EXPANDING ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL
Unemployment Down to 4.7%: The unemployment rate in New Jersey has declined from 7.9% to 4.7% since 1993. 373,800 New Jobs: 373,800 new jobs have been created in New Jersey since 1993 -- an average of 59,021 per year, compared to an average of 53,575 jobs lost per year during the previous administration. 375,100 New Private Sector Jobs: Since 1993, 375,100 new private sector jobs have been created-an average of 59,226 jobs per year, compared to an average loss of 56,875 private sector jobs per year in the previous administration. 21,200 New Construction Jobs: 21,200 construction jobs have been created in New Jersey since 1993 -- an average of 3,347 jobs per year. In contrast, an average of 12,775 construction jobs were lost each year during the previous administration. 24,000 to Receive a Raise: Approximately 24,000 New Jersey workers benefited from an increase in the minimum wage-from $4.75 to $5.15 -- on September 1, 1997. Poverty Has Fallen: Nationally, the poverty rate has fallen from 15.1% in 1993 to 13.3% in 1997. In New Jersey, the poverty rate has fallen from 10.9% in 1993 to 9.3% in 1997--down 1.6% under President Clinton. [Census Bureau] A $500 Child Tax Credit to Help Families Raising Children: To help make it easier for families to raise their children, the balanced budget included a $500 per-child tax credit for children under 17. Thanks to President Clinton, the Balanced Budget delivers a child tax credit to 784,000 families in New Jersey. Home Building Up 7.4%: Home building has increased by an average of 7.4% per year since 1993, after falling over 17.4% per year during the previous four years. Over $25,000 of Reduced Federal Debt for Every Family of Four: The national debt will be $1.7 trillion lower in FY99 than projected in 1993 -- that's $25,000 less debt for each family of four in New Jersey this year. EXPANDING ACCESS TO EDUCATION
Over 14,000 Children in Head Start: Over 14,000 New Jersey children were enrolled in Head Start in 1998. In FY99, New Jersey will receive $94.3 million in Head Start funding, an increase of $30.4 million over 1993. More High-Quality Teachers With Smaller Classes for New Jersey's Schools: Thanks to President Clinton, the final FY99 budget provides for the first year of the President's new initiative to hire 100,000 new, well-prepared teachers, to reduce class sizes in the early grades to a national average of 18. New Jersey receives $27.4 million in 1999 to hire about 705 new public school teachers. And, under President Clinton's proposal, New Jersey would receive $32 million in FY2000 to support a total of 865 teachers. $11.2 Million in Goals 2000 Funding: This year [FY99], New Jersey receives $11.2 million in Goals 2000 funding. This money is used to raise academic achievement by raising academic standards, increasing parental and community involvement in education, expanding the use of computers and technology in classrooms, and supporting high-quality teacher professional development. Nearly $9 Million for Technology Literacy: This year [FY99], New Jersey receives nearly $9 million for the Technology Literacy Challenge Fund which helps communities and the private sector ensure that every student is equipped with the computer literacy skills needed for the 21st century. $174.5 Million for Students Most in Need: New Jersey will receive $174.5 million in Title I grants (to Local Educational Agencies) providing extra help in the basics for students most in need, particularly communities and schools with high concentrations of children in low-income families [FY99]. This is an increase of $1.3 million ove r FY98 funding. $155.1 Million in Pell Grants: This year [FY99], New Jersey will receive $155.1 million in Pell Grants for low-income students going to college, an additional $7.2 million over last year. With this increase, a total of 78,700 New Jersey students will benefit. Expanded Work-Study To Help More Students Work Their Way Through College: The FY99 budget includes a significant expansion of the Federal Work Study program. New Jersey will receive $15.6 million in Work-Study funding in 1999 to help New Jersey students work their way through college. Over 2,700 Have Served in New Jersey through AmeriCorps: Since the National Service program began in 1993, 2,740 AmeriCorps participants have earned money for college while working in New Jersey's schools, hospitals, neighborhoods or parks. [through 11/98] Tuition Tax Credits in Balanced Budget Open the Doors of College and Promote Lifelong Learning: The balanced budget included both President Clinton's $1,500 HOPE Scholarship to help make the first two years of college as universal as a high school diploma and a Lifetime Learning Tax Credit for college juniors, seniors, graduate students and working Americans pursuing lifelong learning to upgrade their skills. This 20% tax credit will be applied to the first $5,000 of tuition and fees through 2002 and to the first $10,000 thereafter. 