ASSEMBLY COMMERCE AND MILITARY AND VETERANS' AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
STATEMENT TO
ASSEMBLY, No. 2803
with committee amendments
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
DATED: JUNE 9, 1997
The Assembly Commerce and Military and Veterans' Affairs Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Assembly Bill No. 2803.
This bill, as amended by the committee, authorizes the State Treasurer to establish a special fund in the State's General Fund to be known as the "Economic Growth Fund" (hereinafter, the "fund"). The amended bill also permits the State Treasurer to deposit into the fund up to one-half of the sales tax revenues that are received from economic growth areas designated in economic growth plans to be submitted to the Treasurer by developers. Although the revenues deposited into the fund are derived from the State Sales and Use Tax or other revenues collected by the State Treasurer, the revenues shall not be considered part of the General Fund and shall not be commingled with other General Fund moneys.
The amended bill provides that the moneys deposited in the fund may be used to pay for the principal and interest on bonds to finance, within a designated economic growth area or in certain adjacent locations, economic development projects that the State Treasurer determines would not be undertaken without State financing.
A developer may seek eligibility for State financing from the fund by submitting a development plan to the State Treasurer who shall review the plan, in consultation with the Commissioner of Commerce and Economic Development, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and the New Jersey Redevelopment Authority, in accordance with criteria contained in the amended bill.
The amended bill requires the State Treasurer to determine that a proposed development will generate significant new sales tax or other revenues and new jobs before granting eligibility for State financing to a proposed development. The amended bill further requires the State Treasurer to make certain findings concerning the feasibility of the proposed development and the ability of the developer to complete the proposed development.
The committee amended the bill to require that developers who submit plans to the State Treasurer shall include a provision that contracts for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction or rehabilitation of land or property and improvements thereon provide for a payment of not less than the prevailing wage to workers thereon. The committee also amended the bill to authorize the State Treasurer to require developers and their project contractors to provide guarantee payment bonds for construction work pertaining to developments receiving State financing.
In addition, the committee amended the bill to: (1) limit the total amount of State grants that may be provided for a project or project costs, when combined with other grants received by operation of State law, to no more than 50% of the new sales tax revenues, other revenues or economic benefits generated or anticipated to be generated annually by a development; and (2) require the State Treasurer to coordinate efforts in connection with the review and approval of economic development plans submitted under this bill, to the maximum extent feasible, with the New Jersey Redevelopment Authority, established pursuant to P.L.1996, c.62, (C.55:19-20 et seq.), in order to promote the most efficient use of State resources.
The committee also amended the bill to clarify that an economic growth area may include a Regional Growth Area, Pinelands Town or Pinelands Village, designated pursuant to the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan adopted pursuant to P.L.1979, c.111 (C.13:18A-1 et seq.) and to prohibit the designation of an economic growth area in an urban enterprise zone designated by the New Jersey Urban Enterprise Zones Authority.
The committee adopted further amendments to require the State Treasurer to report every six months on the status of each final revenue allocation plan adopted under the bill, to report within 24 months of the effective date of the bill on the overall success of the Economic Growth Fund and to require that a developer submit documentation that all necessary approvals have been obtained or a statement of consistency with local zoning ordinances as part of the development plan submitted to the State Treasurer pursuant to section 5 of the bill.