Manufacturers who purchase new equipment or upgrade their facilities would be able to take up to a 20 percent tax credit, under legislation released May 18 by the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee. The bill, A-1283 (Manzo), would provide manufacturers with a tax credit equal to 20 percent of the total cost of new equipment, renovations, expansions and upgrades of a manufacturing facility. The credit would be applied to a manufacturer's Corporation Business Tax (CBT).
To qualify, the new equipment would have to be eligible for the sales tax exemption for manufacturing equipment and have a useful life of more than one year. The bill defines a manufacturing facility as a business, factory, mill, plant, or other facility at which more than 50 percent of the business personal property that is housed there is manufacturing equipment. The bill is one of the key items on NJBIA's Manufacturing Counts! Campaign Agenda for Manufacturing Renewal in New Jersey. It now heads to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for consideration.
The measure is designed to retain manufacturing jobs in New Jersey by bolstering an industry sector that has been hit hard by low cost competition from other countries and other states. To survive, New Jersey manufacturers must constantly update their operations and improve their productivity. This measure would help level the playing field as New Jersey manufacturers compete with businesses in lower cost states and countries.
Despite tremendous challenges, manufacturing continues to play a critical role in the State's economy. New Jersey manufacturers directly employ 321,000 production workers, indirectly support another 171,000 jobs, offer better-than-average wages and benefits and contribute $45 billion to the State's gross domestic product. For more information, contact Art Maurice at ext. 247.
Assembly Speaker Calls for Shared Services, Regionalization to Help Reduce Property Taxes—Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts has proposed a series of initiatives to control school spending, encourage consolidation of local government units and assist municipalities in sharing services as a way of reining in New Jersey's runaway property tax increases. No legislation has been introduced yet, but Roberts said the Assembly would work over the summer on a new school funding formula and hold hearings on pension reform. Roberts dubbed his proposal the CORE plan (Clear hurdles to shared services between governments, Override waste in schools through State oversight and school funding reform, Rein in pension abuses, and Empower citizens to be aware of and get involved in government).
Roberts' plan would remove civil service restrictions that prevent local governments from sharing services, require efficiencies from local governments in return for certain block grants, give more authority to county school superintendents to eliminate administrative waste and cut overhead, move school board and fire district elections to November, and give members of the public a greater say in spending issues.
Ever increasing property taxes are one of New Jersey's biggest problems and one of the most complex to solve. In news accounts, most of the focus is on the impact on home owners. But rising property taxes contribute significantly to the high cost of doing business in New Jersey as well. Businesses pay billions of dollars in property taxes every year and in the 2006 NJBIA Business Outlook Survey, employers identified property taxes as their second worst problem, behind only the rising cost of health insurance.
While NJBIA has not seen the details of Roberts' proposal, NJBIA supports the new focus on controlling government spending and increasing efficiency as keys to property tax reform. Other proposals, including a proposed property tax convention, deal only with sources of government revenue, not how the money is spent. NJBIA believes that reducing spending must be part of any property tax reform plan the Legislature adopts. For more information, contact Melanie Willoughby at ext. 205.
Twelve Projects Win 2006 New Good Neighbor Awards—Twelve construction projects involving everything from a renovated 18th century tavern to a $250 million expansion at an Atlantic City casino will be honored Friday, June 2, at the 46th Annual New Good Neighbor Awards Luncheon in Iselin. Hosted by NJBIA and New Jersey Business magazine, the event will be held from 11:45 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Sheraton at Woodbridge Place. The cost to attend is $70 per person. For more information, contact Stacy Wichner at 609-393-7707, ext. 213, or register online. To become a sponsor, contact Sherry Esteves at ext. 219.
The New Good Neighbor Awards Luncheon annually brings together a dynamic group of builders, architects, engineers and others in the development community to honor those responsible for much of the State's impressive new commercial construction and renovation. This year's event is sponsored by Advance Realty Group, Building Contractors Association, DCH Auto Group, Providence Pediatric Medical DayCare, PSE&G Area Development, Skanska USA Building Inc., and Wachovia. The 2006 winners are:
• Cadbury Schweppes Science and Technology Center in Whippany
• Chemical Sciences Building at Princeton Forrestal Campus in Plainsboro
• Cornerstone Commerce Center in Linwood
• Fox + Hound Tavern in Lebanon
• Meadow Wood Manor in Randolph
• Park Place —Advance Realty Group in Florham Park
• Roma Bank in Robbinsville
• The 570 Broad Street Building in Newark
• The Palace at Somerset Park in Somerset
• Tropicana Casino and Resort—Home of The Quarter in Atlantic City
• City of Elizabeth Fire Headquarters in Elizabeth
• UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School Child Health Institute of NJ in New Brunswick
June 7 Seminar: Making Sense of Family and Disability Leave—This half-day program will help you sort through bewildering levels of leave regulations and show you how to avoid costly mistakes regarding length of leave, job protection, benefits and discrimination issues. Top employment law specialists will explain how to avoid the many legal pitfalls and will share the lessons they have learned from years of struggling with leave requests. The seminar will be held on Wednesday, June 7, at the Holiday Inn in Hazlet from 8:30 a.m. to noon. The cost is $109 per person for NJBIA members and $139 for nonmembers. To register, contact Alex Hollywood at 609-393-7707, ext. 262. You can also download the brochure or register online now.
Navigating New Jersey's Pay to Play Laws, Friday, June 23—Since January 1, doing business with State, county and local governments has become much more challenging, thanks to complicated new pay-to-play rules on campaign contributions by government contractors and vendors. This half-day seminar explains what you need to know to protect your contracts. Meet the government officials in charge of enforcing the new requirements. Cost is $109 per person for NJBIA members and $139 for nonmembers. To register, please contact Sherry Esteves at 609-393-7707, ext. 219, or register online.
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