Commerce and Economic Development committee releases several bills, including permit-transparency measure

The Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee on Monday released multiple bills, including AB 795 (a 30-day extension to cure periods for certain businesses), AB 3571 (authorizing regional economic development partnerships) and AB 4275 (establishing an online statewide tracking system for specified permits, licenses and certifications).

Committee members read each bill and recorded votes to release the measures. AB 795 and AB 3571 were presented with supporters from the business community and released by the committee. AB 4275 drew supportive testimony from business groups, including the New Jersey Business & Industry Association and the Healthcare Institute of New Jersey, which called the bill a step toward greater transparency and competitiveness for permitting.

Chris Rummyholz, chief government affairs officer for NJBIA, told the committee that centralizing permit and application tracking would improve transparency and accountability and aligned with the governor’s agenda on efficiency. Kyle Sullinder of the Healthcare Institute said permitting timelines are a key competitiveness issue for life-sciences and medical-technology firms and that increased transparency would help attract investment.

Committee members voted to release the bills; the committee announced the bills were released from committee. No fiscal notes or implementation timelines were discussed during the committee record presented to the committee.

Sources: Committee reading and witness testimony recorded during the Assembly Commerce and Economic Development Committee meeting.