CNBNews

Yesterday, Gov. Phil Murphy spoke about his plan to make college more affordable for students who enroll in one of New Jersey's public colleges and universities. The focus is four-year institutions, and there's 11 total, including Rutgers University and Rowan University. Under the plan outlined in his 2021 budget — which he delivered yesterday — families who earn under $65,000 per year would be able to send their teens to college for free. The plan would affect students who enroll next fall (2021) and later. (NorthJersey / NJ.com)

In a move that was called "unexpected" by The New York Times, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that it is putting a $19 million feasibility study on hold due to a lack of financial support. The federally-funded project was set up to investigate how to protect New Jersey and New York from the expensive and potentially — even likely — catastrophic impact of sea level rise. But on Twitter last month, President Donald Trump called one plan — a so-called sea wall — a "costly" and "foolish" idea that "probably won’t work anyway." (NJ.com)

More:

• Feds cut funding on studies to protect NJ from storm surge (NJ Spotlight)
• Van Drew supports town in FEMA storm repayment dispute (WHYY)
• U.S. Army Corps suspends sudy of NYC storm protections (Bloomberg)

The Centers for Disease Control is now urging Americans to anticipate the coronavirus — it's not a matter of if, but when, the agency said, and the first confirmed case of coronavirus (of unknown origin) in the U.S. was reported in northern California yesterday. The director of the Hudson Regional Health Commission, Carrie Nawrocki, explained it this way: “We’re not saying this is the end of the world and they should clear the shelves,” she said. "Our goal is to try to prevent sick people from leaving their houses.” (Jersey Journal)

One part of Gov. Phil Murphy's budget for the 2021 fiscal year tackles the toxic lead in our drinking water crisis, which infiltrates schools and homes through old pipes. The governor says the state should set aside $80 million to replace these pipes, though the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection wagers the job will cost $2.3 billion — yes, that's with a "b." (NJ Spotlight)