Platform Update

October 2009

ACTION ITEMS

New Economic Growth Partnerships: Under Platform Chair Gil Medina’s leadership, the Chamber has begun collaborating with coalitions that have agendas similar to our Platform agenda. Shared goals include permitting and regulatory reform, government efficiency, marketing and promoting New Jersey , restructuring the state’s economic development processes to better meet the needs of the business community, and providing a sustainable source of funding for the Transportation Trust Fund. We are working to refine these initiatives and formulate a collective agenda that we will advocate to the state Legislature and the Governor’s office.

Platform Meeting: The Chamber will host a meeting of the Platform Economic Development Coalition on November 10 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Chamber office in Trenton to provide a briefing on our platform agenda and details of our new partnerships. Please e-mail me at Maryellen@njchamber.com by November 1 if you plan to attend, and I will send you a confirmation e-mail with directions. 

Lame Duck Agenda: We are currently formulating our list of key policy and legislative initiatives that we will push when the Legislature returns after the election in November. We are interested in hearing your thoughts on the priorities. Please contact me if you have a priority item we should focus on during lame duck.

Office of Economic Growth Briefs Chamber Members: Last week, Jack Donnelly, Deputy Chief of the Office of Economic Growth, discussed the Administration’s economic growth agenda and initiatives designed to ensure New Jersey emerges from the economic crisis in a stronger position. Donnelly detailed the Governor’s Economic Assistance and Recovery Plan to create jobs and make New Jersey a desirable location for business retention and attraction, including the Invest NJ job creation program, the Permit Extension Act, expansion of the urban transit hub tax credit, and Chamber-initiated legislation such as the Licensed Site Remediation Professional program and Corporate Business Tax reform.

Governor Launches New Patent Bank: Governor Corzine recently announced the creation of the New Jersey Patent Bank, a Web portal designed to spur innovation and foster the transfer of technology between the state's academic and business communities. This site, www.njpatentbank.com, will serve as a user-generated, central clearinghouse for New Jersey-based patented technologies. Site users can post any patent that is licensed or unlicensed in the state to market their intellectual property, and can also search for patents that match their needs.

NJEDA Assistance Leads to Job Growth:  Governor Corzine announced that over the past three years, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) has finalized over $2.4 billion in financing assistance, business incentives and tax credits, and supported nearly 1,330 projects across the state. This assistance is expected to leverage more than $6 billion in public/private investment, and generate 80,000 jobs in the state.  More than 160 businesses have moved to or expanded in New Jersey utilizing NJEDA assistance. View NJEDA’s brochure that details their incentive and financial assistance programs.

New Program to Get Long-term Unemployed Back to Work: Last month, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced the creation of the RETURN-to-Work program, which provides incentives for employers to hire New Jersey residents who have exhausted their unemployment benefits. Under this program, private-sector employers can be reimbursed for a portion of new employees hourly wages, up to $5 per hour for up to 12 weeks, to defray the costs of training. Employers must pay new hires at least $15 per hour and must retain these workers for at least six months. For additional information visit www.nj.gov/labor/employer.

Recent Studies Continue to Highlight Challenges for New Jersey :  Last month, several studies were released that document how difficult it can be for some businesses to succeed in New Jersey . The Tax Foundation released the 2010 State Business Tax Climate Index and a new property tax report, which underscore significant weaknesses in our tax climate. Additionally, according to a new Mayflower Transit study, New Jersey ranks fourth-highest nationally in the number of people moving out of state. These studies can help focus our efforts to improve our state’s economic climate and competitiveness. Platform members are asked to review these studies so we can develop an action plan to address the deficiencies identified in the  reports.

Click here for the previous update.

MaryEllen Peppard
Government Relations Manager
New Jersey Chamber of Commerce
216 West State Street
Trenton, NJ 08608
Phone: (609)989-7888 Ext. 125
Fax: (609)989-9696
Maryellen.Peppard@njchamber.com