've probably heard before that if you're getting a big, fat tax refund check, you're doing something wrong. Now there’s a new reason to fine-tune those payroll withholding elections. The economic meltdown is hitting statehouses around the country so hard that some are holding their residents’ tax refund checks hostage. more...

> Number of Unemployed Tops 5 Million (02/26/2009)
WASHINGTON (Feb. 26) - As bad as it is already, the economy keeps getting worse — and government figures Thursday provided more evidence that the downward spiral won't end anytime soon. more...

> White House Unveils Blueprint for $3.6-Trillion Budget (02/26/2009)
The White House on Feb. 26 unveiled a $3.55-trillion budget outline for fiscal year 2010 that would boost funding for water infrastructure and transportation programs while aiming to cut the federal deficit in half by 2013. more...

> Corzine: Stimulus to deliver $1B in budget relief (02/24/2009)
Gov. Jon Corzine said yesterday the federal stimulus package will soften the damage to the budget he will deliver next month by providing more than $1 billion in direct relief. more...

> NEW JERSEY: Stimulus bill could send $10B our way (02/23/2009)
WASHINGTON -- Gov. Jon S. Corzine says he's happy with the size of the economic stimulus plan that became law earlier this month, though it's $213 billion less than what he and four other Democratic governors had recommended. more...

> Forecasters: Economy worse in '09, better in '10 (02/23/2009)
Brace yourself: The recession is projected to worsen this year. The country stands to lose a sizable chunk of economic activity in 2009 as consumers at home and abroad retrench in the face of persistent economic troubles. And the U.S. unemployment rate _ now at 7.6 percent, the highest in more than 16 years _ is expected hit a peak of 9 percent this year. more...

> Corzine: Stimulus package will yield $1B in N.J. budget relief (02/23/2009)
Gov. Jon Corzine said today he expects the federal stimulus package to provide about $1 billion in direct relief for the budget he will introduce next month. more...

> Stimulus impact on N.J. unclear (02/23/2009)
The $787 billion economic stimulus bill should help New Jersey weather the nation's financial storm, but its precise impact on state residents still is being determined. more...

> Each week brings frightening growth to ranks of jobless (02/20/2009)
February is shaping up to be another brutal month of job losses: The number of laid-off workers receiving unemployment benefits hit an all-time high of nearly 5 million, and new jobless claims are at levels not seen since the early 1980s. more...

> Fed says economy still poor (02/19/2009)
The Federal Reserve warned yesterday that the nation's crippled economy is even worse than thought and predicted it would deteriorate throughout 2009, with no sign that the housing market will stabilize. more...

> Fed: More jobs to vanish (02/19/2009)
The Federal Reserve on Wednesday sharply downgraded its projections for the country's economic performance this year, predicting the economy will actually shrink and unemployment will rise higher. more...

> Wholesale inflation takes biggest jump in 6 months (02/19/2009)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Inflation at the wholesale level surged unexpectedly in January, reflecting sharply higher prices for gasoline and other energy products. more...

> New Jobless Claims Top 600,000 (02/19/2009)
WASHINGTON (Feb. 19) - The number of laid-off workers receiving unemployment benefits has jumped to an all-time high near 5 million while new jobless claims remain well above 600,000. Both figures were worse than expected and new projections from the Federal Reserve show unemployment rising for the rest of this year. more...

> Fed Offers Bleak Economic Outlook (02/18/2009)
The Federal Reserve cut its economic outlook for 2009 on Wednesday and warned that the United States economy would face an “unusually gradual and prolonged” period of recovery as the country struggles to climb out of a deep global downturn. more...

> Fed says economy will shrink and jobless rate will climb this year (02/18/2009)
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve today sharply downgraded its projections for the country’s economic performance this year, predicting the economy will actually shrink and unemployment will rise higher. more...

> Road and Rail Builders Are Ready To Roll (02/18/2009)
For years, a higher-speed rail route between Chicago and St. Louis "has been a construction season or two away from reality," says Rick Harnish, executive director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association. Pleasantly surprised by the $8-billion pot created in the final stimulus package for high-speed rail, he says, "Hopefully this will put it over the edge." more...

> $27.5B stimulus in bridges and highways investment (02/18/2009)
With a final vote late on Feb. 13 by the U.S. Senate, Congress approved a $787 billion stimulus package that includes $27.5 billion in 100 percent federally funded highways and bridges investment. The House of Representatives passed the compromise bill 246 to 183 earlier that day. No Republicans in the House voted for the bill. Seven Democrats joined Republicans in opposing the measure. more...

> Winners and Losers as Congress Approves Final Stimulus Measure (02/14/2009)
A $787-billion economic stimulus package is heading to the White House for President Barack Obama’s signature following final congressional approval of the huge package of federal spending and tax breaks. The bill includes an estimated $130 billion in spending for construction programs as well as tax incentives that also will give the industry a boost. more...

> A bleak forecast for state (02/12/2009)
New Jersey stands to lose another 205,000 jobs before it emerges from the devastating recession, a leading state economist told a gathering of bankers yesterday. more...

> 7,200 N.J. businesses apply for new jobs grants (02/12/2009)
TRENTON - A new program that offers New Jersey businesses money to create jobs seems to be working. more...

> Reid: Stimulus Agreement Reached On A $789-billion Program (02/11/2009)
Congressional negotiators have struck a deal on a compromise, $789-billion economic-stimulus bill, said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). The measure is smaller than the $819.5-billion package that the House approved on Jan. 28 and the $838-billion measure that the Senate passed Feb. 10. more...

> Revised Senate Stimulus Zeroes Out School Construction (02/09/2009)
To win over a few key Republican votes, a small group of Senators has recommended about $108 billion in cuts from an economic stimulus package that had grown to more than $900 billion. The major construction program casualty is the original Senate stimulus bill's $19.5 billion for school construction funding, which the team of lawmakers deleted. more...

> Jobless growth adds to misery (02/06/2009)
WASHINGTON -- New jobless claims jumped far more than expected last week in an already dismal labor market, and there's no relief in sight for workers as mass layoffs persist. more...

> Economy Shed 598,000 Jobs in January (02/06/2009)
WASHINGTON — The United States lost almost 600,000 jobs last month and the unemployment rate rose to 7.6 percent, its highest level in more than 16 years, the Labor Department said Friday. more...

> Obama Delivers Promise to Unions By Reversing Bush Labor Pact Ban (02/06/2009)
As Congress negotiates billions of dollars in potential federal funds for construction through the economic stimulus bill, President Barack Obama moved to bring project labor agreements back as an option on federally funded projects. The president issued an executive order Feb. 6 overturning a Bush administration ban on federal PLAs and opened the door to such pacts on projects of $25 million or more. more...

> Hemorrhaging of jobs continues unabated (02/04/2009)
Layoffs are spiking as the recession rips through the country, with retailers, banks, factories and others cutting costs ever more deeply this week. It's inflicting a painful toll on workers, and there's little relief in sight. more...

> Jobless numbers swelling (01/30/2009)
The number of people receiving unemployment benefits has reached the highest level on records that go back more than 40 years, the government said yesterday, and more layoffs are spreading throughout the economy. more...

> House OKs $819B stimulus bill with GOP opposition (01/28/2009)
WASHINGTON - In a swift victory for President Barack Obama, the Democratic-controlled House approved a historically huge $819 billion stimulus bill Wednesday night with spending increases and tax cuts at the heart of the young administration's plan to revive a badly ailing economy. The vote was 244-188, with Republicans unanimous in opposition despite Obama's frequent pleas for bipartisan support. more...

> Rail tunnel to Manhattan gets final OK (01/15/2009)
A federal agency has approved a plan to build a second commuter rail tunnel to Manhattan, clearing the way for construction of the $8.7 billion project to begin by the end of the year, Governor Corzine announced Wednesday. more...

> New jobless claims increase more than expected (01/15/2009)
WASHINGTON – New claims for jobless benefits increased more than expected last week, a trend many economists say is likely to continue for much of this year. more...

> Fed: Outlook for economy has darkened (01/14/2009)
WASHINGTON - The U.S. economy started the new year on weaker footing as recession-shocked Americans retrenched further, forcing retailers to ring up fewer sales and factories to cut back production. more...

> State agency OKs redevelopment projects (01/14/2009)
Two major redevelopment projects in Hoboken and Sayreville won approval yesterday from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority for reimbursement of more than $30 million of the developers' cost to clean up contaminated sites. more...

> Treasury: deficit hits new record in just 3 months (01/14/2009)
WASHINGTON -- The federal government already has run up a record deficit of $485.2 billion in just the first three months of the current budget year. And economists say the imbalance for the full year could easily top $1 trillion, pushed to that eye-popping level by the spending the government is likely to do to combat the recession and the most severe financial crisis in generations. more...

> Newark dons a 'green collar' with construction training program (01/13/2009)
Eight years on the job haven't helped Kendall Ellington pull his Newark construction business out of an economic slump. more...

> Despite Recession, There Are Jobs to Fill (01/12/2009)
NEW BRUNSWICK — The recession is claiming thousands of New Jersey jobs, and yet employers are still recruiting — to fill job vacancies today and to prepare for an economic upturn in the future. more...

> Unemployment Hits 7.2%, a 16-Year High (01/09/2009)
With the recession in full swing, the nation’s employers shed 524,000 jobs in December, the government reported Friday, and a rapidly deteriorating economy promised more big losses in the months ahead. December’s job losses brought the total for 2008 to 2.6 million, spanning a recession that started 12 months ago. more...

> Jobless rate climbs to 16-year high (01/09/2009)
U.S. employers shed 524,000 jobs in December as the unemployment rate jumped 0.4 percentage points to 7.2 percent, bringing the nation’s 2008 job losses to 2.6 million — the worst showing since World War II ended in 1945, the federal Department of Labor reported this morning. more...

> N.J., N.Y. governors look to Obama for Hudson tunnel cash (01/09/2009)
WASHINGTON — As President-elect Barack Obama outlined his plan to revive the slumping economy, 14 New Jersey and New York lawmakers offered a way to create more than 50,000 jobs in the region, reduce traffic congestion and cut down on air pollution. more...

> Jobless claims decline, but picture still bleak (01/09/2009)
The number of laid-off workers who are continuing to draw unemployment checks jumped more than expected to 4.6 million at the end of December and is likely to keep climbing this year -- fresh evidence people are finding it increasingly difficult to get a new job amid a deepening recession. more...

> Steep job losses as firms hasten cuts (01/08/2009)
Companies in the U.S. eliminated an estimated 693,000 jobs in December, the most since records began in 2001, a private report based on payroll data showed. more...

> N.J.'s new cuts affect dozens of programs (01/06/2009)
New Jersey is cutting money for homeland security, cancer grants, police equipment and dozens of other programs in an emergency effort to close a $2.1 billion budget deficit. more...

> Governor seeks extra $812M in cutbacks (01/06/2009)
From a budget he once described as cutting spending "cold turkey," Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday proposed slicing $812 million more to keep pace with the economic crisis. more...

> Rough Road For Highway Contractors (01/05/2009)
The outlook is sunnier for New Jersey’s highway and heavy construction firms, which have suffered from a shortage of jobs but are optimistic about replenishing their depleted backlogs with work on large-scale infrastructure projects expected to come up for bid this year. Nonetheless, executives said they are concerned about future funding for infrastructure work, intense competition among bidders for projects and other uncertainties. more...

> Rough ride economic continues, but hang on (01/04/2009)
In the mid-1990s, Mercer County's economy shed jobs at a perilous pace, with major employers announcing more than 6,000 layoffs in less than two years. more...

> Applications for welfare, food stamps are way up (01/04/2009)
In the latest sign the economic crisis is deepening in New Jersey, food stamp applications doubled and the number of people seeking welfare rose 40 percent in October compared with the previous year, according to state figures. more...

> Rail bridges will double N.J.-N.Y. capacity (01/03/2009)
A long-range transit plan to de crease commuter rail delays and increase train capacity between New Jersey and Manhattan cleared an important hurdle this week when a federal agency approved a $1.3 billion project to replace an old train bridge over the Hackensack River. more...

> Manufacturing Reports Show Depth of Global Downturn (01/02/2009)
From Australia, to Asia and Europe and the United States on Wednesday, the message in the latest economic reports was clear: manufacturing continued to slump amid the worst slowdown since the Great Depression.

more...

> Corzine announces state spending cuts (01/02/2009)
Governor Corzine says the state must now find $2.1 billion in cuts thanks to declining tax revenues. more...

> Feds approve construction of new NJ rail bridge (01/02/2009)
WASHINGTON -- Federal authorities have approved a $1.3 billion project to replace a rail bridge in northern New Jersey -- a move that brings the goal of easier access to Manhattan a bit closer. more...

> Unemployment rate rises in December (01/01/2009)
WASHINGTON -- The number of laid-off workers continuing to draw unemployment benefits bolted to 4.5 million in late December, and even more Americans are expected to join the ranks of the jobless in 2009. more...

> Report: Immigrants play important role in economy (12/24/2008)
TRENTON - New Jersey's economy is dependent upon the contribution of immigrants, according to a report released this week showing that foreign-born people make up 28 percent of the state's workforce. These same immigrants bring in almost a quarter of the earnings statewide and own nearly 20 percent of the state's businesses. more...

> A deep recession, by any measure (12/24/2008)
As the longest recession in a quarter century intensifies, analysts believe the small decline in economic activity in the third quarter has worsened significantly in the current fourth quarter. more...

> Economist: Recession may turn to depression (12/21/2008)
The U.S. economy has a 50 percent chance of falling into a depression during the next three years, said Roger Farmer, a member of the National Bureau of Economic Research's economic fluctuations and growth program. more...

> Home debt, net worth drop in U.S. (12/12/2008)
WASHINGTON -- U.S. households, hit by declining home values and stock market losses, have cut back on their debt levels for the first time on record as loans remain scarce amid what appears to be a deepening recession. more...

> Job-loss carnage more than expected (12/12/2008)
WASHINGTON -- New claims for jobless benefits surged last week and came in worse than expectations that were already gloomy -- and economists say the figures would get even worse without an auto industry bailout. more...

> Almost All States Face Budget Shortfalls (12/11/2008)
NEW YORK (Dec. 11) - The recession has state-level fiscal budgets in crisis mode, according to a report released Wednesday. more...

> Recession Settles In for Long Stay (12/08/2008)
Now that the economic crisis is officially a recession, business owners — uninterested in what it’s called — want to know when it will end. There’s no crystal ball in hand, but experts generally agreed that it’s shaping up to be the longest recession since the Great Depression, with New Jersey bracing for continued fallout in labor, real estate, restaurants, retail and beyond. more...

> 'Ready to Go' Highway Projects' Total Triples, to $64 Billion (12/08/2008)
As the incoming Obama administration and congressional Democrats work on an economic stimulus plan, state transportation officials say there are more than 5,100 jobs-creating highway projects worth $64.3 billion that could get under way quickly if funding became available. more...

> Bernanke's latest rate cuts aim to avert a depression (12/07/2008)
"Helicopter Ben" is hovering above with bags of cash. That's how we should think about Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's move to drop money into the economy to revive growth. more...

> Economy lost another 533,000 jobs in Nov. (12/05/2008)
WASHINGTON - Skittish employers slashed 533,000 jobs in November, the most in 34 years, catapulting the unemployment rate to 6.7 percent, dramatic proof the country is careening deeper into recession. more...

> Nationwide, employers announce huge job cuts (12/05/2008)
A round of more than 15,000 layoffs announced yesterday by AT&T, DuPont and Viacom suggests a yearlong wave of job cuts is accelerating, just as the government is expected to report a higher unemployment rate for November on today. more...

> Voters approve $71 billion for transportation funding (12/05/2008)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Most voters asked at the ballot box Nov. 4 whether they would support increasing their tax burden to fund transportation improvements overwhelmingly said “yes.” In total, the measures would generate more than $71 billion in new revenue for transportation infrastructure work, a post election American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) report finds. more...

> Southern New Jersey counties suffer state's worst unemployment rates (12/04/2008)
Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland counties experienced the highest unemployment rates in the state in October, suggesting that area workers are poised to suffer through a harsh winter economically. more...

> State relaunches school construction, with an economical eye (12/04/2008)
Newark's new Central High School shines as one of the jewels of New Jersey's massive school construction program, a $102 million structure of brick and glass that draws praise and awe from those who enter its vaulted atrium entrance. more...

> Corzine details stimulus plan (12/04/2008)
As the economy suffers and layoffs spike, New Jersey's work force needs better training and a big dose of federal help to emerge from the recession primed for growth, economists and state officials said yesterday. more...

> Voters Approve Billions For Systems, But It’s Still No Gravy Train (12/03/2008)
Call it a double-edged sword, a perfect storm or—stealing a quote from Charles Dickens—American Public Transportation Association President William Millar describes the state of transit as, “The best of times, the worst of times.” From California to the Carolinas, the acceptance of and desire for transit systems is unprecedented. Voters in November approved more than 20 pro-transit ballot initiatives, most notably Proposition 1B in California that calls for $9.95 billion for a high-speed rail system stretching from Sacramento to San Diego.

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> Outlook for N.J. business: Mostly cloudy (11/26/2008)
New Jersey employers -- most of them with 49 or fewer workers -- are gloomy about the financial condition of their businesses and think the economy will only get worse next year, a survey released yesterday said. more...

> Corzine and Senate take aim at economy (11/25/2008)
Gov. Jon Corzine and the Senate yesterday took action on eight of the 11 bills that comprise his $245 million economic recovery package for New Jersey. more...

> Jobless Claims Reach a 16-Year High (11/20/2008)
WASHINGTON — New claims for unemployment benefits jumped last week to a 16-year high, the Labor Department said Thursday, providing more evidence of a rapidly weakening job market expected to get even worse next year. more...

> New Jersey pension funds lost $9B in October (11/20/2008)
New Jersey's pension funds lost almost $9 billion during October, crumbling in value to $61.9 billion. more...

> Fed: Economy has 'significant weakness' (11/20/2008)
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve on Wednesday sharply lowered its projections for economic activity this year and next, and signaled that additional interest rate reductions may be needed to help combat the worst financial crisis to jolt the country in more than a half-century. more...

> Yearly Highway Revenue Dropped 9%, Adding to Road Finance Worries (11/20/2008)
As Americans drove less, federal gas taxes and other revenue flowing into the Highway Trust Fund fell by $3 billion in fiscal year 2008, compared with the sum collected the year before, the Dept. of Transportation reported. more...

> JERSEY'S 6% JOBLESS RATE (11/20/2008)
Vance Stroud knows times are tough. Yesterday the 56-year-old computer programmer was back at the Bergen One-Stop Career Center in Hackensack, hoping to land a temporary job. His last job ended two months ago. more...

> Bills to help N.J. economy race through committees (11/14/2008)
New Jersey lawmakers rallied yesterday around a $245 million package of bills designed to address fallout from the global financial crisis, just a day after learning the meltdown has punched a $1.2 billion hole in the current state budget. more...

> Jobless claims top 500,000 (11/14/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The number of newly laid-off individuals seeking unemployment benefits has jumped to a level not seen since just after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, as companies cut more jobs in the face of a slowing economy. more...

> Cost of another tunnel under Hudson River rising (11/07/2008)
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- Officials say the cost of adding another train tunnel under the Hudson River is going up by $1 billion -- partly because of inflation. more...

> Unemployment Rate at 14-Year High After Big October Losses (11/07/2008)
Squeezed by tight credit and plunging spending power, the American economy is shedding jobs at the fastest pace since 2001, and the losses could accelerate to levels not seen since the deep recession of the early 1980s. more...

> Vanishing jobs, stressed consumers feed downturn (11/07/2008)
WASHINGTON - Ford plans to cut about 2,260 more jobs, the latest in a vicious cycle of vanishing jobs and stresses on American consumers that is spelling deeper trouble for the already sinking U.S. economy. more...

> U.S. lost 240,000 jobs in October, jobless rate rises to 6.5 percent (11/07/2008)
Employers cut payrolls more aggressively than expected in October, boosting the unemployment rate to a 14-year high. more...

> State construction forecast brightens (11/07/2008)
Recession? What recession? more...

