(upbeat music) - From NJ PBS Studios, this is NJ Spotlight News with Brianna Vannozzi.

- Good evening and thanks for joining us on this Monday.

I'm Brianna Vannozzi.

Tonight, a few stories we'll get into later in the broadcast.

As cold and flu season picks up, some parents say they're hitting a wall when it comes to getting their youngest kids vaccinated against COVID-19.

We'll take a closer look at why the shots aren't readily available.

Then, what is New Jersey's business community looking for in the next governor?

We talk to one of the state's top business leaders about their list of priorities.

And later, how did the Montclair School District end up with a nearly $20 million budget hole?

And who's on the hook to fix it?

First though, a few of today's top headlines.

Thousands gathered across the state this weekend for the second No Kings Day protests, a nationwide demonstration against President Trump's policies and what organizers call a slide away from democratic norms.

Events were held in more than 50 towns, including liberal strongholds like Princeton and Mont Claire.

That's where Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mikey Sherrill revved up a crowd of residents in her hometown.

In Camden County, demonstrators marched from Westmont in Haddon Township to Collingswood, carrying homemade signs and waving American flags, while federal and local lawmakers showed up at a demonstration outside the Statehouse in Trenton.

But the protests weren't limited to blue areas.

Rallies drew crowds in traditionally conservative towns like Toms River and Ocean City.

Mass amounts of people lined the roads there holding signs and exchanging waves with motorists, denouncing Trump as a would-be king.

Meanwhile, the president's supporters held MAGA Kings Day counter-protests, sharing concerns about free speech and media bias.

All of it reflecting the growing political divide in New Jersey, where analysts note partisanship is turning increasingly personal.

Also tonight, as the federal government shutdown reaches day 20, state officials are warning the impasse could soon disrupt food aid for nearly a million residents here.

New Jersey's Department of Health says the ongoing funding lapse may "compromise access to SNAP"-- that's the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or what used to be known as food stamps, along with WIC, which helps women, infants, and young children.

Now both programs rely on federal dollars, and the Department of Agriculture, which oversees them, now estimates it could run out of money in two weeks if Congress doesn't reach a deal, putting about 800,000 SNAP recipients and 165,000 WIC participants in the state at risk of delayed or reduced payments next month.

New Jersey's acting health commissioner says the uncertainty is putting extra strain on local food banks and pantries.

Federal officials say they're redirecting about $300 million in emergency funds to help WIC stay afloat temporarily, but noted it's not a long-term fix.

And a Rutgers University fraternity has been suspended while under investigation after a 19-year-old student was critically injured last week.

Authorities say the student was found unresponsive just after midnight on Wednesday at a fraternity house on College Ave in New Brunswick.

He was rushed to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital where he remains in critical condition.

Rutgers placed the fraternity Alpha Sigma Phi on a cease and desist for all activities until May and on social probation until November 3rd.

College and national fraternity officials also say Alpha Sigma Phi is on interim suspension.

The Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office hasn't confirmed whether hazing was involved or where exactly in the residence the incident took place.

A spokesperson for the fraternity chapter says hazing is not tolerated but any members found to be involved will be expelled and the chapter will be shut down.

The house has been deemed unsafe by New Brunswick officials and anyone with information is being urged to contact campus police or the prosecutor's office.

And coming up, why some parents eager to get their young kids vaccinated against COVID-19 are hitting unexpected roadblocks.

That's next.

Major funding for NJ Spotlight News is provided in part by NJM Insurance Group, serving the insurance needs of residents and businesses for more than 100 years.

>> "Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey," an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and by the PSCG Foundation.

>> Well, parents of some of New Jersey's youngest children say they're struggling to find COVID-19 vaccines for their infants and toddlers, even though state rules are supposed to make the special pediatric doses of the shots available.

Now state health officials are stepping in after hearing from frustrated families.

Our senior correspondent Brenda Flanagan has more on what's causing the delay and what the Murphy administration plans to do about it.

She joins us now in the studio.

Hey, Bren.

