Deadline for New Jersey's Annual Pay-to-Play Disclosure is Approaching: Is Your Company Ready to File?

The New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission ("ELEC") requires each business entity that received payments of $50,000 or more (in the aggregate) as a result of government contracts during the 2017 calendar year to electronically file a Business Entity Annual Statement ("Form BE") with ELEC no later than Monday, April 2, 2018. (Although the Form BE must be filed in most years by March 30, the deadline has been extended this year because of Good Friday.)

The obligation to file arises whenever payments from New Jersey government entities reach the $50,000 threshold. This includes contracts with the State of New Jersey Executive and Legislative branches, counties, municipalities, boards of education, fire districts, and independent authorities, regardless of method of award.

Whether the $50,000 filing threshold is reached depends on payments received by the business entity during 2017. Therefore, the obligation to file may vary from year to year—a business entity that was not required to file in previous years may still be obligated to file for calendar year 2017.

Last, detailed contract and contribution information must be disclosed whenever the business entity or a covered individual made a "reportable" contribution during 2017. A contribution is "reportable" when it exceeds $300 per reporting period. In light of these requirements, it is necessary to review personal political contributions made by a business entity's partners, officers, and directors (and certain members of their families). Additionally, because of varying election cycles, it may be necessary to review contributions made over the course of several years to determine whether any 2017 contributions are reportable.

Companies that fail to file on time may be subject to monetary penalties. To ensure a timely and accurate filing, companies that have yet to begin preparing Form BE should not delay.

Genova Burns LLC can help your company comply with the Form BE filing requirements. Contact Rebecca Moll Freed, Esq., Chair of the Corporate Political Activity Law Group, at rfreed@genovaburns.com or 973-230-2075 or Avi D. Kelin, Esq. at akelin@genovaburns.com or 973-646-3267.