> State's flow of red ink deepens as it runs up $2B in new debt (11/07/2008)
The red ink facing New Jersey taxpayers continued to rise as state officials ran up another $2.1 billion in additional debt in the fiscal year that ended June 30, the state's an nual debt report shows. more...

> THE ECONOMY AND THE ELECTION (11/05/2008)
The election is over, and the simple fact that voters have spoken could give U.S. financial markets the momentum they need to mount a sustained rally, or at least regain some stability. more...

> Washington may need to borrow $1 trillion (11/04/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The government, raising cash to pay for the array of financial rescue packages, said yesterday it plans to borrow $550 billion in the last three months of this year -- and that's just a down payment. more...

> Governors Call for Federal Rescue Package for States (10/29/2008)
WASHINGTON — Governors David A. Paterson of New York and Jon S. Corzine of New Jersey added their voices to the growing support for a second federal economic stimulus package, saying that state governments will face devastating cutbacks if they do not receive assistance soon. more...

> Aggressive Fed Cuts Key Rate by a Half-Point (10/29/2008)
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate by half a percentage point on Wednesday, its second rate cut this month, as policy makers tried to fend off what could be the worst economic downturn in decades. more...

> NJ Transit seeks fiscally safer track (10/29/2008)
Fallout from the global financial crisis continued to hit New Jersey in unexpected ways this week, as state and federal officials worked to head off a potential default that could cost NJ Transit $150 million. more...

> State plans to borrow $1.6B for transportation upgrades (10/29/2008)
New Jersey yesterday prepared to take a plunge into the turbulent market for public debt, approving plans to borrow up to $1.6 billion for transportation improvements next month. more...

> Assembly OKs economic aid for New Jersey (10/28/2008)
TRENTON -- The New Jersey Assembly approved more than two dozen economic rescue bills Monday, part of lawmakers' focus on easing financial hardships facing Garden State residents and businesses. more...

> Treasury predicts huge government borrowing needs (10/28/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The financial rescue operation will force the federal government to borrow an unprecedented amount of money as the budget deficit climbs to record heights, a top Treasury Department official said Tuesday. more...

> Infrastructure Is Viable Quick Fix, Academics Tell Bush Administration (10/28/2008)
Engineering and business scholars urged Bush administration officials to take a page from FDR’s New Deal and invest in infrastructure. more...

> Unemployment claims keep rising; Greenspan blames 'credit tsunami' (10/24/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Unemployment claims, already well into recession territory, are rising even faster than expected, leading economists to warn Thursday that the worst is yet to come. more...

> Jobless claims rise 15,000 (10/24/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Unemployment claims, already well into recession territory, are rising even faster than expected, leading economists to warn yesterday the worst is yet to come. more...

> DOT Gives States $679 Million To Repair Storm-Damaged Roads (10/24/2008)
The U.S. Dept. of Transportation is providing a total of $679 million to help states repair and rebuild roads and bridges damaged by Hurricanes Ike and Gustav and Midwest floods and earlier storms. DOT Secretary Mary Peters announced during an Oct. 23 visit to hurricane-battered Galveston, Texas, that the department was making the relief funds available immediately. more...

> Jobless claims increase as labor market weakens (10/23/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Rising layoffs are hammering American workers, spelling more pain to come for consumer spending, the housing market and the broader economy. more...

> Rise in Jobless Claims Exceeds Forecast (10/23/2008)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The number of American workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose by a larger than expected 15,000 last week, government data showed on Thursday, reinforcing evidence that the labor market is weak. more...

> New Jersey health insurance costs outpace earnings growth (10/23/2008)
WASHINGTON —New Jersey families are seeing employer-sponsored health insurance eat up a much bigger slice of their paychecks though their earnings aren't rising at nearly the same rate, a consumer group said today.

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> The Worst Declines May Be Over If Government Rescue Succeeds (10/23/2008)
Construction activity is falling fast and will head down again next year at a slower pace, but only if the government bank rescue and planned economic stimulus work. more...

> Fed creates new program to help break credit logjam (10/22/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The Federal Reserve on Tuesday introduced a new program to finance the purchases of assets from money market mutual funds as the government continued to search for ways to battle a severe credut crisis.
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> World stocks sag as earnings totter, adding to fears of a global recession (10/22/2008)
NEW YORK (AP) -- World stock markets sagged again Wednesday as a barrage of weak corporate earnings stoked fears that the government's financial intervention won't keep global economies out of recession. more...

> Bush, Congress consider new stimulus plan (10/21/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Momentum is building new economic stimulants to boost the country out of the doldrums -- perhaps by putting more money in Americans' pockets. The White House said Monday that President Bush was open to some sort of action after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned the slump could drag on without the extra bracing tonic. more...

> Experts tell NJ Statehouse economic crisis will only get worse (10/21/2008)
TRENTON - Economic experts testified to the state Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee on Monday that sliding home prices and job losses could push New Jersey into a years-long recession.
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> State's pension funds take $5B hit (10/21/2008)
The global economic crisis cost New Jersey's public pension accounts more than $5 billion last month, reducing the value of the funds to $70.7 billion as domestic and international stocks shrank in value, the state Treasury Department reported yesterday. more...

> Social Security Benefits Rising by 5.8% (10/16/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Social Security benefits for 50 million people will go up 5.8 percent next year, the largest increase in more than a quarter century. more...

> Bernanke: Economy will take time to heal (10/16/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The country's economic health won't snap back quickly even if badly needed confidence in the U.S. financial system returns and roiled markets finally calm, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke cautioned Wednesday. He left the door open to additional interest rate reductions. more...

> Corzine promises $150 million of economic help ... and a balanced budget (10/16/2008)
TRENTON – Gov. Jon S. Corzine called for a $150 million package of economic stimulus, business reform and homeowner protection designed to protect the state from the worst of the current financial crisis. more...

> N.J. job losses reflect Street's crisis (10/16/2008)
New Jersey lost another 3,900 jobs last month, bringing the total number of jobs lost so far this year to more than 20,000, the state Department of Labor reported yesterday. more...

> Jobless claims drop more than expected (10/16/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- New claims for jobless benefits dropped more than expected last week as the impact of two hurricanes in September faded, but the tally remains at levels economists associate with a recession. more...

> Worries over economy spread; global markets sink (10/16/2008)
NEW YORK -Fears of recession are trumping fears of inflation.
A crucial barometer of inflation came in flat last month, temporarily halting Wall Street's slide. But stocks seesawed in a wide range Thursday. more...

> Fed bailout to become bank buy-in (10/15/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Big banks started falling in line Tuesday behind a rejiggered bailout plan that will have the government forking over as much as $250 billion in exchange for partial ownership -- putting the world's bastion of capitalism and free markets squarely in the banking business. more...

> Fixing The Country’s ‘Worst’ Tax Climate (10/13/2008)
TRENTON — When it comes to the New Jersey economy, last Monday was a carnival at the New Jersey Statehouse. The Assembly held 10 committee meetings focusing solely on ways to help improve the faltering economy. The Senate held another five meetings, some of them focusing on helping businesses weather the economy. more...

> Governor following script on toll hikes (10/10/2008)
The scaled-back plan for toll increases that the Turnpike Authority is expected to approve today closely follows the advice Gov. Jon Corzine received from a confidential poll he commissioned to prepare for his re-election bid. more...

> Jobless claims drop from 7-year high (10/09/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- New applications for unemployment benefits dropped last week from a seven-year high, the Labor Department said Thursday, though they remain at elevated levels that indicate recession. more...

> Corzine has crisis-borne stimulus plan for Jersey (10/09/2008)
With New Jersey already feeling the sting of the national financial crisis, Gov. Jon Corzine next week will unveil a broad plan to stimulate the state's economy -- including incentives for businesses, public works projects and programs to help homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure or cannot afford to heat their homes, officials said yesterday. more...

> Interest rate cut doesn't ease fear (10/09/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Wall Street bounced higher and lower yesterday trying to make up its mind about an unprecedented coordinated interest rate cut by central banks around the world. In the end it settled on a familiar feeling -- fear -- and plunged again. more...

> Fed, central banks slash rates to aid world economy (10/09/2008)
WASHINGTON -- In a rare coordinated move, the Federal Reserve and other major central banks from around the world slashed interest rates Wednesday to prevent a mushrooming financial crisis from becoming a global economic meltdown.


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> Feds Consider Bigger Role in Banks (10/09/2008)
WASHINGTON (Oct. 9) - News that the Bush administration is considering taking ownership stakes in a number of U.S. banks helped restore a relative calm over global financial markets Thursday. The aim of such a move would be to thaw the lending freeze that threatens to push the world's economy into recession. It comes after rampant fear about the global economy sent investors scurrying on Tuesday for safety in U.S. government securities despite an orchestrated round of rate cuts by the world's central banks. more...

> Retirement accounts have lost $2T (10/08/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Americans' retirement plans have lost as much as $2 trillion in the past 15 months -- about 20 percent of their value -- Congress' top budget analyst estimated Tuesday as lawmakers began investigating how turmoil in the financial industry is whittling away workers' nest eggs. more...

> Toll hikes, Round 3: Lighter, easier (10/08/2008)
Fueled by tough criticism from motorists and a weakening economy, the state yesterday took a third stab at a plan to raise highway tolls, cutting the size of the increases and sweetening the proposal with discounts for truckers, senior citizens and others. more...

> The crisis spreads: Fed makes plans (10/08/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The Federal Reserve moved swiftly to break through a credit clog that is imperiling the economy, saying yesterday it would buy massive amounts of short-term debt and hinting it may cut interest rates. more...

> The crisis spreads: Bailouts continue (10/08/2008)
New Jersey Treasury Department officials are working on a local version of the federal government's financial bailout, devising a state role to help towns and school boards find buyers for their short-term notes if they are closed out of the open market. more...

> Public Works Erode As Debt Market Falters (10/08/2008)
Public-works and institutional projects are succumbing to the same financial trouble that has laid waste to commercial building construction, thinning backlogs and throwing doubt on the newly adopted federal rescue before it has even had a chance to be carried out. In the newest federal intervention, the Federal Reserve on Oct. 7 announced it will buy commercial paper as a “liquidity backstop” to issuers. Anxiety flared everywhere over what could come next. more...

> WORLDWIDE WORRIES (10/07/2008)
It was crunch time for David Dietze as he bent over to do his sit-ups while watching the business news channels at around 5 a.m. more...

> President enacts $700B economic lifeline for the economy (10/04/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Confronted by growing numbers of mortgage defaults, panicky global financial markets and rising unemployment, the House yesterday passed a massive $700 billion rescue package in hopes of preventing an economic collapse. President Bush quickly signed the bill. more...

> Congress Approves Amtrak Funding, Railroad Safety Measure (10/03/2008)
Congress has cleared a passenger rail funding and safety bill that authorizes $13 billion over five years for Amtrak and $1.5 billion over 10 years for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. Final congressional approval came on Oct. 1, when the Senate passed the measure, by a 74-24 vote. more...

> N.J. Assembly OKs economy package (09/26/2008)
TRENTON -- Hoping to blunt the impact of tough economic times they say lie ahead, Assembly members unanimously advanced a package of bills Thursday aimed at simplifying the rules for corporate activity in New Jersey. more...

> BUSINESS: Economy's spring rebound was bit less energetic (09/26/2008)
The economy's spring rebound turned out to be slightly less energetic than the government previously thought. And, the road ahead is likely to be rocky as the country gets pounded by the worst financial crisis in decades. more...

> Economic Memo: Credit Enters a Lockdown (09/25/2008)
The words coming out of Washington this week about the American financial system have been frightening. But many have raised the possibility that the Bush administration is fear-mongering to gin up support for its $700 billion bailout proposal. more...

> House and Senate Pass Vital Six-Month FAA Extension (09/24/2008)
Facing a Sept. 30 deadline, Congress has approved a six-month extension for Federal Aviation Administration programs, include airport construction grants. The legislation, which the House and Senate passed on Sept. 23, now goes to President Bush for his signature. Without the extension, authority for FAA programs would expire at the end of September. more...

> Crisis Changes Demand Side of Costs (09/24/2008)
Record high oil and steel prices during the first half of the year were just starting to work their way into construction industry cost indexes when the financial meltdown on Wall Street threatened to drastically reduce the demand side of the cost equation. more...

> Gasping Bank System Puts Credit in Doubt (09/24/2008)
The swift deterioration of the U.S. banking system is threatening to restrict funds needed at every step of the construction industry’s life cycle, with participants putting the brakes on everything from casino jobs and privatized bridge-repair projects to company buyouts and executive retirements. more...

> Corzine proposes ways to jolt N.J. economy (09/23/2008)
NEWARK -- With the credit crisis threatening to send New Jersey's economy into a tailspin, Gov. Corzine said Monday the state needs to work with energy companies and smaller, healthier banks to provide a short-term jolt. more...

> Xanadu project could soak taxpayers (09/23/2008)
New Jersey taxpayers, fresh from shelling out $25 million to prop up the faltering Camden aquarium, could find themselves paying to support a privately owned fish tank in the Meadowlands. more...

> Corzine urges public works spending to spur state's economy (09/23/2008)
Gov. Jon Corzine today proposed accelerating state spending on public works projects such as schools, roads and mass transit and encouraging the creation of new energy conservation jobs -- all in a bid to forestall the dire economic consequences of the Wall Street financial crisis. more...

> N.J. officials brainstorm ways to fix economy (09/23/2008)
Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday proposed accelerating state spending on public works projects such as schools, roads and mass transit and encouraging the creation of new energy conservation jobs -- all in a bid to forestall the dire economic consequences of the Wall Street financial crisis. more...

> Report says New Jersey could gain 57,000 jobs by going green (09/22/2008)
New Jersey could create about 57,000 new jobs by investing $3.2 billion in clean energy technologies and environmental programs, according to a report released this month. more...

> New Rail Tunnel Would Attract Wealth (09/22/2008)
TRENTON — Having to stand on a hot and crowded train from New Jersey to Manhattan because there are no empty seats can be called bad luck or bad timing. But economist Martin E. Robins calls it a bad sign for the economy. more...

> N.J. to hold emergency forum on economy (09/22/2008)
TRENTON - Last week's upheaval on Wall Street has New Jersey lawmakers taking steps to gauge its effect on state residents and help manage the fallout. more...

> N.J. unemployment at 5-year high (09/18/2008)
TRENTON -- Economic woes continue to take a toll on New Jerseyans, with the unemployment rate hitting a five-year high of 5.9 percent last month. more...

> BUSINESS: Jobless claims rise due to Hurricane Gustav (09/18/2008)
New applications for unemployment benefits rose unexpectedly last week due to the impact of Hurricane Gustav, the government said Thursday. more...

> State Pension Fund Loses 2.9 Percent in Fiscal Year (09/18/2008)
Dealing with a volatile stock market, New Jersey's pension fund lost 2.9 percent over the fiscal year that ended June 30, according to the state Treasury Department. more...

> White House re-evaluates description of economy (09/18/2008)
WASHINGTON — The White House throttled back its description of the U.S. economy on Wednesday, labeling it resilient enough to withstand some shocks to the system but refusing to say it is fundamentally sound -- the phrase that has jolted the race for the presidency. more...

> Limited Funding Sources Hamper New Bridge, Highway Projects (09/17/2008)
In the weeks leading up to the one-year anniversary of the collapse of the Interstate 35W Bridge in Minneapolis, workers installed the last of 120 pre-cast segments comprising the main span of the $234-million replacement structure, and were on track to have traffic flowing across the Mississippi River by mid-September. more...

> Ailing Economy Could Signal Future Slowdown in Once-Booming Sector (09/17/2008)
While construction throughout the general building market continues unabated due to strong demand in hospitality, higher education and medical sectors for more capacity and greener technology, contractors are dropping hints that the boom times may be ending. more...

> Officials Try to Stem Crisis; Fed to Meet (09/16/2008)
PARIS — Asia stocks reeled Tuesday amid fears about financial contagion from the turmoil engulfing Wall Street, while European markets posted slightly more moderate declines as a glimmer of stability seeped into the market. more...

> N.J. braces for impact of Wall St. crisis (09/16/2008)
ATLANTIC CITY -- From young stock market professionals in Hoboken who suddenly find themselves unable to pay the mortgage or patronize the city's restaurants and bars to Atlantic City casinos struggling to borrow money to expand or pay down debt, the Wall Street crisis is making itself felt in a big way in New Jersey.

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> Financial markets near meltdown (09/15/2008)
NEW YORK -- A failed plan to rescue Lehman Brothers was followed last night by more seismic shocks from Wall Street, including an apparent government-brokered takeover of Merrill Lynch by the Bank of America. more...

> $8-Billion Trust-Fund 'Fix' Gains Final Hill Approval (09/12/2008)
Acting to avert a highway financial crisis, Congress has approved an $8-billion infusion for the ailing Highway Trust Fund, which should allow the Federal Highway Administration to fully reimburse states' for road-financing expenses for about the next 12 months.

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> Weaker global economy slowing U.S. recovery (09/10/2008)
For a time, it looked as though the weakness in the U.S. economy would have limited impact on the solid growth in the rest of the world, which in turn has been providing strong demand for U.S. exports. But now there are signs that the global economy is following the United States into an economic downturn. more...

> Parkway, turnpike tolls to increase 50 percent starting in '09 (09/05/2008)
TRENTON, N.J. Commuters who drive the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway are facing higher tolls.
The New Jersey Turnpike Authority's board has told Gov. Jon S. Corzine it will raise tolls by 50 percent starting in 2009.

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> U.S. joblessness worse than expected (09/05/2008)
The nation's unemployment rate zoomed to a four-year high of 6.1 percent in August as employers slashed 84,000 jobs, dramatic proof of the mounting damage a deeply troubled economy is inflicting on workers and businesses alike. more...

> A plan to raise N.J. tolls ... Take two (09/05/2008)
The cost of driving on New Jersey's Turnpike and Parkway would more than double by 2012 in a series of toll hikes that would begin next year, the state Turnpike Authority proposed yesterday. more...

> Old Bridge looks at $2 billion development in southern corner of township (09/05/2008)
OLD BRIDGE —A two-billion dollar "Corporate Campus Project" is taking shape in Old Bridge on a 500-acre redevelopment area formerly known as the Olympia & York property. more...

> Job news shows slump is far from over (09/05/2008)
WASHINGTON — Jobless claims rose unexpectedly last week, the government said Thursday, while companies responded to the slowing economy by producing more with fewer workers. more...

> Citing Dire Trust Fund Picture, DOT Calls for $8-Billion Infusion (09/05/2008)
With the balance in the Highway Trust Fund dropping much faster than expected, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters has directed her department for the first time to restrict highway-aid reimbursements to state departments of transportation and urged Congress quickly to approve an $8-billion infusion for the trust fund's highway account. Peters said on Sept. 5 that if nothing changes, the highway account will show a zero balance as early as Sept. 30. more...

> Cautious optimism rises from the economic trenches (08/29/2008)
From the perch of the Commerce Department, the economy performed remarkably well in the April to June period, all things considered. more...

> The suddenly robust economy shows signs of slowing again (08/29/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The economy pulled out of a dangerous rough patch in the spring, thanks largely to strong exports, but the rebound isn't expected to last. Economic slowdowns overseas could make exports tail off just as Americans are hunkering down after the bracing effect of rebate checks wanes, plunging the country into another rut later this year. more...

> Economic Growth Stronger Than Expected (08/28/2008)
The economy expanded faster from April to June than originally thought, the government said on Thursday, catching many economists off-guard and cheering investors on Wall Street. more...

> BUSINESS: Economy rebounds in 2Q, mostly spurred by exports (08/28/2008)
The economy shifted to a higher gear in the spring, growing at its fastest pace in nearly a year as foreign buyers snapped up U.S. exports and tax rebates spurred shoppers at home. more...

> BUSINESS: Jobless claims fall for 3rd straight week (08/28/2008)
The U.S. government says the number of people signing up for jobless benefits declined last week, the third straight drop from a six-year high reached earlier this month. more...

> Leading Economic Indicators Fell Sharply in July (08/21/2008)
NEW YORK (AP)-- A private business group's measure of the economy's health showed the largest drop in one year as stocks fell, new building permits declined and unemployment rose. more...

