Testimony in Support of S-1949
Friday, September 23, 2011

The Chamber of Commerce Southern New Jersey strongly supports S-1949 (Sweeney/T. Kean) which will provide manufacturing companies in New Jersey with an energy and utility service sales tax relief benefit, up to 50%, similar to the one provided to certain manufacturers located within Urban Enterprise Zones since 2004.

Over the past few decades, manufacturers have succumbed to the high cost of doing business in our state, subsequently creating an exodus of New Jersey based manufacturers, adding to New Jersey’s staggering unemployment rate. Data from the United States Department of Labor showed that in 2010 New Jersey lost an additional 3,400 manufacturing jobs, maintaining a similar trend through the last decade. Passage of S-1949 (Sweeney/T. Kean) would help stabilize the state’s diminishing manufacturing sector and even attract new business to New Jersey.

S-1949 (Sweeney/T. Kean) is intended to help strengthen companies in the manufacturing field by providing relief to what is often a significant expense. Under the proposed legislation, companies in New Jersey and those relocating to New Jersey will be able to see immediate relief in their energy costs, therefore making New Jersey more attractive for their business. Reducing costs such as these can provide these companies with the ability to invest in their products and workforce—even create jobs.

The Chamber believes S-1949 (Sweeney/T. Kean) will be a significant incentive that reaffirms the State’s commitment to fostering growth within the private sector during a time of economic downturn. While the Chamber does not believe there is one specific fix to our lagging state economy and unemployment numbers we feel this legislation can contribute to economic recovery in New Jersey. Furthermore, we consider this piece of legislation to be a meaningful step in the right direction toward making our state business friendly once again and improve our efforts to attract and retain business.

Thank you for the opportunity to present our position; we urge the committee to support S-1949 (Sweeney/T. Kean).