Hey, Bree.

So the State Department of Health told NJ Spotlight News that it's going to buy some COVID vaccines for kids under age three after some families in Jersey reported problems getting their littlest kids vaccinated with the latest updated COVID-19 shots.

We're talking children who are six months to three years of age.

At that age, they need special pediatric doses given at a clinic or doctor's office.

But Long Valley mom Marissa Mazzeschi told us her pediatrician's office didn't have the right vaccine for Mazzeschi's 6-month-old daughter Juniper.

And mom is frustrated.

MARISSA MAZZESCHI, Long Valley, Missouri, Pediatrician, "I don't want to take any chances.

I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

And I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

And I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

And I'm going to be in a wheelchair for a month.

What's up?

Well, it's partly because the FDA back in August limited its approval of Pfizer's pediatric COVID vaccine to kids aged five years and older.

So, that left only Moderna's shot for the youngest ones.

A leading New Jersey pediatrician says that that vaccine is available, but doctors didn't rush to stock up.

Why?

DR.

ANNANDA GHAZI, Director, National Institute of Public Health and Human Services, Pfizer/BioNTech Pediatricians feel that we are putting our financial health in risk by buying this expensive vaccine and stocking it and not knowing what the demand is going to be.

And, unfortunately, I should say, the demand has been very, very weak on the private side for the COVID vaccine.

And a lot of it has to do with the information that's being put out in social media.

JUDY WOODRUFF: An Emory CDC study last year showed only 35 to 40 percent of pregnant women and parents of young children plan to fully vaccinate their kids.

Dr.

Radhakrishnan points to political turmoil, especially this past summer's conflict at the CDC.

Skeptical new advisers appointed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

openly clashed over vaccine protocol with the American Academy of Pediatrics, or AAP.

So the group issued its own COVID vaccine recommendation.

So the AAP has basically said that we will put out our own guidelines and information to all the pediatricians.

So don't get confused, just follow our guidelines.

And their guidelines have remained the same, that children under the age of two, between six months and two years are at a higher risk than the general population and therefore should be vaccinated universally.

And those above the age of two, again, based on their criteria of risk, or if the parents want it, absolutely, we're happy to give it.

I would say there's unnecessary confusion, but it also makes me wonder how much it has to do with the political scene versus just it just being difficult for parents in New Jersey in general.

And I'm just curious to wonder, like, how parents, like, last year were able to navigate this.

Were there clinics for babies in the past?

Yes, there were.

After a kid's COVID vaccine won approval in late June of 2022, New Jersey's megaclinics, pharmacies and doctors' offices all offered pediatric shots as the Omicron variant surged.

But we're post-pandemic now, and RFK Jr.

didn't approve the CDC's latest COVID vaccine recommendations until October 6th.

By then, Jersey had adopted its own guidelines that align with the AAP's for the updated vaccine.

But the federal delay still impacted the demand, according to Jersey's acting health commissioner.

DR.

RONAN FARROW, U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services: The ordering for the updated COVID shots was delayed because of the delay in the sign-off on those CDC recommendations.

But I can confirm now that VFC providers have vaccines in stock.

Those -- that stock is increasing.

And everybody -- anybody who's interested can go to nj.gov/health/vaccines, click on program, and go to vaccines for children.

And you can search the providers in your area to find out who has vaccines available.

JUDY WOODRUFF: Commissioner Jeff Brown admits there's been some confusion, but he says New Jersey's 700 vaccines for children providers are now building up supplies, and that some state-funded clinics could open up within weeks to increase access.

DR.

JEFF BROWN, New Jersey State Department of Health and Human Services: The other thing that we're going to do, understanding that there is that one vaccine available and that this population under 3 can have some access problems, is, we're investing some state dollars to directly purchase vaccines for children under 3, and we'll be organizing distribution to local public health departments, maybe setting up some vaccine clinics with some health care providers as well.

Now Brown expects these clinics could open up sometime in late November or early December, but again, he urges parents to check the Department of Health website for a list of providers offering this Moderna vaccine.