> BUSINESS: Jobless claims fall for second straight week (08/21/2008)
The number of newly laid-off workers seeking unemployment benefits fell more than expected last week, the second straight drop from a six-year high, according to government data released Thursday. more...

> N.J. debt up $2.2B amid bids to trim it (08/21/2008)
New Jersey's state debt swelled by almost $2.2 billion last year even as Gov. Jon Corzine campaigned to rein in borrowing, state officials confirmed this week. more...

> Wholesale inflation rising at highest rate since 1981 (08/20/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Wholesale inflation soared in July, leaving prices rising at the fastest pace in nearly three decades. While recent declines in oil and other commodity prices raise hopes inflation may have peaked, some economists worry about the widespread nature of the July price surge and caution it will take more time for that pressure to ease on Wall Street and Main Street. more...

> Inflation Hits Annual Pace Not Seen Since 1991 (08/14/2008)
Inflation reached a 17-year high last month, fueled by high gasoline and food prices, all but assuring that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates on hold for the time being. more...

> BUSINESS: Consumer prices rise at double the expected rate (08/14/2008)
Consumer prices shot up in July at twice the expected rate, pushed higher by surging energy and food costs. The latest surge left inflation running at the fastest pace in 17 years. more...

> Unemployment rate up slightly in state (08/14/2008)
TRENTON — New Jersey's unemployment rate edged up 0.1 percent to 5.4 percent in July, but remained below the national rate of 5.7 percent. more...

> Corzine rejects gas tax hike (08/12/2008)
ATLANTIC CITY — Gov. Jon S. Corzine on Monday described a projected $8 billion deficit in the federal Highway Trust Fund as shocking, but opposed raising the state's gas tax to offset any shortfall in federal funding for New Jersey transportation projects. more...

> Corzine's road remains rocky on transit plan (08/12/2008)
As he and other Northeastern governors commiserated yesterday on the obstacles to funding transportation infrastructure, Gov. Jon Corzine said he is "not taking anything off the table" as he develops a new plan to pay for the state's roads, bridges and mass transit. more...

> Rail Line to Impact More than Transportation (08/11/2008)
The Republicans of the New Jersey Legislature last week sent a letter to New York Gov. David A. Paterson asking that the Empire State pay for its share of a proposed Hudson River rail tunnel between New Jersey and Manhattan. more...

> $1B cost stalling idea of light rail: (08/10/2008)
Aug. 10--Whenever the Capital Region conversation turns to concern about traffic jams, clean air, high gas prices or suburban sprawl, there's one cure you can bet someone will propose: light rail. more...

> Study: N.J. has Nation's Highest State-Local Tax Burden (08/07/2008)
New Jersey taxpayers currently bear the heaviest state-local tax burden, and Alaskans have the lightest tax burden, according to a new report from the Tax Foundation, a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization that focuses on federal, state and local fiscal policy. more...

> BUSINESS: Jobless claims rise to highest since March 2002 (08/07/2008)
The number of newly laid off people signing up for jobless benefits last week climbed to its highest point in more than six years as companies cut back given the faltering economy. more...

> We're Number One (Alas) (08/07/2008)
It’s great to be number one in something, isn’t it? more...

> N.J. highways least cost-effective in nation, study says (08/01/2008)
New Jersey has bad roads at high costs, and its highway system is the nation's least cost-effective, according to a study released Thursday. more...

> Small Business Lifts National Employment (07/30/2008)
Employment in the private sector rose by 9,000 jobs across the country from June to July, sparked by an increase of 50,000 jobs among small businesses, according to the ADP National Employment Report released today. more...

> Construction Starts - June Construction Slips 1% (07/30/2008)
New construction starts in June retreated 1% to $552.0 billion (annual rate), as a pullback for nonresidential building outweighed gains for the residential and nonbuilding sectors. more...

> Lonegan files suit to void school construction borrowing (07/28/2008)
TRENTON - Conservative activist Steve Lonegan said he filed suit today seeking to void legislation enacted this month to borrow $3.9 billion for school construction without voter approval. more...

> Officials: Future road projects in jeopardy (07/28/2008)
WASHINGTON — Due to the exploding cost of asphalt, concrete, steel and other building materials nationwide, New Jersey may take longer than anticipated to begin repaving that pothole-ridden road near you or widening the congested exit ramp you use to get on or off the nearest highway.

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> In Surprise, New Trust Fund Forecast Shows Smaller Deficit (07/28/2008)
Despite a continued decline in highway travel, a new Bush administration forecast of the Highway Trust Fund's financial health surprisingly projects a slightly lower 2009 deficit, compared with an estimate issued early this year. more...

> Jobless claims up as home sales slide (07/25/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Two cornerstones of the economy -- jobs and housing -- sank to new depths Thursday, with unemployment claims bolting higher and home prices recording one of their steepest drops on record. more...

> House Clears Bridge Inspection And Reconstruction Funding Bill (07/25/2008)
The House July 24 approved legislation providing an additional $1 billion to help repair and replace deteriorating bridges across the U.S. by a vote of 365-55. The bill also significantly toughens bridge inspection requirements. more...

> Fed Report Says Economy Continued to Slow (07/24/2008)
Americans are cutting back on everything from cars to food to name-brand products, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday, in another sign that the economy could slow significantly as money from the federal stimulus checks dries up.

more...

> BUSINESS: New layoff filings jump as companies retrench (07/24/2008)
The number of newly laid off people filing claims for unemployment benefits bolted past 400,000 last week as companies trimmed their work forces to cope with a slowing economy. more...

> Fed report shows a turn for the worse (07/24/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The country slogged through slower economic growth and rising prices during the summer, packing a double whammy to people and businesses alike. more...

> U.S. minimum wage going up today (07/24/2008)
WASHINGTON —About 2 million Americans get a raise today as the federal minimum wage rises 70 cents. The bad news: Higher gas and food prices are swallowing it up, and some small businesses will pass the cost of the wage hike to consumers. more...

> Turnpike Authority Faces 'Perfect Financial Firestorm' (07/24/2008)
With toll revenue shrinking and a dramatic spike in the cost of asphalt, the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway are in the midst of a "perfect financial firestorm," said Kris Kolluri, the commissioner of the state Department of Transportation. more...

> House Approves $8-Billion Highway Trust Fund 'Fix' (07/23/2008)
By a strong margin, the House has approved legislation that would avert a projected deficit in the Highway Trust Fund by shifting $8 billion to the fund from the general Treasury. The measure was approved July 23 on a 387-37 vote, a margin that's well above two-thirds needed to override a threatened presidential veto. more...

> Forecast for N.J.: Recession to last through early 2010 (07/17/2008)
NEWARK -- New Jersey is more than a half-year into a mild recession that should end in early 2010, according to a Rutgers University economic forecast released Wednesday. more...

> State continues to lose jobs (07/17/2008)
As the state labor department announced yesterday that employers shed 4,100 jobs in June, Rutgers economists were predicting payrolls will keep on shrinking through 2010. more...

> June Construction Slips 1% (07/17/2008)
New York, N.Y. – July 17, 2008 – New construction starts in June retreated 1% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $552.0 billion, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. Nonresidential building fell 12% after its elevated May pace, pulling down the volume of total construction. more...

> Gas and Food Prices Push Inflation Higher (07/15/2008)
WASHINGTON — Soaring costs for gasoline and food have pushed inflation at the wholesale level up by a larger-than-expected amount in June, leaving inflation rising over the past year at the fastest pace in more than a quarter-century. more...

> Euro powers to new record against dollar (07/15/2008)
FRANKFURT, Germany -- The euro roared to a new high against the dollar on Tuesday, reaching US$1.6038 in European trading as markets worried about the ongoing U.S. lending crisis and the state of the country's economy. more...

> Bernanke: U.S. economy facing ‘difficulties’ (07/15/2008)
WASHINGTON - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress Tuesday the fragile economy is facing “numerous difficulties” including persistent strains in financial markets, rising joblessness and housing problems — despite the Fed’s aggressive interest rate reductions and other fortifying steps. more...

> State hears ideas to beef up business (07/11/2008)
TRENTON -- Saying a large number of business owners think the state's business environment will deteriorate, a business group's think tank recommended Thursday ways state lawmakers can make New Jersey more hospitable to business.

more...

> Firms fault Jersey business climate (07/11/2008)
New Jersey companies give low marks to the state's business climate, according to a new study that advocates less taxation and regulation, and more state spending to fuel the future growth of the now-stagnant work force. more...

> State will borrow nearly $4 billion to build schools (07/10/2008)
NEWARK — Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed a bill Wednesday allowing the state to borrow $3.9 billion for school construction, popular in the four cities in which he visited schools during the day but controversial because voters aren't being asked for their approval, despite his call to stop selling bonds without the public's consent. more...

> Corzine signs a 'painful' budget (07/01/2008)
Acknowledging that "change is hard," Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday signed a $32.9 billion state budget that features dramatic cuts -- and then issued an executive order to curb future spending. more...

> Rebates prop up economy (06/28/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Millions of economic stimulus payments sent incomes surging in May by the largest amount since a similar recession-fighting effort by Gerald Ford 33 years ago. more...

> Eyeing inflation, Fed ends 9-month run of cuts (06/25/2008)
WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve, navigating treacherous economic waters, decided on Wednesday to leave a key interest rate unchanged, bringing an end to a string of consecutive rate cuts.

more...

> Fed Keeps Rates Steady, but Notes Inflation Worries (06/25/2008)
Caught between inflationary pressures and a weakening economy, the Federal Reserve’s policy makers voted on Wednesday to deal primarily with the weakening economy by keeping interest rates at their present level.

more...

> Highway Trust Fund ‘Fix’ Stalls in House and Senate (06/25/2008)
A proposed $8-billion infusion for the Highway Trust Fund has run into trouble in Congress, leaving industry officials hunting for another way to avert a looming projected deficit in the trust fund. more...

> State to borrow $3.9 billion for school construction (06/24/2008)
The state Legislature on Monday approved borrowing $3.9 billion for school construction, with both supporters and detractors saying they voted with the children in mind.
more...

> House Passes Spending Package With $11 Billion for Construction (06/20/2008)
The House has approved a revised, two-part supplemental spending bill that would set aside $165.4 billion for the Dept. of Defense to continue the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and $21.1 billion for DOD construction and funds for other agencies. The package, approved June 19, includes about $11 billion for defense and nondefense construction programs. more...

> Jobless claims decline by 5,000 following surge (06/19/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) - The number of newly laid-off workers filing applications for unemployment benefits dropped slightly last week but remained at a level showing the strains of a weak economy. more...

> Unemployment rises, N.J. gains only 100 jobs (06/19/2008)
TRENTON (AP) -- Unemployment in New Jersey rose by a half percent to 5.4 percent in May, the largest increase in more than two years. more...

> State's job growth at a standstill (06/19/2008)
New Jersey's economy provided new evidence yesterday that job growth has ground to a halt, and the pain of unemployment is spreading: The state's unemployment rate jumped to 5.4 percent in May, from a revised 4.9 percent in April, and employer payrolls were flat. more...

> Fed boxed by inflation, slow growth (06/18/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Wholesale prices barreled ahead while housing and industrial activity faltered -- a blend of high-costs and slow growth that ensures the Federal Reserve's most likely move on interest rates next week will be no move whatsoever. more...

> N.J. unemployment rate sees largest jump in 2 years (06/18/2008)
New Jersey added 100 jobs in May, the third month the employment level has remained largely unchanged, but the unemployment rate took the largest jump in 25 months. more...

> Reports a 'negative cocktail' for economy (06/18/2008)
The U.S. economy may be suffering from its first bout of stagflation since the start of this decade, reports on housing, prices and manufacturing indicated. more...

> Why It’s Worse Than You Think (06/16/2008)
For months, economic Pollyannas have looked beyond the dismal headlines and promised a quick recovery in the second half. They're dead wrong. more...

> Jobless claims jump to highest level since late March (06/12/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) - The number of people filing new claims for unemployment benefits jumped last week to the highest level since late March. more...

> House OKs $14.4B high-speed rail service for Northeast Corridor (06/12/2008)
WASHINGTON — Train travelers moved closer to a faster trip to New York or Washington with House passage of a bill supporting construction of a new high-speed rail system in the Northeast. more...

> Understanding the unemployment rate (06/08/2008)
On Friday, the U.S. Labor Department reported the sharpest monthly jump in the unemployment rate in more than 20 years -- from 5.0 percent in April to 5.5 percent in May. And for the fifth straight month, American employers cut jobs last month, a total of nearly 50,000. more...

> Jobless rate jumped to 5.5 percent in May (06/06/2008)
WASHINGTON - The nation’s unemployment rate jumped to 5.5 percent in May — the biggest monthly rise since 1986 — as nervous employers cut 49,000 jobs. more...

> Weekly Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Fall (06/05/2008)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits fell unexpectedly last week to the lowest level since mid-April, a government report said Thursday, raising optimism that the sluggish economy may skirt a recession. more...

> Groups brace for deep cuts in NJ spending (06/05/2008)
As legislative leaders privately tried to iron out the final details of a budget Wednesday, groups that seek state money said they are bracing for unprecedented cuts. more...

> Jobless claims show unexpected improvement (06/05/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) - The number of laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits showed an unexpected improvement last week although a key indicator of unemployment hit a four-year high. more...

> Linking Parkway, Rt. 78 (06/02/2008)
For 30 years, drivers on the Garden State Parkway have had only limited access to Route 78.

For 20 years, they've been promised full access was on the way.

more...

> Report issues bleak forecast (05/28/2008)
Not since George H.W. Bush ran the White House have consumers felt so downbeat about the economy. And the catalyst for much of the gloom -- the housing slump -- shows no signs of abating, new data yesterday showed. more...

> Credit crisis claims thousands of jobs (05/28/2008)
It's as if the entire work force at Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley vanished in less than a year. more...

> Jersey bruised, but not broken (05/25/2008)
If New Jersey were a stock, it would look a lot like Microsoft -- a mature company past its prime, whose fast growth, high-flying days are well behind it. more...

> There's light at the end of the tunnel (05/25/2008)
I understand many of you are pessimistic about the future. You have good reason to be. But I think some recent events qualify as at least a glimmer of hope in what has been a very dark start to 2008. more...

> Fed forecasts slower growth in '08 (05/22/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The Federal Reserve yesterday sharply lowered its projection for economic growth this year, citing blows from the housing and credit debacles along with zooming energy prices. It also expects higher unemployment and inflation. more...

> Index says economy down, but not out (05/20/2008)
Gas prices are high, food's more expensive and the job market's cold, but the United States may still avoid a recession. more...

> Jobless rate rises in N.J. (05/15/2008)
New Jersey's unemployment rate edged up to 5 percent in April, from 4.8 percent, as state payrolls have shed nearly 10,000 jobs since the start of the year, the state reported yesterday. more...

> Inflation Easing, Despite Food Costs (05/14/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Inflation pressures eased a bit in April despite the biggest jump in food prices in 18 years. more...

> Corzine: NJ windfall should cut debt (05/14/2008)
Gov. Jon Corzine acknowledged Tuesday that New Jersey is getting an unexpected budget windfall, but he said the extra cash should be socked away to help reduce the state's debt rather than spent to restore proposed cuts. more...

> Fed's relief efforts paying off, but crisis is far from over (05/14/2008)
Turmoil in financial markets has eased somewhat, but the situation is still "far from normal," Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said yesterday. more...

> Economic reports may be misleading (05/13/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The unemployment rate drops. Productivity grows. The trade deficit shrinks. Sounds great, right? Not so fast.

more...

> NJ budget shifts to black from red (05/13/2008)
Legislative budget analysts are set to announce today that they believe New Jersey is heading into the next budget year with a windfall, not a shortfall. more...

> Road, rail work spells jobs, taxes (04/24/2008)
The money New Jersey plans to spend over the next decade on highway, rail and bridge projects will create 26,800 jobs a year and generate more than $1.5 billion in state and local tax revenue, a Rutgers University study found.

more...

> Report: Many New Jerseyans can't afford bare-bones needs (04/10/2008)
TRENTON -- One in five New Jerseyans aren't paid enough to afford bare-bone necessities without seeking outside help, as the gap between their earned income and cost of living widens, a report released by poverty advocacy groups Wednesday says. more...

> Self-sufficiency eludes 1 in 5 in N.J. (04/10/2008)
One in five New Jerseyans -- 1.68 million adults and children -- cannot afford to live without some kind of public assistance, according to a report issued yesterday by Legal Services of New Jersey's Poverty Research Institute. more...

> Trade deficit wider; jobless claims drop (04/10/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly rose for a second straight month in February as a big jump in imports of foreign-made cars offset the first decline in oil imports in a year. more...

> Financial stress shows (04/06/2008)
The burden of oversized mortgages and credit-card debt is proving to be overwhelming for an increasing number of consumers, as rising gas and food prices squeeze household incomes. more...

> That weight you feel is state's debt burden (04/05/2008)
New Jersey residents continued to grapple with one of the heaviest state debt loads in the nation last year, a new survey of public borrowing shows. more...

> Jobless claims reach two-year peak (04/04/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The number of new people signing up for unemployment benefits last week shot up to the highest level in more than two years, fresh evidence of the damage to a national economy clobbered by housing, credit and financial crises. more...

> Ailing economy may force more cuts to state budget (04/04/2008)
Less than six weeks after proposing more than $1.9 billion in cuts to spending, Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday said it may be necessary to slash the state budget even deeper. more...

> Talk in Trenton turns to slowing economy (04/03/2008)
On the same day Federal Reserve chairman testified in Washington that the nation may be lapsing into recession, a South Jersey economist told lawmakers in Trenton he expects it will be a short one. more...

> Jobless benefits in a bind (04/02/2008)
Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday proposed an emergency $260 million infusion into the fund that bankrolls benefit checks for laid-off workers, as rising joblessness and years of state budget raids pushed the fund toward insolvency. more...

> Manufacturing, construction weaken (04/01/2008)
NEW YORK (AP) -- Further weakness in the manufacturing sector and construction industry underscored concerns that the U.S. economy has fallen into recession, though most analysts believe a downturn will be mild and relatively short-lived. more...

> UPDATE: New Jersey signs trade deal with Chinese province (04/01/2008)
TRENTON — New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine and officials from China's Shandong Province signed a cultural and trade agreement today meant to boost economic ties between the two. more...

> Economy's days are darkening (03/28/2008)
Economists sound an awful lot like meterologists these days, predicting the course and severity of an approaching storm. more...

> Jersey's tax revenue outlook sinks by $134 million (03/25/2008)
In a sign that the faltering economy is further pinching state finances, nonpartisan legislative analysts believe state tax receipts over the next 15 months will be $134 million below those projected by the Corzine administration just a month ago. more...

> With Economy Tied to Wall St., New York Braces for Job Cuts (03/24/2008)
New York is accustomed to job losses on Wall Street. They come with just about every economic slump, and their impact is felt throughout the city. more...

> Working families struggle, despite NJ's wealth (03/24/2008)
New Jersey is the nation's second wealthiest state, but 20 percent of its working families don't earn enough money to adequately support themselves, a report found. more...

> Drop in jobs worries N.J. (03/20/2008)
New Jersey employers continued to cut jobs in February, adding more evidence the economic tur moil spreading across the country is hitting the state's labor market. more...

> Spotlight on economy: Fed chief fights crisis with all his weapons (03/16/2008)
For many, that's the extent of their Federal Reserve vocabulary list. That's because, as long as anyone can remember in the CNBC TV generation, that's about as creative as the Fed got when it tinkered with the economy and the financial markets. more...

> Economy in the eye of recession storm (03/14/2008)
WASHINGTON -- Oil hit a record high, the dollar sank again and consumers stopped buying pretty much everything. more...

> Job loss figures raise more alarm on the economy (03/08/2008)
Optimists on Wall Street were hoping for a sign the economy was slowly adding jobs again, forestalling a recession.

Instead, they got a cold, hard slap.
more...

> A shaky economy stirs job jitters in Jersey (03/07/2008)
Day after day, Roberta Weiss hopes to get the call that will send her back to work.

Weiss was laid off from a student-loan processing company late last year. She knew times were tough, but with 24 years of experience in information technology, she figured she'd find another job quickly.
more...

