Here is The Jersey Bee’s top news for New Jersey for the week ending Aug. 21, 2026.
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TOP NEWS
SmartLink and MetroCards will no longer be accepted at PATH train systems starting Sep. 1, according to the Port Authority of NY and NJ. People can pay for their PATH rides with credit cards, digital wallets, or TAPP cards.
Gothamist
Adults who have been affected by the criminal justice system can apply to “Reentry Rebuild Rise,” a free career readiness program. It begins Sep. 1. Participants are paired with a case manager and career readiness coach, and then introduced to employers. Open to people on parole, probation, pre-trial intervention, intensive supervision program, family court involved, or those who have been formerly incarcerated. Applications are available online. Add to 📅.
Reentry Rebuild Rise
Youth Power Summit for ages 14-25 planned with N.J. Institute for Social Justice on Sep. 19 at Rutgers-Newark. It is from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. There will be civic workshops and discussions around building collective youth power. Registration is required. Add to 📅.
New Jersey Institute for Social Justice
Lakeland Bank will remain under court oversight until September 2027 after it engaged in redlining in Newark, according to a recent ruling by U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi. The ruling comes after the federal government attempted to end the bank’s five-year consent decree, which Lakeland agreed to in 2022 to resolve allegations of intentional discriminatory practices. Cecchi said that Lakeland must still establish a $12 million subsidy fund for people seeking a mortgage, improvement, and refinance loans.
New Jersey Monitor
More than 300 N.J. truck drivers will share $2.2 million from a recent lawsuit settlement, according to N.J. state officials. New Jersey sued Newark-based companies STG Logistics Inc. and STG Drayage LLC in 2023 because they misclassified drivers as independent contractors instead of staff employees. The misclassification means workers did not receive appropriate wages, benefits, and other job protections. It marks the state’s first Superior Court misclassification case, according to Acting Labor Commissioner Kevin Jarvis.
Patch-Newark
Social media platforms will no longer be able to collect data from N.J. minors for algorithm and content recommendations, according to a new law signed by Gov. Mikie Sherrill. The New Jersey Kids Code Act also limits the discoverability of children’s accounts, including through search engines. Under the law, social media platforms are also prohibited from sending notifications to minors from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on school days between Labor Day and Memorial Day, and from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. all year. The law also directs a four-year state university to establish a research center by the fall to study social media addiction. The law goes into effect in September 2027.
NJ Spotlight News
