On March 22, the Chamber of Commerce Southern New Jersey (CCSNJ) Manager of Government Affairs, Hilary Chebra testified before the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee on a package of bills that appropriates federal funds to the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) to provide support to small and micro businesses, restaurants, childcare centers, arts & culture organizations, and food bank organizations.

The bill package includes the following bills:

• S3519 (Greenstein/Lagana) - Appropriates $15 million in federal funds to EDA to support businesses and nonprofits in need.
• S3520 (Ruiz/Lagana) - Appropriates $10 million in federal funds to EDA to support child care centers in need.
• S3521 (Lagana/Addiego/Gopal) - Appropriates $15 million in federal funds to EDA to support arts and culture organizations in need.
• S3523 (Addiego/Lagana) - Appropriates $25 million in federal funds to EDA to support microbusinesses in need.
• S3524 (Gopal/Lagana) - Appropriates $35 million in federal funds to EDA to support food and beverage establishments in need.
• S3527/A5405 (Sweeney/Oroho/Coughlin/Speight/Armato) - Appropriates $10 million in federal funds to Department of Agriculture to support food bank organizations.

In her testimony, Ms. Chebra stated businesses continue to struggle and need continued assistance as they attempt to return to normalcy. Previous NJEDA programs to assist businesses were immediately oversubscribed, leaving many small businesses unable to take advantage of the financial assistance previously provided. This collection of bills, totaling $100 million in assistance, will provide the necessary funding to ensure that businesses and nonprofits have the tools to be a part of New Jersey’s economic recovery.

Ms. Chebra also testified in support of S-1958 (Cruz-Perez / Sweeney) the “New Jobs for New Jersey Act”. This bill would establish a tax credit program that would incentivize small businesses to increase their workforce by hiring unemployed workers.

Should you have any questions, please contact Hilary Chebra, Manager of Government Affairs at hchebra@chambersnj.com.