> Alarm doesn't rattle Bernanke, Bush (02/29/2008)
WASHINGTON -- The economy is in turmoil, yet President Bush and Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke say the country will weather the storm. Neither sees a recession on the horizon. more...

> N.J. job growth lags behind U.S. average (02/28/2008)
New Jersey's job market slowed to a near halt in 2007 and dropped precipitously at the beginning of 2008, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development reported Wednesday.
more...

> Revised job figures reveal picture isn't so pretty in Jersey (02/28/2008)
New Jersey's economy isn't as healthy as state economic officials thought as recently as a few weeks ago.

more...

> Bayonne expansion (02/28/2008)
on track for '09

L ight rail is on the move and heading south.

more...

> Corzine Seeks to Cut N.J. Budget and Work Force (02/27/2008)
TRENTON — Declaring that New Jersey had reached an irrevocable “turning point” because of years of bad fiscal habits, Gov. Jon S. Corzine proposed a budget on Tuesday that would reduce the state’s work force by 3,000 people, close three departments and prune expenses for services including colleges and hospitals.

more...

> Forecast 2008 (02/24/2008)
Several massive development projects are gaining steam and reshaping the Meadowlands.

The projects include the Xanadu retail/entertainment complex, a new Giants-Jets stadium and the controversial EnCap project.

more...

> New Reports Signal Economic Slowdown (02/21/2008)
A manufacturing slowdown in the mid-Atlantic region this month reached its deepest in seven years, while an index of future economic activity fell for a fourth month, providing more evidence of a recession.

more...

> That ’70s Look: Stagflation (02/21/2008)
Lately, many people are hearing an echo — faintly perhaps but distinctly audible — of the stagflation of the 1970s. more...

> Rising Inflation Limits the Fed as Growth Lags (02/21/2008)
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve, for all its power, faces tough new limits on its ability to keep the economy out of a recession. more...

> Fed Forecasts Inflation, Unemployment (02/21/2008)
WASHINGTON - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday lowered its projection for economic growth this year, citing damage from the double blows of a housing slump and credit crunch. It said it also expects higher unemployment and inflation. more...

> Consumer Prices Rise Again in January (02/20/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Consumer prices rose by a bigger-than-expected amount in January, reflecting big increases in the cost of food and health care, the government reported Wednesday.

more...

> Reduction in cargo at port reflects economic slowdown (02/19/2008)
It was a sign of the boom at the Port of New York and New Jersey.

In 2006, Maher Terminal in Elizabeth created an overnight shift, assigning longshoremen to rearrange stacks of cargo containers that had been delivered during the day to make room for new shipments.

more...

> On the bright side (02/07/2008)
The news on the economic front seems worse every day. We may soon be in a recession, if we're not in one already. more...

> Service sector report signals U.S. recession has arrived (02/06/2008)
NEW YORK -- Lingering hopes that the U.S. might avert a recession withered Tuesday after the nation's service sector -- its banks, travel companies, contractors and stores, among others -- shrank for the first time in five years. more...

> DOT Secretary Mary Peters Pushes Big Shift for Roads,Transit (02/06/2008)
It’s a chilly late January morning and U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters is in Montgomery, Ala., speaking bluntly about the need to revamp the nation’s highway program. At a press conference in a state transportation department maintenance shop, Peters praises Gov. Bob Riley (R), who’s standing nearby, for seeking to get the private sector more involved in road projects. Then she blasts the way the program operates now, declaring, “I have…zero confidence zero that if we send more money to Washington we’ll get any better results back.” more...

> Economic Census determines what N.J. really made of (02/03/2008)
New Jersey isn't the Garden State it once was, but just what has it become?
The Pharmaceutical State perhaps? Or, heaven forbid, the Toxic Waste Disposal State?


more...

> Labor pains: First drop in jobs since'03 (02/02/2008)
WASHINGTON -- In a shower of pink slips, U.S. employers cut jobs last month for the first time in more than four years, the starkest signal yet that the economy is grinding to a halt if it hasn't already toppled into recession.

more...

> U.S. Growth Slowed Drastically in 4th Quarter (01/31/2008)
The American economy expanded by a surprisingly weak 0.6 percent from October to December, the government reported Wednesday, offering the latest indication that the United States is already in the midst of a substantial slowdown and perhaps a recession. more...

> Economy Nearly Stalled in 4th Quarter (01/30/2008)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The economy nearly stalled in the fourth quarter with a growth rate of just 0.6 percent, capping its worst year since 2002.

more...

> Unemployment rate up slightly (01/30/2008)
Unemployment in the Lehigh Valley and Warren County jumped half a percentage point in December -- that's equal to 2,400 people -- according to the state Department of Labor & Industry.

more...

> A January to forget (01/30/2008)
In the 20 years Mike Marcotullio has worked on Wall Street, he's seen historic market reversals that pushed weaker men to the brink of despair. more...

> Counties that pay heavy toll to get most aid (01/26/2008)
New Jersey will spend more than $42 billion on highway, bridge and transit projects over the next decade if Gov. Jon Corzine's plan to borrow against future toll increases is approved by the Legislature, according to data released last night.

more...

> Deal Reached on Economic Stimulus Plan (01/25/2008)
House leaders announced Jan. 24 that they had reached a deal with the White House on a package to jump-start the nation's slowing economy. The estimated $150-billion package is primarily targeted to middle-income Americans but includes tax relief and incentives for businesses that could go into effect this spring. There is no additional federal infrastructure spending in the plan. more...

> Economists tell us -- did the Federal Reserve panic? (01/23/2008)
The Federal Reserve's surprise move to slash the federal funds rate by three-quarters of a point yesterday was the Fed's biggest one-day rate cut in nearly two decades. more...

> The economy may be stronger than you think (01/21/2008)
THE JAN. 4 REPORT by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that the nation's unemployment rate had risen from 4.7 percent in November to 5.0 percent in December sparked widespread fear that the U.S. economy has either entered a recession or is about to enter one.

more...

> Poor 2007 earnings dragging down 2008 (01/20/2008)
In Roman mythology, Janus is the god of doorways, and January is in turn the doorway of the year. For Wall Street, this first month of 2008 has brought none of the optimism the myth implies -- instead, a disappointing stream of economic and earnings reports has investors dreading what's still to come. more...

> Expert sees N.J. in a rut (01/18/2008)
New Jersey's economy will lag the nation's through 2017, a Rutgers economist predicted yesterday during a 10-year economic outlook conference in New Brunswick.

more...

> Recession talk includes local bright spots (01/10/2008)
A leading economist Wednesday painted a bleak picture of the nation's economy, saying the chances of a recession are 50-50, "at best."

more...

> Oil Extends Decline on Economy Worries (01/10/2008)
NEW YORK - Oil futures skidded lower Thursday on growing concerns that a U.S. economic slowdown is imminent and will depress demand.

more...

> Corzine plans major toll hike to pay debt (01/09/2008)
TRENTON - Years of fiscal gimmicks have left state government under a crushing debt burden with more problems to come, a stern Gov. Jon S. Corzine warned Tuesday in his State of the State speech. more...

> FINANCIAL NEWS: Poorer countries to offset US slowdown (01/09/2008)
Continued robust expansion in developing countries will help offset a slowdown in the United States this year amid concerns of a possible recession in the world's largest economy and oil prices will gradually decline, the World Bank today reported. more...

> Bush keeps eye on economy's health (01/09/2008)
WASHINGTON -- President Bush said yesterday he is watching very carefully to see if the struggling U.S. economy needs a short-term boost from the federal government.

more...

> Control of state's three toll roads would shift under Corzine proposal (01/08/2008)
Governor Corzine's plan to raise highway tolls to pay down state debt could turn over control of the state's toll roads to a public benefits corporation for the next 75 years.

more...

> Bush says economy will cope with crisis (01/08/2008)
CHICAGO -- President Bush said yesterday economic indicators are "increasingly mixed," causing anxiety for many Americans. But he said the economy is resilient and the country has dealt with anxiety before.

more...

> Economy may force fast action (01/07/2008)
WASHINGTON Ordinarily, voters might not expect much productivity out of a Republican White House and a Democratic Congress in a tough election year.

more...

> N.J.'s economic outlook bright in coming months (01/04/2008)
New Jersey likely will see moderate economic growth through this summer, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia forecast yesterday, citing a recent drop in unemployment claims.

more...

> Markets are mixed after labor report (12/08/2007)
Wall Street paused from its big rally yesterday, with stocks closing narrowly mixed after the government's November labor report showed tepid job growth as well as a pickup in inflation. The major indexes ended the week higher, with the Dow Jones industrials having gained nearly 900 points over nine trading days.

more...

> Job market's health is in stable condition (12/08/2007)
WASHINGTON -- Employers added a modest 94,000 jobs to their payrolls in November, the unemployment rate held steady at 4.7 percent and wages grew briskly, encouraging signs the nation's employment climate is holding up in the face of turbulence in the housing and credit markets.

more...

> Labor report sees spike in worker productivity (12/06/2007)
Worker productivity roared ahead at the fastest pace in four years in the summer while wage pressures dropped sharply.

more...

> State Budgets Are Feeling Pressure (12/05/2007)
States' spending and revenue will continue to rise this year, but problems in the housing market and other economic pressures will slow that rate of growth from last year's levels, says a new survey from the National Governors Association and National Association of State Budget Officials.

more...

> Government Appeals 'No-Match' Injunction (12/05/2007)
The U.S. Dept. of Justice Dec. 4 filed an appeal to a federal district court's injunction against the Dept. of Homeland Security's "no-match rule," firing the latest salvo in a battle between the government and business and labor groups.

more...

> Bernanke says US economy likely to slow (11/08/2007)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday that a host of economic problems, including the severe housing slump, will cause business growth to slow noticeably in coming months.

more...

> Jobless claims down for last week (11/08/2007)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits dropped last week to the lowest level in a month, even though wildfires added to the unemployment rolls in California. more...

> State economy shows cracks in its armor (10/19/2007)
New Jersey's work force should keep growing slowly, and there's no recession on the horizon, but the housing slump and "subprime" mortgage crisis could rattle the state's large and wealthy economy for many months to come. more...

> Economic index predicts slow growth (10/19/2007)
NEW YORK — A gauge of future economic activity edged higher in September, suggesting the economy may trudge forward at a modest pace despite a worsening housing slump.

more...

> PATH to expand capacity by 20 percent (10/18/2007)
The Port Authority will spend nearly $400 million to expand the capacity of its PATH system by 20 percent. more...

> State added 4,900 jobs last month (10/18/2007)
New Jersey added 4,900 jobs in September, prompting economists to express optimism about the health of the job market. more...

> Fed finds slower economic growth (10/18/2007)
WASHINGTON -- The economy logged slower growth in the early fall as troubles in the housing and credit markets weighed on companies and individuals alike, the Federal Reserve reported yesterday.

more...

> Job growth steady in New Jersey (10/18/2007)
New Jersey's unemployment rate held steady at 4.3 percent in September as employers added 4,900 workers to their payrolls, bringing total job growth to 17,700 so far this year, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development reported yesterday.

more...

> Port Authority set to approve $400 million PATH investment (10/18/2007)
The PATH rail system will receive a nearly $400 million signal-system upgrade to help increase capacity 20 percent by 2014, officials said yesterday.

Commissioners for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the system, plan to pass a resolution today authorizing the expenditure.
more...

> Analysis Says N.J. Benefits Least from Federal Taxing and Spending (10/10/2007)
New Jersey is the most shortchanged state when it comes to federal taxing and spending, according to the Tax Foundation's latest annual analysis of federal taxing and spending patterns. more...

> Many flee N.J., a study shows (10/10/2007)
It could be over the high cost of living or just better opportunities elsewhere, but a new study confirmed what New Jersey residents and officials have thought for some time: Residents are fleeing the Garden State and it's making a dent in the economy.

more...

> Jerseyans leave at alarming rate (10/10/2007)
Residents are leaving New Jersey at three times the rate they were just five years ago, a trend that is already doing real damage to the state's economy and budget coffers, a new Rutgers University report shows. more...

> Economy is more of a concern, survey finds (10/10/2007)
A growing number of people say the economy is the nation's top problem, with the less educated among the most worried, an Associated Press-Ipsos poll showed yesterday.

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> Jobs data assuage recession fears (10/06/2007)
Fears the country could slide into a recession eased last month as employers created the most jobs in four months and workers' wages grew solidly. The unemployment rate crept up to 4.7 percent, the highest in more than a year but still low by historical standards.

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> Reports paint bleak picture (10/02/2007)
Worries about jobs and the economy flared in September, driving a key barometer of consumer sentiment to its lowest level in nearly two years, a private research group said yesterday.

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> Dollar's current doldrums something to worry about (09/26/2007)
The markets and Washington may be nonchalant about the tumbling dollar, but the rest of us can't afford to be.

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> Senate Clears $23-Billion WRDA, But Veto Threatened (09/25/2007)
The Senate has approved legislation that authorizes $23 billion for Army Corps of Engineers river locks and dams, harbor dredging and environmental restoration work around the country and also mandates independent reviews of large Corps projects. But the White House has threatened a veto of the measure, contending that it is too costly. more...

> State is No. 46 in the growth of personal income (09/21/2007)
TRENTON (AP) -- New Jersey ranked 46th in the rate of personal income growth in the second quarter of this year, according to U.S. Department of Commerce data released Thursday.
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> Mass layoffs declined in August (09/21/2007)
Mass layoffs across the nation in August declined compared to July as did associated initial filings for unemployment compensation, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics said today. more...

> Dollar tumbles worldwide (09/21/2007)
Thanks to a sinking U.S. dollar and soaring commodities prices that benefit resources-rich Canada, that country's currency as of Thursday can be exchanged 1-for-1 with the greenback for the first time in more than 30 years.

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> State adds jobs, pares unemployment (09/20/2007)
New Jersey employers added 500 jobs in August, or 15,500 for the first eight months of the year, while the unemployment rate fell to 4.3 percent, from 4.6 percent in July, the state Department of Labor and Workforce development announced yesterday.

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> NJDOT gives Mercer $2.8M for upgrades (09/14/2007)
Mercer County will receive more than $2.8 million from the state Department of Transportation to fund street improvement, rehabilitation and safety projects, it was announced yesterday.

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> 'Tepid' growth predicted for the economy (09/13/2007)
LOS ANGELES -- Ongoing weakness in the housing market will push the national economy to the brink of recession, but growth in other areas should put the coun try back on a slow road to recovery by 2009, according to an economic forecast released yesterday.

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> Senate Passes DOT Spending Bill, Rejects Plan to Waive Davis-Bacon (09/13/2007)
The Senate has approved legislation that would increase federal highway and transit funding in fiscal year 2008, but turned back a proposal to waive Davis–Bacon wage requirements on projects to upgrade deficient bridges. more...

> No hiring freeze as companies plan to add jobs (09/11/2007)
MILWAUKEE -- Employers are predicting another stable quarter of hiring, with 27 percent of companies expecting to add positions in the last three months of the year, according to a survey of 14,000 companies being released yesterday.

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> Toll road plan hits dead end with most (09/03/2007)
TRENTON Even before Labor Day unofficially kicks off election season, local officials around the state have ramped up opposition to Gov. Jon S. Corzine's proposal to make money off state toll roads.

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> NJ tops nation in household income (08/28/2007)
WASHINGTON - Though New Jersey is one of the country’s richest states, more than 1 million of its residents lack health insurance.
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> Poverty Rate Falls, but More Are Uninsured (08/28/2007)
The nation’s poverty rate fell in 2006 for the first time this decade, the Census Bureau reported today, even as the percentage of Americans without health insurance coverage hit a record high.

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> N.J. no longer tops in income (08/28/2007)
New Jersey’s six-year reign as the state with the highest household income is over, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released Tuesday. more...

> N.J. adds jobs at fast clip (08/16/2007)
New Jersey added 5,400 jobs in July but unemployment rose, shedding little light on where we're headed.

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> Unemployment rises even as N.J. gains jobs (08/16/2007)
A strong gain of 5,400 jobs propelled New Jersey payrolls to an all-time high of 4.1 million working people in July -- even as a rise in the state's unemployment rate to 4.6 percent, from June's 4.3 percent, reflected a puzzling decline in the state's total labor force.

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> Bayonne: Light Rail hikes values (08/16/2007)
NJ Transit's expansion of its Hudson-Bergen Light Rail Transit System to its southernmost point - Eighth Street in Bayonne - figures to be an engine for stimulating additional economic growth in the area, real estate and transit analysts say.

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> July inflation slows (08/16/2007)
A big drop in the cost of gasoline in July contributed to the smallest rise in consumer prices in eight months while industrial output posted a solid gain.

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> State rebuilds school construction program (08/07/2007)
Seeking a fresh start for New Jersey's effort to rebuild hundreds of decrepit public schools in the state's poorest communities, Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday signed legislation that formally abolishes the scandal-plagued Schools Construction Corp.

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> Job Growth in July Is the Slowest in Months (08/03/2007)
The job market lost some of its punch last month as employers added 92,000 jobs — the fewest number in five months, the Labor Department said today.

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> N.J. trails nation in job growth (07/20/2007)
New Jersey's "extremely slow" rate of job growth -- 0.5 percent annually -- will yield only about 20,000 new jobs this year, as the state's economy lags the nation and the region. But over the next decade, the job-creation rate could almost double to 0.9 percent, generating nearly 40,000 new jobs a year.

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> Fed Chief Cautious on Economy (07/18/2007)
WASHINGTON, July 18 (Reuters) — The Federal Reserve chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, told Congress today that the United States economy will grow gradually this year and gain steam in 2008, but warned there are many risks to the outlook and stressed that the Fed is on guard against inflation. more...

> Business outlook for area: growth is on the horizon (07/18/2007)
CHERRY HILL — Mitchell P. Koza, dean of the Rutgers School of Business at Camden, said growth and continued expansion are on the horizon for the remainder of the business year, but warned that whatever goes up must also come down. more...

> Inflation abates as food, gas costs fall (07/18/2007)
WASHINGTON -- Wholesale inflation posted a better-than-expected reading as both food and energy costs retreated in June. Industrial production rebounded as well, but homebuilders' confidence fell to the lowest level in 16 years as the housing slump persisted.

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> NJ Transit okays two new budgets (07/12/2007)
The NJ Transit board yesterday approved a $1.3 billion capital budget that provides money for new buses and rail cars, expanded park-and-ride facilities, expanded rail and light rail services and major track, bridge and station improvements.

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> Businesses fear the cost of paid family leave in N.J. (06/18/2007)
When employees seek time off to care for a sick family member, newborn or newly adopted child, South Jersey Industries prefers to work out an arrangement with them independently. Offering solid benefits allows it to stay competitive, say officials at the Folsom-based company, which employs about 600 people.
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> Employment picture bright (06/17/2007)
Executives of local job search firms say the job market in Morris County reminds them of the heady pre-Sept. 11 times --almost.
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> N.J. jobless rate unmoved (06/14/2007)
TRENTON (AP) -- New Jer-sey's unemployment rate held steady for the third straight month in May at 4.3 percent, but the state added 5,400 new jobs during the month to reach record high employment at 4.093 million jobs.
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> Economy looking brighter (06/14/2007)
WASHINGTON -- The economy headed into the summer with better momentum, propelled by a manufacturing rebound and consumers who eagerly went shopping and sightseeing despite high gas prices.

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> NJ jobless rate holds steady at 4.3% (06/13/2007)
TRENTON (AP) -- New Jersey's unemployment rate held steady for the third straight month in May at 4.3 percent, but the state added 5,400 new jobs during the month to reach record high employment at 4.093 million jobs. more...

> N.J. budget framework deal struck (06/13/2007)
TRENTON — Gov. Jon S. Corzine's administration and lawmakers have agreed on the outlines of a state budget, Treasurer Bradley Abelow said Tuesday, setting up a smooth passage of the spending plan, perhaps as soon as next week.

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> No Longer The Red Tape State? (06/11/2007)
STATEHOUSE - When Unilever—the British maker of Dove Soap, Lipton Tea and Skippy Peanut Butter—agreed last October to bring 300 to 400 new jobs to New Jersey, the deal was sealed by a new and little-known state group within the Corzine administration called the Action Council for the Economy. more...

