Here and there at the governor's budget address.

At one point in her inaugural budget presentation Tuesday afternoon, Mikie Sherrill said the state has not seen a budget so fiscally sensible in years. The reference was to a $60.7 billion plan that closes a $3 billion structural deficit without raising taxes.

In these polarizing times, however, Republicans disagree.

Assemblyman Chris DePhillips of Bergen County told the press minutes after Sherrill wrapped things up that the governor "punted."

In other words, she relinquished the ball without tackling a few big issues. In short, DePhillips said she should have proposed cutting the corporate business tax or sales tax.

The corporate business tax is 11.5 percent and the sales tax is 6.625 percent.

His message was simple - after eight years of Phil Murphy, this was more of the same.

Assemblyman Brian Rumpf of Ocean County noted - a bit sarcastically - that the governor in her speech highlighted a man living in Pennsylvania.

That's true, but here's the context.

Sherrill was talking about Tracy Porter - "a union worker who’s been building the Gateway tunnel project."

She described a man with little formal education who, nonetheless, got a union job and built a good life for himself.

"Now, Tracy is putting his own kids through college. The youngest is a freshman, on the Dean's List, studying psychology. He pays her full tuition," the governor said as she pointed to Porter in the audience.

But here's the catch.

Porter lives in Pennsylvania, because he can't afford New Jersey.

That made the point that New Jersey needs to be made more affordable, which is what Sherrill said she aims to do.

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One casualty - somewhat - of the state's fiscal woes was the Stay NJ program, which offers seniors property tax relief. This is a new program and benefits go to those earning up to $500,000 a year.

Sherrill's budget would reduce that cap to $250,000.

"That’s going to save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars a year," she said.

Republicans are bound to gripe about this.

In a way, this shows a philosophical divide between the parties. Should such programs be limited to those who need them the most?

Sherrill's budget says "yes" to that. After all, even in high-cost New Jersey, a family making $350,000 a year - let alone $499,000 - is doing pretty good.

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One of the rich traditions of New Jersey are so-called Christmas Tree items. These are grants awarded to a lawmaker's pet project at the last minute - just before the budget is adopted on June 30.

Those who get the grants love them. To others, they're just "pork," which sounds so much worse than calling them Christmas Tree items.

No matter, Sherrill said she wants to do away with them. Lawmakers from both parties seem inclined to go along.

But we will not know for sure until the end of June.

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Sherrill also talked a bit about consolidating schools, or at least programs, as a way to save money.

Hard to see that happening.

Governors have talked on and off for years about this very thing. Remember that this is a state with 565 towns and even more school districts than that.

Clearly, combining towns and districts would save money. But just as clearly, officials love "home rule," which is why nothing ever happens.

Even average people who complain about property taxes still like seeing their town's name on a school bus. Go figure.

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The past was in the house, or at least the Assembly chamber.

Three former governors - Donald DiFrancesco, Jim McGreevey and Chris Christie - journeyed to Trenton to see Sherrill's first budget address.