New Jersey Dominates National Rankings
New Jersey is one of the best places in America to live, work, play and raise a family. We invest in our students to build our future workforce. We believe in creating safe communities with quality healthcare, schools and recreation. Here are just a handful of accolades our State received this month:
- #1 public school system in the U.S. for the 2nd year according to Education Week’s Quality Counts 2020: Grading the States report
- “Most mentally and physically fit state” according to WalletHub’s Happiest States in America list
- 7 New Jersey counties were ranked in U.S. News and World Report‘s Top 500 Healthiest Communities in the U.S., including Hunterdon and Morris in the top 25
- Mount Laurel and Bridgewater named among Money‘s Top 50 Best Places to Live in America
Current economic hardships reflect the global COVID-19 pandemic.
New Jersey Economic Trends
▲Increase 1.82% from July to August
▲ Increase 7.4% YoY | U.S. 8.4%
Q2 2020 | ▼ Decrease 4.8% Q1 2020
▲ Increase 1.3% YoY
Bond Rating
Moody: A3
Outlook change from 2019, negative
S&P: A-
Outlook change from 2019, negative
Sources: U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Big Moves

Making Waves
The Port of NY/NJ welcomed the CMA CGM Brazil, a new ultra-large container vessel – the largest container ship ever to call at any East Coast port. The Port recently surpassed California as the 2nd busiest in the U.S.

Place Your Bets
With increased mobile betting due to COVID-19, New Jersey is on track to surpass Nevada as the nation’s gambling capital. New Jersey has handled over $7.6 billion in sports gambling and has seen nearly $532 million in overall revenue.

NJ is Evergreen
Evergreen Theragnostics, a radiopharmaceutical Contract Development & Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) based in Jersey City, broke ground for its new manufacturing plant in Springfield.
Board Spotlight

Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi PC
Congrats to Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi PC for being recognized as NJBIZ’s 2020 Best Places to Work!

Princeton University
Princeton University was once again named the #1 university in the nation by U.S. News & World Report’s 2021 Best Colleges rankings.
CEO Corner - Jose Lozano

Looking back on the 1 year anniversary of our Governor-led business attraction mission to India, we’ve continued to see our efforts pay off with 4 more Indian firms committing to our State. We’ve also forged stronger higher education partnerships, including the NASSCOM Launchpad at VentureLink@NJIT. The New Jersey India Center (NJIC), established during our trip, is currently working with 61 Indian companies interested in a New Jersey location. Many will find a second home here among our thriving Indian communities, especially considering New Jersey was just recognized by CNN as “The Best Place for Indian Food in the U.S.”
Point of Pride

It’s no secret that New Jersey has the best bagels. New York Times dubbed our State “The Cradle of Global Bagel Baking” and profiled Beth George, a self-taught New Jersey baker helping entrepreneurs all over the world open their own bagel shops.
Notable & Quotable
“Fight for the things that you care about. But do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”
– U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Justice Ginsburg was a Rutgers Law School professor in Newark from 1963 to 1972. Her Rutgers students sparked her interest in gender discrimination and the law.

In Memoriam
1933-2020