N.J.’s Murphy Touts Budget, Upgrade in Quest for Better Credit

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said he will meet with the three major credit-rating companies next week to advocate for further improvements after the state’s first upgrade since 2005.

“I hope it’s the first step, whether it’s this year, or in the years ahead, of many steps,” Murphy said in a telephone interview Wednesday, a day after introducing a record $48.9 billion annual budget. “This is not just some sort of subjective opinion, but it has a dollars-and-cents, bottom-line impact on taxpayers.”

Phil Murphy

Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Better credit lowers borrowing costs. Only Illinois has a worse credit rating than New Jersey among U.S. ...