Dr.

Radhakrishnan says he would welcome the states getting involved in this and Marissa would welcome it too.

As a matter of fact, she got a call today she says from a clinic that should have the vaccine in stock within a week or two.

Okay, so some improvement there for what she's looking for.

What about insurance though?

Because the state had said that it would expect for insurance, private insurance providers to cover these costs.

Will they?

Yes, they are supposed to because this was approved by the CDC.

Also, COVID vaccines are covered by the Federal Vaccines for Children Program and by New Jersey's own CHIP, which is the Children's Health Insurance Program, Brie.

I'm curious too, Bren, the state doesn't keep track of infections like they used to.

So do we have any indication as to whether this age group of kids is even getting infected?

Are there outbreaks?

Are daycares reporting this?

I mean, how prevalent is it among this age group?

Because that's been part of the argument why it wasn't recommended.

There was a little bit of a spike when school started and we usually do see that.

But mostly it's the so-called strata strain that is causing any outbreaks.

And at this point, they're not reporting any unusual spikes in COVID right now, Bree.

Okay.

Of course, the symptoms can be tough to tell between flu, cold and coronavirus and young kids especially.

Brenda, I know you're going to stay on this.

Great reporting.

Brenda Flanagan for us.

Thanks so much.

Great.

Thank you.

Support for The Medical Report is provided by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.

The Montclair School District is facing a massive budget crisis, nearly 20 million in the red, and families are now facing a difficult choice, raise taxes or brace for deep cuts.

The shortfall spans two years and has roots in longstanding financial mismanagement, leaving residents demanding answers and accountability.

Senior correspondent Joanna Gagis has the latest.

What we've come to understand is that Montclair's financial crisis is not new.

It is the result of years of deferred payments, poor internal controls and chronically under budgeted fixed costs.

That's the harsh reality that Montclair residents and educators had to face in the last few months.

After it became clear the school district is facing a 19.6 million dollar budget hole, nearly past fiscal year, seven million for the current one.

They now have a choice.

Vote yes to increase their property taxes or face more than 100 layoffs of teachers and staff across all the schools.

"Those staff layoffs are going to directly affect class size, security, the health and safety of every student in every building.

The nurses alone, right?

Not having a nurse in a building is, it's scary."

To avoid the layoffs, the Board of Education approved a special election to be held December 9th, asking voters to approve two questions.

The first is a $12.6 million increase to the tax levy, which will be about $1,000 for the average homeowner to cover last year's budget hole.

The second raises the tax levy to cover this year's $7.6 million hole and would conduct a forensic audit of last year's financial records.

Each year, the district presents budgets and reports that painted a picture of stability.

Yet behind those numbers were structural deficits, unexplained transfers, and decisions the public was never given the chance to fully understand.

So who's to blame?

That's the big question.

Superintendent Ruth Turner started the job on July 1st of this year and quickly realized the numbers didn't add up.

At a board meeting last week, attendees blamed the past business administrator, Christina Hunt, who resigned in June.

When the board hired Christina Hunt, she had just left East Orange in the wake of a series of bad audits and a multi-million dollar deficit.

In fact, East Orange found itself in a very similar position last year with an incoming superintendent who discovered a nearly 25 million dollar budget hole and had to propose nearly 100 staff layoffs.

She reached out to Hunt for comment but haven't heard back yet.

Superintendent Turner is looking to other districts that have faced budget holes recently due to fluctuations in state aid but says if the first question fails to get a yes vote... We would have to borrow in advance on our state aid which comes with a state monitor of generally 10 years and then we would also have to pay that back roughly around 1.2 million dollars we're thinking each year that would be withheld from the state aid that we would get.

Question two would mean that we would have to make the 7 million dollars in cuts in this current year which is very disruptive to our students and to our school system and also make additional cuts for 26-27 that are going to be fairly significant.

The governor has received high praise for alerting the public to the fiscal reality that they say was hidden by the previous administrations including former superintendent Jonathan Pons who passed away last summer.

