New Jersey lawmakers have been funneling last-minute appropriations into state budgets to benefit their and their families’ groups in recent years.
Some Democratic state lawmakers have repeatedly slipped “add-ons” into New Jersey’s annual budget, according to a Politico examination covering fiscal year 2024 through FY2026. These legislators directed millions of taxpayer dollars to their own nonprofits, their family members’ organizations and local governments.
Democratic state Sen. Angela McKnight allocated $2 million for Rising Tide Capital, a nonprofit in which she is an employee, according to budget records of the last two fiscal years.
Democratic Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin meanwhile routed $16.7 million to the Essex County government, which paid $87,000 in legal services to Coughlin’s law firm, according to public records.
Essex County also received a $9 million grant solicited by Democratic state Sen. Renee Burgess. Public records show she began a county job in Essex County after directing the funds there.
Mikie Sherrill attends a conversation with Governor Mikie Sherrill, Governor Wes Moore, Mark Drilling, and Rye Barcott about his new book “Courage Will Save Us” at 92NY on June 09, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Dominik Bindl/Getty Images)
Democratic Assembly member William Sampson directed $200,000 in state funds to the Mo’Hair Foundation, a nonprofit led by his aunt that supplies wigs for hair loss, New Jersey budget records show. The state grant was roughly four times the organization’s previous annual revenue.
Spokespersons for McKnight, Coughlin and Burgess did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment. A spokesperson for Sampson initially responded but did not leave a comment.
Democratic New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill is opposed to the “last-minute giveaways” and seeks to end them, Politico reported.
“That can’t happen. We can’t afford that process anymore. It’s not accountable; it’s not efficient; it’s not what the people of New Jersey deserve,” she said in a FY2027 Budget address. (RELATED: New Governor Who Ran On ‘Transparency’ Reportedly Uses Loophole To Host Secret Ritzy Dinner With Donors)
“Even as a legislator, it’s hard to keep up with what’s going on,” former Democratic state Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg told Politico. “Certainly for the public it’s even harder until the budget is finally adopted and the press looks at it more closely and lets everyone know what’s actually in it.”
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