New Jersey

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities is moving forward with plans for guaranteed high-speed Internet access for all residents of the state. Two draft plans have been released for public input.

Through October 2023, only 296,000 households of the more than 1.1 million eligible in the state have enrolled in the Affordable Connectivity Program, according to the White House.

The state will require all new car sales to be electric by 2035 with some requirements starting in 2026 as part of a series of new regulations, Gov. Phil Murphy’s office has confirmed.

The state of New Jersey now has a new policy to guide the use of generative AI by state employees; this closely follows the state’s creation of the Artificial Intelligence Task Force last month.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed a new bill this week mandating curricula about researching, using critical thinking skills, and learning the difference between facts and opinions and primary and secondary sources.

Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order Tuesday charging the task force with studying artificial intelligence and recommending government actions to support ethical use of the rapidly evolving technology.

A new platform from the state's Department of Labor and Workforce Development and a nonprofit partner is giving unprecedented insights into public works wages and compliance with prevailing wage laws.

Plus, a cross-agency partnership in New Jersey is working to get more residents enrolled in affordable broadband programs, North Carolina is looking for participation in digital equity services, and more.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy will name a 19-member panel of education leaders, parents, students and others to study the effects of social media and make recommendations for the 2024-2025 academic year.

Gloucester County is considering adding GPS tracking either to police radios that are worn by officers or to their body-worn cameras, said one municipal police chief in the county.

New Jersey could avoid 3,290 deaths and generate $36 billion in public health benefits by transitioning to electric vehicles by 2050, according to a report by the American Lung Association.

Gov. Phil Murphy announced a partnership with the mental health platform Uwill to provide round-the-clock virtual services to students at 44 higher-education institutions, both private and public.

Fears about misinformation, AI hallucinations, cheating and the long-term undermining of education persist, but college students and professors are finding AI useful for administrative tasks and tutoring.

Reported glitches and loopholes in Apple’s parental screen time monitors are bad for both parents and for their kids, a New Jersey congressman said at a recent event.

Plus, more states announce new broadband deployment funding, the White House launches a $1.5 billion innovation fund related to the telecommunications supply chain, and more.

State officials marked International Transgender Day of Visibility last week with the launch of the first version of its new centralized information hub to support transgender and non-binary constituents.

As the opioid epidemic continues to impact communities nationwide, New Jersey and Ohio are using data to understand how overdoses impact constituents as well as to inform their ongoing responses.

Drivers in the Garden State will now be able to present digital vehicle registration during traffic stops as part of a program launched by the Motor Vehicle Commission late last week.