SENATE, No. 467

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED JANUARY 18, 1996

By Senators LIPMAN and Rice

An Act extending the expiration date and limiting the enactment of certain local payroll taxes, and amending P.L.1970, c.326.

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

    1. Section 19 of P.L.1970, c.326 (C.40:48C-19) is amended to read as follows:

    19. No tax shall be imposed under any ordinance adopted pursuant to this article with respect to services performed prior to January 1, 1971, or in a calendar quarter prior to that in which the ordinance is adopted ,or in a municipality that has not within two years prior to July 1, 1995 collected taxes or enacted an ordinance imposing a tax, or on or after [January 1, 1996,] December 31, 1999; but any such ordinance shall remain in effect with respect to the right of the municipality to receive reports and enforce and collect taxes due thereunder for any period prior to [January 1, 1996] December 31, 1999.

(cf: P.L.1994, c.28, s.2.)

    2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

    This bill extends to December 31, 1999 the expiration date of the local payroll tax authorized by the "Local Tax Authorization Act," P.L.1970, c.326 (C.40:48C-1 et seq.) and limits its further imposition to those municipalities which have within two years prior to July 1, 1995, the beginning of the current State fiscal year, collected payroll taxes or enacted an ordinance imposing a payroll tax. The bill would preserve Newark's, but remove Jersey City's, power to impose the payroll tax.

    The "Local Tax Authorization Act" permits any municipality with a population in excess of 200,000 to adopt an ordinance imposing a liquor tax, a payroll tax, and a parking tax. The original law authorizing these taxes in 1970 set forth separate expiration dates for each tax. The parking tax has been extended to December 31, 1999, under P.L.1991, c.288, and the payroll tax and liquor tax were extended to January 1, 1996 under P.L.1994, c.28.

    Jersey City and Newark are the only municipalities in the State with populations which exceed 200,000. Jersey City has a parking tax in effect, but not a liquor tax. Jersey City did adopt an ordinance on December 7, 1995 imposing a payroll tax. Newark has imposed a parking and payroll tax.

Extends expiration date and limits enactment of certain payroll taxes under "Local Tax Authorization Act."