NJ lawmakers steered $1 million to for-profit nursing home in state budget

The appropriation for Complete Care at Shorrock Gardens does not explain how the money will be spent.

New Jersey lawmakers quietly added $1 million to the state budget for a privately owned, for-profit nursing home in Brick Township before Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed the spending bill into law, according to records reviewed by The Jersey Vindicator.

The state budget identifies the recipient only as “Shorrock Gardens,” a name that someone unfamiliar with the facility could easily assume referred to a botanical garden or other public space. In fact, the recipient is a for-profit, 180-bed nursing home in Brick Township that operates as Complete Care at Shorrock Gardens.

A Vindicator analysis of state campaign-finance records found that Complete Care, people affiliated with the company and related businesses contributed more to New Jersey political campaigns, committees, and the nursing home industry’s political action committee in 2025 and 2026 than people and businesses affiliated with any other nursing home operator identified in the records. The group contributed more than $130,000 to candidates and party committees and more than $90,000 to the nursing home industry’s political action committee, the NJ Health Care PAC.

Senate President Nicholas Scutari and Assemblyman Avi Schnall, both Democrats, requested the funding for Shorrock Gardens through a legislative budget resolution during the home stretch of budget negotiations in June. Assemblyman Kevin Egan, also a Democrat, signed on as an additional sponsor.

None of the three lawmakers represents Brick Township, which is in the 10th Legislative District. Brick is represented by Republican Sen. James Holzapfel and Republican Assemblymen Gregory McGuckin and Paul Kanitra.

Resolution 1452, one of the last dozen resolutions added to the budget, requested a new $1 million line item called “Shorrock Gardens — Capital Expenditures.” Neither the resolution nor the final budget identifies what will be built, repaired, or purchased with the $1 million. The one-page request contains no explanation of the project, and its sponsors submitted no additional information or background material.

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The budget bill containing the appropriation was introduced June 28, just two days before lawmakers approved it and Sherrill signed it. The fiscal year 2027 budget took effect July 1.

Sherrill could have removed the appropriation using her line-item veto authority. Her office did not explain why she allowed it to remain in the budget or what the money is intended to pay for.

Questions, but no answers

Contacted by The Vindicator last week, a representative for the governor’s office said the money had not been released and that state agencies were reviewing the appropriation to determine whether a grant agreement would be required. The governor’s office referred all questions about the purpose of the funding to legislators.

“New Jersey state agencies carefully review every line item added to the budget and are continuing to complete the required review and establish any necessary grant agreements. No funding associated with this line item has been disbursed,” a representative for the governor’s office said in a written statement. “As this was a legislative add-on, questions about the appropriation’s intended purpose should be directed to its legislative sponsors.”

The Jersey Vindicator contacted the offices of Scutari, Schnall and Egan by email last week and by telephone this week to ask why they requested the grant, what the nursing home plans to do with the money, and how the company qualifies for the funding as a for-profit business.

As of press time, none of the legislators had responded. A representative for Scutari’s office, reached by phone Monday, said a response would be provided by the end of the day, but The Vindicator never received one.

On Tuesday, The Vindicator also reached out to the media representative for Complete Care seeking information about what the grant is for. The Vindicator asked if Shalom “Sam” Stein, the founder and CEO of Complete Care Management, might be willing to comment or issue a statement. Late Wednesday afternoon, The Vindicator was told the media representative was “unable to connect with the client” and there was no information to share.

Questions about public purpose

The unusual grant raises questions about why New Jersey taxpayers would finance capital expenses at a privately owned, for-profit nursing home and how the appropriation fits within constitutional restrictions on using public money to benefit private entities.

The Legislature routinely adds grants for municipalities, nonprofit organizations, schools and community projects as budget line items during negotiations through a process that has often been criticized for its lack of transparency. But directing money from the budget to a for-profit business is highly unusual, several government sources told The Vindicator.

New Jersey’s gift clause, in Article VIII, Section III, Paragraph 3 of the New Jersey Constitution, states: “No donation of land or appropriation of money shall be made by the State or any county or municipal corporation to or for the use of any society, association or corporation whatever.”

The prohibition is not absolute. New Jersey courts have held that public money may be used in a way that also benefits a private entity if the expenditure primarily serves a public purpose. Courts consider factors including whether the government receives something of value in return and whether sufficient controls ensure the money is used for a public objective.

New Jersey nursing homes already receive substantial public funding through Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements. Those payments compensate facilities for caring for eligible residents rather than providing capital funding directly to a particular privately owned facility.

What public purpose the Shorrock Gardens appropriation is intended to serve is unclear from the information released by the state. The lawmakers’ request does not explain the project, identify its intended public benefit, or specify conditions governing how the money would be used.

It is also unclear whether the money is intended for renovations that have already occurred or for future work. Shorrock’s website describes the nursing home as a newly renovated facility and advertises modernized patient rooms, upgraded common areas, specialized clinical spaces, and a refurbished rehabilitation gym.

The legislative budget request and the final budget do not explain whether the $1 million is intended to pay for additional work, reimburse expenses associated with previous renovations, or finance some other capital project. It is also unclear how the expenditure would serve a broader public purpose. So far no one is willing to comment or explain this.

