Trenton insiders this week chewed over the "close-to-the-vest" atmospherics of Governor Mikie Sherrill's budget process in volatile times, with each minute summoning yet another international level angle to add to the intrigue.

Democratic Legislators huddled up this afternoon in bunker-protective mode in more ways than one, as they mapped out possible Sherrill scenarios on the budget. Speaking on condition of anonymity, two sources say they expect possible changes to StayNJ, the darling program of Speaker Craig Coughlin (D-19).

According to the NJ Monitor:

Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s administration has not ruled out cuts to nascent property tax relief program Stay NJ as Sherrill seeks to narrow a gap between state revenue and spending, acting State Treasurer Aaron Binder told the New Jersey Monitor.

Governor Sherrill later told InsiderNJ:

"I'm incredibly focused on driving down costs here. Certainly, property taxes are a key thing I hear about at the state level. I just had a meeting yesterday with leadership in the senate and assembly. We'll continue to work to make sure the budget reflects the priorities of our state."

According to the state Division of Taxation:

The Stay NJ program offers property tax benefits to eligible homeowners aged 65 and older. It reimburses applicants for 50% of their property tax bills, up to a maximum of $13,000, with a 2025 benefit cap of $6,500. To qualify, you must have owned and lived in a home for the full 12 months of 2025 and have an income below $500,000. You must be 65 or older in the application year (Social Security disability does not qualify you for this program). If you made P.I.L.O.T. (Payments-in-Lieu-of-Tax) payments to your municipality, you are eligible for the Stay NJ benefit. Mobile homeowners are not eligible.

According to one source today, some lawmakers expect Sherrill not to scrap StayNJ entirely but to scale it back and means test it so that a senior making $500K annually, for example, doesn't qualify. In other words, affluent or upper income bracket beneficiaries of the program won't be eligible.

"If you continue the program at current rates it adds to a structural deficit," said the source.

The Governor last month said if she does not control costs, a projected $7.2B surplus could be depleted by FY2027; deficit may reach $750M by FY2028," according to NJBIZ.

These conditions - in addition to considerable federal volatility and President Donald Trump's vindictiveness - require Sherrill to change course from the last administration where the state budget ballooned to $58 billion, up from $35.5 billion when Governor Chris Christie left office, the source added.

"We're expecting a very moderate, flat budget and she has to moderate budget and hit the reset button because we're in dire times," the source explained, against the backdrop of Trump's war in Iran and the expected impacts of Trump's next federal budget bill on New Jersey.

Speculation again about StayNJ on the Friday prior to Sherrill's budget address came as at least one source told InsiderNJ that Coughlin had not yet received a front office briefing.

"They're very disciplined over there," said the source of the Sherrill Administration. "A common theme is they play it very close to the vest."