New Jersey is a step closer to divesting its pension fund from fossil-fuel companies. The state Senate Environment and Energy Committee on Thursday passed a bill that would require the public worker pension fund to divest from the 200 largest publicly traded fossil fuel companies no more than two years from the time the bill is enacted. During Thursday’s committee session, several speakers testified for and against the bill, which will continue to move through the legislative process. Other states including Maine and New York have taken such divestment steps. Princeton University recently voted to divest its endowment from all publicly traded fossil-fuel companies, following similar action by Rutgers University.
Health care advocates are celebrating the lowering of health care costs through the federal Inflation Reduction Act. The group Protect Our Care this week launched a nationwide bus tour to bring attention to changes under the legislation, which was signed into law by President Joe Biden over the summer. On Thursday, the bus tour came to New Jersey, stopping first in New Brunswick. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-6th) talked about how the new law mandates the government to negotiate some prescription drug prices for Medicare.
Executives in the gaming industry remain upbeat about the industry’s outlook despite concerns about the economy. That’s according to a survey by the American Gaming Association and Fitch Ratings. Some 68% of the CEOs who were polled said business is good right now and 92% of them expect conditions will improve over the next three to six months. Meantime, Atlantic City casino executives attending a recent conference said one of their biggest challenges continues to be hiring enough workers.