> Factory jobs: 3 million lost since 2000 (04/20/2007)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Three weeks ago, Dawn Zimmer became a statistic. Laid off from her job assembling trucks at Freightliner's plant in Portland, Ore., she and 800 of her colleagues joined a long line of U.S. manufacturing workers who have lost jobs in recent years. A total of 3.2 million - one in six factory jobs - have disappeared since the start of 2000.

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> Jobless fund called 'close to the edge' (04/19/2007)
Dwindling assets have pushed the fund that bankrolls unemployment benefits for jobless New Jerseyans to the brink of fiscal col lapse, but have stayed just shy of the line that would trigger a $400 million-a-year business tax hike, state Labor Commissioner David Socolow told lawmakers yesterday.

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> Jump in jobs and jobless during March (04/19/2007)
New Jersey gained 4,900 jobs in March, with the private sector accounting for most of the added employment, while the state's unemployment rate edged up to 4.3 percent from 4.1 percent in February.

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> Billions to repair roads, bridges, aid transit (04/19/2007)
Transportation officials plan to pour $3.3 billion into repairing bridges and roads, including some in Hudson County, while upgrading mass transit throughout New Jersey, under a program dubbed "Fix It First" unveiled earlier this month.

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> N.J. jobless rate drops once again (03/01/2007)
TRENTON (AP) -- The state's unemployment rate fell in January to 4.2 percent, the fifth consecutive month it has declined.
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> Reports offer tough economic news (03/01/2007)
WASHINGTON -- The economy grew at a sluggish 2.2 percent pace in the final quarter of last year, the government reported yesterday, in one of the steepest downward revisions in years. In another report, new-home sales plunged in January by the largest amount in 13 years.

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> $16M dedicated to new rail project (03/01/2007)
The Trans-Hudson Express Tunnel project will receive $16 million in federal funds, U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez announced yesterday.

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> Jersey rates well in 'new' economy (02/28/2007)
New Jersey is second only to Massachusetts in a ranking re leased yesterday of the states by their success at developing an in novative, knowledge-centric "new economy."

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> Gov plans to lease state assets (02/23/2007)
TRENTON New Jersey residents will pay no new taxes to balance the state's proposed $33.2 billion budget, and school districts, municipalities and higher education will receive a boost in funding.

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> Conflicting trends cloud hiring outlook (02/11/2007)
New Jersey is at an economic crossroads.

A year ago, economists predicted the state would add 35,000 to 44,000 jobs in 2006 -- a mediocre yet solid performance.

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> The Face of America's Underground Economy (02/09/2007)
Sandra understands more English than she speaks. She's about 20 years old, and graduated from a high school in Chicago. Sandra smiles a lot during a conversation as she stumbles for words to express herself without resorting to Spanish.

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> Union hopes to throw roadblock in path of highway privatization (02/06/2007)
The union representing toll collectors on the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway will begin airing radio ads today urging Gov. Jon Corzine to drop the idea of privatizing the state's highways. more...

> Cautious companies slow to hire (02/03/2007)
WASHINGTON -- The nation's unemployment rate climbed to a four-month high of 4.6 percent as somewhat wary employers added fewer new jobs in January. Wage gains were more modest. more...

> Assembly approves property tax cut (01/30/2007)
TRENTON — The state Assembly on Monday advanced a plan to lower the state's highest-in-the-nation property taxes through a combination of tax credits and spending limits on local governments. more...

> Tax-relief proposals advance (01/30/2007)
TRENTON — Plans for a 20 percent property-tax break for most homeowners and a 4 percent cap on annual property-tax hikes took their first formal step forward Monday as both measures won approval in the Assembly. more...

> Strong earnings growth to slow down, experts say (01/28/2007)
All streaks must come to an end. Investors accustomed to double-digit earnings growth should prepare for more earthbound numbers as Wall Street heads into the midpoint of the fourth-quarter reporting season.

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> State school construction program faces shutdown without new funding (01/25/2007)
New Jersey will have to start closing down its ambitious school construction program in May or June unless lawmakers move quickly to authorize new funding on top of the $8.6 billion allocated to the program six years ago.

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> Rutgers study finds flat economy (01/24/2007)
A downturn in housing transactions and volatile gasoline prices should keep the regional economy flat at best through the first half of 2007, a panel suggested Tuesday at a quarterly business outlook seminar sponsored by Rutgers University in Camden.

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> Inflation Has Best Showing in 3 Years (01/18/2007)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Labor Department reported Thursday that consumer prices rose by 2.5 percent in 2006, the best showing since prices had increased by just 1.9 percent in 2003. The improvement came in spite of the fact that consumer prices jumped 0.5 percent in December, as gasoline prices staged a momentary rebound.

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> Job growth 'moderate' (01/18/2007)
New Jersey added 20,500 jobs in 2006, less than half the increase in 2005, according to figures released by the state Labor Department on Wednesday.

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> Rutgers: State job growth to slow to 0.6% (01/18/2007)
NEW BRUNSWICK -- New Jersey is likely to see job growth of only 0.6 percent this year, down 50 percent from last year, when it trailed far behind the national average, according to the Rutgers Economic Advisory Service's semiannual forecast.
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> State jobless rate falls but growth rate lags U.S. (01/18/2007)
New Jersey's unemployment rate fell to 4.2 percent in December as 2,000 added jobs brought the full-year gain to an estimated 20,500 -- a mere blip in a 4 million-plus state work force whose growth dramatically lags the U.S. more...

> Jobless claims fall to 11-month low (01/18/2007)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of newly laid off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits fell last week to the lowest level in 11 months, indicating a solid labor market at the beginning of the year. more...

> N.J. economy to see 'correction, not a crash' (01/18/2007)
New Jersey is likely to see job growth of only 0.6 percent this year, down 50 percent from last year, when it already trailed far behind the national average, according to the Rutgers Economic Advisory Service's semiannual forecast. more...

> House votes to lift worker wages (01/11/2007)
Congress moved yesterday to boost the federal minimum wage more than $2 an hour during the next two years -- to a level that will barely be above New Jersey's cur rent wage floor.

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> November Construction Climbs 4 Percent (01/05/2007)
NEW YORK, NY - At a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $621.5 billion, new construction starts in November rose 4% compared to the previous month, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. more...

> Fed: N.J. growth nearly halts (12/28/2006)
TRENTON -- New Jersey's economy was all but stagnant last month after two months of healthy growth, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported Wednesday.
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> Consumer confidence improved in December (12/28/2006)
NEW YORK (AP) -- Consumer confidence improved to its strongest level in eight months in December after lackluster performance through the fall, but a private research group said Thursday it was too soon to determine if its reading was signaling genuine improvement.

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> Trade group sees growth slowing in "07 (12/27/2006)
WASHINGTON — A trade group representing the nation's manufacturers yesterday predicted a soft landing for the U.S. economy in 2007, despite expectations that residential real estate will act as a drag on growth.

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> Economic news good, but markets slip anyway (12/23/2006)
Stocks slid yesterday after wan ing enthusiasm among investors ahead of the holiday weekend overshadowed data showing higher consumer spending and a jump in sales of big-ticket goods in November. A weak bond market also weighed on stocks.

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> Jobless rate up, despite gains (12/20/2006)
New Jersey's unemployment rate rose to 4.5 percent in November, the same as the national jobless rate, as 900 added jobs kept state payrolls at near record levels. more...

> October loss adds to job-growth woes (11/16/2006)
New Jersey is on the path toward extremely weak job growth for 2006, as a 2,200 drop in payrolls in October brings job gains so far this year to just 17,000 -- dramatically below the 50,000 the state historically has added in an average year.

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> Economic stakes in a Hill turnover (11/06/2006)
WASHINGTON -- Policy debates affecting every corner of the economy are likely to shift in major ways if tomorrow's election gives Democrats more power in Congress.

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> Greenspan: Economic downturn ‘likely temporary’ (11/06/2006)
WASHINGTON (Dow Jones/AP) — The current economic downturn is “likely temporary,” former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said Monday, noting that the worst of the housing market slump is likely past.

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> Jobless rate hits 5-year low (11/04/2006)
WASHINGTON -- The unemployment rate sank to a five-year low of 4.4 percent and workers' wages grew solidly last month, flashing a picture of a jobs market on firm footing as voters go to the polls.

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> DOT begins work on clogged Parkway-Rt. 280 link (11/04/2006)
An 18-month, $17 million facelift is under way on one of the most congested highway interchanges in all of New Jersey. more...

> Productivity falls across U.S. (11/03/2006)
WASHINGTON — Growth in productivity — the key ingredient for rising living standards — skidded to a standstill in the late summer while workers' wages and benefits shot up at the fastest clip in more than two decades. more...

> The Economy | Slowdown: What kind is this one? (11/01/2006)
Is the U.S. economy running on fumes, or is this just the pause that refreshes? more...

> Wages, Benefits Up at 2-Year Best Pace (10/31/2006)
WASHINGTON - Wages and benefits paid to American workers rose in the July-September period at the fastest pace in more than two years.

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> Economic growth slows (10/28/2006)
Economic growth slowed to a crawl in the third quarter, advanc ing at a pace of just 1.6 percent, the worst in more than three years.

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> As Housing Quickly Sags, Signs for 2007 Remain Strong (10/27/2006)
With residential building quickly cooling off, construction's growth party could be winding down even as business in most other segments remains steady to robust, according to a forecast by McGraw-Hill Construction.

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> P.A. likely to OK $75M as part of tunnel project (10/19/2006)
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is expected to approve $75 million today to acquire property for the expansion of New York Penn Station as part of an overall plan to build a second rail tunnel between New Jersey and Midtown Manhattan.

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> INDUSTRY TRENDS: Employment rate sets record in Sept. (10/19/2006)
New Jersey reached an all-time high employment level in September.

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> Unemployment rate dips to 5.2% in N.J. (10/18/2006)
TRENTON (AP) -- New Jersey's jobless rate fell slightly to 5.2 percent in September, down from 5.3 percent in August.
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> N.J. economy growing, but at moderate pace (10/18/2006)
The consensus is that South Jersey's economy is growing at a fair pace and not much change is expected in the next six months, according to experts at the Quarterly Business Outlook.

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> FDIC latest to find that NJ economic growth declining (10/05/2006)
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) - Further evidence that economic growth in New Jersey has declined came Thursday as a federal banking agency found continued deterioration in the state's jobs and home sales.


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> Weekly jobless claims fall by 17,000 (10/05/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of newly laid off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits dropped last week to the lowest level in 10 weeks.

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> Bottom line in Jersey: A new minimum wage (10/02/2006)
Kobby Hayford smiled widely from behind the counter of Caps USA in Newark yesterday after learning his hourly wage would jump from $6.15 to $7.15.

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> U.S. economy getting drowsy (09/29/2006)
The economy has slowed even more than previously thought, but the sluggish spell is not expected to turn into recession as Election Day nears.

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> New York City School Agency to Spend $3 Billion a Year for Three Years (09/29/2006)
The New York City School Construction Authority has $3 billion to spend every year for the next three years. In the past, that announcement would have gotten the stereotypical New Yorker response from the design and construction industry: "yeah...good luck with that." But today, the industry is raising an eyebrow.

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> Jobless benefits claims drop last week (09/29/2006)
The number of new people signing up for unemployment benefits dropped last week, an encouraging sign that the labor market is still in decent shape.

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> N.J. minimum wage increases by $1 on Sun. (09/28/2006)
TRENTON -- New Jersey's minimum wage will increase from $6.15 to $7.15 an hour Sunday under a law passed last year.
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> Consumers feel more confident (09/28/2006)
Consumer confidence rebounded from a nine-month low in September, though still hovering near one of the lowest levels of the year, according to reports this week indicating moderate economic growth.

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> State awards $250M in pacts for new Driscoll Bridge work (09/27/2006)
The New Jersey Turnpike Authority awarded two contracts yesterday for the second half of a $250 million reconstruction of the Alfred E. Driscoll Bridge. more...

> Driscoll Bridge to get $100M fix (09/27/2006)
The New Jersey Turnpike Authority board of commissioners awarded a $100 million contract to rehabilitate the oldest sections of the original Alfred E. Driscoll Bridge, which carries the Garden State Parkway over the Raritan River.

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> N.J. loses $16 million in hedge-fund crash (09/22/2006)
New Jersey's foray into high-risk investing suffered a setback this week as the implosion of a Greenwich, Conn., hedge fund swallowed up about $16 million in state funds, including millions that had been in vested just weeks ago.

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> PSEG merger fizzles (09/15/2006)
Exelon Corp. backed out of its proposed purchase of Public Service Enterprise Group on Thursday, citing "insurmountable" differences with state regulators in New Jersey. more...

> Exelon pulls plug on PSEG merger (09/15/2006)
Exelon yesterday walked away from its $17 billion acquisition of Public Service Enterprise Group, balking at concessions sought by New Jersey regulators.

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> More aid is needed for building of schools (09/15/2006)
New Jersey's school construction program needs an infusion of $3.25 billion to address a backlog of projects built up over the past two years during an overhaul of the program, a task force analyzing the school building program told Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday.

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> Building a better route for the commute (09/15/2006)
A 2.5-mile stretch of Route 1 in Edison between Route 287 and the Garden State Parkway keeps frustrated commuters on their brakes.

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> WITH EXELON OUT OF THE PICTURE ... (09/15/2006)
Public Service Enterprise Group isn't going to wind up being part of the biggest guy on the block, at least not just yet.

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> Exelon scraps plan to acquire PSEG (09/14/2006)
NEWARK (AP) -- Exelon Corp. on Thursday scrapped plans to acquire Public Service Enterprise Group, a deal pending for nearly two years that would have created the nation's largest utility company.

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> Corzine: N.J. may replace Amtrak (09/14/2006)
Gov. Jon S. Corzine said the state may consider taking over the 55-mile section of Amtrak's Northeast Corridor that runs between New York and Trenton to reduce delays.

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> N.J. jobless rate highest in 2 years (09/13/2006)
TRENTON -- New Jersey's unemployment rose to 5.3 percent in August, its highest level in more than two years, even as the national rate declined, the state reported Tuesday. more...

> Report finds Trenton lags in opportunities (09/13/2006)
TRENTON -- Economic opportunity in the state has improved over the last decade, but the quality of life for urban residents has barely changed according to a report that focused on New Jersey cities.

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> Seeing $$ signs on Jersey side (09/13/2006)
Many of the firms that have come across the Hudson River are from Manhattan's financial district.

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> Jersey unemployment number rises (09/13/2006)
New Jersey's unemployment rate rose to 5.3 percent last month, from 5.1 percent in July, as the number of people seeking jobs increased, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development reported yesterday.

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> Economists predict slow growth (09/12/2006)
WASHINGTON — The economic expansion, which began in late 2001, still has staying power although growth will be sluggish through the rest of the year, business economists predict.

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> Corzine outlines strategy to bring more jobs and business (09/08/2006)
Of the NEWARK -- Constricted by a state budget that used a tax increase to meet expenses, Gov. Jon S. Corzine yesterday outlined an economic growth strategy focused on salesmanship but providing no new money to bring more jobs and business to the state.
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> Business Briefs (09/08/2006)
The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits dropped a bigger- than-expected amount last week, signaling continuing labor market strength despite a general economic slowdown.

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> Corzine unveils plan for economic renewal (09/08/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday un veiled his economic strategy for New Jersey that includes two public/private investment partnerships designed to have a $1 billion effect on the state economy -- without any additional taxes or public borrowing.

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> Jobless Claims Fall by Most in 7 Weeks (09/07/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The number of newly laid off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits dropped by a bigger-than-expected amount last week, signaling continuing labor market strength despite a general economic slowdown.

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> Corzine plans to promote N.J. to businesses (09/07/2006)
NEWARK -- Constricted by a state budget that used a tax increase to meet expenses, Gov. Jon S. Corzine on Thursday outlined an economic growth strategy focused on salesmanship but providing no new money to bring more jobs and business to the state.

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> N.J. economy growing 0.6% (09/07/2006)
NEWARK -- Economic growth in New Jersey has declined to its slowest rate in nearly five years, hobbled by increasing initial unemployment claims and falling housing permits, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported Wednesday. more...

> N.J. economy grinds to a 5-year crawl (09/07/2006)
Economic growth in New Jersey has declined to its slowest rate in nearly five years, hobbled by increasing initial unemployment claims and falling housing permits, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported yesterday. more...

> N.J. businesses: Hard to find good workers (09/05/2006)
NEW BRUNSWICK (AP) -- Finding good workers is a top priority and a big challenge for employers in New Jersey, companies told pollsters commissioned by Rutgers University. more...

> Construction in the First Half of this year is Up 7% Over 2005 (09/04/2006)
New Construction starts tracked by McGraw-Hill Construction through the first half of this year totaled $344 billion, 7% more than the same period a year ago. Homebuilding has slowed to just a 1% annual increase but year-to-year gains of 17% in nonresidential buildings and 13% for nonbuilding construction picked up the slack. more...

> Beer adds $1.7 billion to N.J. economy (09/03/2006)
According to an economic impact study conducted by John Dunham & Associates and sponsored by the National Beer Wholesalers Association and Beer Institute, the beer industry generates $1,757,808,606 annually in wages and benefits and contributes $4,975,183,981 to New Jersey's economy. more...

> Law speeds payment to contractors (09/02/2006)
CHERRY HILL -- Gov. Jon S. Corzine celebrated Labor Day a bit early on Friday, joining an organized labor observance to sign into law legislation requiring quicker payments to construction contractors. more...

> Hiring boost buoys market (09/02/2006)
WASHINGTON — A hiring revival pulled the nation's unemployment rate down to 4.7 percent in August and flashed a Labor Day weekend message that the slowing economy isn't in danger of fizzling out.

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> State tackling I-78 trouble spot (08/31/2006)
The state Department of Transportation is working on an $8 million project to alleviate congestion near a busy Interstate 78 interchange in Union Township. more...

> More signs of slowing economy (08/31/2006)
The economy lost momentum in the spring and probably is in for a spell of somewhat sluggish growth ahead, which could weigh on voters when they go to the polls in November.

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> Shoppers not so sure of economy (08/30/2006)
Americans' faith in the economy tumbled in August to a nine-month low, which could translate to tightened purse strings if job growth stumbles or fuel costs rebound.

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> TUNNELING (07/24/2006)
New York City’s $6.3-billion East Side Access project took a major step forward with the award of a $428-million tunneling contract July 10. The joint venture winner, comprised of Judlau Contracting Inc., College Point, N.Y., and Spanish firm Dragados, left more than $50 million on the table, says Mysore Nagaraja, president of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Capital Construction Co.

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> New Jersey job market: 'Moderate' growth (07/20/2006)
New Jersey added 800 jobs in June, the jobless rate fell to 4.9 percent, from May's 5 percent, and the state is on track to add 35,000 jobs this year to its 4 million-strong work force.

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> Rutgers forecast sees jobs malaise lingering (07/20/2006)
New Jersey can expect modest growth in employment through 2010 and its jobless rate will be higher than the national rate through the end of the decade, according to a forecast released yesterday by the Rutgers Economic Advisory Service.

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> County economy 'healthy' (07/19/2006)
BRIDGETON -- Happy days are here again.

That's what Sidna Prickett, owner of the Roarke Agency, exclaimed as she stood before the podium at the biannual Cumberland County Economic Forecast Panel luncheon.

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> Foreign firms leasing major roads, bridges (07/18/2006)
WASHINGTON -- Roads and bridges built by U.S. taxpayers are starting to be sold off, and so far foreign-owned companies are doing the buying.
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> New Jersey Shutdown Ends But Contractors Fear the Bill (07/17/2006)
State highway contractors in New Jersey were gearing up on July 9 to resume work halted by a 10-day shutdown caused by a state budget impasse. But they were dismayed by return-to-work orders that provided for schedule extensions but not consideration of lost-time expenses. more...

> Route 18 widening remains on schedule (07/16/2006)
It has been four months since major construction began on the widening of Route 18 in New Brunswick and the project remains on schedule, despite bad weather and a state shutdown that took crews off the job for a week. more...