Complete Care at Shorrock Gardens is classified by the federal government as a for-profit limited liability company. The New Jersey Department of Health identifies Complete Care at Shorrock LLC as the facility’s licensed owner and lists EEF Capital LLC and Peace Capital LLC as its officers.

Like many for-profit nursing homes, Shorrock operates through a network of related companies. One operates the nursing home, another owns the real estate, and a third manages the business.

Complete Care at Shorrock LLC, the company that operates the nursing home, reported $22.8 million in revenue in 2025, according to its audited financial statements. The company reported $22.4 million in operating expenses and $446,409 in net earnings for the year. The financial statements also report that the company distributed $650,000 in equity to its member during 2025, but do not identify the member by name.

Much of the facility’s revenue came from publicly funded health care programs. About 45% came from Medicaid and Medicaid managed care organizations, while about 31% came from Medicare, according to the financial statements. A separate 2025 revenue statement provides a more detailed breakdown of the facility’s $22.8 million in revenue.

The nursing home also paid millions of dollars to related companies.

Its 2025 Medicare cost report identifies Realty Shorrock as a related real estate business associated with the facility. The report lists Peace Capital LLC with a 59% interest in Realty Shorrock, EEF Capital LLC with a 40% interest, and Malka Stein with a 1% interest.

The same report identifies Complete Care Management as the company that manages the facility and lists Peace Cap Holdings as having a 100% interest in the management company.

Shorrock recorded about $3.4 million in operating lease costs for the nursing home, which it leases from a related company, and $1.15 million in management fees to the related management company in 2025, according to the audited financial statements. Together, those expenses totaled about $4.6 million, equivalent to roughly 20% of the nursing home’s annual revenue.

The financial relationships extend beyond rent and management fees. At the end of 2025, Complete Care at Shorrock LLC owed $16.3 million to affiliated companies controlled by members of its parent company, including $1.8 million owed to the related management company. At the same time, affiliated companies owed Shorrock $14.3 million. The financial statements say those loans do not bear interest and have no formal repayment plan.

Related-party payments are not necessarily all profits. The real estate and management companies have their own expenses. But the arrangement means the nursing home operating company’s reported profit or loss does not capture all of the money flowing among companies in the related business network.

Political contributions

Complete Care is a for-profit nursing home chain with 48 locations in New Jersey a total of about 85 affiliated nursing homes in eight states, according to federal data and company materials.

Stein, Complete Care Management and other people associated with the company have contributed to both Democratic and Republican New Jersey candidates, party organizations and political action committees, according to state campaign-finance records reviewed by The Vindicator.

On April 17, Stein contributed $10,000 to the Union County Democratic Committee. Scutari, one of the lawmakers who requested the $1 million appropriation, is chairman of the county Democratic organization. Stein also contributed $2,600 directly to Scutari’s campaign in March 2022.

Stein lives in Schnall’s legislative district and has longstanding business, charitable and community ties to the Lakewood community. Among the many causes he has championed and donated to, Stein has supported Yahalom, an Agudath Israel program that assists families of children with special needs. Schnall, who became the chief operating officer of Agudath Israel of America in March, previously served as the director of Agudath Israel’s New Jersey office for 10 years.

On June 30, 2026, Stein contributed $2,500 to Schnall’s campaign, according to Election Law Enforcement Commission records.

Complete Care Management itself has also made political contributions. Campaign-finance records show the company contributed $5,000 to Democratic state Sen. Paul Sarlo in June 2025 and $2,000 to Republican state Sen. Robert Singer the following month.

The political giving extends beyond Stein and the management company.

Other people and entities associated with Complete Care facilities have contributed directly to candidates and through the New Jersey Health Care PAC, a political action committee funded by nursing home owners and operators.

Stein contributed $15,200 to the NJ Health Care PAC in October 2025 through Peace Capital LLC and another $12,500 in February 2026 through Hales Corner Propco LLC, according to campaign-finance records. His wife, Malka Stein, made contributions in the same amounts on the same dates.

Other nursing home figures associated with Complete Care facilities contributed alongside them.

On Feb. 4, 2026, Stein, Malka Stein and two associates tied to Complete Care, Jacob Klugman and Daniel Sternbuch, each contributed $12,500 to the PAC, for a combined $50,000 in a single day. Campaign-finance records list Hales Corner Propco LLC with all four of their contributions.

In October 2025, Stein and Sternbuch each contributed $15,200 through Peace Capital LLC. Malka Stein contributed the same amount that day, although campaign-finance records list a different employer for her contribution.

Those contributions went into the NJ Health Care PAC. The PAC then made its own, separate political contributions.

Campaign-finance records reviewed by The Vindicator show the PAC contributed $7,600 to Scutari’s campaign committee in 2025. The PAC also contributed $17,000 to Schnall’s campaign committee between 2024 and 2026, including a $15,000 contribution in October 2025. Other recipients included Democratic lawmakers Gary Schaer and Joseph Lagana and Democratic Assembly members Margie Donlon and Luanne Peterpaul.

The nursing home PAC has also given substantial sums to two PACs tied to Sherrill.

In October 2025, the NJ Health Care PAC contributed $100,000 to One Giant Leap PAC, a super PAC that supported Sherrill’s campaign for governor. The PAC contributed another $100,000 in February 2026 to Mission to Deliver, Sherrill’s federal leadership PAC, according to a Vindicator review of campaign-finance records.