Government of New Jersey

The Government of New Jersey is guarded and established by the New Jersey State Constitution. New Jersey became a 3rd state of the United States on December 18, 1787 ^[1]. The government of New Jersey is divided into three distinct branches, namely the Executive branch, the Legislative branch and the Judicial branch.

New Jersey Executive Branch

The New Jersey Executive Branch is a well functioning body of the government of New Jersey and several state government departments work under the executive branch. Executive branch comprises of 18 departments and 56 agencies. The Governor of New Jersey leads the executive branch of the government as the chief executive head.

Under the Constitution of New Jersey-

The governor of New Jersey also has the power to forbid the law enacted by the state legislature and can also cancel certain particular provisions in the bill.
The Governor has the right to appoint 2 constitutionally elected officers with the senate's approval and consent. The two officers include the Secretary of State of New Jersey and the New Jersey Attorney General.
All superior court judges and county prosecutors are also appointed by the governor.

The Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey serves as President of the State Senate, and next in line to serve as acting governor in the governor's absence from the state, disability of the governor, unfortunate event of governor's death, resignation or terminated due to impeachment.

Contact Details:

Office of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor
PO Box 001
Trenton, NJ 08625
Phone: 609-292-6000
Website: http://www.state.nj.us/governor/index.shtml

The other elected executive officers of New Jersey are-

Attorney General

The Attorney General is the highest ranking law enforcement officer for the state. He/she is the head of the Department of Law, and is regarded as the State's chief legal officer.

Contact Details:
Office of the Attorney General
RJ Hughes Justice Complex
25 Market Street, Box 080
Trenton, NJ 08625-0080
Phone: 609-292-4925
Website: http://www.nj.gov/oag/

State Comptroller

State Comptroller is the State’s chief fiscal officer and he/she has the responsibility to ensure that tax payers' money is used effectively and genuinely by the State and local governments for the upliftment of the state.

Office of the State Comptroller
P.O. Box 024
Trenton, NJ 08625
Website: http://www.nj.gov/comptroller/index.shtml

State Treasurer

The State Treasurer is responsible to efficiently manage the finances and public resources. The Treasurer also has the responsibility to overview cash management, debt management, pension funds etc. of the state.

Department of the Treasury
P. O. Box 002
Trenton, NJ 08625-0002
Phone: 609-292-6748
Website: http://www.state.nj.us/treasury/index.shtml

New Jersey Department of State
P.O. Box 300
Trenton, NJ 08625
Email: Feedback@sos.state.nj.us
Website: http://www.nj.gov/state/

New Jersey Legislative Branch

New Jersey State Legislature is the body of the state government of New Jersey which is divided into two separate houses, namely General Assembly and New Jersey Senate. All legislators must reside in their respective districts they represent. The two legislatures meet in the Legislative Building at the New Jersey Capitol in Trenton.

Contact Office of Legislative Services:
Office of Public Information
Room 50
State House Annex
P.O. Box 068
Trenton, NJ 08625-0068
Phone: 609-847-3905
Toll Free 800-792-8630
Hearing impaired: Dial 711 for NJ Relay

The New Jersey State Senate is the upper house of the state legislature and consists of 40 state senators ^[2]. Each senator is elected for four-year terms. The senate members must be minimum 30 years of age and must reside in the state for 4 years before the election.

Contact New Jersey Senate
State House
P.O. Box 099
Trenton, NJ 08625-0099

The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey legislature, consisting of 80 members elected for a term of two years. All assembly’s members must be minimum 21 years of age and also must be the resident of the state for 2 years^[2].

Contact New Jersey General Assembly
State House
P.O. Box 098
Trenton, NJ 08625-0098

New Jersey Judiciary Branch

Under the New Jersey Constitution, the Judiciary branch applies and interprets laws and regulations to ensure justice in the state. The judicial system of New Jersey is served by numerous efficient professionally trained judges. The courts in state consist of Supreme Court; Superior Court, Appellate Division; Superior Court; Municipal Courts and Tax Court.

The Supreme and Superior courts judges are appointed by the governor with the approval of the senate. The judges are appointed for seven-year terms and may be re-appointed, after which they have the liability to serve till 70 years of age.

Supreme Court

The Supreme Court is the court of highest appeal or the court of last resort. The Supreme Court consists of a Chief Justice and 6 Associate Justices. The Chief Justice leads the court system and also oversees and ensures proper functioning of all the state’s courts. This court handles and hears major cases. The court also has the exclusive judicial powers over death penalty cases, appeals against state or government officers, criminal and civil matters and reviews all the decisions of the lower and intermediate courts.

Contact Supreme Court Clerk's Office
P.O. Box 970
Trenton, NJ, 08625

Superior Court

New Jersey Superior Court is a court of trials and categorized into-

The Appellate division
The Law division
The Chancery division

The Superior Court, Appellate Division is the state's intermediate Appellate Court. The appellate division comprises of 32 judges and they sit in 2 and 3 judge panels who are selected from parts consisting of 4 judges. The appellate division hears appeals from decisions of the tax courts, the trials Court and State agencies.
Law division hears appeals of lower courts and state agencies.
Chancery division comprises of a Family division and a General Equity Division.

