Roundtables

Cleaner air in New Jersey means the widespread adoption of cleaner fuels. But for that to happen, there needs to be an extensive infrastructure that can deliver these fuels to low-emission vehicles. Who builds it and how it gets built are just two of the questions explored in this roundtable.

Although the Affordable Care Act became law in March 2010, the first of the two most important dates in its development thus far has just been reached. On October 1, 2013, New Jersey residents became eligible to enroll for health coverage that will begin on January 1, 2014, through either the online health insurance marketplace or the newly expanded Medicaid program.

Superstorm Sandy made it dramatically clear that New Jersey's water and power infrastructure cannot sustain another extreme weather event. Indeed, they are sadly outdated for everyday use. Sandy was a wake-up call that is being heeded. This NJ Spotlight Conference explores how, as well as how much this gargantuan task is likely to cost.

This NJ Spotlight Roundtable came at a critical time for Camden's public schools: Gov. Chris Christie had just announced a state takeover of the district, and the city was about to become test case for the Urban Hope Act, which will bring in a host of new charter schools. This roundtable explored these tensions and shared sometimes contradictory visions of the future of public education both in Camden and the state.

Expanding Medicaid eligibility in New Jersey could add 225,000 or more residents to the state's healthcare rolls. The increased coverage will clearly benefit low-income children, individuals, and families, but it also raises a number of challenges for a broad spectrum of healthcare providers and experts. Those critical concerns were identified and assessed at the NJ Spotlight Roundtable: The Impact of Medicaid Expansion on New Jersey's Healthcare System.

In order to meet its ambitious goals for clean energy, New Jersey must rely increasingly on cleaner and greener sources of electricity, especially solar and wind power. Achieving that goal is expected to create a wealth of green jobs, ranging from engineers and developers to construction workers and system installer. It's also expected to be a very pricey proposition for all ratepayers -- consumers, businesses, and manufacturers.

New Jersey's overhaul of teacher tenure is now law, changing how educators are measured and evaluated -- as well as how they are rewarded and disciplined. This NJ Spotlight Roundtable Series brings together educators and key players to discuss progress so far, including the chief architect of the law, state Sen. Teresa Ruiz, and the director of education evaluation for the Christie administration, Timothy Matheney.

A high school diploma is supposed to ensure that a graduate is ready for college or a job. At this NJ Spotlight Roundtable, we explored whether New Jersey public schools are delivering on that promise, with state Education Commissioner Chris Cerf and a panel of educators and business leaders.

The Affordable Care Act holds the possibility of transforming healthcare in New Jersey -- ultimately insuring 500,000 New Jerseyans who are currently without coverage. But it's not going to happen automatically -- far from it. Gov. Chris Christie has already vetoed a bill establishing the first New Jersey health insurance exchange. That means everything is still to be determined ...

The second in a series of NJ Spotlight Roundtables with educators participating in the state's teacher evaluation pilot, the controversial framework for measuring the performance of teachers and principals in public schools. Teachers and administrators, discussed what they've learned so far, what issues they've encountered, what works, and what doesn't.

If New Jersey is ever going to embrace smart growth, advocates and stakeholders are first going to have to agree as to what it is.The Christie administration isn't waiting. It's overhauling the State Plan and is about to adopt a new investment strategy that it claims will spur economic growth while preserving New Jersey's remaining open spaces.

This NJ Spotlight roundtable gave attendees the chance to hear first-hand from the people who are working with New Jersey's pilot teacher evaluation program. Administration officials and participants in this Department of Education pilot -- which will make student performance a key measure of teacher effectiveness -- discussed what they've learned, what issues they've encountered, what works, and what doesn't.

Among the many questions explored in this roundtable: How can customers and small businesses make the best choices when it comes to signing with an alternative power supplier? What can policymakers do to make it a level playing field, ensuring third-party power suppliers can offer cheaper deals to ratepayers than those offered by the incumbent utilities?

Is natural gas the bridge that helps lower sky-high energy costs and provides an alternative fuel that begins to wean New Jersey off its reliance on oil? That's a complex question, with numerous ramifications. To explore possible answers NJ Spotlight assembled consumer advocates, environmentalists, businesspeople, and other stakeholders at a wide-ranging roundtable, The Role of Natural Gas in New Jersey's Energy Future.

It could cost as much as $20 billion to overhaul New Jersey's aging water infrastructure. Meanwhile, water purveyors face increasingly tough mandates to remove pollutants from drinking water. What does New Jersey need to do to tackle these problems before supplying residents with safe drinking water becomes a crisis?

If granted, New Jersey's application for a federal Comprehensive Medicaid Waiver will enable the state to better meet the needs of older adults and people with disabilities. But numerous implementation issues remain to be worked through. To investigate these complex issues, NJ Spotlight brought together state leaders, long-term care providers, and community advocates to discuss problems and possible solutions.

New Jersey has some of the highest electricity prices in the country, which some argue have become a drag on the economy and a reason for manufacturers and other large employers to leave the state. To investigate these complex issues, NJ Spotlight brought together policy makers and industry leaders to discuss problems and potential solutions.

Within two years, New Jersey is expected to be home to more than 100 charter schools. That makes this an ideal time to wrestle with the questions that have surrounded charters from their inception, including authorization, funding and enrollment.

The New Jersey coastline is being positioned as the future capital of offshore wind development on the Eastern Seaboard. Both the state and the federal governments have come up with programs to encourage offshore wind development, with the state creating economic incentives that it hopes will create a new manufacturing base in the Garden State.

New Jersey is one of the country's leaders in solar energy, with some of the most aggressive deployment goals of any state. But the program that has fostered this growth is changing, from rebate-driven to market-driven. Meanwhile, a new governor has called into question how much state funding will actually be available for solar projects.