Secretary Way’s remarks as prepared for delivery:

Good afternoon Chairman Sarlo and members of the Committee.

Thank you for the invitation to join you today and for the opportunity to share more about the Department of State and the great work we do on behalf of the people of New Jersey, and to look ahead at what we have planned for the coming year.

As Secretary of State, I serve as New Jersey’s chief election official, overseeing free and fair elections and ensuring every eligible New Jersey voter is able to vote.

This year, I’ve been honored by my peers to serve as President of the National Association of Secretaries of State, the first Secretary from New Jersey to lead in the organization’s 119-year history. In my role, I am able to witness the big picture when it comes to voting rights and election integrity. In conversations with my peers, I see the experiences we share across state lines, and where our work differs. As I’m sure you’re all aware, while there are federal election laws, each state has its own way of doing things. When I look what is happening in other parts of the country, with attempts at limiting access to polling locations or making it harder to register, it makes me so much prouder that we’re not following those trends here in New Jersey.

I am so grateful for your partnership and that of your colleagues in the Legislature, working alongside Governor Murphy. In the past five years, WE haven’t had to battle over attempts to suppress the vote, or policies aimed at undermining the ability of election workers to SAFELY do their jobs. We focus on improving our elections FOR the voters. We have implemented laws that enhance voter experience and expanded voter access, while still strengthening security and preparedness.

Since I took this office in 2018, I have advocated for our State to join the Electronic Registration Information Center. This year, we will complete the process of joining, and membership will help us maintain more accurate voting rolls by identifying ineligible voters for removal and helping us find eligible voters who might need support registering.

This year, we are relaunching our partnership with Rutgers to offer training sessions for county election workers, focused on the responsibilities that confront every county during every election, including voter registration, proper handling of mail-in ballots and provisional ballots, polling places, Election Day procedures, ensuring electoral integrity, implementation of new legislation, and many more topics.

We’ll also be hosting a statewide tabletop exercise this summer, similar to what we hosted in Fall 2019. We will gather our county election officials and other elections stakeholders and practice our responses to a number of different potential election-disrupting scenarios. This helps the counties update their continuity of operations plans to ensure that they are prepared for the next election and beyond.

Of course, the Department of State is more than the Division of Elections.

Our Business Action Center’s Office of Business Advocacy has partnered with 11 companies on comprehensive business development projects that resulted in more than $100 million dollars in investment in capital expenditures to keep or grow their businesses here in our State.

In the second half of 2023, the Business Action Center will launch the New Jersey Cannabis Academy, providing no-cost, virtual, on-demand technical assistance to students who want to start a cannabis business and qualify under the social equity, Impact Zone, legacy, diverse-owned, or microbusiness categories. This will be the first time a State agency has led such a program following adult-use cannabis legalization.

With film and television revenue exceeding $700 million in 2022 – a record high – the Motion Picture and Television Commission launched Film Ready New Jersey, a five-step certification and marketing program that sets basic standards for attracting filmmaking and aims to further New Jersey’s status as a real production destination. With this program, municipalities will be able to attract filmmakers and showcase their communities as filming destinations.

The Motion Picture and Television Commission will also launch New Jersey film trails this year in partnership with the Division of Travel and Tourism. The first two trails are expected to highlight the early history of New Jersey filmmaking and the places where horror films and shows were shot here.

Another trail we are very excited about is the Black Heritage Trail, formally established by the Legislature and the Governor last year. The Historical Commission is working diligently to select the initial historic locations and we expect to celebrate the installation of trail markers later this year.

Across several offices within the Department of State, preparations are ongoing for the 2026 recognition of the Semiquincentennial. The Historical Commission is leading the way with RevolutionNJ, creating official partnerships to designate New Jersey municipalities as RevolutionNJ communities, creating programming for students, and collaborating with the Morven Museum and Garden on a Traveling Exhibit and the State Council on the Arts on a Public Arts project. The Commission will also be supporting the $25 million in American Rescue Plan funds of capital investment projects for 10 Revolutionary sites in last year’s budget.

The State Archives is working with the State Museum on an exhibit of State and federal charters and other Revolutionary-era historical treasures for an exhibit that would start at the Museum and potentially travel to additional venues.

The Museum also supported the preservation of New Jersey history with its role in the renovation of the State House and the installation of New Jersey art and artifacts as that project completed.

Department of State offices are also investing millions of dollars in New Jersey communities every year with grant funding. The State Council on the Arts continues to be the biggest investor in arts in our state, with a record grantmaking of more than $32 million dollars this fiscal year, including funding provided directly to organizations and artists, as well as grants made through the 21 County Arts Agencies. The Division of Travel and Tourism has given nearly $14 million to support tourism organizations, attractions, and events. The Center for Hispanic Policy, Research, and Development granted more than three million dollars to 34 Hispanic community organizations. The New Jersey Cultural Trust gave more than five hundred thousand dollars to arts organizations for institutional and financial stabilization. The Office of Faith Based Initiatives is not only granting funds but working to make sure that its network of faith- and community-based partners is aware of all funding opportunities across the Department.

With such a diverse portfolio of offices within the Department of State, my Department is determined to reach, support, and reflect ALL of the people of New Jersey. I am so proud of all of my colleagues and I want to thank my Department of State team, our Division Directors, and all of our staff for their dedication and service to the people of New Jersey. We seek opportunities to make our work more inclusive and lift up the voices of people whose communities have typically been underrepresented in government and positions of power. I appreciate the opportunity to expand on these and other efforts during the question period. Thank you.