Gov. Phil Murphy publicly called out New Jersey’s top state lawmaker Wednesday for not taking action on gun control policy as their battle over the state budget continues to boil.

Murphy chastised state Senate President Stephen Sweeney, a fellow Democrat, for scheduling votes Thursday on a few parts, but not all, of a package of bills that would further tighten the Garden State’s gun control laws.

And the governor criticized Sweeney removing his plan to increase gun fees from the state budget that the Democratic-controlled state Legislature is preparing to pass Thursday.

Murphy made the comments at a news conference in Westfield, where a 46-year-old Delaware man was arrested last week when he was found with a loaded gun and 100 rounds of ammunition outside a school.

“The Senate president can do the right thing by moving the entire gun safety package," Murphy said during the event at Westfield’s town hall. "I urge him to do so — the whole package, by the way, not just a few cherry-picked bills.”

“The time for piecemeal legislation ended when the time of thoughts and prayers ended," the governor added. "The time for bold, comprehensive action is right here and right now.”

The remarks were unusual for Murphy, who is often more mild-mannered and unwilling to quarrel in public, even as he and Sweeney frequently disagreed on issues over the last 18 months.

But the comments come as the governor and top lawmakers clash over how to fund the state government with only 11 days left until the deadline for a budget to be enacted.

With that fight casting a shadow over everything in Trenton, the Assembly is scheduled to vote Thursday the full package of 13 gun-control bills.

The Senate is scheduled to vote on eight of them, including a high-profile proposal that would require requiring every firearms retailer in New Jersey to offer a personalized “smart-gun” handgun model for sale. Sweeney, D-Gloucester, decides which measures come up for a vote in the Senate.

Murphy said the most important bill being left out is one (A5455) that would require places that sell handgun ammunition in New Jersey to track their sales and report them to the State Police, as well as mandating they make sure people who buy the the ammunition are 21 years old.

The governor said this would “tighten loopholes” to make the state safer.

“With what we saw in this community last week, there’s no reason not to pass this bill,” Murphy said in Westfield.

Sweeney told NJ Advance Media on Wednesday he hasn’t spoken to the Assembly about the gun bills.

“We have the toughest gun laws in the nation by far,” the Senate president said. “There are some things I’m willing to work on.”

Meanwhile, the Legislature is prepared to pass a state budget Thursday that’s at odds with the governor.

It does not include Murphy’s proposal to raise income taxes on millionaires, which Sweeney and state Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Gloucester, say isn’t needed to balance the budget.

The lawmakers’ budget also does not include Murphy’s proposal to increase gun fees for the first time since 1966 — a time, the governor noted, when Lyndon Johnson was president.

Murphy, who has repeatedly pushed to make gun control tougher in New Jersey, called for hiking the cost of handgun purchases from $2 to $50, among other fee increases.

Without this, Murphy said, “it will continue to cost New Jerseyans more to buy a license for their dog than it will to buy a license for a gun.”

The governor cannot add a tax or fee increase into lawmakers’ budget.

Senate President Stephen Sweeney addresses the Senate while at the Statehouse. Monday June 10, 2019. (Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media) NJCIAristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media

State Senate President Stephen Sweeney is pictured at the Statehouse in Trenton last week.Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media

Once the Legislature passes its plan, Murphy has until June 30 to either sign the budget, veto it in whole or in part, or take no action. If he vetoes it completely or does nothing, Murphy could order a state government shutdown.

Earlier Wednesday, the governor sent lawmakers a letter threatening to veto spending for programs they want if they don’t agree to tax hikes.

Sweeney said Wednesday he didn’t think the gun fees were “needed," arguing they would essentially be a tax increase. The Senate president has repeatedly said he is opposed to more tax hikes in New Jersey.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

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