The teachers union is also blaming certain members of the board who they say are complicit in this financial mess.

This board then stood silent while Dr.

Pons illegally denied all OPR requests related to budget concerns.

The board stood silent while Pons lied to parents about class sizes and consistently canceled meetings with our union leadership.

If the same faces who preside over and allowed this breakdown are still the ones asking for our support, the public will not trust the plan.

The ballot question will fail if you remain the face of this effort.

Step aside.

Let new leadership lead.

Let the healing begin.

If you choose to stay, be clear.

We will not stand silently.

We will organize.

We will campaign for accountability at the ballot box.

I've been here, as I said, less than 15 weeks.

So I, too, am frustrated.

I, too, am very upset.

So do I understand that?

I absolutely understand it.

Do you hold members of this board responsible who did approve those budgets?

The board are not employees of the school district, so they can't go in and our accounting software and say, tell me about this.

It is why it's important who you decide leads to the school district because ultimately he or she, meaning the superintendent, is responsible and accountable for what happens in the school district.

But this morning, one board member, Brian Fleischer, submitted his resignation saying in a letter he believes he would have made different choices with accurate information, but doesn't want his name on the ballot to undermine a yes vote on the questions.

In Montclair, I'm Joanna Gagis, NJ Spotlight News.

In our Spotlight on Business report, New Jersey has long been one of the most expensive places in the country to live and do business.

But a policy proposal from the New Jersey Business and Industry Association says that could change, all with the right leadership.

The NJBIA has released the 2025 Blueprint for a Competitive New Jersey.

It's a road map aimed at helping whoever becomes the next governor and all elected officials drive innovation and boost the economy.

I recently spoke with Michelle Sekirka, the President and CEO of the NJBIA, about what business leaders are looking for.

Michelle, thank you so much for coming in to talk about this.

So this blueprint has been framed as a roadmap for whomever wins the governor's race.

Why did the association feel the need to put this out?

Was the business community not being heard, not having a seat at the table with policymakers?

One hundred percent.

The last seven years, we've been challenged to have our seat at the table.

So now we've decided business needs to be at the center, not just at the table, but at the center.

And so the blueprint is that guidepost to get us there.

Affordability, regional competitiveness, 66 recommendations that actually we could get done if we put business at the center.

- So it does outline a lot of reforms.

I mean, everything from taxes to energy to education.

What's the single, if you could, single most urgent change that you are recommending the next governor to take hold of in order to make New Jersey competitive, as you say it could be?

Absolutely.

So on day one, we can send a really strong message that business could be at the center if we create that Department of Commerce and Innovation that we so desperately need in the state.

What would that do?

Well, it would put a cabinet level person sitting at the governor's table each and every day so that every issue, every discussion, businesses voices at that table.

And that's critically important right now given the economy.

Look this governor is going to come in in January within four weeks.

They're going to put a fiscal budget together for the next fiscal year.

Yeah daunting at best.

We're at a fiscal cliff in this state.

We lack competitiveness in our own region.

You know we're never going to compete with Florida or Texas.

Right.

But right now Pennsylvania is eating our lunch on corporate business tax.

They're getting all the A.I.

play.

Right.

I mean we've got significant challenges in this state that we need to pay attention to and we need to do it on day one of a new administration.

It's so interesting that you bring up corporate business tax.

I was just looking at across the river Zohan Mandani the candidate for New York mayor was looking at New Jersey's corporate business tax to be a model for New York.

And I don't want to go down that road.

But what you're saying is that it's not working.

No absolutely not.

We continue to drive business out of the state.

And with that goes money.

Fifteen years the past 15 years thirty three billion dollars of adjusted gross income has left this state.

Now I'm not just talking about feet.

I'm talking about money wealth.

Right.

Think about if we had thirty three billion dollars and our general operating budget what a better place to be.

Think about seven years ago our budget was give or take thirty seven thirty eight billion dollars.

Today we're at 57 58 almost 70 percent increase.

