The state assistance is meant to help employers that have taken financial hits due to the slew of business closures and other public health restrictions amid the pandemic.

The credit rating agency will revise the state’s A3 rating from negative to stable, almost a year after it warned that New Jersey could suffer devastating economic blows because of the pandemic.

The battle over the state's budget begins in Trenton.

New Jersey – the most densely populated state in the nation with myriad roads, bridges, tunnels, trains and pipes along with clean energy aspirations – stands to reap much from the American Jobs Plan. But the program has been mired in partisan warfare since President Joe Biden unveiled the proposal.

The new bill offers assistance to establishments with up to 50 employees. “These are among the places that have been hardest hit by the pandemic,” Gov. Phil Murphy said. “Margins for our restaurants, if they’re positive at all, remain razor-thin.”

“New Jersey will soon be swimming in cash from the federal government and I want to make sure those funds are dedicated to helping our taxpayers and the unemployed,” said Assembly Republican Jon Bramnick, R-21st District.

More than 2 million New Jerseyans have sought unemployment assistance since March 2020, when Gov. Phil Murphy ordered sweeping closures and restrictions on businesses like restaurants, retail, salons and barbershops, casinos, malls, gyms and theaters.

The Neighborhood Revitalization Tax Credit will help finance 18 nonprofits in 11 cities, including Atlantic City, Camden, Newark, Paterson and Trenton.

The virtual event will mark the official start of the group's work to craft New Jersey's adult-use and medical cannabis marketplace.

The newest batch of funding marks the second bill Gov. Phil Murphy approved from a broader set of $100 million in proposed pandemic assistance the state Legislature sent to his desk on March 25.

Performing arts organizations that experienced a 25% loss or more due to the pandemic can apply for funding from the U.S. Small Business Administration. Museums and movie theaters are also eligible.

Following a mix-up at a Baltimore plant that led to the loss of roughly 15 million doses, the lower supply is a short-term issue and not a permanent, long-term problem, according to Gov. Phil Murphy.