SENATE, No. 3034

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

218th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED OCTOBER 15, 2018

 


 

Sponsored by:

Senator  CHRIS A. BROWN

District 2 (Atlantic)

Senator  NILSA CRUZ-PEREZ

District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)

 

Co-Sponsored by:

Senator Van Drew

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Provides certain State assistance to qualified federal opportunity zone businesses.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  


An Act concerning assistance to qualified businesses in federal opportunity zones and supplementing Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.

 

     Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

     1.    As used in P.L.    , c.    (C.        ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):

     “Department” means the Department of Community Affairs.

     “Federal program” means the federal program providing for the establishment of a qualified opportunity zone pursuant to 26 U.S.C. s.1400Z-1 and 26 U.S.C. s.1400Z-2.

     “Qualified opportunity business” and “qualified opportunity business property” shall have the same meaning as provided for those terms in 26 U.S.C. s.1400Z-2.

     “Qualified opportunity zone” shall have the same meaning as provided for that term in 26 U.S.C. s.1400Z-1.

 

     2.    The Legislature finds and declares that the federal program providing for the establishment of a “qualified opportunity zone” in this State is declared to be an important economic driver for the State.  The Legislature therefore determines that the State incorporate the federal program in its economic development plans and the Department of Community Affairs is the appropriate agency to administer the federal program in the State.

 

     3.    a.  The Commissioner of Community Affairs shall designate an employee of the Department of Community Affairs to act as a contact person to be responsible for assisting a qualified opportunity business investing in qualified opportunity business property under rules and regulations established by the United States Department of the Treasury.  The contact person shall act as a point of contact between a qualified opportunity business and all appropriate State government entities providing assistance to qualified opportunity business in order to ensure State agency accountability to a qualified opportunity business and the coordination of State resources used to assist the qualified opportunity business.

     b.    The department shall establish and maintain an online portal, in the form of an Internet website available to the public to promote collaboration and innovation among qualified opportunity businesses in the State and to publish the availability of State and local resources to a qualified opportunity business.  The qualified innovation zone portal shall include information on the demographics of each qualified innovation zone and any other pertinent information allowed pursuant to federal law.  The qualified innovation zone portal shall include a link to State and local assistance programs available to a qualified opportunity business.

     c.     The department shall work cooperatively with other State departments, agencies, boards, commissions, and authorities to explore and implement opportunities to direct resources to a qualified opportunity business that locates within a qualified opportunity zone and to provide technology, financial, and workforce development opportunities, and infrastructure assistance to a qualified opportunity business.  The department shall work cooperatively with the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and the State Department of the Treasury, to modify the State’s business assistance programs, if permissible by law, to give bonuses or other enhanced incentives to a qualified opportunity business that locates within an qualified opportunity zone.

     d.    The Commissioner of Community Affairs is authorized to call upon any department, authority, commission, board, office, division, or agency of the State to provide any information, resources, or other assistance deemed necessary to discharge their responsibilities under P.L.    , c.    (C.         ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), including, but not be limited to: the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and the State Department of the Treasury for assistance with business assistance programs; the Department of Labor and Workforce Development for assistance in developing workforce development strategies; the Department of Transportation and the New Jersey Transit Corporation for assistance in enhancing public transportation networks and infrastructure, including assistance from the Transit Village Initiative; the Business Action Center in the Department of State to assist in business attraction and retention efforts and advising on smart growth development strategies; and the Division of Housing and Community Resources in the department for assistance in expanding housing opportunities within a qualified opportunity zone and the coordination with the Urban Enterprise Zone program.

 

     4.    A qualified opportunity business that locates within a qualified opportunity zone shall, consistent with federal law, be eligible to undertake a “building project,” “project,” or “highway project” under the terms and conditions of a “public-private partnership agreement” with a “local government unit,” “school district,” “State government entity,” State college, or county college, or otherwise participate in a public-private partnership agreement as provided for in P.L.2018, c.90 (C.        ).

 

     5.    This act shall take effect upon the United States Department of the Treasury adopting final rules and regulations implementing the federal program.

STATEMENT

 

     This bill provides benefits to a “qualified opportunity business” that invests in “qualified opportunity business property” in a State-designated “opportunity zone” that is established pursuant to federal law.  The bill designates the Department of Community Affairs (department) as the entity to provide assistance to a qualified opportunity business, as this agency has been designated as the State agency to implement the federal program in New Jersey.

     The bill requires the Commissioner of Community Affairs (commissioner) to designate an employee of the department to act as a contact person to be responsible for assisting a qualified opportunity business investing in qualified opportunity business property under rules and regulations established by the United States Department of the Treasury.  The contact person is to act as a point of contact between a qualified opportunity business and all appropriate State government entities providing assistance to qualified opportunity business.

     The bill requires the department to establish and maintain an Internet website available to the public to promote collaboration and innovation among qualified opportunity businesses in the State and to publish the availability of State and local resources to a qualified opportunity business.  The department is to work cooperatively with other State departments, agencies, boards, commissions, and authorities to explore and implement opportunities to direct resources to a qualified opportunity business that locates within a qualified opportunity zone and to provide technology, financial, and workforce development opportunities, and infrastructure assistance to that qualified opportunity business.  The commissioner is authorized to call upon any department, authority, commission, board, office, division, or agency of the State to provide any information, resources, or other assistance deemed necessary to discharge the department’s responsibilities under the bill.

     The bill allows a qualified opportunity business that locates within a “qualified opportunity zone” to be eligible to undertake a project, under the terms and conditions of a public-private partnership agreement, with a local government unit, school district, State government entity, State college, or county college, or otherwise participate in a public-private partnership agreement as provided for under State law.

     The bill takes effect upon the United States Department of the Treasury adopting final rules and regulations implementing the federal program.