NJBIA President and CEO Michele Siekerka, in an op-ed published Monday in BINJE, is urging state leaders to make predictability a top priority for employers after New Jersey ranked last in CNBC's recent 2026 Best States for Business survey for business friendliness.
Siekerka argued New Jersey's 50th-place ranking for business friendliness is the result of decades of tax and regulatory policies that have made the state difficult and costly for job creators. She contrasted New Jersey with Ohio, which ranked first overall, noting Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine's emphasis on stable and predictable policies to attract and keep employers.
New Jersey job creators “continue to see lots of big changes that make it impossible to have the predictability and certainty they need to make forward-looking investments,” Siekerka wrote, adding that New Jersey's new state budget that took effect July 1 added even more costs and burdens on businesses.
“We continue to see an alarming number of job creators deciding to move, grow, or
invest elsewhere,” Siekerka said. “Our WARN Act notices have totaled more than 9,000 jobs so far this year and, as reported by Focus NJ, we lost at least 7,000 jobs, nearly $675 million in annual payroll and approximately $27.3 million in annual income tax revenue ... due to a select group of companies choosing to invest elsewhere.”
While commending Gov. Mikie Sherrill's efforts since taking office in January to reduce permitting delays, increase government accountability and engage with the New Jersey business community, Siekerka said businesses continue to face policy changes that create uncertainty and discourage long-term investment.
Among the concerns she cited were the continuation of New Jersey's 11.5% corporate business tax through the Corporate Transit Fee, recently adopted independent contractor regulations, a new Medicaid-related employer tax included in the FY2027 budget, and other tax policy changes that she said reversed previous efforts to improve the state's competitiveness.
Siekerka also criticized the proposed Climate Superfund/Polluters Pay Act, arguing it would expose businesses to retroactive financial penalties for legally providing fossil fuels – an essential product everyone needs – in accordance with governmental permits.
She called on lawmakers to evaluate future policies through the lens of their impact on employers and the broader economy, arguing that greater consistency and predictability would encourage investment, improve New Jersey's competitiveness and help reverse the state's last-place ranking for business friendliness.
Go here to read the entire op-ed in BINJE.