> Report: N.J. losing high-skill tech jobs (07/15/2006)
New Jersey's economic engine has slowed as high-tech jobs have eroded and employment has increasingly come in the form of lower-wage jobs, according to a study to be released Friday.

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> N.J. economy is choking, say two experts (07/14/2006)
Two Rutgers University economists plan to issue a report today stating New Jersey has entered an alarming economic decline whose severity is masked by the very affluence that is slowly slipping away.

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> New budget seen as plus for business (07/14/2006)
While a few business taxes are rising under Gov. Jon Corzine's first budget, lobbyists for the business sector said the budget effectively slashes business taxes by about $300 million by ending some taxes enacted during the McGreevey administration. more...

> U.S. jobless claims jump (07/14/2006)
WASHINGTON — New Jersey's recent casino shutdown helped hike the number of people filing new claims for unemployment benefits across the nation last week, according to figures released by the federal government.

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> N.J. economy in taxing time (07/14/2006)
New Jersey, once synonymous with world-class research and cutting-edge technology, is facing its most uncertain future since the Great Depression, according to a report released today by two Rutgers University economists. more...

> 7 percent rate will take effect Saturday (07/11/2006)
TRENTON -- While the political bickering that shut down New Jersey's government for nearly a week is over, the end of the budget showdown doesn't bring much good news for New Jersey taxpayers.

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> Business as usual in N.J. (07/09/2006)
Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed the $30.8 billion state budget into law Saturday night -- 187 hours past the constitutional deadline, with pledges to reform both the budget process and the property tax burden in the year ahead.

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> $30.6B plan awaits nod in Legislature (07/08/2006)
TRENTON -- Lawmakers appeared close Friday night to approving a $30.6 billion state budget, giving Gov. Jon Corzine his hoped-for 1-cent-on-the-dollar sales tax hike and ending a week-long state government shutdown. more...

> BREAKING NEWS: Gov. Corzine ends government shutdown (07/08/2006)
TRENTON — Though Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed an order this morning ending the unprecedented partial shutdown of New Jersey government, it will take some time for certain services to spring back into action.
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> STATE BUDGET WAR IS OVER (07/07/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine and Assembly Democrats settled their weeklong budget dispute yesterday, signaling an end to the government shutdown that put tens of thousands of New Jerseyans out of work, paralyzed the courts, closed parks and halted gambling in Atlantic City casinos for the first time in history. more...

> Sales-tax increase sticks as N.J. budget stalemate ends (07/07/2006)
TRENTON -- State parks, courts and motor vehicles offices, along with Atlantic City casinos, racetracks and the lottery, are expected to reopen soon, and more than 80,000 workers will return to their jobs, as the framework for a state budget is now in place.

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> Payrolls Increase by 121,000 in June (07/07/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Employers boosted payrolls by a tepid 121,000 in June - an improvement from the previous month but new evidence that companies are reluctant to bulk up their work forces in the face of high energy prices and slowing economic growth. Wages rose sharply.

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> Fewer New Jobs Added in June Than Expected (07/07/2006)
Job growth last month was tepid, the Labor Department reported today, with fewer new jobs added than economists had expected.

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> Tunnel Talk Tops 4th Annual Governor's Transportation Conference (07/07/2006)
George Warrington, New Jersey Transit's executive director, reckons that more than a million people will locate west of the Hudson River by the mid-2020s, and the pressure for them to effectively and efficiently reach the employment centers of Newark, the Meadowlands, the Hudson waterfront and mid-town Manhattan will be enormous.

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> Corzine, Jersey Legislators Ending Stalemate (07/06/2006)
New Jersey legislators hammered at the details on July 7 for enacting a new state budget and ending a week-long shutdown of government services that has closed the state's casino industry and idled 128 highway construction jobs worth $1.5 billion. more...

> Special budget talks fail to curtail state shutdown (07/05/2006)
An emergency legislative session and impassioned plea from Gov. Jon Corzine couldn't break the state's billion-dollar budget impasse yesterday, fueling a raging political war and sending taxpayers a message that might echo for days:

New Jersey is closed.

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> Consumers feeling financial stress of slowing economy (07/05/2006)
Rising interest rates and higher gasoline prices are putting the squeeze on consumers' budgets, and many are finding it harder to keep up with their bills.

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> CORZINE ORDERS STATE SHUTDOWN (07/02/2006)
Unable to reach a budget agreement with members of his own divided party, Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday ordered a step-by-step government shutdown for the first time in New Jersey history.

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> Payrolls grew in state's public sector (06/26/2006)
NEWARK — Anger may have been growing over rocketing property taxes, but that didn't stop New Jersey state and local governments from adding 59,400 jobs in the first half of the decade, according to published reports.



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> Economic data thwart clear Fed message (06/26/2006)
SOME ON WALL S TREET think Ben Bernanke has a communication problem. They say he gives mixed messages about the economy and about the Federal Reserve's intentions, leaving investors confused.

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> Highways serve as backbone driving outward rural development, sprawl (06/25/2006)
WASHINGTON -- Traveling across New Jersey would be more difficult, the state would be poorer and cities would be a lot more crowded if not for the interstate highways crisscrossing the Garden State.

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> State, local government jobs jumped since 2000 (06/25/2006)
New Jersey added 59,400 state and local-government jobs in the first half of this decade, even as private-sector employment was flat, a Star-Ledger analysis has found.

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> Improvement projects aiming to ease the ride (06/25/2006)
Vittoria Marotto arranges her life around the traffic on the Easton Avenue Interchange onto Interstate 287.

The Franklin resident, who works an overnight shift at Somerset Medical Center, leaves work early to avoid rush hour, will not drive on Easton Avenue after 2:30 p.m. and schedules her appointments at times when there is likely to be less traffic.

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> DOT expects repair work to add 25 years to Stickel Bridge (06/23/2006)
The state Department of Transportation will begin work tonight on a $32 million project to repair the deteriorated Stickel Bridge that carries Route 280 over the Passaic River between Newark and Harrison.

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> Is N.J. on verge of a tax revolt? Some think so (06/22/2006)
Tax-hike opponents are split over whether the proposed rate increases in Gov. Corzine's $30.9 billion budget will trigger a 1990s-style citizens' tax revolt like the one that ousted many Democratic state legislators and the governor.
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> State DOT chief eyes improvements (06/21/2006)
GLASSBORO -- State Department of Transportation Commissioner Kris Kolluri told a packed room on Tuesday that a smoother ride on Interstate 295 and a passenger rail line extension were among the improvements residents could see in coming years.

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> Business growth trend continues for counties (06/15/2006)
The tri-county area continues to see modest business growth, adding 291 establishments from 2003 to 2004, U.S. Census data released Wednesday shows.
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> Rt. 22 allotted $2.5M for road projects (06/15/2006)
WASHINGTON -- An 8-mile stretch of Route 22 known for its reported accidents and feared for its near misses just got an additional $2.5 million toward improvements scheduled to begin next year.

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> Route 18 project in fast lane (06/15/2006)
NEW BRUNSWICK — The skeletal steel outlines of a New Street bridge took shape over the weekend, weeks ahead of schedule.

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> State adds 7,000 jobs last month (06/14/2006)
TRENTON (AP) -- Nearly 7,000 new jobs were added in New Jersey in May and the unemployment rate dipped slightly but remained above the national average.

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> Construction starts on new train station in Mount Arlington (06/13/2006)
MOUNT ARLINGTON -- Officials broke ground Monday on a long-awaited NJ Transit station aimed at lessening massive congestion on Route 80.

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> Employers in hiring mood (06/13/2006)
Mild temperatures aside, a new survey indicates northwest New Jersey's job market is heating up in advance of summer.

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> Low unemployment fund may spur tax hike (06/09/2006)
TRENTON -- The state fund meant to pay benefits to out-of-work New Jerseyans, but which has been raided to help pay for health care, has dwindled so low that even a mild economic recession would spark tax increases on New Jersey employers, a key state official warned Thursday.

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> White House upbeat about economic growth (06/08/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House, in a slightly more optimistic forecast, predicted Thursday the economy will log solid growth and that the nation's unemployment rate will dip lower this year.
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> Dwindling N.J. unemployment fund could spur tax hikes (06/08/2006)
TRENTON -- The state fund meant to pay benefits to out-of-work New Jerseyans, but which has been raided to help pay for health care, has dwindled so low that even a mild economic recession would spark tax increases on New Jersey employers, a key state official warned today.

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> Job numbers add to slowdown signs (06/03/2006)
WASHINGTON -- Cautious employers added just 75,000 new jobs in May, the fewest in seven months, in a fresh sign the national economy is losing momentum heading into summer.

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> Laborers' Announce Official Split With AFL-CIO As of June 1 (05/29/2006)
Unhappy with efforts on behalf of organized labor, the laborers’ union says it will take its 700,000 members out of the AFL-CIO by June 1. The move follows its split in February from the umbrella group’s Building and Construction Trades Dept. to join a new group, the National Construction Alliance that is affiliated with other dissident unions. more...

> Construction Funding Tight So Far for FY 07 (05/29/2006)
Spending bills for fiscal year 2007 are moving in the House, and the numbers for construction aren’t looking bright. So far, bills approved by the House or its appropriations committee call for cuts in the Corps of Engineers civil works program and Environmental Protection Agency water infrastructure. “It’s definitely going to be a tough year, to say the very least,” says Steve Hall, American Council of Engineering Companies’ vice president for government affairs. more...

> Economy Grew at 5.3 Percent Pace in 2nd Quarter (05/25/2006)
The economy grew at a faster rate in the first quarter than the government first reported, but all indications still point to more moderate growth for the remainder of the year.

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> New Commission Begins Transportation Finance, Policy Study (05/25/2006)
A congressionally mandated commission has launched a year-long effort to study whether to revamp the structure of the federal highway, transit and other surface transportation programs and change the way those systems are financed. more...

> NEW GATEWAY FOR S. AMBOY (05/24/2006)
A nearly 100-year-old crumbling bridge at the gateway to South Amboy is almost demolished and will be replaced by two new spans that officials say will complement the city's waterfront redevelopment.

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> Workforce Development Critical In Maintaining State and Country's Competitive Edge (05/19/2006)
Businesses move to where they can get an educated workforce. Therein lies the problem. The developing workforce in this country is lacking in not only technical skills, but basic skills. "Companies are spending $60 billion a year in workforce training, and a lot of that training is in simple literacy. That's a real issue," said Tom Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, at a recent meeting on national workforce trends held at the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development, New Brunswick. more...

> School construction agency says it will need millions more (05/18/2006)
State officials retooling the agency set up to manage a massive rebuilding of public schools in New Jersey said they plan to ask lawmakers for a new infusion of construction money in August after they have finished management reforms.

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> Jobless rate up to 5.1% (05/17/2006)
TRENTON -- New Jersey's jobless rate spiked above 5 percent in April, surpassing national unemployment numbers for the first time in 35 months, even while the state added 6,200 jobs.

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> Unemployment in state zooms past national rate (05/17/2006)
A long winning streak for the New Jersey economy ended last month, when the state's unemployment rate surged to 5.1 percent -- climbing above the nation's 4.7 percent jobless rate, the first time that has happened in nearly three years.

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> March Construction Rises 2 Percent (05/17/2006)
NEW YORK, NY – New construction starts in March climbed 2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $667.6 billion, according to McGraw-Hill Construction, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies. Gains were reported for nonresidential building and public works, offsetting a modest decline for single family housing. During the first three months of 2006, total construction on an unadjusted basis came in at $149.6 billion, up 8% relative to the same period a year ago. more...

> Senators push for new tunnel between NJ and NYC (05/15/2006)
NEW YORK (AP) - Two U.S. senators are joining the governor of New Jersey to push for a new tunnel under the Hudson River to increase train traffic into Manhattan.
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> Growth plan for Route 130 (05/15/2006)
WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- When the Camden and Amboy Railroad was built in the early 1830s, it sparked modern growth in an area that later became Mercer County's Washington Township.

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> NEW PATH STATION? (05/15/2006)
It's been 33 years since the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey built a new station for its Trans-Hudson rail system - a fact that is not derailing Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy in his quest for a PATH station in the Marion section of the city.

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> Corzine buys the ticket for Trans-Hudson rail tunnel in 2009 (05/11/2006)
Promising to help North Jersey commuters make a great escape from mounting congestion, Gov. Jon Corzine and top members of his administration said yesterday groundbreaking for construction of a railroad tunnel linking New Jersey and Manhattan will happen in 2009.

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> Bond debt in N.J. grows (05/09/2006)
New Jersey added more than $3 billion in new public debt last year, meaning the state now owes banks and bondholders more than $3,000 for every resident.

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> Jobs Data Send Dow to New 6-Year High (05/05/2006)
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks rallied Friday as moderating job growth reinforced Wall Street's hopes that the Federal Reserve may soon end its series of interest rate hikes. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed more than 110 points to a fresh six-year high.

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> N.J. fiscal picture growing bleaker (05/05/2006)
Property tax rebates might be cut and state government spending will be slashed even more as tax revenues are falling below what budget experts expected, administration officials warned Thursday.

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> April Best Month for Retailers in 2 Years (05/04/2006)
NEW YORK (AP) -- Consumers seemingly unfazed by rising gasoline prices spent enthusiastically during April, giving retailers their best performance in two years.

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> Productivity Increases in First Quarter (05/04/2006)
American workers were more productive in the first three months of the year than in the preceding quarter, the Labor Department reported today, and appear to have been rewarded well for it.

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> Parkway bridge lanes open (05/04/2006)
Drivers traveling south on the Garden State Parkway might not haved realized they were on the new Driscoll Bridge until they saw the off-white concrete in front of them. more...

> Industries hit hard by hike in fuel prices (05/03/2006)
As bad as a motorist may feel paying $50 or more to fill the gas tank of the family car, imagine if your job were to keep hundreds of airplanes flying, or a fleet of trucks on the highway.
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> New GSP bridge gets all southbound traffic (05/02/2006)
SAYREVILLE, N.J. (AP) -- The new twin of the Driscoll Bridge is expected to handle all southbound Garden State Parkway traffic over the Raritan River starting Wednesday afternoon.

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> Governor drops self-serve plans (05/02/2006)
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- Facing stiff public and legislative resistance, Gov. Jon S. Corzine said today he won't fight for his short-lived proposal to bring self-service gasoline pumping to New Jersey.

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> Spending Pushes Up Inflation (05/02/2006)
Robust spending on homes, cars and other consumer goods kept the economy moving at a brisk pace and sent a critical measure of inflation higher in March, the Commerce Department reported yesterday, renewing concerns that the Federal Reserve will have to raise interest rates further.

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> NJ asks court to freeze Abbott spending (05/02/2006)
New Jersey's 31 poorest school districts want too much money, and the state can no longer afford to meet their incresingly high demands, the state attorney general told New Jersey's Supreme Court justices this morning. more...

> March jobless rate holds steady (05/02/2006)
Unemployment in the Lehigh Valley remained unchanged in March at 4.5 percent, continuing at a clip that an economist says bodes well for the local job market. more...

> Quarterly growth slow in N.J. (05/02/2006)
Economic growth in New Jersey slowed in the first three months of the year, burdened by an increase in initial unemployment claims, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported Monday.

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> Lower speed limit among proposals to ease pump pain (04/28/2006)
TRENTON -- Lowering the 65 mph speed limit, incentives to reduce the use of personal cars and allowing self-service gas stations are on Gov. Jon S. Corzine's agenda to respond to recent spikes in gasoline prices. more...

> Plan to hike the sales tax puts end to honeymoon for Corzine (04/27/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine's move to raise taxes has dealt a sharp blow to the popularity of both the governor and the Democrat-controlled Legislature, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll.

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> Self-serve gas ban in N.J. gets new look (04/25/2006)
Rising gas prices are reviving talk in New Jersey about ending a ban on self-service gas that has endured for more than half a century.

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> Employers Boost March Payrolls by 211,000 (04/07/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Employers added 211,000 jobs in a springtime hiring burst that benefited almost all sectors of the economy and lowered the national unemploment rate to 4.7 percent.

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> March Unemployment Rate Back to 4 - 1 / 2 - Year Low (04/07/2006)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. employers added 211,000 jobs in March and the unemployment rate unexpectedly slipped back to a 4-1/2-year low 4.7 percent, the government said on Friday in a report likely to keep concern about potential inflation pressures on the burner.

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> State's economy slowing (04/05/2006)
NEWARK -- New Jersey's economy slowed in the second half of 2005, and early 2006 offers few encouraging signs, according to reports released Tuesday. more...

> Jersey power play gets highway funds (04/05/2006)
WASHINGTON -- Bowing to pressure from New Jersey's congressional delegation, the Federal Highway Administration yesterday reversed course and said it would provide $150 million for six highway projects in the state. more...

> Gov't to release funds to repair state roadways (04/05/2006)
Washington -- The Bush administration on Tuesday yielded to pressure from New Jersey's congressional delegation and determined to provide $150 million for six disputed highway projects in New Jersey, including one in Gloucester County.

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> New Market Recovery Group Faces Some Bumps (04/03/2006)
There have been some obstacles as construction unions forming the National Construction Alliance try for a formal launch, now set for May 1.

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> Brick to spend $3.55M for roads, new equipment (04/03/2006)
BRICK — In two votes, the Township Council agreed to spend $3.55 million to improve roads and purchase new equipment.
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> DOT alters plan for highway overhaul (03/31/2006)
Major modifications to the proposed $67.5 million overhaul of the interchange at Routes 80 and 287 in Parsippany were announced yesterday by the state Department of Transportation.

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> Economy Grows at 1.7 Percent Pace (03/30/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The economy hit a soft patch in the final quarter of 2005, growing at an annual rate of just 1.7 percent, an ominous statistic but for fresher readings that suggest America's business health has improved and is mostly sound.

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> NJ may disband building agency (03/27/2006)
Just a few short years ago, New Jersey officials couldn’t spend money fast enough to repair the state’s dilapidated public schools or build mandated new ones. Now they have exhausted just about all of their nearly $9-billion construction budget, with hundreds of millions of dollars of existing and planned school projects in limbo.

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> Unions and Open Shop, Each In Vegas, Plan Market Pushes (03/27/2006)
Hardly on the same plane when it comes to labor strategies, non-union contractors and construction labor unions turned up in the same place earlier this month, as both coincidentally scheduled virtually overlapping conventions in Las Vegas.

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> Turnpike proposal would raise $6B (03/27/2006)
TRENTON | Days after Gov. Jon Corzine challenged legislators who criticized his budget to find new revenue sources, the first shots were fired.

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> N.J. again trails in return on tax dollars (03/25/2006)
Things aren't all bad for New Jersey taxpayers.

The state's per capita income has increased steadily, reaching $41,332 last year, an amount topped only by Connecticut and Massachusetts.

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> Another thumbs-up for Corzine budget as Standard & Poor's calls it 'realistic' (03/25/2006)
Even as the Legislature braces for public hearings on Gov. Jon Corzine's proposed $30.9 billion budget, a third Wall Street firm yesterday praised his suggested spending plan.

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> Corzine signs $8B transit measure (03/24/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine approved his first major piece of legislation yesterday, signing a bill that will raise $8 billion for the state's highway, bridge and mass transit projects during the next five years.

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> N.J. adds jobs, but jobless rate up (03/23/2006)
New Jersey's economy continued to offer a mixed picture in February, when it added thousands of jobs but didn't keep up with the rest of the country, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development reported Wednesday.
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> Corzine proposes new, higher taxes in state budget (03/22/2006)
TRENTON -- Speaking to 120 lawmakers so silent footsteps were audible outside a cramped Assembly chambers, Gov. Jon S. Corzine on Tuesday pitched his $30.9 billion budget - and the $1.7 billion in new and increased taxes he needs to fund it.

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> Transport fund to survive, without cap (03/21/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine's controversial plan to raise $8 billion over the next five years for highway, bridge and mass transit projects was approved by the state Senate yesterday, but not before some last-minute jostling over anti-sprawl language that had been pulled from the bill.

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> N.J.'s spending habits hurting its economy (03/19/2006)
TRENTON | New Jersey's economy has failed to keep pace with the nation's rising tide, one Rutgers University economist said this week.

