New Jersey Business & Industry Association President and CEO Michele Siekerka issued the following statement in response to today’s State of the State address by Gov. Phil Murphy.
“As Governor Murphy embarks on his sixth year in office, we acknowledge and appreciate recent steps to improve New Jersey’s business climate.
“Most notably, he rightfully remained steadfast in his commitment to sunsetting the temporary Corporate Business Tax surtax. NJBIA will continue to show our policymakers that New Jersey can and should invest in innovation, workforce development, and transportation, including NJ Transit, without having the highest corporate taxes in the entire nation.
“New Jersey’s CBT rate now stands at 9%, fourth highest in the nation. Given the proven economic stimulus from states that have lowered their CBT, and neighboring Pennsylvania’s path to a 4.99% rate, we believe it is appropriate to consider future lowering of the rate. In fact, any return of the CBT surcharge would actually be a tax increase.
“We also credit the governor and his administration for working with NJBIA to reform New Jersey’s corporate tax policies to be more competitive with other states by changing the way global intangible low-taxed income and net operating losses are treated under state law. This was another huge step in the right direction in 2023.
“That said, in 2024, we would like to see more relief for New Jersey small businesses, and fewer regulatory burdens.
“Our small businesses never did get any federal COVID relief from a $1 billion-plus unemployment tax increase, resulting from the longest pandemic shutdown in the nation. This is costing our mom-and-pops hundreds of dollars more per employee, per year, than prior to the pandemic.
“Further, while the ANCHOR and Stay NJ property tax relief programs have been presented, New Jersey businesses have been ineligible for both – even though they nearly pay half of the state’s property tax.
“We have concerns about recent legislation that continues to be unfair to our smallest employers. While the governor painted a rosy picture today about the number of businesses being created during his administration, the fact of the matter is New Jersey ranks 44th nationally in growth among employers with fewer than 500 employees from 2017 to 2021.
“We will continue to work with the governor and his administration to ensure that our small businesses have the best chance to thrive in 2024 and beyond.”
