TRENTON WATCH
January 15, 2011 - Tracking Legislation and Other Items Important to the Business Community:
COMMERCE
Improving NJ's Corporate Governance -S-2493 (Sarlo/D-36; Gill/D-34): Senate passed 37-0. Assembly passed 77-0 and sent to Governor. This bill maintains the right of corporate directors and officers, under certain circumstances, to indemnification - to be compensated for expenses incurred as a result of legal proceedings related to the person's service as a director or officer of the company. This bill was modeled on Delaware General Corporation Law and will make it easier for corporations to conduct business. Contact: Mary Ellen Peppard
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Business Incentive Enhancements - A-3353 (Coutinho/D-29; Watson Coleman/D-15; Fuentes/D-5; Lampitt/D-6; Quijano/D-20): Assembly passed 45-28-3. Senate passed 30-7 and sent to Governor. This bill establishes the New Jersey Closing Fund, which authorizes the New Jersey Economic Development Authority to recommend, and the State Treasurer and Joint Budget Oversight Committee to approve, an award for projects that require additional resources to locate or remain in the state if these projects will significantly benefit the state. This bill is designed to address the competition that companies face from other states and to complement our existing business attraction and retention programs. Contact: Mary Ellen Peppard
Expansion of BRRAG- S-2370 (Madden/D-4; Kyrillos/R-13; Oliver/D-34; Coutinho/D-29; Bucco/R-25; Bramnick/R-21; Pou/D-35): Assembly passed 76-0. Senate passed 39-0. Governor Christie signed into law. This bill broadens availability of the Business Retention and Relocation Assistance Grant (BRRAG) Program, which provides tax credits to businesses that retain jobs in New Jersey. Under this bill, businesses may be eligible to receive credits without requiring them to relocate jobs if they make a capital investment equal to or greater than the total value of the grants to be received. The bill increases the amount of the award for projects with a larger number of jobs retained. It also requires a net benefits test, in which potential grant recipients must prove that the state would see a net benefit from providing the tax credit - the projected tax revenue must be greater than the credits awarded under BRRAG. These changes will increase the utility of the program and help keep more jobs in state. Contact: Mary Ellen Peppard
Modernizing Plan Approvals - S-483 (Lesniak/D-20; Coutinho/D-29; Quigley/D-32; Wagner/D-38; Watson Coleman/D-15): Assembly passed 75-2-1. Senate passed 34-1 and sent to Governor. This bill amends the Municipal Land Use Law by expanding the availability of General Development Plan approvals to projects with a nonresidential floor area of 150,000 square feet or more or with 100 residential dwelling units or more. It is for sites of 100 acres or less in smart growth areas. This change reflects the current necessity for vertical development. Contact: Mary Ellen Peppard
New Jersey Angel Investor Tax Credit - S-2454 (Madden/D-4; Sarlo/D-36; Quijano/D-20; Schaer/D-36; Albano/D-1; DeAngelo/D-14): Senate passed 39-0. Assembly passed 45-31 and sent to Governor. This bill establishes credits against corporation business and gross income taxes for investing in emerging technology businesses in New Jersey. The corporation business and gross income tax credits equal ten percent of a taxpayer's qualified investment in an emerging technology company with fewer than 225 employees, of whom at least 75 percent are filling a position in New Jersey. The program is capped at $25 million per year. Contact: Mary Ellen Peppard
Business and Higher Education Partnerships - S-2398 (Madden/D-4; Sarlo/D-36; Buono/D-18; Giblin/D-34; Voss/D-38; Jasey/D-27; Lampitt/D-6): Senate passed 37-0. Assembly passed 76-0 and sent to Governor. This bill directs the New Jersey Economic Development Authority to facilitate the exchange of information and exploration of collaboration among the higher education and business communities in order to enhance innovation in the state. Contact: Mary Ellen Peppard
EDUCATION
Education Cost Savings - A-1637 (Wagner/D-38; Rudder/R-8; Voss/D-38; Addiego/R-8): Governor Christie signed into law. This bill permits the board of education of any school district to enter into a contract for the sale of advertising space on the outside of school buses owned or leased by the school district. The bill requires that 50 percent of revenues generated by the sale must be used to offset the fuel costs of providing transportation services to students, and the remaining 50 percent is to be used to support educational programs and services. Advertisements for tobacco, alcohol or political advocacy would be prohibited, in addition to any other advertisements that the Commissioner of Education considers inappropriate. Contact: Michael Egenton
ENERGY
