Sciarra and Casey Call on Governor to Maintain Level of Tourism Appropriations in FY21 Budget

(Wildwood, NJ) – In anticipation of Governor Murphy proposing a new nine-month budget for the balance of FY21, Cape May County Freeholder Candidates Brendan Sciarra and Liz Casey issued the following statement calling on the Governor to retain the level of appropriations he proposed in February when he presented a full twelve-month budget for FY21:

“New Jersey tourism is a $43 billion industry employing 1 in 10 New Jersey residents,” said Sciarra. “Cape May County’s tourism sectors have suffered devastating losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, arguably more than anywhere else in the state. It is critical the Governor retain his pre-pandemic appropriations so employees and tourism related businesses can survive and help New Jersey’s economic recovery.”

The State of New Jersey is operating on a limited budget that extends until September 30^th. Back in February, the Governor presented a full twelve-month budget, pre-pandemic, in which appropriations were included that marked the first increases in ten years for Tourism, the Arts, and History.

“We call on the Governor to retain his pre-pandemic tourism, arts, and history appropriations and honor A3101, a bill he signed into law that stated new minimum appropriations for these sectors from their dedicated source of revenue, the NJ Hotel/Motel Occupancy Fee,” added Casey. “The Cape generates roughly $6 Billion in tourism revenue annually and sends over $500 Million in state and local taxes to Trenton every year, it’s time for a return on our investment. The future of our museums, galleries, attractions, hotels, campgrounds, restaurants, breweries and wineries depend upon it.”

Paid for by Sciarra and Casey for Freeholder PO Box 1551 Wildwood, NJ 08260