120,000 students in New Jersey will receive a HOPE Scholarship tax credit of up to $1,500. 146,000 students in New Jersey will receive the Lifetime Learning Tax Credit. [fully phased-in FY2000 estimate] Expanded Job Training to New Jersey's Dislocated Workers: Thanks to President Clinton, the FY99 budget includes a significant expansion in the dislocated worker program. New Jersey will receive $45 million in 1999 to help 26,670 of New Jersey's dislocated workers get the training and reemployment services they need to return to work as quickly as possible. FIGHTING CRIME AND VIOLENCE
Crime Falls 17% in New Jersey: Since 1992, serious crime in New Jersey has fallen 17%. Violent crime and property crime have also fallen 19% and 17% respectively. In Newark, between 1992 and 1997, serious crime, as indicated by the crime index, has fallen 30%, with a 34% drop in murder and 36% drop in robbery. [1992 and 1997 Uniform Crime Reports] Juvenile Arrests Down in New Jersey: New Jersey's juvenile arrests have decreased 19% between 1992 and 1997, (as measured by the crime index). [FBI, Uniform Crime Report, 1992 and 1997] 3,996 More Police: The President's 1994 Crime Bill has funded 3,996 new police officers to date in communities across New Jersey. [through 7/99] Camden Will Receive Targeted Funding to Hire More Community Police: Camden was selected as a pilot city for the President's new effort to target high crime neighborhoods. The pilot program will provide full funding for new officers by waiving the usual matching requirements. Camden will deploy new officers to help meet the unique needs of its community, such as combating gangs or targeting drug "hot spots." Reducing Crime with Drug Courts: Working to reduce drug-related crime in New Jersey, the Clinton Administration has awarded Drug Court grants to the communities of Newark and Jersey City. The Administration had previously awarded grants to a number of New Jersey communities including: Elizabeth, Middletown and Paterson. Drug courts use the coercive power of the criminal justice system to combine drug testing, sanctions, supervision and treatment to push nonviolent, drug-abusing offenders to stop using drugs and committing crimes. $4.3 Million to Combat Domestic Violence: Through the Violence Against Women Act, New Jersey received $4.3 million in federal funds in FY98 to establish more women's shelters and bolster law enforcement, prosecution and victims' services. $1.7 Million in Grants for Battered Women and Children: In FY98, New Jersey received $1.7 million in HHS's Family Violence Prevention Program grants to assist women and children fleeing domestic abuse, an additional $299,000 increase over FY97. $10.5 Million to Keep Drugs & Violence Out of New Jersey's Schools: New Jersey receives $10.5 million in FY99 for the Safe & Drug Free Schools Program, which invests in school security and drug prevention programs. MOVING NEW JERSEY RESIDENTS FROM WELFARE TO WORK
169,992 Fewer People on Welfare: There are 169,992 fewer people on welfare in New Jersey now than there were at the beginning of 1993 -- a 49% decrease. [through 12/98] Child Support Collections Up 56%: Child support collections have increased by nearly $209 million-or 56% -- in New Jersey since FY92. [through FY98] Encouraging Responsible Choices-Preventing Teen Pregnancy in New Jersey: Since 1993, President Clinton and Vice President Gore have supported innovative and promising teen pregnancy prevention strategies, with significant components of the strategy becoming law in the 1996 Personal Responsibility Act. The law requires unmarried minor parents to stay in school and live at home or in a supervised setting; encourages "second chance homes" to provide teen parents with the skills and support they need; and provides $50 million a year in new funding for state abstinence education activities. Efforts are making a difference, adolescent pregnancy rates and teen abortion rates are declining. And between 