New Jersey Pushes for Greater Accountability Amid Federal Shutdown
With the New Jersey gubernatorial election scheduled to take place on Nov. 4, many organizations and community members are emphasizing the importance of voter engagement. While exercising voters' rights is ineffable, amid political confusion and the current government shutdown, New Jerseyans demand greater transparency on issues concerning both the state and the nation.
On Oct. 13, members of the New Jersey News Commons were invited to attend a press conference with New Jersey Senator Andy Kim, hosted by the Center for Cooperative Media. While this was meant to mark the senator’s first in-person press briefing, the event had to be moved online.
This shift was necessary due to a state of emergency declared on Sunday, Oct. 12, which continued into Oct. 13 due to the National Weather Service calling for a coastal flood watch for all Atlantic coastal and Delaware Bay communities in New Jersey.
While the conference covered a wide range of topics, most of the reporters present asked about the federal policies tightening and how New Jersey residents could be more involved in the changes around them, particularly with regard to healthcare and the creation of immigration detention centers. Kim endorsed the importance of community engagement in holding government officials accountable for more transparency.
“They know how damaging this would be,” Kim said, when asked about how state residents should prepare for the plans to turn Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in Burlington County into a temporary immigration detention center. “It just makes no sense to do this and to move forward with this kind of effort in this state that's one of the most diverse in the entire country.”
Democrats and immigration organizations, including the New Jersey Alliance for Immigration, are opposed to the detention center plans, saying there will be a lack of transparency and oversight under federal control. Another commonly expressed concern, echoed by Kim, is the military’s reputation “being tarnished.”
The announcement for the detention center came out earlier this year, in July, when the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” was signed into place, providing $45 billion to expand the United States’ Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention capabilities.
Kim said he has no confidence in the temporary detention center working out. He referenced Delaney Hall in Newark, saying it was “a rushed effort” that has “led to real systemic problems” when it comes to the treatment of detainees.
There have been community-led protests almost daily since the detention facility began operating.
On July 13, four detainees escaped from Delaney Hall after a vigil that had turned disruptive was taking place outside the center. Protestors outside began to clash with police while detainees rioted inside, causing a wall made of drywall and mesh to crumble. The revolts were held in reaction to the alarming conditions inside the center.
Detainees had been calling family members and attorneys to complain about the poor conditions they were in, noting a lack of food and inadequate drinking water. Sen. Kim, along with Rep. Rob Menendez, visited the facility the next morning for an inspection and discussion on why the protests started, with immigration and jail officials.
Along with demanding more information on the proposed ICE center at Fort Dix, Kim noted he is in talks with federally qualified health centers, hospitals and other health institutions to see how they can continue to operate, as federal cuts will affect the New Jersey Family Care program.
If the state’s requested healthcare budget is not met, then around 350,000 people will be pushed off Medicaid, according to estimates made by New Jersey Human Services.
“Everyone's really scrounging right now, trying to be creative to come up with solutions,” Kim said. “I'll try to help them every way I can.”
The senator also mentioned how “some of the most vulnerable communities” in America are going to be affected by the budget reconciliation bill due to multiple programs losing funding, like New Jersey Women Infants and Children.
WIC offers nutrition-focused education and health care referrals while also providing healthy foods to low-income pregnant, postpartum and breastfeeding women, along with infants and children up to age 5 who are at nutritional risk.
“While WIC is not directly cut in this package, the program does not operate in a vacuum. Adjunctive eligibility for WIC is tied to participation in Medicaid and SNAP. Any policies that restrict access to those programs will, in turn, create additional barriers to WIC enrollment.” Georgia Machell, president and CEO of the national WIC association, said in a statement posted on the organization’s website on July 1.
Kim said that around three million people could be removed from getting support from WIC.
On Oct. 22, Kim, along with 43 other Democratic senators, sent a letter to Brooke Rollins, secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, saying that the USDA has “several tools available” to allow SNAP benefits to be paid for through November.
The senator expressed concerns for mothers and children during federal cuts, as well as New Jersey’s population of children with disabilities, noting the Department of Education’s firing of workers who work on programs that support special education.
Parents of children with disabilities in New Jersey have already been voicing their frustrations about not receiving adequate care in their local schools. An article by The Hechinger Report revealed that New Jersey sends kids with special education needs off to a different school more often than any other state.
According to this source, districts that place students in private schools spend hundreds of millions of dollars; in 2024, placements cost New Jersey taxpayers $784 million . New Jersey has eight county-run district schools specifically for children with disabilities, in addition to over a hundred private schools.
“These are programs that are so depended on by so many communities in New Jersey, and especially some of the schools that have the hardest time funding programs for students with disabilities,” Kim said.
Amid budget cuts and policy shifts, Sen. Kim urged residents to stay informed, hold their leaders accountable and ensure their voices are heard both at the polls and within their communities.