A New Jersey court has upheld the state’s sweeping affordable housing mandate, dismissing a lawsuit from 27 municipalities that sought to overturn the law. The ruling marks a significant win for housing advocates and Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration, which has pushed to expand access to affordable homes across the state.
In a Sept. 30 decision, Mercer County Judge Robert Lougy ruled that the municipalities’ complaints “fail to state a legal claim,” effectively affirming the 2024 state law’s constitutionality. The law aims to enforce New Jersey’s long-standing Mount Laurel Doctrine, a 50-year-old constitutional principle requiring every municipality to “provide its fair share of affordable housing.”
The measure, signed into law as S-50, establishes new guidelines and deadlines for municipalities to meet their affordable housing obligations based on population changes each decade.
“This ruling reaffirms our commitment to ensuring every community in New Jersey contributes to solving the housing crisis,” Gov. Phil Murphy said when signing the law last year. “By establishing new processes and practices for towns to meet their Mount Laurel obligations, we are able to more quickly and efficiently allocate funding to municipalities and support those building affordable housing in our state.”
However, local leaders argue the state has overstepped. Montvale Mayor Mike Ghassali voiced his opposition and promised to appeal the ruling.
“The trial court’s rogue decision held that municipalities and mayors cannot even challenge the affordable housing process because it is optional,” Ghassali said. “We are appealing because there is nothing optional about mandating hundreds of thousands of new units in our communities.”
Ghassali, who has been one of the most vocal opponents of the policy, described the ruling as part of a broader fight against what he calls “50 years of disastrous Mount Laurel Doctrine law.”
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“Our consortium of over 30 municipalities, representing over half a million New Jerseyans, looks forward to bringing this case to the Appellate Division while continuing our equal protection challenge in federal district court,” he added.
Supporters of the law say it represents long-overdue progress in a state grappling with an affordable housing shortfall of roughly 200,000 units. They argue that decades of local zoning restrictions have blocked the development of affordable homes in suburban and high-opportunity areas.
State Sen. Troy Singleton, one of the bill’s sponsors, praised the court’s decision and emphasized the collaborative process behind the legislation.
“S-50 was crafted with input from all relevant parties in a respectful effort to work with municipalities and give them the tools and support they need to fulfill their affordable housing obligations,” Singleton said. “A vast majority of towns have participated in the process and accepted their reasonable obligations – far more than at any other point in the past five decades of Mount Laurel.”
While the court’s decision allows the state’s affordable housing framework to move forward, it also sets the stage for a lengthy appellate battle. The coalition of cities has vowed to pursue the case through higher courts, arguing that the law imposes unrealistic housing quotas and infringes on local control.
For now, New Jersey officials and housing advocates are moving ahead, positioning the ruling as a major step toward closing the state’s persistent housing gap and promoting greater equity in development.
Originally reported by Ryan Kushner in Construction Dive.
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