Support for Assembly Bill 2516 (DeAngelo, Pinkin, Tucker)
On behalf of our 20,000 member companies, the New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA) would like to express our SUPPORT for Assembly Bill 2516 (DeAngelo, Pinkin, Tucker) which provides incentives for certain businesses associated with military installations.
From the invention of the SCR-271 radar to many of the improvements of Milton Morse to corporations like APM Hexseal, New Jersey has a rich history of innovation in the fields of aerospace and defense. Today this tradition continues in the areas of research, development and security manufacturing as we leverage our five military installations.
However in the 21st Century, collaboration between business, higher education and state government is critical for New Jersey to maintain its global edge and vital for a robust high tech economy. In fact, many of the jobs in and around our military installations are Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) related. Therefore, it is critical for New Jersey to offer collaborative support to our military installations, if we hope to grow our innovation economy here in New Jersey.
A recommendation from the 2015 New Jersey Military Installment Growth and Development Task Force, the bill would allow defense-related businesses on commercial property within five miles of a military base to be eligible for a tax credit bonus per employee under the Grow New Jersey Assistance Program and obtain small business loans from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority. In addition, the legislation would require the New Jersey Department of State to provide businesses near military bases with a single contact person responsible for assisting the company throughout the permit and application approval processes.
New Jersey has made dramatic progress over the past five years in coordinating and leveraging its resources into building a functioning and competitive innovation ecosystem. A-2516 continues this upward innovation trend to foster collaboration and improve the partnerships between academia, business and government.
For these reasons, NJBIA would like to thank the sponsors for their interest in supporting New Jersey’s innovation ecosystem and we encourage you to vote “YES” on A-2516.
TO: Members of the Assembly Appropriations Committee
FR: Tyler Seville, Director of Technology & Workforce Development
DATE: October 6, 2016
