TRENTON-New Jersey ranks last in the nation in women's political participation, according to a national study that also reports mixed results for women in social, economic, health and rights categories.

The latest Status of Women in the States report was just released by the Institute for Women's Policy Research (IWPR). The IWPR report measures the quality of life for women in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, using government and original data. The report grades states from A to F in women's political participation, employment and earnings, economic autonomy, reproductive rights and health. New Jersey Policy Perspective released the report in the state.

New Jersey's ranking in political participation was a drop from 49th in 2002. The category measures voter registration, voter participation, available resources and elected offices held by women. Although 63 percent of New Jersey women are registered to vote, only 45 percent did so in 1998 and 2000. In the area of women elected to state and federal office, New Jersey ranks 48th, down from 44th in 2002. With regard to institutional resources available to women-for example, women's commissions and political caucuses working on women's issues-New Jersey ranked 31st.

"More than 80 years after women got the right to vote they haven't won full participation in New Jersey's political life," said NJPP President Jon Shure. "An F grade shows New Jersey has far to go."

Key Indicators in New Jersey
Indicator	Rank / Grade 2004	Rank / Grade 2002
Political Participation*	50 / F	49 / F
Employment and Earnings	8 / B	13 / B-
Social and Economic Autonomy	11 / B-	13 / B-
Reproductive Rights	4 / A-	6 / B+
Health and Well-Being	21 / C+	24 / C+

"New Jersey's continued commitment to gauging women's economic, political, and social status will ultimately benefit all members of our society," says Dr. Heidi Hartmann, President and CEO of IWPR. "Clearly tremendous progress has been made over the years, but partial equality is not good enough. We must continue to encourage and implement policies that will put women's status on a par with men's."

New Jersey's ranking in other areas improved since 2002, but there are still notable areas of concern. For example, though New Jersey ranks third in median annual earnings for women employed full-time ($35,800), women in New Jersey earn only 76.2 percent of what men in the state earn-21st in the nation.

And in the category of women's health and well-being, New Jersey ranks worse than the national average in mortality due to heart disease, lung cancer, and breast cancer and has higher incidences than average of diabetes and AIDS.

In the category of social and economic autonomy, the report shows that 15 percent of women in New Jersey do not have health insurance and 9 percent of women live in poverty. Additionally, 27 percent of women have four or more years of college but only 24 percent of businesses are women-owned.

New Jersey ranks 4th in the nation in reproductive rights, attributable to several factors including that 97 percent of women live in counties with at least one abortion provider. In addition, New Jersey law mandates that insurance companies cover infertility treatment, and the state has mandatory sex education.

Dr. Hartmann founded IWPR in 1987 as a nonprofit public policy research organization dedicated to informing and stimulating debate on public policy issues of critical importance to women and their families. Washington-based IWPR focuses on issues that affect women's daily lives, including employment, earnings, and economic change; democracy and society; poverty, welfare, and income security; work and family policies; and health and safety.

The full Status of Women in the States report is available from IWPR at http://www.iwpr.org/States2004/

TAX REFORM

WORK & WAGES

BUDGET & FISCAL POLICY

TRANSIT ISSUES

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

VOTING & GOVT REFORM

© 2008 New Jersey Policy Perspective