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> Sales tax hike, new rebate plan are state budget plan (03/18/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine's budget will recommend boosting the state sales tax from 6 percent to 7 percent, according to four Democratic officials with knowledge of the plans that were finalized yesterday.

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> Assembly approves plan to spare transportation fund (03/17/2006)
TRENTON - The Assembly approved yesterday Gov. Corzine's proposal to bail out the nearly bankrupt state Transportation Trust Fund with billions of dollars in new borrowing, which critics called reckless. more...

> Corzine hedges on rebate plan campaign pledge (03/17/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine hinted for the first time yesterday the state budget crisis might force him to break one of his top campaign promises -- restoring and expanding a taxpayer rebate program.

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> Assembly puts borrowing plan for road fund into second gear (03/17/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine's plan to bor row billions to replenish the state's highway and mass transit improvement programs is just one step away from being approved.

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> Cranford taps developer to resume river project (03/17/2006)
Plans are back on track to build a $45 million mixed redevelopment project in Cranford on a scenic site along the Rahway River off South Avenue, officials said.

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> Panel wants SCC expelled (03/16/2006)
TRENTON | Looking to quell public outrage over waste and mismanagement within the state Schools Construction Corp., a handpicked team of advisers to Gov. Jon Corzine has recommended abolishing the agency. more...

> Report urges dismantling of school agency (03/16/2006)
The state corporation set up to manage a $6billion overhaul of decrepit public school buildings in New Jersey's poorest communities has bungled the assignment so badly, it should be scrapped and replaced with a new agency, a task force recommended to Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday.

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> In Jersey, the growing is slowing (03/16/2006)
New Jersey's continuing population slowdown is prompting some economists to warn it could be a symptom of serious economic illness in the nation's wealthiest state.

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> City looks to earmark $33.5M for local projects (03/16/2006)
Instead of giving $80 million to two nonprofit corporations to aid development, Newark will set aside $33.5 million in the municipal budget to fund projects ranging from an expansion of the Newark Museum to a dormitory for Seton Hall Law School, the city council and Business Administrator Richard Monteilh said yesterday.

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> Verizon adds 24 towns to fiber rollout (03/16/2006)
Verizon New Jersey is rolling out its ultra-fast high-speed Internet service to another 24 communities, bringing the number of towns on the network to 147 in 10 counties.

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> Trust fund debt would more than double (03/16/2006)
TRENTON — Taxpayers will face about $700 million to $900 million in debt payments each year from now until 2040 under Gov. Corzine's plan to fund five years of transportation projects, according to Department of the Treasury estimates.
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> Corzine battles state budget woes (03/16/2006)
MARCH 15 - With less than a week to go until Governor Corzine reveals his first budget to the State of New Jersey next Tuesday, political insiders are already making bets on exactly how deep he's willing to cut spending, and perhaps even more pointedly, how much the Governor is willing to raises taxes.

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> N.J. tax hikes likely (03/15/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine is planning more than $2 billion in spending cuts, along with major tax increases that could include another penny on the sales tax, to balance the next state budget, a top administration official said yesterday.

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> Corzine budget plan includes higher taxes (03/15/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine is planning more than $2 billion in spending cuts, along with major tax increases that could include an additional penny to the sales tax, to balance the next state budget, a top administration official said yesterday.

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> Growth of port and county are linked (03/15/2006)
Middlesex County is in a prime position to benefit from the rapid growth at the Port of New York and New Jersey, an executive from the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority said yesterday at the county's first economic summit.

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> State's economy gaining strength (03/15/2006)
New Jersey's economy appears to be picking up steam, with employment holding strong, manufacturing employees putting in longer hours and housing construction picking up, at least temporarily, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported yesterday.

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> Budget battle begins early (03/15/2006)
TRENTON -- While Gov. Jon Corzine's administration tested the waters this week for $1.5 billion in tax increases, Assembly Republicans called for weaning inner-city schools off state aid and freezing the Urban Enterprise Zone (UEZ) program.

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> Economic outlook is upbeat for New Jersey (03/15/2006)
New Jersey's economy appears to be picking up steam, with employment holding strong, manufacturing employees putting in longer hours and housing construction rising, at least temporarily, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reported Tuesday.

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> Restriction struck from highway bill (03/14/2006)
A bill to rescue the cash-strapped fund that pays for highway and bridge repairs was amended yesterday, sparking a new debate as to whether it will encourage sprawl.

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> Verizon gets nod to offer TV service (03/14/2006)
With lawmakers drafting amendments on the fly, a state Senate committee yesterday gave a boost to Verizon Communications' effort to sell television programming to customers around the state.

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> Construction Has Strong Start (03/13/2006)
Construction markets got off to a strong start in 2006 with total new construction starts in January running at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $658 billion, the same as December's pace, according to McGraw-Hill Construction. more...

> Rt. 78 ramp work expected to unsnarl Newark (03/13/2006)
Newark's Clinton Avenue exit off Route 78 has been a driver's nightmare for years.

It is rarely plowed after a major snowstorm. Water pools and ice forms on its sharp, downhill curve. It abruptly empties onto residential streets. And the traffic light at the end of the ramp has been knocked down countless times by trucks making a sharp right turn.

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> Employers Add 243,000 to Payrolls in Feb. (03/10/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Hiring gained ground in February with employers adding 243,000 jobs, the most in three months. Brighter job prospects sent people streaming into the labor market, however, pushing the unemployment rate up marginally to 4.8 percent.

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> Jobs Grow and Wages Rise as Economy Picks Up Steam (03/10/2006)
The economy added jobs at a brisk pace last month, but the unemployment rate ticked up slightly as more people sought work, the government reported today. Analysts said the numbers suggested that the the economy was strong and benefiting from mild weather at the start of the year.

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> Route 1 bridge widening forum scheduled (03/10/2006)
MORRISVILLE, Pa. -- The public is invited to learn about the upcoming project to widen the Route 1 (Trenton-Morrisville) toll bridge at a March 23 open house.

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> Panel acts to replenish transit fund (03/10/2006)
The Assembly Transportation Committee yesterday approved Gov. Jon Corzine's proposal to raise $8billion over the next five years for badly needed highway, bridge and mass transit projects.

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> Corzine says budget needs major cuts (03/10/2006)
Gov. Jon S. Corzine kept his plans for dealing with a $4.5 billion shortfall in the state budget under tight wraps Thursday while warning a crowd at Rowan University to brace for significant cuts in state spending.

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> Corzine lays out a highway to debt (03/09/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine's strategy for using borrowed funds to bankroll a five-year transportation improvement program will cost taxpayers more than $30billion over the next 35 years, state Treasury Department projections show.

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> N.J. budget deficit may affect taxes (03/07/2006)
NEW BRUNSWICK -- Tax increases seemed to be on the horizon Monday as Gov. Jon S. Corzine painted a dire picture of New Jersey's finances during a budget summit at Rutgers University.

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> Panel puts proposal to borrow transit funds into second gear (03/07/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine's plan to borrow billions of dollars for highway and mass transit projects over the next five years cleared a state Senate committee yesterday, even though an administration official could not say how much it will eventually cost taxpayers. more...

> $40.7M project set for Ft. Dix (03/07/2006)
FORT DIX — A $40.7 million project to consolidate Army Reserve units from four states here will be the biggest military construction project at Fort Dix in a generation, Rep. H. James Saxton, R-N.J., said Monday.
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> N.J. jobless rate dips after recalculation (03/03/2006)
The state's unemployment rate for January turns out to be a little bit better than what was reported on Tuesday.

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> State unemployment nearing national level (03/02/2006)
TRENTON (AP) -- New Jersey has been able to boast for more than two years that its unemployment rate is lower than the national average, but that may soon change.

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> Newark sets up, funds redevelopment panels (03/02/2006)
The Newark City Council approved a plan yesterday to endow two nonprofit corporations with $80million for development and recreation projects throughout the city, the same day as papers to incorporate the agencies were submitted to the state.

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> Consumer Spending Gives Economy a Lift (03/01/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The warmest January in more than 100 years lured consumers out to the shopping malls to spend money at the fastest clip in six months, giving a strong boost to the economy as the new year began.

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> Conference focuses on Cape transportation improvements (03/01/2006)
CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE — Cape May County can look forward to cruise ships, more lanes and better evacuation plans in 2006.
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> James wants $80M to aid redevelopment (03/01/2006)
Newark Mayor Sharpe James wants to use $80 million from the settlement of a lawsuit with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to endow two nonprofit corporations designed to help the city with neighborhood and economic development projects.

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> Labor Leaders to Convene, Faced With Uphill Battles (02/27/2006)
SAN DIEGO, Feb. 26 — When the A.F.L.-C.I.O.'s leaders gather this week at a luxury seaside resort here, they will once again be on the defensive, a situation made worse by the split the labor federation suffered last year. more...

> Much left to be done in Schools Construction Corp. review (02/27/2006)
TRENTON -- Smarting from the $8.6 billion failure of the Schools Construction Corp., the Legislature last June created a study commission to determine how it became rife with apparent wrongdoing, waste and mismanagement.

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> UNIONS Split has many eyeing future relationships (02/27/2006)
Top officials of the laborers’ and operating engineers’ unions are sorting out the fine details of their decision to leave the AFL-CIO’s Building and Construction Trades Dept. to form a breakaway alliance with four other construction unions. But industry observers—particularly regional union officials, contractors and owners—are watching and wondering how yet another dissident union move will impact construction labor relations. Some privately worry whether new union strife will complicate jobsites. But others chalk it up to inside-the-Beltway labor politics and don’t expect much disruption in the field.

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> Roads: Trust Fund Highway Account Deficit Seen in 2009 (02/27/2006)
Although the Treasury Dept. estimates the Highway Trust Fund will stay in the black until yearend 2010, the fund’s highway account will post a $2.3-billion deficit at the end of 2009, says Assistant Transportation Secretary Phyllis F. Scheinberg. She told a House panel on Feb. 15 that “the trend in declining cash balances...remains constant and needs attention.” The current highway statute expires Sept. 30, 2009.

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> Corzine: No new fuel tax (02/25/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine yesterday announced plans to fund state transportation projects by refinancing billions of dollars in debt without increasing the state's gasoline tax.

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> $7B proposed for roads fund (02/25/2006)
TRENTON — Gov. Jon S. Corzine proposed yesterday to increase funding to maintain the state's roads, bridges and rails, largely by borrowing $7 billion more to keep the state's Transportation Trust Fund afloat.

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> Port seeks to break lease (02/25/2006)
Caught in the crossfire of a volatile debate about port security, the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey filed suit here Friday in Superior Court seeking authority to terminate its lease with British-owned Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co. because the company wants to sell its lease to an Arab-owned company. more...

> Corzine sidesteps gas tax increase in transit bailout (02/25/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine unveiled a five-year transportation financing plan yesterday that borrows billions to avoid a gas tax hike and rejuvenate the fund that bankrolls about $3 billion in highway and mass transit projects each year. more...

> Public suggests ways to save state money (02/24/2006)
TRENTON | About 450 state residents, government workers and others have left their recommendations at a legislative Web site seeking suggestions to close a $4 billion deficit.

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> Transit village eyed for J&J tract (02/24/2006)
The Johnson & Johnson property on Route 1 is full of empty warehouses and barren parking lots, but what North Brunswick officials see is potential commerical growth. more...

> Short-term repairs for Route 52 considered (02/23/2006)
— The state is studying how much time, effort and money it would take to reopen all four lanes of Route 52, the Cape May County engineer said Wednesday.
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> Average American Family Income Declines (02/23/2006)
WASHINGTON - The average income of American families, after adjusting for inflation, declined by 2.3 percent in 2004 compared to 2001 while their net worth rose but at a slower pace.

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> Corzine says gas tax hike, rest stop sale put on hold (02/23/2006)
TRENTON -- Gov. Jon S. Corzine expects to avoid a gas tax increase or leasing rest stops on the New Jersey Turnpike for now, but those ideas could return when the state crafts a long-term solution for funding state transportation projects.

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> Corzine: N.J. to sue federal government over port security (02/22/2006)
TRENTON -- New Jersey, with ports at both ends of the state, announced Tuesday it would sue the federal government to reveal what data the Bush administration used to welcome management of six U.S. seaports by a company owned by a tiny Arabian Peninsula nation, the United Arab Emirates. more...

> Corzine calls port sale a 'grave risk' (02/22/2006)
TRENTON -- Gov. Jon S. Corzine on Tuesday said New Jersey will file a federal lawsuit seeking to delay a United Arab Emirates firm's controversial buyout of a British shipping company operating six U.S. ports, including Philadelphia, New York, Newark and Elizabeth. more...

> Bush rejects bipartisan calls to kill port deal (02/22/2006)
With opposition mounting on both sides of the political aisle, a defiant President Bush vowed yesterday to veto any congressional effort to block a deal allowing an Arab company to take control of operations at six major East Coast ports, including Port Newark.

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> NJ Transit taking second look at MOM predictions (02/22/2006)
NEWARK — NJ Transit officials will take a second look at predicting how many people would use the planned Monmouth-Ocean-Middlesex rail line if they could ride trains through a proposed second Hudson River tunnel directly to Manhattan.
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> Trust fund needs major makeover (02/21/2006)
The Corzine administration is considering a Band-Aid solution to solve the bleeding of the state's Transportation Trust Fund instead of the major surgery that's really needed to make the fund healthy again.

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> Unhappy Laborers and Operating Engineers Bolt Building Trades (02/20/2006)
Two more disaffected construction trade unions, the laborers and the operating engineers, announced Feb. 14 that they will leave the AFL-CIO's Building and Construction Trades Dept., effective March 1. They will form a new organization, the National Construction Alliance. Union presidents claim the department has not been effective in reversing membership declines and changing old practices that have hurt the union cause. more...

> ‘E-construction’ as the Norm Is Still 10 to 15 Years Away (02/20/2006)
Call it electronic data interchange (EDI), interoperability, building information modeling (BIM), virtual building or e-construction. It’s a design and construction process that experts say holds the most promise for saving time and money, reducing claims and increasing quality, especially for complex buildings. And its advocates say it is just beginning to smell sweet.

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> Jersey deficit differs by day (02/20/2006)
TRENTON | The verdict is in: New Jersey doesn't have the money to cover expenses this year. more...

> Transportation fund cure is no easy diagnosis (02/20/2006)
As Gov. Jon Corzine considers averting a state transportation crisis by refinancing billions of dollars of debt, many are worried that the cure might be worse than the illness.

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> Schools tab may hit $29B (02/20/2006)
The tab for fulfilling construction needs in New Jersey's urban school districts has spiraled to $12.8 billion and could top $29 billion over 10 years, state officials said Thursday.

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> From road fund to money pit (02/19/2006)
More than two decades ago, beaming state officials posed on the virgin asphalt of a newly completed stretch of Route 78 in Union County to mark the early achievements of New Jersey's Transportation Trust Fund.

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> Driscoll project is moving along (02/19/2006)
In 1974, former Gov. Alfred E. Driscoll stood in Woodbridge at the bottom on the Garden State Parkway bridge on the banks of the Raritan River and watched as officials unveiled a plaque that officially renamed the 10-lane span for him.

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> Corzine's transit fund rescue to sidestep gas tax increase (02/18/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine will not propose a gasoline tax increase when he unveils his plan to address the state's transportation funding crisis, according to three Democratic officials familiar with the plan.

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> $25.5M proposed to improve roads (02/17/2006)
MOUNT HOLLY -- Burlington County Engineer Joseph Caruso has proposed more than $25.5 million in county road and bridge improvements in his "2006 Construction Forecast."

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> Estimate to finish up school job: Add $13B (02/17/2006)
State taxpayers, who have already paid $6billion for a court-ordered overhaul of public schools in needy communities, would have to spend about $13billion more to finish the job, state officials say.

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> Contrasting construction progress in Monmouth's 4 Abbott districts (02/17/2006)
Monmouth County's three other Abbott districts — Long Branch, Asbury Park and Neptune — also won state approval for ambitious construction projects, including new schools and expansions, over the last several years.
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> Labor boss rips Corzine proposal (02/16/2006)
A top New Jersey labor leader has lashed out at Gov. Jon Corzine, saying that by considering new borrowing for the state's transportation fund he is backtracking on his pledge to avoid fiscal gimmicks.

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> Bernanke sends clear message on economy (02/16/2006)
WASHINGTON -- New Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said yesterday the economy is on track for good growth this year, sticking closely to predecessor Alan Greenspan's script with one big difference: His comments were much easier to understand.

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> Fed chief: Economy on track (02/16/2006)
WASHINGTON -- New Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Wednesday that the economy is on track for good growth this year, sticking closely to predecessor Alan Greenspan's script with one big difference: His comments were much easier to understand.

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> Corzine says deficit now appears smaller (02/16/2006)
TRENTON - Gov. Corzine said last night that the state's budget deficit does not appear to be quite as bad as he first thought, but cautioned that the gap between expenses and revenues still likely tops $4 billion. more...

> Corzine expects tax, fee increases (02/16/2006)
New Jersey residents will likely pay more in taxes and fees during Gov. Jon S. Corzine's first year in office, he acknowledged on a radio call-in show Wednesday night.

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> Fed $$$ to plan light rail's 3rd phase (02/15/2006)
NJ Transit has received $3.6 million in federal funding to conduct engineering and environmental studies for the third phase of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail line.

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> Business Briefs (02/15/2006)
U.S. retail sales soared in January as warm weather and gift-card redemptions spurred shoppers, setting the stage for a first-quarter rebound in economic growth -- and more interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve. more...

> Transportation fund targeted by Corzine (02/15/2006)
TRENTON -- Gov. Jon Corzine, who has tested the waters lately on a number of tax increases, is expected in the next month to outline a plan to replenish the dwindling Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) without hiking New Jersey's gas tax.

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> Corzine plan would hike transportation fund debt (02/14/2006)
The transportation debt refinancing being weighed by Gov. Jon Corzine would allow him to put $1.5 billion annually toward highway and mass transit projects without increasing the gasoline tax during his first term.

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> The Envelope Please (02/13/2006)
The final numbers have been tabulated by McGraw-Hill Construction for 2005’s construction starts data and construction is a winner. Led by a 14% increase in the value of new residential construction, but also boosted by a 5% gain in nonresidential work and a 7% jump in heavy and highway construction, the total value of new starts increased 10% above 2004’s record level to $651 billion. This was close to the 11% increase reported for 2004, and well above the 2 to 5% annual growth during the 2001-2003 period.
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> N.J. state budget has little `wiggle' room (02/13/2006)
It's no secret that New Jersey is facing a budget deficit for the coming fiscal year that could be as large as $6 billion and that Gov. Jon Corzine's advisers have suggested income and sales tax increases.

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> Trenton touchy on talk of taxes (02/12/2006)
TRENTON -- Gov. Jon Corzine's hand-picked team of advisers urged him in a recent report to consider hiking unemployment taxes by $1 per week for all workers earning over $25,000.

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> Corzine ponders loan to fund road projects (02/11/2006)
Gov. Jon Corzine is considering borrowing billions of dollars and refinancing existing debt to grab $6 billion for road and rail projects without raising the gas tax, a state lawmaker briefed on the plan said yesterday.

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> Business lobbyist sees bright future (02/11/2006)
PARSIPPANY -- New Jersey employers rank the state higher than other states in areas such as public schools and overall quality of life. But they say it lags behind other states in important areas such as taxes and fees, health-care costs, government spending and attitudes toward business.

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> DOT Budget: Highways, Transit Rise, Airport Grants Cut (02/10/2006)
The proposed fiscal 2007 budget for the Dept. of Transportation would mean increases for the federal highway and transit programs, but a sharp cut in airport construction grants.

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> Unemployment fund nearly insolvent (02/09/2006)
With the state's jobless fund nearing insolvency after being raided by governors and lawmakers for 12 straight years, New Jersey businesses and workers could be facing increased unemployment taxes.

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> School agency reformers discuss goals, problems (02/09/2006)
The new board charged with overhauling or dismantling New Jersey's troubled Schools Construction Corp. convened yesterday and promised to root out waste, corruption and inefficiency at the agency accused of mismanaging an $8.6billion public school building program.