1992 and 1997, teen birth rates declined 11% in New Jersey. $53.9 Million for New Jersey Welfare-to-Work: In 1998, New Jersey received $23.3 million in Federal welfare-to-work state formula grants (the state matched $11.6 million in funding), helping New Jersey welfare recipients get and keep jobs. In addition, $19.0 million in competitive grants were awarded to New Jersey localities to support innovative welfare-to-work strategies. Part of the President's comprehensive efforts to move recipients from welfare to work, this funding was included in the $3 billion welfare to work fund in the 1997 Balanced Budget Act. Helping People Get to Work: Through the Access to Jobs initiative, the Clinton-Gore Administration is working with communities across the country to design transportation solutions to help welfare recipients and other low-income workers get to and from work. Mercer County, Essex County, Burlington County, Hunterdon County, Middlesex County, Hudson County, Bergen County, Ocean County, Meadowlands County and Camden County have received a total of 1.66 million this year to fund innovative transit projects. INVESTING IN NEW JERSEY'S HEALTH
Health Care for Uninsured Children: The balanced budget included the largest single investment in health care for children since the passage of Medicaid in 1965 -- an unprecedented $24 billion over five years to cover as many as five million children throughout the nation. This investment guarantees the full range of benefits-from checkups to surgery -- that children need to grow up strong and healthy. It ensures that prescription drugs, vision, hearing, and mental health coverage now offered at the state level are extended to millions of uninsured children. To expand health coverage to more uninsured children in New Jersey the balanced budget provided $88.4 million in 1998. This compares to the 1995 Republican plan vetoed by President Clinton that would have denied health care coverage to 142,500 children in New Jersey. Helping Over 140,000 New Jersey Women and Children with WIC: The Clinton Administration is committed to full funding in the Special Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). In FY98, New Jersey received 76.2 million in total WIC grant funding, helping 140,600 women, infants and children in need receive health and food assistance, over 3,000 more than in 1994. More Toddlers Are Being Immunized: As a result of the President's 1993 Childhood Immunization Initiative, childhood immunization rates have reached an historic high. According to the CDC,by 1996, 90% or more of America's toddlers received the most critical doses of each of the routinely recommended vaccines-surpassing the President's 1993 goal. In New Jersey in 1997, 98% of two-year olds received the vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis; 93% received the vaccine for polio; 93% received the vaccine for measles, and 94% received the vaccine for Haemophilus influenzae B, the bacteria causing a form of meningitis. Increased Funding for Ryan White by $229.7 Million: Between 1993 and 1998, New Jersey communities received $229.7 million in Ryan White formula and other HIV/AIDS program funds. This funding provides people living with HIV and AIDS medical and support services, including the AIDS Drug Assistance Program which helps those without insurance obtain much needed prescription drugs. [HHS, Health Resources and Services Administration, 12/98] Tobacco Plan Will Cut Smoking and Premature Deaths by 46% in New Jersey: The Clinton Administration's tobacco proposal, combined with the recently enacted state tobacco settlements, will cut youth smoking and resulting premature deaths 46% in New Jersey by 2004. Between 2000 and 2004, 91,700 of New Jersey's youth will be kept from smoking and 29,300 will be spared a premature tobacco-related death. [Treasury Dept., 2/99] 3,820,000 Americans in New Jersey Cannot Be Assured They Have Patient Protections: Even if New Jersey enacted all the protections in the Patients' Bill of Rights, 3,820,000 people in New Jersey cannot be assured they have the comprehensive patient protections recommended by the President's Advisory Commission. This is because the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) may preempt state-enacted protections. That is why the President has called on Congress to pass a federally enforceable patients' bill of rights so that everyone enrolled in managed care may have a basic set of protections. Notably, 1,920,000 New Jersey women are in ERISA health plans and are therefore not necessarily protected. Women are particularly vulnerable without these protections because they are greater users of health care services, they make three-quarters of the health care decisions for their families, and they have specific health care needs addressed by a patients' bill of rights. PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT
