Christie Signs Reforms, Incentives To Boost Economy

Affirming his commitment to creating jobs for New Jersey families, New jersey Governor Chris Christie today signed Senate Bills 2753 and 2754 to provide common sense, targeted tax relief to improve the state's business climate and spur economic growth. In his Fiscal Year 2012 Budget proposal, Governor Christie proposed a $200 million package of job-creating tax reforms and incentives to boost New Jersey's economy. The Governor has stressed the importance of reforms to break from the state’s hostile climate towards business expansion and job growth, while maintaining fiscal discipline over state spending and adhering a constitutionally-balanced budget. The legislation signed today implements key proposals advanced by Governor Christie in that effort.

“Today, we are providing critical tax reforms and incentives to boost our economy, foster job growth and opportunity for New Jersey families, and putting a down payment on a more prosperous future for our state,” said Governor Christie. “We must continue to take action to lay a sustainable fiscal path for New Jersey, ensure that tax cuts are done in the context of a balanced budget and implement reform in the most efficient manner possible. I’m pleased that there is a bipartisan consensus in New Jersey around the need to improve our state’s oppressive business tax climate through tax policy changes and common sense regulatory reform, and I look forward to pursuing more needed reforms with the legislature.”

S-2753 will change the corporate business tax formula from a three-factor formula to a single sales factor formula, as well as create a modified sales fraction formula for airlines. S-2754 will permit taxpayers to net gains and losses from certain business-related categories of gross incomes and allow those losses to be carried forward for up to twenty years.

Since Governor Christie took office, the Administration has been committed to bringing real, bipartisan solutions to the critical challenges faced by the state. These include closing an $11 billion budget deficit without tax increases, passing Cap 2.0 to bring real property tax relief, and taking major steps toward pension and benefit reform. Last fall, Governor Christie called on the legislature to deliver for New Jersey families by acting on his proposals, including his “took kit” legislation to give local governments the tools to control costs and limit property taxes.

Additionally, the Administration has continued to advance policies to further improve New Jersey’s business climate by sunsetting the corporate business tax surcharge, signing new, robust business attraction legislation, and protecting businesses from an average $400 per employee, or 52% increase in the unemployment insurance payroll tax. Those policies, coupled with recent activities like the Governor’s ‘Creating Jersey Jobs Summit,’ the Lt. Governor’s ‘100 Businesses’ initiative, and the recent Illinois ad campaign to promote New Jersey as a destination for businesses, all demonstrate that New Jersey is well-positioned for business expansion, economic growth and job creation as our economy recovers.