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> Corzine eyes shake-up of SCC (02/08/2006)
TRENTON -- The death knell for the battered state agency that oversees New Jersey's $8.6 billion school construction program may be near, but a court-ordered overhaul will continue in the meantime. more...

> State auditor says `nobody watching store' in N.J. (02/08/2006)
Citing wasted opportunities to save state taxpayer money, the state auditor yesterday said state financial management has eroded so badly in recent years that it's difficult to tell whether mismanagement or incompetence is to blame.

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> A work in progress (02/07/2006)
You won't see it on TV, but the Meadowlands is getting an extreme makeover right now.

Lumpy, leaky dumps are being smoothed and sculpted into luxury golf courses. Vacant swampland will become residential clusters full of new taxpayers.

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> Search continues for ways to save transportation fund (02/07/2006)
As state lawmakers consider a gasoline tax increase to fund transportation projects, Gov. Jon S. Corzine's administration is mulling how much the state might save by refinancing transportation debt.

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> Bush plan mixed bag for N.J. residents (02/07/2006)
WASHINGTON — President Bush's $2.77 trillion budget proposal for 2007 gives New Jersey a mixed bag of good and bad news: more money for transportation projects, a decrease in some homeland security money, 500 fewer National Guard positions and cuts in 141 federal programs Bush wants to reduce or eliminate entirely.

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> Bill comes due for years of fiscal irresponsibility (02/06/2006)
At least Mississippi and Louisiana have an excuse. They got clobbered by Hurricane Katrina.

In New Jersey, it didn't require a natural disaster to create the $5 billion-and-counting budget gap. Politicians produced it all by themselves.

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> Team Wins $1.1-Billion Award To Rebuild WTC Transit Hub (02/06/2006)
Observers in New York City criticize the slow pace of many Ground Zero reconstruction projects, noting the new transportation hub as the exception. But it still took extra months of negotiating to finally reach agreement on that job’s $1.1-billion construction contract, awarded Jan. 26.

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> Pa., Del. have budget surplus, but where's ours? (02/05/2006)
TRENTON -- While Gov. Jon Corzine and the Legislature debate how to close a $6 billion budget deficit for the fourth straight year, neighboring states are discussing the best way to spend large deficits.

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> State is confident on Xanadu work (02/04/2006)
State officials said yesterday they were confident the developers of a massive retail and entertainment center at the Meadowlands were on solid financial footing and would be able to deliver everything they had promised.

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> 193,000 jobs added to economy (02/04/2006)
WASHINGTON -- Employers hired briskly in January, boosting payrolls by 193,000 and lowering the nation's unemployment rate to 4.7 percent, the lowest since July 2001.

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> Jobless rate falls in January (02/04/2006)
The nation's unemployment rate dropped to a 4 1/2-year low as businesses cranked up hiring in January, an encouraging sign that the economy started the year on the right foot.

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> Keeping an eye on traffic (02/01/2006)
WOODBRIDGE — Motorists on New Jersey's two major toll roads will be able to get lightning-speed traffic information by spring of next year.

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> Southern New Jersey: Eight-County Region Revs-up and Gets Into High Gear with New Developments (02/01/2006)
No other region in the Garden State is experiencing such vibrant economic growth as Southern New Jersey. From Atlantic City to the City of Camden and all points in between, the eight-county region is busy constructing new office space, expanding academic and healthcare facilities, building technology research parks and incubators and is revving-up for a 4.1-mile professional racetrack in Millville that is expected to create 1,500 jobs.
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> Turnpike authority budget keeps toll prices level (02/01/2006)
EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. (AP) - The New Jersey Turnpike Authority has approved a $452 million operating budget that avoids a hike in toll prices while paying for heightened security on the authority's roadways.
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> $2M for bridge improvements (01/31/2006)
MORRISVILLE, Pa. - The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission announced a $2 million grant yesterday to Stockton for improvements near the commission's bridge linking the borough to Centre Bridge, Pa.

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> '05 banner year for jobs (01/31/2006)
The local employment picture barely brightened in December, but it was enough to cap a record-setting 2005.

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> Parkway bridge work to span the summer (01/29/2006)
Southbound Garden State Parkway drivers crossing the Raritan River on the Driscoll Bridge have a great view of the new, almost completed, adjacent span, but they won't be able to drive on it until October.
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> Jobless fund in trouble, panel says (01/29/2006)
The fund that covers payments to jobless workers in New Jersey is "dangerously close to insolvency," and close to triggering an automatic tax increase of $300 million to $400 million a year on businesses, a special panel set up to study labor issues told Gov. Jon Corzine in a new report. more...

> Slowing U.S. economy a bad sign for N.J. (01/28/2006)
In a potentially troubling development, the nation's economy unexpectedly cooled during the final three months of 2005 and grew at the slowest pace in three years, the government reported yesterday.

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> Netcong Circle on road to oblivion (01/27/2006)
NETCONG -- Despite modifications, the state Department of Transportation plans to eliminate the Netcong circle, replace it with a standard four-way intersection and replace the Route 46 westbound and Route 183 bridges again were met with criticism on Thursday.

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> Advisers: NJ’s finances close to ruin (01/27/2006)
Of The TRENTON -- Budget advisers have suggested that Gov. Jon S. Corzine add sales tax to more items and raise the gasoline tax because the state’s finances are "perilously close to ruin.’’
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> Budget plan eyes harsh options (01/27/2006)
New Jerseyans would face tax increases, state employees would be forced to take an unpaid week off and state worker layoff plans would be formulated under recommendations developed by Gov. Jon Corzine's budget advisory group.

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> Port Authority Taps New Ground Zero Transit Hub Team (01/26/2006)
A joint venture titled Phoenix Constructors has won a $358-million contract to build a new transit center at Ground Zero in Manhattan. The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey announced Jan. 26 that it awarded the contract to a team of Skanska, Fluor Enterprises, Granite-Halmar Construction and Bovis Lend Lease, says Steve Coleman, port authority spokesman. Designed by Santiago Calatrava in conjunction with DMJM + Harris and STV Group Inc., the station will serve the Trans-Hudson subway that runs between New York City and New Jersey and also New York City subway lines via underground passages linking to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority¹s Fulton Street Transit Center. Up to 250,000 daily riders are ultimately expected to use the station.

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> Devils give $100 million guarantee for Newark arena (01/25/2006)
The New Jersey Devils presented a $100 million signed letter of credit to Newark officials Tuesday, guaranteeing the National Hockey League team's stake in the $310 million arena.

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> Corzine Pledges Economic Growth and Ethics Reforms (01/23/2006)
Jon Corzine wasted little time last week in reaching out to business interests. Less than two hours into his first full day as governor, Corzine was detailing his plans to lure companies to New Jersey by placing phone calls to any large employer in the country that is considering relocating.

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> New visions for an old site in Sayreville (01/23/2006)
A vast stretch of waterfront land at the foot of the Driscoll Bridge in Sayreville is a no-man's land, a contaminated remnant of New Jersey's industrial heyday.

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> Transportation taking front seat in Trenton (01/22/2006)
This will be an especially crucial year for transportation policy in Trenton, with much happening that will affect all of us in northwestern New Jersey,

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> Unemployment rate at 4.7% in New Jersey (01/19/2006)
TRENTON -- New Jersey's unemployment rate in December was 4.7 percent, up from 4.6 percent in November, the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development reported Wednesday.

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> Fed Notes Expansion of Economic Activity (01/18/2006)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The economy chugged ahead as the new year opened with manufacturing picking up, employment improving and retail sales rising, the Federal Reserve reported Wednesday.

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> Critics: N.J.-N.Y. tunnel doesn't go far enough (01/15/2006)
NJ Transit's grand plans to build a new $6 billion Hudson River tunnel to New York has flaws that could cause delays on the Jersey side, a group of New Jersey rail advocates said.

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> NJ Transit to boost bus runs on busy routes (01/13/2006)
NEWARK-NJ Transit will soon put some of its newest buses into service in Atlantic County and increase service on its busiest runs.
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> No turning back: Devils commit $100M to arena (01/13/2006)
The New Jersey Devils made an irrevocable $100 million commitment to the city of Newark on Thursday - guaranteeing the team's share of the cost of a new hockey arena and keeping the project on course to open in less than two years.

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> A $100M accord on arena (01/13/2006)
Within 11 days, the Devils will provide Newark with a $100 million letter of credit to finance their share of a downtown hockey arena, city and team officials said yesterday, ending months of uncertainty about the project.

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> Inspector general clears lifting freeze on school construction (01/13/2006)
New Jersey's inspector general recommended yesterday lifting a freeze on new contracts by the troubled Schools Construction Corp., but said she has discovered incidents of misconduct and waste so severe a special investigator should be assigned to monitor the $8.6 billion program. more...

> Township gets money for Route 571 work (01/13/2006)
JACKSON: Included among the $2 million in federal funds for road and bridge projects distributed by the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority is $315,000 for work to realign Route 571 in Jackson.
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> New port in DRPA plans (01/12/2006)
A deep-water port at the former DuPont Repauno Works in Greenwich Township is among $5 billion in economic development projects the Delaware River Port Authority says could be situated in South Jersey.

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> DRPA unveils $6 billion plan for waterfront (01/12/2006)
Jeffrey Nash, vice chairman of the Delaware River Port Authority, released a blueprint Wednesday for roughly $6 billion in residential, commercial and maritime development along a 50-mile swath of riverfront between Pennsauken and Lower Alloways Creek in Salem County.

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> Transit fund nearing end of the road (01/10/2006)
If New Jersey's depleted Transportation Trust Fund were the Titanic, an iceberg would be looming dead ahead.
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> State's work force continues to expand (01/09/2006)
HELP WANTED: Numerous positions available. Average salary is $59,296. Generous medical and dental-insurance coverage at minimal cost. Full pensions on retirement. Low chance of layoffs.

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> December payrolls decrease (01/07/2006)
Job growth slowed in December -- following a big hiring spurt in November -- with employers expanding payrolls by 108,000, underscoring the sometimes choppy path traveled yesterday. The Labor Department's fresh snapshot of the nation's jobs climate, also showed that the unemployment rate fell to 4.9 percent in December from 5 percent in November, as some people left the labor market for any number of reasons.

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> New Jersey roads earn top rating (01/06/2006)
The 2003 repeal of Pennsylvania's motorcycle helmet law netted the Keystone State a mediocre highway safety rating this week while New Jersey drew the top rating available from a national safety group.

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> Work planned to unclog Rt. 1 brake-light alley (01/05/2006)
LAWRENCE - Hoping to improve the southbound traffic flow along Route 1's "brake-light alley" between Nassau Park shopping center and Interstates 95/295, the state plans to extend the existing lane divider near Quakerbridge Road farther north beyond Nassau Park.

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> Cash crisis puts road fixes on hold for months (01/05/2006)
New Jersey has put $175 million worth of road and bridge repairs on hold over the past few months because the state's Transportation Trust Fund is running out of money, highway officials said yesterday.

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> Unemployment, disability insurance adjusted in '06 (01/05/2006)
New Jersey employers and benefit recipients should be aware of the changes in unemployment and disability insurance, and in worker's compensation that took effect with the start of the New Year. more...

> Economy doing'well'despite sore spots (01/01/2006)
Barry Lubin has tracked the upbeat economic statistics and forecasts, but he remains skeptical when he doesn't see customers walking in the door. more...

> Hiring expected in range of industries in'06 (01/01/2006)
Ever since the labor market began improving 2 1/2 years ago, the housing boom has supplied an outsized share of new jobs. But if red-hot real estate is cooling, who will be hiring?

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> 2005 full of ups, downs (01/01/2006)
It was a year of challenge for both businesses and consumers, with the best and worst of Mother Nature and human nature in the spotlight.

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> New York Transit Deal Shows Union's Success on Many Fronts (12/29/2005)
He was excoriated on tabloid front pages and by the mayor and governor. As thousands streamed across the Brooklyn Bridge on a frigid night during last week's transit strike, someone in a car yelled out his name, prefacing it with a curse.

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> Home Sales Down; Labor Market Stable (12/29/2005)
WASHINGTON - A cooling housing market may put buyers in the driver's seat while an improving job market could give workers and jobseekers more leverage, economists say.

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> With Low Bid $90 Million Too High, N.J. Rethinks Causeway Project (12/29/2005)
At a time when some transportation projects are drawing one or occasionally no bids, the good news about the first phase of New Jersey’s Ocean City causeway replacement project is that there were three bidders. more...

> Budget for SCC boosts oversight (12/29/2005)
After a year of criticism and internal strife, the state Schools Construction Corp. yesterday adopted a 2006 budget that would increase administrative spending by about $2.6 million, with the focus on greater oversight and accountability. more...

> World economy expected to expand in 2006 (12/27/2005)
The world economy has broadly withstood a steady two-year rise in oil prices, but despite a slowdown reaching virtually every economic region in 2005, it is expected to continue expanding in 2006, with Asia and North America at the forefront.

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> Road solutions lie in new route (12/26/2005)
Solutions to unsnarling New Jersey's congested highways and mass-transit network come down to getting away from the 1950s model of bigger, wider highways and back to the old-fashioned grid network of streets and building a new Trans-Hudson river rail tunnel, experts said.
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> Downtown project gets under way at long last (12/25/2005)
One of Perth Amboy's most controversial redevelopment projects got under way earlier this month, three years after it was first proposed.

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> The Economy | Year of disasters, except for economy (12/23/2005)
Thumbing through Time magazine's year-in-photos issue the other day, it struck me that 2005 was a disastrous year. I mean literally, as in filled with disasters. more...

> Leaders demand school funding fix (12/23/2005)
TRENTON - Statewide political and educational leaders, including Mayor Douglas H. Palmer, rallied yesterday to demand a massive cash infusion for New Jersey's beleaguered school construction program. more...

> Cody won't act on SCC funding bill (12/23/2005)
Despite pleas from lawmakers at a Statehouse rally yesterday, acting Gov. Richard Codey said he does not expect any action on a bill that would pump $2 billion into the state's troubled school construction program during the lame-duck legislative session.

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> Some Economic Indicators Leave Room for Optimism (12/20/2005)
Home building activity picked up speed in November, the government reported today, indicating that the housing market while off records set earlier this year remains robust in much of the country.

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> Court's school construction ruling brings hope to districts (12/20/2005)
TRENTON -- In a ruling education advocates hope will return a sense of urgency to the stalled school construction program, the N.J. Supreme Court on Monday ordered the state to provide cost estimates for hundreds of previously approved projects that have gone unfunded.

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> Turnpike ending E-ZPass discount during peak hours (12/20/2005)
Tolls for E-ZPass customers on the New Jersey Turnpike will increase by as much as 20 percent during rush hours and on weekends, starting Jan. 1. more...

> NJ Transit to start work on the Raritan Valley line (12/20/2005)
The rail equivalent of passing lanes -- rail siding -- in Whitehouse Station to ease train movements on the western part of the Raritan Valley line should be completed in spring 2007, NJ Transit officials said yesterday.

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> Warren Hills renovations about to start (12/19/2005)
Construction of four classrooms at Warren Hills Regional Middle School will begin next month, part of a $36.8 million district building project approved by voters last year.

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> Workers wanted (12/19/2005)
Manufacturers say they face a shortage of highly skilled workers who can fix robots and other equipment in a 21st century factory, despite the loss of more than 3 million manufacturing jobs since January 2000.
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> Verizon seeks statewide deal to offer cable (12/18/2005)
TRENTON -- In the early 1990s, New Jersey Bell went to the Legislature with a simple request: financial incentives to offset the cost of replacing older copper wires statewide with high-speed fiber optics extending straight to customers' homes.

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> Construction planned at 2 Cherry Hill schools (12/16/2005)
A long-awaited overhaul to the heating and ventilation systems of the district's only two-story elementary schools will begin by April, said Thomas Redmond, assistant superintendent for business.

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> 'Mega base’ to create 2,000 jobs (12/15/2005)
MOUNT HOLLY -- The federal government is expecting to spend $300 million to build the nation’s first-ever "megabase" combining Fort Dix, McGuire Air Force Base and Lakehurst Naval Air Station bringing nearly 2,000 new jobs to the area.
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> New year, new job outlook (12/15/2005)
Despite giving descriptions such as "softer," Manpower Inc. said most employers in the Lehigh Valley and northwest New Jersey either plan to maintain workers or hire more staffers during the first three months of 2006. more...

> Dover OKs $2.2M more for rink, awards construction pact (12/15/2005)
TOMS RIVER — Minutes after approving an additional $2.2 million to build a second ice rink at Winding River Park Tuesday night, the Dover Township Council awarded a $5.39 million contract to Gingerelli Bros. Inc. to construct the facility.
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> $5.7 million road improvement project scheduled for Jackson (12/15/2005)
JACKSON — Work is scheduled to begin in the spring on a $5.7 million improvement project for Bennetts Mills Road between County Line Road and Manhattan Street, county officials said.
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> Gas tax increase remains option for N.J. lawmakers (12/14/2005)
With the election over and the state running out of money for transportation projects, key lawmakers and the incoming governor are once again warming up to the idea of a gas tax increase.
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> The Economy | Getting thrown a flat yield curve (12/14/2005)
Do seafarers still memorize that bit of doggerel as part of their training? Probably not; today's version more likely goes: "Red sky at morning, sailor check Google for the latest satellite image," or something like that. more...

> Rail ridership builds (12/14/2005)
Efforts by NJ Transit to boost the number of riders in Bergen County, particularly on weekends, appear to be paying off.

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> NJ Transit freezes fare hikes (12/14/2005)
NEWARK — NJ Transit officials said the commuter agency will not increase fares for the rest of fiscal year 2006, despite spending $22 million more than budgeted to cover fuel price increases.
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> Retail sales in November gain as gas prices drop (12/14/2005)
WASHINGTON — Retail sales posted a moderate increase in November as plunging gasoline prices left consumers with money to spend at the mall.
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> Voters approve school project in Swedesboro (12/14/2005)
Voters on Tuesday approved a $31.9 million expansion project in the Swedesboro-Woolwich school district, but rejected proposals worth $43.5 million for schools in Hainesport and Chesterfield.

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> Corzine ends his vow to leave gas tax alone (12/14/2005)
After vowing during his campaign that he would not raise the gas tax, Gov.-elect Jon Corzine said yesterday he will reconsider the idea now that gasoline prices have eased and the state's budget gap has ballooned to more than $5 billion.

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> Residents approve $7M school expansion (12/14/2005)
North Brunswick residents approved a $7.4 million bond referendum yesterday, enabling the school district to complete the expansion of the township's high school.

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> Berkeley Heights clears $25.3M school bond (12/14/2005)
With just under a third of Berkeley Heights' registered voters casting ballots, residents passed a $25.3 million bond proposal yesterday that school officials said was necessary to fix the district's aging buildings.

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> Corzine asks business community for support (12/14/2005)
Gov.-elect Jon Corzine yesterday urged the state business community to work with him to address the more than $5 billion state deficit, tapped-out transportation and school construction funds and soaring health insurance costs -- all issues that threaten the state's economic future.

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> Rt.55 extension to the Shore is critical for N.J. (12/13/2005)
We have heard the talk of completing Route 55 to the Shore for years, but still it remains undone. more...

> New year, new job outlook (12/13/2005)
Despite giving descriptions such as "softer," Manpower Inc. said most employers in the Lehigh Valley and northwest New Jersey either plan to maintain workers or hire more staffers during the first three months of 2006. more...

> N.J. Senator Kenny Eyes Gas Tax Hike (12/13/2005)
Speaking today at an event sponsored by the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, Senate Majority Leader Bernard Kenny Jr. (D-Hudson) said he will sponsor a hike in the gasoline tax to raise money for the cash-strapped Transportation Trust Fund. The state fund pays for road, bridge and mass-transportation projects. more...

> Skanska Secures $98 Million Order from NJ Transit (12/13/2005)
Swedish construction company Skanska’s U. S. subsidiaries, Skanska USA Building of Parsippany and Skanska USA Civil of New York City, have secured a $98 million order from NJ Transit to redevelop a facility in Morrisville for the service and maintenance of trains. The expansion will allow NJ Transit’s Morrisville Train Storage Yard to serve 120 rail cars, or double its current capacity.