The measure was written broadly, but state officials said Jersey City was the only municipality that qualified.

TRENTON, N.J. — A Hudson County-backed bill that would have allowed certain municipalities to temporarily redirect voter-approved open space tax money into their general budgets was effectively written for one city: Jersey City.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill rejected it Monday, saying voters had approved the tax specifically for parks, conservation and historic preservation.

Senate Bill 4513, sponsored by Sens. Raj Mukherji and Angela McKnight and backed in the Assembly by Gabriel Rodriguez, Jerry Walker and William Sampson IV, would have allowed municipalities with both an open space trust fund and an arts and culture trust fund to move open space money into their current fund for unrelated municipal expenses during fiscal year 2027.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill vetoed the measure Monday.

According to Sherrill’s veto message, the Department of Community Affairs determined Jersey City is the only municipality in New Jersey that currently has both types of dedicated municipal trust funds.

What Problem Was the Bill Trying to Solve?

The legislation did not identify a specific fiscal emergency or budget deficit in its statement.

Instead, it gave a qualifying municipality one-year flexibility to use money that would otherwise remain legally restricted for open space, recreation, floodplain protection, farmland preservation and historic preservation.

That would have included both money raised through the 2027 levy and previously collected open space money that remained unspent.

In practical terms, the bill would have allowed Jersey City to take money currently walled off for designated preservation and recreation purposes and use it for ordinary municipal expenses.

The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee described the measure simply as giving municipalities discretion to use those funds “as determined necessary by the municipality.”

The committee statement did not identify a particular Jersey City budget shortfall the transfer was intended to cover.

Why Jersey City Was the Only City Affected

Jersey City voters approved an open space referendum in 2016 authorizing a dedicated property tax levy of up to two cents per $100 of assessed value.

The money was specifically designated for acquiring, developing and maintaining land for recreation, conservation and historic preservation.

The city later created a separate arts and culture trust fund after voters approved that levy in 2020.

That combination is what made Jersey City uniquely eligible under S4513.

City financial records show Jersey City has continued collecting both dedicated levies. Its 2024 municipal budget listed roughly $1.13 million from the open space levy and another $1.13 million from the arts and culture levy.

The Bill Would Have Bypassed Existing Restrictions

Under current law, money raised through an open space referendum must generally be used only for the purposes voters approved.

Municipalities can ask voters to change the levy or the authorized uses of the fund through another referendum.

S4513 would have created a temporary exception to that system.

Instead of returning to voters, the Jersey City Council could have adopted a resolution allowing open space money to be moved into the city’s general fund and spent on unrelated purposes.

That provision became the central issue in Sherrill’s veto.

Sherrill Says Voters Were Promised the Money Would Stay Dedicated

In rejecting the bill, Sherrill focused less on whether Jersey City needed additional budget flexibility and more on how the money was originally collected.

“The will of the City’s voters should not be set aside in the manner proposed in the bill,” Sherrill wrote in her veto message.

She noted that the 2016 ballot language told voters the additional property tax would be used exclusively for recreation, conservation and historic preservation.

The governor argued that allowing those funds to be diverted to the general budget would conflict with the condition under which voters approved the tax.

Why the Bill Drew Pushback

The dispute was ultimately about dedicated tax money and voter intent.

Supporters of the legislation created a mechanism for Jersey City to access otherwise restricted money during a single budget year.

Opponents objected to lawmakers changing the permitted use of a voter-approved tax without putting the question back before the voters.

That distinction matters because existing New Jersey law already provides a mechanism for changing an open space levy: municipalities can place an amended proposition on the ballot.

S4513 would have allowed Jersey City to use the money differently without taking that step.

What Happens Now

With the veto, Jersey City’s open space trust fund remains subject to the existing restrictions.

Money raised through the levy must continue to be used for the recreation, conservation, open space and historic preservation purposes authorized by voters unless the law changes or voters approve a different use.

The city’s separate arts and culture trust fund remains in place as well.

The veto means the Legislature would need to override Sherrill or pass a different bill for Jersey City to gain the temporary spending flexibility envisioned in S4513.