Good morning, Morristown.

Rite Aid announced on May 5 that it filed for bankruptcy for the second time in less than two years and secured $1.94 billion in financing to support store operations during the court-supervised process—store closures or transfer of ownership may follow as customers continue to access pharmacy services.

U.S. News & World Report ranked New Jersey No. 1 in education in its 2025 Best States rankings, with the state scoring in the top five for all pre-K-12 metrics.

The report used 71 metrics to evaluate health care, the economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, crime & corrections, and the natural environment.

Assemblyman DiMaio announced a legislative energy affordability task force today—made up of Assemblymen Alex Sauickie, Paul Kanitra, Christian Barranco and Michael Torrissi as well as Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia—to propose recommendations that will lower utility bills and increase energy supply amid rising costs.

Officials said the Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection awarded $75,267 to clients defrauded by NJ attorneys in 11 claims from January to March—disbarred Franklin Lakes attorney Martin S.

Fishman received the highest payout of $20,000.

The union for 372 NJ Transit locomotive engineers presented a new wage proposal on May 5, but NJ Transit’s CEO called it not serious as a potential strike looms on May 16 after a previous agreement was rejected by 87% of members.

Meanwhile, NJ Transit and Boxcar are adding bus routes—expected to cover about 20% of rail riders—to manage service disruptions if the engineers strike.