Innovation Brewing in the New Jersey Legislature

Every summer, New Jersey legislators travel to the annual conferences of the National Conference of State Legislators (“NCSL”), the Council of State Governments (“CSG”), and the American Legislative Exchange Council (“ALEC”) to educate themselves about policy innovations occurring throughout the United States. While we wait to learn about their experiences, right now is a good opportunity to focus on innovative legislation currently before the New Jersey Legislature.

As of August 15, 2016, 7,068 bills have been introduced in the New Jersey Legislature, 4,379 in the Assembly and 2,689 in the Senate, and only 87 have been signed into law. The following list of bills currently in committee represent examples by legislators looking to encourage innovation in New Jersey:

  • S158 (Madden)/A3631 (Quijano) would promote investment in New Jersey by broadening the types of New Jersey emerging technology businesses that are eligible to receive investments under the New Jersey Angel Investor Tax Credit Act;
  • A3187 (Munoz)/ S948 (Singer) would create a program within the New Jersey Economic Development Authority that would create a pathway to the commercial market for technology developed at a New Jersey college or university. Under this legislation, New Jersey would stimulate the economy while recapturing the state’s investment in higher education; and
  • S348 (Kean) would utilize funds from the Workforce Development Partnership Fund, in the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, to create at least 20 innovation and research fellowships at New Jersey businesses.

While only a small snapshot, the bills mentioned here highlight a willingness by the members of the legislature to engage New Jersey’s industrial and higher education sectors in order to develop legislation with the goal of stimulating the State’s economy.

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