The New Year has come and the 379 municipalities participating in the State Health Benefits system, along with their employees, and ultimately their taxpayers, will still have to fund a 22% increase in health benefits costs, unless an immediate solution is reached. It is imperative that the Governor and your legislators hear directly from you about the negative impacts this increase will have on your budget, your employees, and your taxpayers. Even with the 19.6% levy cap and 17.6% appropriation cap exemptions for the increased cost to health benefits, municipalities must fund this increase.
The New Jersey League of Municipalities, the New Jersey Conference of Mayors, the New Jersey Urban Mayors Association, and the New Jersey Association of Counties continue to work with other interested stakeholders, including the major public sector union representatives, to address the unsustainable 22% increase in 2023 for the State Health Benefits Plan (SHBP) municipalities.
It is critical for Mayors and elected officials in municipalities that participate in the SHBP to directly reach out to the Governor’s office and reiterate to your Legislators the need for an acceptable resolution of these newly imposed costs on municipal and county governments, our public employees, and taxpayers. If you have already reached out, please do so again–we need their attention and action.
Contacts:
- Mike Cerra, Executive Director, mcerra@njlm.org, 609-695-3481, x120.
- Lori Buckelew, Deputy Executive Director & Director of Government Affairs, lbuckelew@njlm.org, 609-695-3481, x112.