“If it gets lifted to $20,000, that’s really going to be inclusive to a lot more places,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a senior policy fellow at Rutgers University’s Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, who studies local government in New Jersey
News
The Future of Local News in New Jersey? It’s Adapting.
Rutgers Today, February 18, 2025 Rutgers policy expert Marc Pfeiffer discusses the decline of print, the rise of digital media, and what it means...
Pfeiffer Explores Public Policy and Surveillance Tech
Municipalities should have a sense of the technology’s costs (financial, societal, and reputational) versus its benefits. Financial costs include staff management time and storage fees; they will rise with the volume of data stored. Societal and reputational costs may come into play when deciding what physical locations warrant surveillance and if the technology is obvious or invisible to those affected by it.
Op-Ed: The future of New Jersey news is digital — and that’s OK
Earlier this month, I completed a report titled “The Future of New Jersey Journalism: Evolution, Not Extinction,” and it was recently released by the Center for Urban Policy Research at Rutgers’ Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy. In it, I discussed the current environment facing New Jersey journalism, and recommendations on how it can thrive. I also analyzed the current debate about advertising legal notices in newspapers.
NJ watchdog chief owns house in Maryland, teaches in D.C., votes in Tinton Falls
“In person meetings have a value, they provide upfront interaction with the people they represent. It allows more direct participation and provides nuance that can’t be seen or observed or happen when you are on a webinar,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a senior policy fellow at the Bloustein Local Government Center for Urban Policy Research at Rutgers University. “In person requires a little more formality. It requires a better sense of decorum, which is representative of the official nature of what is going on.”
Data shows reduced public participation under virtual-only Lakewood Township meetings
“In person meetings have a value, they provide upfront interaction with the people they represent. It allows more direct participation and provides nuance that can’t be seen or observed or happen when you are on a webinar,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a senior policy fellow at the Bloustein Local Government Center for Urban Policy Research at Rutgers University. “In person requires a little more formality. It requires a better sense of decorum, which is representative of the official nature of what is going on.”
Montclair Holiday Party to Honor Town Manager Raises Eyebrows
“On this surface, this appears to strike a balance. It’s something they’ve done before,” Pfeiffer said. The employees likely have been buffeted by management changes with the governing body changes over the last year. You always have some people who may not like the idea. But here, the phrase ‘don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good applies.”
Why are more and more local governments communicating through public relations firms?
“This is a property tax appeal,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a municipal finance expert and assistant director at the Bloustein Local Government Research Center at Rutgers University. It boils down to “what is the calculation for square footage.”
Residents want Lakewood Township Committee meetings to be in person again. Town says no.
“This is a property tax appeal,” said Marc Pfeiffer, a municipal finance expert and assistant director at the Bloustein Local Government Research Center at Rutgers University. It boils down to “what is the calculation for square footage.”
Pfeiffer Discusses Modernizing Legal Notice Requirements
Without a usable plan, you can’t manage your agency’s technology needs, resources, and risks. How you develop this plan depends on your specific circumstances, but it should balance spending, available time and effort, and competing priorities.
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