TRENTON – A package of bills focused on the management of New Jersey’s veterans’ homes was endorsed this week by Senate and Assembly panels and appears likely to be sent to Gov. Phil Murphy this month.
The bills were negotiated by lawmakers and Murphy’s office and are supported by both parties. They do not include a December bill establishing an independent Office of Inspector General for Veterans’ Facilities – an exclusion the American Legion told lawmakers it would like to see corrected.
“We’re hopeful that this package will prevent a lot of the problems that these veterans’ nursing homes had in the past,” said Sen. Vin Gopal, D-Monmouth, who chairs the Senate Military and Veterans’ Affairs Committee.