June 5, 2026
***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***

Monmouth County Legislators Condemn Additional $12 Million for Illegal Immigrant Defense Fund Amid New Jersey Affordability Crisis

Middletown, N.J. – Senator Declan O’Scanlon, Assemblywoman Vicky Flynn, and Assemblyman Gerry Scharfenberger issue the following joint statement regarding Governor Mikie Sherrill’s decision to allocate an additional $12 million in taxpayer funding for New Jersey’s deportation defense program:
“Governor Mikie Sherrill has now announced an additional $12 million in taxpayer funding for New Jersey’s detention and Deportation Defense Initiative, bringing the total state commitment to more than $20 million.
The decision comes as Trenton negotiates a record $60.7 billion state budget and families across New Jersey continue struggling under rising property taxes, utility costs, housing prices, and one of the worst affordability crises in the nation.
Every dollar allocated in the state budget reflects a choice. At a time when lawmakers are debating the future of property tax relief programs, the long-term sustainability of Stay NJ, restoring COLA relief, fixing New Jersey’s failed school funding formula, and a state budget facing an approximately $1.5 billion structural deficit, the Governor has chosen to spend more than $20 million on legal defense programs for individuals facing deportation.
Budgets are about priorities, and this decision sends a clear message to New Jersey taxpayers about where they stand in Trenton’s hierarchy of concerns. Families struggling to afford property taxes, electric bills, groceries, and housing are being told once again to wait while the government continues expanding spending on programs that do nothing to make New Jersey more affordable for the people who live and work here.
If advocacy organizations and national activist groups funding these protests believe this program is so important, they are free to raise private dollars to support it. New Jersey taxpayers should not be expected to foot the bill while they struggle to make ends meet.
Over the last decade, more than 522,000 residents have left New Jersey, taking approximately $31 billion in income with them. Businesses continue relocating to more affordable states. This week Samsung announced it was leaving New Jersey. ExxonMobil recently departed after more than a century in our state. These are warning signs that should be setting off alarms in the State House.
The question every taxpayer should be asking is simple: if the state government can find another $12 million for this program, why can’t it provide meaningful relief to the families, seniors, workers, and small businesses struggling to remain in New Jersey?
A budget is a statement of priorities, and New Jersey residents deserve a government that starts putting taxpayers first.”
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Please contact Emily Certo-Weber for questions or follow-up: 732-865-0064;
ecerto@njleg.org or emcerto98@gmail.com