TOMS RIVER, NJ – Ocean County lawmakers are upset after Governor Phil Murphy continues to cut funding to schoolchildren but allocated a large amount of money to build a transgender hub using American Rescue Plan Funds
Senator Jim Holzapfel, Assemblyman Greg McGuckin, and Assemblyman John Catalano (all R-10) questioned Governor Phil Murphy’s use of pandemic relief funds to develop a “Transgender Information Hub” website while other critical needs that could have been funded have been ignored.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy is facing criticism from Republican lawmakers for launching a new website for the state’s transgender and non-binary community using pandemic relief funds. The website, Transgender.NJ.gov, was launched on Monday as a “one-stop hub” to help individuals access essential programs and services.
However, Republican legislators have accused the Governor of misusing the funds, saying that more urgent needs should have been addressed.
“When we have billions in unspent pandemic relief funds that Governor Murphy has failed to put to effective use, it’s shocking that building a transgender website is where he has chosen to spend American Rescue Plan Act money,” said Assemblyman Holzapfel.
The American Rescue Plan Act provided New Jersey with $6.2 billion in pandemic relief funds, which Republican lawmakers say has not been used effectively. “We received more than $6 billion in American Rescue Plan Act funds nearly two years ago, but barely any of the money has been spent,” said Assemblyman McGuckin.
Republican lawmakers have pointed out that the funds could have been used to prevent budget cuts to schools, help struggling businesses, and fix the broken unemployment system. “Instead of funding those urgent needs with pandemic relief funds, paying for a transgender website was Governor Murphy’s misplaced priority,” said Assemblyman Catalano.
Governor Murphy’s press announcement stated that the website was funded as part of the Resident Experience Initiative, which received a $40 million appropriation of ARP funds in the current FY 2023 state budget.
The criticism from Republican lawmakers highlights the ongoing debate over how pandemic relief funds should be used and what constitutes an urgent need. While Governor Murphy’s website aims to provide support for an underserved community, some argue that the funds could have been better spent addressing more pressing concerns in the state.