31 Toxic Waste Sites Cleaned Up: Since 1993, the EPA has completed 31 Superfund toxic waste clean-ups in New Jersey-more than in any state except Michigan. These cleanups have been in Minolta (2), Dover Township, Florence Township, Franklin Township, Sayreville, Howell Township, Elizabeth, Mount Olive Township, Berkeley Township, Plumsted Township (5), Mantua Township, Jackson Township, Winslow Township, Pemberton Township, Lodi, Saddle Brook Township, Freehold, Galloway Township, Monroe Township, Sparta Township, Edison Township, Ringwood, South Brunswick, Tabernacle Township, Upper Deerfield Township, and Swainton Middle [through 6/99]. This is almost 4 times the number of sites cleaned up in New Jersey during the previous two administrations combined. $20.1 Million in Safe Drinking Water Funding: This year [FY99], thanks to President Clinton, New Jersey will receive $18.1 million for the Drinking Water State Revolving Funds to provide low-interest loans to municipalities to build, improve, and prevent pollution of drinking water systems. In addition, New Jersey will receive $1.9 million in Public Water Supply Supervision grants to help monitor drinking water quality and enforce health standards. Revitalizing Brownfields Projects in New Jersey: As part of the Clinton-Gore Administration's efforts to clean up Brownfields, the EPA has awarded grants to counties and communities in New Jersey-Atlantic City, Long Branch, Paterson, Camden, Newark, Jersey City, Perth Amboy, Elizabeth, Trenton, Hudson County, Middlesex County, and Morris County-for environmental clean-up and economic revitalization. These projects are intended to jump-start local clean-up efforts by providing funds to return unproductive, abandoned, contaminated urban properties to productive use. SPEARHEADING URBAN RENEWAL EFFORTS
Revitalizing New Jersey's Communities: Camden was designated an Empowerment Zone in December, 1994 and was awarded $21 million to create more jobs, housing, and economic opportunity for city residents. Additionally, Newark was designated an Enterprise Community, and was awarded $3 million for similar efforts. In 1999, Bridgetown/Vineyard was designated a New Urban Empowerment Zone and Newark/Elizabeth was named a Strategic Planning Community. Expanding the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Will Help Develop 2,300 To 2,700 New Affordable Housing Units in New Jersey Over the Next 5 years: Last year, the President and Vice President pushed for a 40-percent expansion in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. This year, the President and Vice President will try again to enact tax incentives to develop affordable housing. In New Jersey alone, this proposal would mean an additional 2,300 - 2,700 quality rental housing units for low-income American families during the next five years. PROVIDING DISASTER RELIEF
$102 Million in Federal Emergency Assistance: Since 1993, New Jersey has received $102 million in disaster relief. This includes $2.7 million for severe winter coastal storms, high winds, and flooding in 1998, and $33 million in assistance to recover from the Blizzard of 1996. [FEMA, 12/98] EXPANDING FUNDS FOR TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT
Over $3 Billion in Federal Highway Aid: Since 1993, New Jersey has received over $3 billion in federal highway aid. Included in this funding is $6.4 million for emergency relief in response to natural disasters. These funds have helped generate 128,637 jobs. [through FY98] Over $98 Million in Aviation Funds: From FY93-FY98 New Jersey received over $98 million in Airport Improvement Program funds to help build and renovate airports, and, when necessary, to provide funds for noise abatement to improve the quality of life for residents who live near airports. Over $2 Billion in Transit Funds: New Jersey has received $2.1 billion in FTA funds since 1993. Saving Lives and Property: In 1997 the United States Coast Guard save 127 lives and over $41.7 million of property in New Jersey.
Last Updated July 1999
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