Contact the Office of the Superior Court Clerk
Michelle M. Smith, Esq., Clerk
Richard J. Hughes Justice Complex
25 W. Market Street, 6th Floor North Wing
P.O. Box 971
Trenton, NJ 08625
Phone: 609-421-6100
Fax: 609-292-6564
Appellate Information Email: .Mailbox@Judiciary.state.nj.us.

Tax Court

The Tax Court is a limited jurisdiction court. All appeals made from tax court are forwarded and heard in the Superior court, Appellate division. The judges of Tax Court review tax decisions made by County Boards of Taxation and also review decisions made by the Director of the Division of Taxation. The court handles cases related to sales and business tax, state income, and homestead rebates.

Contact Tax Court Management Office
P.O. Box 972,
Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0972
Phone numbers: 609-292-5082 or 609-292-6989

Municipal Courts

The Municipal Courts handle daily minor issues, such as simple traffic tickets, small civil cases, minor criminal offenses. Other major cases are forwarded from the municipal courts to the Superior Courts in the county.

Also read: List of Municipal Courts in the State

Administrative Offices of the Courts:

Supreme Court - 8th Floor
Tax Court - 7th Floor
Office of the Superior Court Clerk - 6th Floor
Appellate Division Clerk's Office - 5th Floor

Learn more: New Jersey Judiciary Branch

New Jersey Taxation

The New Jersey department of the Treasury manages and administers a standard tax laws in the state. Tax laws include entire laws and taxes on income, sales, property, luxury, bingo, and estate. The type of income tax system implemented in New Jersey is a progressive structure in which the tax rate depends on taxable base amount.
tax

Important Tax Rates: ^[3]

Sales and Use Tax Rate: 7%
Gross Income Tax Rate: 1.4% – 8.97%
Corporation Tax Rates:

-Taxpayers with Entire Net Income greater than $100,000 - 9%
-Taxpayers with Entire Net Income greater than $50,000 and less than or equal to $100,000 - 7.5%
-For taxpayers with Entire Net Income of $50,000 or less - 6.5%

New Jersey State Departments

Several state departments, under the leadership of the governor of New Jersey, operate to ensure progress and development of the state.Some of the main state departments of New Jersey are:

New Jersey Department of Education

The New Jersey State Board of Education operates to improve the public education system and also to enhance student academic achievements and outputs. The department’s mission is to provide world class education and best values to the students to ensure success in education, workplace and in every spheres of life. The state board of education consists of 13 members, all are elected by the Governor with the approval of the state Senate.

Contact Details:
NJ Department of Education
PO Box 500, Trenton NJ
Phone: 08625-0500, (877)900-6960
Website: http://www.state.nj.us/education/

More Contact Details

New Jersey Department of Transportation

New Jersey State Department of Transportation (NJDOT) overviews the entire transportation network of the state to ensure safe and easy commuting of people and goods. NJDOT owns, manages and maintains numerous lane-miles of roadway, bridges, tunnels, rails and also responsible for air and water quality, communities and roadsides.

Contact Details:
Department of Transportation
David J. Goldberg Transportation Complex
1035 Parkway Avenue
Trenton, NJ 08625
Phone: 08625-0600
Website: http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/

New Jersey Department of Health

New Jersey Department of Health works efficiently to improve the health and living standards of the community by implementing many health regulating services and policies. The health department also has its sub divisions which provide all vital records and health statistics of the state. The health department also focuses on community and environmental health so that people lives a healthy life.

Contact Details:
DOH Main Building
369 South Warren Street
Trenton, NJ
Phone: 08625-0360 or 08608-2308
Website: http://www.state.nj.us/health/

New Jersey Department of Agriculture

New York Department of Agriculture was created in 1916 and oversees all areas of agriculture covering all aspects of livestock market, livestock brands, livestock dealers, fertilizer, seed, and feed. The Department’s has also its main focus to promote and safeguard the Garden State’s varied agriculture and agribusiness industries.

Contact Details:
Department of Agriculture
P.O. Box 330,
Trenton, NJ 08625
Website: http://www.state.nj.us/agriculture/index.shtml

Phone Directories:

Office of the Secretary - (609) 292-3976
Public Information Office- (609) 292-8896
Division of Agricultural and Natural Resources - (609) 292-5532
Division of Animal Health - (609) 671-6400
Division of Food and Nutrition - (609) 984-1439
Division of Marketing and Development - (609) 292-5536
Division of Plant Industry - (609) 406-6939
National Agricultural Statistics Service - (609) 292-6385
State Agriculture Development Committee - (609) 984-2504

New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs

New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs is a significant department which serves as a guardian of the state. The department operates as the homeland defense, homeland security, and emergency mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery activities to protect the citizens of New Jersey, their property and the environment. The department encompasses New Jersey Army National Guard, New Jersey Air National Guard and New Jersey Veterans Affairs.

Contact Details:
Department of Military & Veterans Affairs
P.O. Box 340
Trenton, NJ
Phone: 08625-0340
Website: http://www.state.nj.us/military/

References:

New Jersey State Guide

New Jersey Legislative Branch

New Jersey Tax Rates