Phil Murphy unveiled the final budget of his two terms in office Tuesday, a nearly $58.1 billion proposal that includes more money for schools and public transit but could be upended by uncertainty over federal funding.
The governor cast the spending plan as the fulfillment of campaign promises, such as fully funding the state worker pension and consistently boosting K-12 spending, along with carving out new tax dollars for long cash-strapped New Jersey Transit.
Under Murphy, funding has gone from $8.5 billion to $12 billion in the fiscal 2026 proposal the governor unveiled Tuesday.
It also coincides with Republican frustration over the state's ballooning budget, which has grown from $37.4 billion since Murphy introduced his first budget in 2018.
Murphy and lawmakers have also boosted funding for K-12 education, which was mostly flat at about $8 billion annually under the previous governor, Republican Chris Christie.
