The latest increase in capacity is being cautiously celebrated by business owners - especially restaurants - still worried if they can stay afloat at 50%.

Franceline Ehret was selected to fill the shoes of Hetty Rosenstein who is leaving her post as head of the 55,000-member union, and the largest representing New Jersey’s public workers on April 2.

Since the program’s inception, the federal government awarded nearly $704 billion to 7.8 million businesses across the nation, of which $5.8 billion has been awarded to 71,587 businesses in the state as of March 14. 

"This continues to be a tough time for many people, and the IRS wants to continue to do everything possible to help taxpayers navigate the unusual circumstances related to the pandemic, while also working on important tax administration responsibilities," IRS Commissioner Chuck Retting stated.

Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said the agency is watching the spread of the U.K. mutation, known as B117, as “it is now the dominant strain in the country.”

“Today’s actions mean we continue our ongoing COVID-19 mitigation efforts while also vaccinating New Jersey residents as quickly and as safely as possible,” the governor said at a COVID-19 briefing.

NJ Emerge is meant to set the stage for the state’s economic recovery coming out of the COVID-19 recession, which many public officials and economists have described as the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression nearly a century ago.

In January, patrons wagered $958 million at the state’s sportsbooks, the lion’s share of it online. Then in February, they wagered less than $743 million, according to data posted March 16 by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement.

The extension would also apply to a special payment method meant to allow business owners to circumvent some of the economic pain brought by the Trump-era $10,000 federal cap on state and local property tax deductions.

The New Jersey Zero-Emission Incentive Program will provide between 100 and 300 vouchers (between $25,000 and $100,000) for the purchase of medium and heavy-duty electric trucks.

UniMak allegedly demanded cash kickbacks from seven employees between 2013 and 2018 doing work on government construction contracts in order to secure future paychecks.

“Everybody expects 2021 to be a much better year than 2020. Unfortunately, New Jersey’s labor market numbers were rather downbeat in January,” said Charles Steindel, the former state’s chief economist, in a March 15 statement from the right-leaning think tank Garden State Initiative.