New Jersey

There's a constant clamor that the United States is falling behind in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) capabilities, but that's not really the problem, says a Rutgers University professor who is weighing in on the immigration debate now taking place in Washington. The problem, he said, is that various work visas are bringing in so many STEM workers from other countries who are willing to work for lower wages that U.S. STEM graduates either can't command the pay they expected or can't find jobs in their fields.

One of the most vexing legal questions raised by New Jersey's two-year-old anti-bullying law remains how to address incidents that occur online and off school grounds - including nights and weekends. Cyberbullying was the focus of a daylong conference Wednesday at Rutgers-Newark, where lawyers, scholars, educators, and others discussed the difficulties of drawing a legal line that determines if schools - or parents - are culpable. Enacted in 2011, the Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights states that schools must investigate incidents of online bullying if they disrupt or disturb the educational environment.

New Jersey is lagging in its efforts to promote clean energy and energy efficiency programs because of repeated raids on funding for the projects, according to environmentalists and industry advocates. Those concerns were underscored again Tuesday when the state Board of Public Utilities disclosed that it learned late last week that the Christie administration was planning to divert an additional $10 million in clean-energy funds to plug a gap in next year's state budget. That brings to more than $160 million the amount that may be appropriated from the program in the next fiscal year alone.

For all the recent flurry of proposals about gun safety from Gov. Christie and the Democratic-led Legislature, few have sought to change much in the places that have spurred much of the discussion: local schools. The Christie-appointed task force created after the Newtown, Conn., killings largely praised steps New Jersey schools and the state had taken to ensure student safety. Christie said in his package of gun safety proposals released Friday that he would leave further steps to local communities.

CHRISTIE CHRONICLES Gov. Christie's statements against the war on drugs have been given the auto-tune treatment from the Gregory Brothers (of Antoine Dodson fame). The video ( www.inquirer.com/ warondrugs), now circulating the interweb to mark the stoner holiday of April 20, is a mash-up of politicians - libertarian Rep. Ron Paul, Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and Republican Christie - making statements against the war on drugs. Christie's backup "singers" are famed New Jersey potheads Jay and Silent Bob, who are superimposed.

Following a concerted effort by New Jersey's Motor Vehicle Commission to ask every customer about organ donation, the number of registered donors in the state shot up last year. The number of people who registered as donors at MVC offices rose from 626,857 in 2011 to 713,702 in 2012, up 14 percent. In total, the number of registered donors in New Jersey went up by 4.5 percent during that time period to 2.4 million. The numbers were highlighted Thursday at a news conference at Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Camden, which performs organ transplants.

Powerball's jackpot is on a faster trajectory, and California could be the cause. Two weeks ago, the most populous state in the union joined Powerball, and immediately set a record, selling $8,408,180 million worth of tickets in its first three days. That's "an all-time record for any new Powerball member," according to a California Lottery news release. More sales mean faster growing jackpots. A week ago, the grand prize was $80 million, and the last six times that happened, five times it rose by the minimal increment, first to $90 million, then to $100 million.

The New Jersey Golden Gloves finals were held Saturday night at Newark's Prudential Center. The winners advanced to the national Golden Gloves tournament May 12-18 in Salt Lake City. Saturday's Results 123 pounds: Herkin DeLaRosa (Union City) def. Cesar Ventura (Face-Off Boxing). 132: Jahbrill Jauregul (N.P.F.C.) def. Justin Olmeda (Aspira). 141: Julian Rodriguez (Garden State Boxing) def. Bakhodir Karimov (Zealous Nation Boxing Gym). 152: Nathaniel Rivas (Victory B.C.)

Fourteen people were hospitalized after a Bolt Bus went off the highway Saturday afternoon around mile post 59 of I-295. Ten people were taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton and four were taken to Capital Health Regional Medical Center's Fuld Campus. The injuries appeared to be minor, police said. One northbound lane remained open as traffic slowed to a crawl. It was not immediately clear what caused the accident. The bus remained upright when it went down an embankment, State Police said.

Red-light cameras have mixed results in their brief history in New Jersey, with rear-end crashes up at camera-equipped intersections and right-angle crashes down, according to data gathered by the state Transportation Department. The Christie administration said Thursday it would permit no new installations of red-light cameras because the pilot program that began using them in 2009 will end next year. Red-light cameras have been controversial in New Jersey, Philadelphia, and elsewhere in the country.