Renewable Energy - A-2529 (Chivukula/D-17; Quijano/D-20; Stender/D-22): Senate passed 25-12. Assembly passed 54-21-1 and sent to Governor. This bill directs the Board of Public Utilities to initiate a proceeding to evaluate energy efficiency portfolio standards, and would authorize the board to adopt energy efficiency portfolio standards that require each electric power supplier and each basic generation service provider to purchase a specified number of EE certificates from eligible energy efficiency and energy conservation programs. Contact: Michael Egenton
Energy Incentives - A-2215 (McKeon/D-27; Chivukula/D-17; Pou/D-35; Conaway/D-7; Barnes/D-18): Assembly passed 74-2-1.Senate passed 37-0 and sent to Governor. This bill requires the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, in consultation with the Commissioner of Community Affairs, to establish and administer a program that makes low-interest loans available to a developer or redeveloper who constructs a new building or renovates an existing building that, when completed, qualifies as a "high performance green building." Contact: Michael Egenton
Solar Energy - S-2126 (Whelan/D-2; Haines/R- 8): Assembly passed 72-3-3. Senate passed 32-1 and sent to Governor. This bill permits development of solar and photovoltaic energy facilities and structures over landfills and quarries, including the Pinelands, permitting the expansion of renewable solar energy resources in areas which are not actively being used. Contact: Michael Egenton
ENVIRONMENT
Stormwater Management - S-1815 (Smith, B./D-17): Senate passed 21-19. This bill would permit Ocean County, or the Ocean County Utilities Authority, to establish, provide and maintain a stormwater utility that creates a management system for stormwater runoff in the county. This bill levies an assessment on businesses in addition to the permit fee already imposed. Contact: Michael Egenton
Stormwater Management - S-1856 (Smith, B./D-17): Senate passed 22-17. This bill would authorize the Ocean County Planning Board, in conjunction with each municipality within the Barnegat Bay watershed, to develop a stormwater and nonpoint source pollution management plan for the watershed. This bill levies an assessment on businesses in addition to the permit fee already imposed. Contact: Michael Egenton
REGULATION
Streamlining Regulations - A-2853 (Burzichelli/D-3; Milam/D-1; Albano/D-1; Moriarty/D-4; Giblin/D-34): Assembly passed 75-2. Senate passed 32-3 and sent to Governor. This bill directs State and local agencies that issues permits related to economic development to streamline the process by which the permits are issued. The bill requires the agencies to identify which permits can be administered through expedited processes and which permits can be eliminated. Contact: Michael Egenton
Regulatory Reform - A-2720 (Burzichelli/D-3; Rumana/R-40; Caputo/D-28; Quijano/D-20; Greenstein/D-14): Assembly passed 78-0. Senate passed 24-8 and sent to Governor. A-2721 (Burzichelli/D-3; Rumana/R-40; Caputo/D-28; Quijano/D-20; Greenstein/D-14): Assembly passed 75-2-1. Senate passed 25-7. A-2922 (Burzichelli/D-3; Coughlin/D-19; Barnes/D-18): Assembly passed 77-0-1. This package of reform bills streamlines burdensome regulations, which will improve the state's business climate. These bills establish new procedures in the Administrative Procedure Act to allow substantial changes to agency rule-making upon adoption; amend current law concerning state agency rule-making by changing the chapter expiration dates of rules from five years to 10; and establish a new procedure for resolving conflicts or inconsistencies in adopted rules and regulations. Contact: Michael Egenton
TAX
Corporate Business Tax Relief - A-1676 (Greenwald/D-6; Milam/D-1; Spencer/D-29; Chiusano/R-24; Pou/D-35; Webber/R-26): Senate passed 39-0. Assembly passed 73-0 and sent to Governor. This bill provides a single sales factor allocation formula for New Jersey businesses. New Jersey currently determines the portion of a company's income that is subject to New Jersey tax based on the company's property, payroll and sales in New Jersey. The use of property and payroll in the allocation factor creates a disincentive for capital investment and job creation in New Jersey. This bill removes the disincentive by eliminating property and payroll from the allocation factor and assigning a 100 percent weighting to the sales factor. Contact: Mary Ellen Peppard
Tax Relief for Small Business - S-1540 (Buono/D-18; Oroho/R-24; Greenwald/D-6; Barnes/D-18; Johnson/D-37; Pou/D-35; McHose/R-24; Webber/R-26): Senate passed 39-0. Assembly passed 76-0. and sent to Governor. This bill provides for the consolidation of certain business-related categories of income defined under the New Jersey gross income tax. This consolidation allows taxpayers who generate income from different types of businesses to offset gains from one type of business with losses from another. This bill also provides for the carryforward of net losses for up to 20 years under the New Jersey gross income tax. These changes modernize New Jersey's income tax and provide increased flexibility to small businesses whose business owners' pay their taxes through the personal income tax return (S-Corps, LLC's, LLP's, sole proprietorships or partnerships). Contact: Mary Ellen Peppard
Call the State Chamber Government Relations Department at (609) 989-7888 with questions or comments.
