Major New Jersey Economic Incentive Legislation Advances

By: William F. Harrison, Esq. and Erin K. Phalon, Esq.

Legislation that will significantly expand economic development incentive programs will soon become law.  The legislation merges five existing economic development incentive programs into two economic development incentive programs. On September 9, the Assembly agreed to accept the Governor's changes to the legislation and the Senate is scheduled to vote to accept the changes on September 12. It is anticipated that Governor Chris Christie will sign the bill into law shortly thereafter.

The legislation, A-3680, phases out the Business Retention and Relocation Assistance Grant Program (BRRAG), the Business Employment Incentive Program (BEIP), and the Urban Transit Hub Tax Credit Program (UTH) by December 31, 2013, while significantly expanding the Grow New Jersey Assistance Program (GROW) and the Economic Redevelopment and Growth Grant Program (ERG). The bill sunsets GROW and ERG on July 1, 2019. The bill extends GROW and ERG eligibility to greater geographic areas to include most of the State and significantly lowers their eligibility thresholds. The size of the tax credit varies based on where the project is located.