To address the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Middlesex County was awarded $25 million in rental assistance aid available to Middlesex County citizens who meet the eligibility requirements.  The county program applications will be available Spring 2021.​

Perth Amboy renters are eligible for COVID-19 emergency rental relief if one or more individuals in their household mets these requirements-

• Qualifies for unemployment or has experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, or experienced a financial hardship due to COVID-19
• Demonstrates a risk of experiencing homelessness or housing instability, mainly documented by having an outstanding rental balance and/or eviction filing (Please note: Landlords may file for eviction during the moratorium, but cases are not heard.)
• Has a household income at or below 80 percent of the area median. Many renters in Perth Amboy will qualify. (Middlesex County Median Household Income is $88,217 and Perth Amboy Median Household income is $52, 563.) (Please note: Eligible households that include an individual who has been unemployed for 90 days prior to application for assistance and households with income at or below 50 percent of the area median are to be prioritized for assistance.)
  
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  Applications for grants from the COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Program may be submitted by a member of an eligible household or by a landlord on behalf of that eligible household.

Assistance funds can be spent on rent or utilities to provide limited temporary ongoing assistance, generally not to exceed a total of 12 months.

Perth Amboy residents have reported receiving phone calls from people saying they are from PSE&G and demanding immediate payment for overdue balances and threatening to shut service off. PSE&G and the Perth Amboy Police Dept have confirmed that these are scam calls.

PSE&G said scammers are trying to extract money from PSE&G customers by impersonating employees on the phone and in person.

PSE&G advised that customers should be alert to scam calls or visits. If you would like to confirm any requests for payment or shut off threats, you can call PSE&G directly at 1-800-436-7734.

Signs of scam activity include-

Threat to shut off your power- scammers aggressively say the bill is past due and demand payment immediately, even within an hour.

Request for immediate payment on a past due bill- scammers tell you to purchase a prepaid card, gift card or bitcoin and to call them back to supposedly made a phone payment to PSEG. Or they may say use a payment app to make an online payment. Or give instructions to meet in person , supposedly at a customer center. They say things like, your initial payment did not go through and you have to pay again. This is a scam.

In person demands- Someone coming to your house demanding payment. They may have a fake uniform. No PSEG rep asks for personal info. This is a scam.

Request for Personal Info- Never arrange payment or give out your account or personal information including social security number or debit or credit card information.

Priority meter installs- PSEG does not require a deposit for meter installations.

If you experience a scam call, email or visit, you should call the Perth Amboy Police Dept 732-324-3865 and file a report.

There was a bald eagle sighting in Bayview Park and by the Perth Amboy Marina on Sunday Jan 31 before the snowstorm hit. Perth Amboy Councilman BJ Torres saw the eagle take off from a tall tree in Bayview Park and then fly over Raritan Bay circling around by the marina before traveling up the Bay. He noticed its distinctive white head and tail clearly differentiating it from other birds of prey.

The NJ Department of Environmental Protection has reported that the bald eagle has made a remarkable come back in NJ. It has been reported that bald eagles nest in all 21 counties in NJ. Other Perth Amboy residents have also reported observing bald eagles along the waterfront.

The results of the Nov 20 VBM general election are that a runoff election for Perth Amboy Mayor and Council will occur because no candidate received the required 50% plus 1 of the votes.  Perth Amboy voters passed a law that requires a candidate to get a majority of votes to win for municipal office. The runoff for Mayor will be between Mayor Wilda Diaz and Councilman/Democratic Party Chair Helmin Caba. The runoff for City Council will be between the Caba Slate of Rose Morales and BJ Torres and the Diaz Slate of Junior Iglesias and Bernadette Falcon.

The Perth Amboy Runoff Election will be vote by mail, with ballots mailed out again like the general election. Ballots will be mailed out soon and will be due by Dec 15^th.