Murphy's economic objectives largely met
300,000 new jobs and higher hourly wages
By: Daniel Munoz
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... It was October 1, 2018, and Phil Murphy the new governor of New Jersey, laid out what he called a path toward an "innovation economy" that was "stronger and fairer" for the state, its businesses and its residents.
.....
At a crowded, two-story auditorium on the ON3 campus, straddling the Nutley-Clifton border, the first-term Democratic governor spelled out a series of new incentives programs he said would spur economic growth for New Jersey.
..... Many of Murphy's sweeping proposals were ultimately enacted in December 2020: an incentive program for companies eyeing a move to the state or thinking of leaving New Jersey, called NJ Emerge, and an incentive program meant to spur redevelopment projects, called NJ Aspire.
..... And the state enacted his much-touted NJ Innovation Evergreen Fund, designed to invest tax revenue and venture capital dollars in life science and financial technology start-ups using proceeds gained from the sale of state corporate tax credits.
..... In the midst of the political chaos that transpired between Murphy's October 2018 address and the December 2020 enactment p and the start of the COVID pandemic - the governor outlined five measurable economic goals for the state, which he wanted to have met by 2025.
* 300,000 new jobs
* 4% wage growth, equal to a $1,500 increase in median wages.
* An addition of 40,000 women and minorities in STEM fields.
* $ 625 million in new venture capital investment.
* 42,000 more women and minorities in the workforce and wage increases of $15,000 to $23,000.
..... With 2025 - Murphy's self-imposed deadline - upon us, what is the track record? Some goals have been unmet, and others have not.
* Employee levels increased from 4.16 million people in October 2018 to 4.39 million in November 2024, albeit with a massive employment drop during the COVID-19 shutdown. It amounts to an increase of nearly 227,000 jobs.
* In October 2018, the average hourly earnings were $30 an hour. by December 2024, the were $37.71.
* STEM degrees made up 38.2% of all college degrees in 2018, and that ticked up to 38.8% in 2022.
* In 2018, there were 185 venture capital deals in New Jersey worth $1.32 billion. In 2024, there were 200 deals worth $2.64 billion - an increase of $1.32 billion.
* There were 2.1 million women in the New Jersey labor force in 2018, and 2.24 million in 2023, or a 6.6% increase. For every dollar male workers earned in 2018, a female worker earned $0.79/ That rose to $0.38 in 2024.
..... So some of the numbers have increased and some of the goals laid out by Murphy, who has less than a year left in office, have been met.
Local economic impact from foreign events
..... In the years that followed the 2018 address, the stat was hit by the global pandemic and ensuing recession, all of which upended international supply chain and trigged 40-year-high inflation.
.....
The Russian invasion of Ukraine only worsened matters for the global economy, including the global supply chain of fuel and grain.
..... "Broadly speaking, the economic story for New Jersey is difficult to disentangle from macroeconomic factors broadly," said Peter Chen, an analyst with he progressive think tank New Jersey Policy Perspective. "However, I do think the data is clear that New Jersey has experienced a strong economic recovery."
..... And despite being hit hard early on by the COVID-19 pandemic, "New Jersey's economy has met the broad targets described in 2018," Chen said.
..... Federal spending kept the national economy afloat during the COVID-19 closes and recession had helped fuel the state's recovery, said James Hughes, an economist at Rutgers University in New Brunswick.
..... That's not to say state-level actions have not made difference in New Jersey's economy.
..... The state and private investors are pouring $4 billion into the New Jersey Health + Life Science Exchange, or HELIX, in New Brunswick.
..... Once completed, the complex will house lab and office space for Nokia Bell Labs, Rutgers Health, RWJ Barnabas and Princeton University.
..... "That really will be a statewide hub, not a local hub," Hughes said. "Hopefully it will evolve into a national hub. It's bringing together a lot of the players."
..... Email munozd@northjersey.com; X @danielmunoz100 and Facebook.