LONG BRANCH — Gov.-elect Phil Murphy has tapped a longtime administrator in the Environmental Protection Agency as the state's next Department of Environmental Protection commissioner.

Catherine McCabe worked as acting administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in January and February, after nearly 12 years there. She also served as regional EPA administrator for an area including New Jersey and New York.

TRANSPORTATION: Murphy names DOT commish, slams NJ Transit

FIRST: Bergen prosecutor to become U.S.'s first Sikh attorney general

"Strong environmental protection and good economic planning and development can and must go hand-in-hand," Murphy said at a news conference in Long Branch. "It is up to us to work to create better, more sustainable projects that both respect our environment and grow our economy. And we need to do both urgently."

Before joining the EPA, McCabe spent 22 years at the Justice Department, working mostly in its Environment and Natural Resources Division. She also served as assistant attorney general for New York.

McCabe, a New York native, said she experienced superstorm Sandy firsthand: She detailed removing buckets of sand from her family's home in Ocean City after the storm.

"New Jersey was an early and progressive leader in environmental protection," McCabe said. "It is time for New Jersey to lead again. Climate change is clearly happening ... but in recent years, we have seen first-hand the increasing frequency and violence of coastal storms and flooding."

McCabe's appointment is the latest in a series of rapid-fire names added to Murphy's cabinet just three weeks from his inauguration.

To date, Murphy has named:

McCabe's nomination was praised by environmentalists and activists, with Sierra Club of New Jersey president Jeff Tittel hailing her as someone who will "put some force back into the enforcement of the DEP.

"She is a professional and a straight shooter that doesn’t play politics. This is exactly what New Jersey needs after eight years of the Christie administration debacle," Tittel said in a statement.

In a news release, Murphy's transition team included a statement from former EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, who also served as DEP commissioner and chief of staff to former Gov. Jon Corzine,

"She has the skills and experience the department needs right now,” Jackson said. "She understands the urgency of building resiliency, the importance of enforcement and environmental justice, and the promise that renewable energy holds to both power a diverse and growing economy and fight climate change."

Murphy has also used the introduction of cabinet members as a platform to criticize the Republican tax overhaul, which was signed into law on Wednesday. In light of the bill, Gov. Chris Christie called for legislators to lift a $10,000 cap on property tax deductions from state income taxes.

On the federal level, such deductions were previously unlimited but the new tax bill caps them at $10,000.

Murphy said the idea was worth considering, but was skeptical due to its last-minute nature.

"This might have been a good idea to be talking about over the last several years as opposed to a rush to judgment over the next few days. But it’s not a crazy idea," Murphy said. "Whether it’s our legal options questioning constitutionality, our creative juices, working with other states, reassessing and reviewing the notion of how we’re taxed and how people pay for things in this state and how those are classified – all of those have to be on the table, and then some.”

Mike Davis: 732-643-4223; mdavis@gannettnj.com