That's not sustainable.

For this next budget year we've got a little bit of space because we've got that surplus.

Right.

But that's not that's not sustainable either.

So what are we going to do what do we need to do we need to grow the economy who grows the economy job creators.

That's we need to focus on.

So let's talk about taxes and costs.

We know New Jersey consistently ranks among the highest if not the highest in the nation.

What are some of the actionable steps that could be taken that are in this blueprint for the new administration to make a noticeable difference?

Because for a taxpayer, sometimes some of the policy decisions structurally make a change, right?

But they're not necessarily seeing it in their pocket.

No, absolutely.

So we can stay on that corporate business tax for starters, what we call today the corporate transit fee, that surcharge, right?

You mentioned, well, I mentioned Pennsylvania.

They're in the process of driving down to below 5% over the next five years, while we've just jacked up to 11.5.

Not just the largest, but an outlier.

Nobody else is even in double digits, right?

Years ago, seven years ago, we had 21 Fortune 500 companies here in the state of New Jersey.

Today we have 15.

So if we look at that corporate business tax and start driving that down with guardrails, again, a percentage a year over five years, maybe we can compete.

That's doable.

There's also a big emphasis in here on energy affordability.

Obviously has become a key point in this gubernatorial race and it's going to be beyond that given what we're up against.

But how are you looking to balance competitiveness with fairness because sometimes critics critics of some of these plans will say well the deregulation or overregulation comes at the expense of environmental protections for folks and the cost of the environment.

What's the plan laying out as far as energy and resiliency?

So let's start at the fact that New Jersey as we sit here today is one of the cleanest states when it comes to our air quality.

And that's because we've had good regulation since the 70s.

I mean we were way ahead.

We were way ahead.

What we suffer from is the downwind from the states that are burning coal up north from here.

Right.

Ohio Pennsylvania that comes down and that and that creates quality issues here.

So what do we do in this space.

We need an all of the above approach because it's about accessibility and affordability.

We need to make sure that we don't price people out of their energy.

Few years ago we were a out migrator of energy meaning we sent energy to other states.

We have to import energy at a cost.

All right.

And that's quite up with us.

We stopped investing in natural gas distribution and the creation of natural gas here.

And because of that we now have to go other places and bring that energy into the state.

So you want to see a mix then of energy resources.

All of the above.

Everybody wants clean green future for the state of New Jersey.

Hands down.

That's what we want.

But we have to get there in affordable and responsible manner.

I want to end just on workforce development because again a big piece of what you're talking about.

What gaps are you seeing or do your members see in terms of what's being taught what the pipeline is building compared to what employers need to build the jobs as you say that become the backbone of the economy.

So it's really great about the blueprint.

We have four pages on education and workforce development.

Every other issue we have to.

That's at the backbone is our future workforce.

And yes there's a huge disconnect.

What we need to do we need better intersectionality between workforce development and education pre-k to post-16 and we need to be educating our students today from the very beginning with career-minded for the future from the beginning all the way through their lifetime.

Michelle we're gonna leave it there the blueprint obviously available for folks to take a look at I'm sure it will come up quite a bit in these next couple of weeks good to talk to you thanks so much for coming in thanks so much support for the business report is provided by the Newark Alliance presents the 2025 Halsey fest featuring the vibrancy of Newark's Arts and Education District and Halsey Street Halsey a neighborhood built on hustle and heart the 2025 Halsey fest schedule is available at Halsey nwk.com And that's going to do it for us tonight.

But a reminder, you can download our podcast wherever you listen and watch us anytime by subscribing to the NJ spotlight news YouTube channel.

Plus, you can always follow us on Instagram and blue sky to stay up to date on all the state's big headlines.

And with election day just around the corner, check out our voter guide to get up to speed on the candidates and races on the ballot this year.

Head to the NJ decides 2025 tab on our homepage.

I'm Brianna Vannozzi for the NJ Spotlight News.

Thanks for being with us.

We'll see you right back here tomorrow.

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