New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 19 - OTHER AGENCIES › NEW JERSEY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY › Chapter 31W - PPE MANUFACTURING TAX CREDIT PROGRAM › Subchapter 1 - PPE MANUFACTURING TAX CREDIT PROGRAM › Section 19:31W-1.2 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
The following words and terms, as used in this subchapter,
					 shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
					 otherwise:
"Act" means
					 sections
					 106 and
					 107 of
					 P.L.
					 2020, c. 156.
"Approval letter" means the letter sent by the Authority to
					 the applicant that sets forth the conditions to maintain the approval and to
					 receive the tax credits, the amount of tax credits, the date the commitment
					 period commences, and other requirements to comply with the Program. The
					 approval letter will require the applicant to submit certain additional
					 information on an annual basis in order to preserve the approval of the tax
					 credits.
"Authority" means the New Jersey Economic Development
					 Authority established by section 4 of P.L. 1974, c. 80 (N.J.S.A.
					 34:1B-4).
"Board" means the Board of the New Jersey Economic
					 Development Authority, established by section 4 of P.L. 1974, c. 80
					 (N.J.S.A.
					 34:1B-4).
"Capital investment" means expenses at a qualified facility
					 that a taxpayer incurs prior to the submission of an application to the
					 Authority but by no earlier than March 9, 2020, for:
1. Site preparation and construction, repair,
				  renovation, improvement, equipping, or furnishing on real property or of a
				  building, structure, facility, or improvement to real property, site-related
				  utility, and transportation infrastructure improvements, and plantings, solar
				  panels and components, energy storage components, installation costs of solar
				  energy systems, or other environmental components required to attain the level
				  of silver rating and gold rating standards or above in the LEED building rating
				  system, but only to the extent that such capital investments have not received
				  any grant financial assistance from any other State funding sources, including
				  N.J.S.A.
				  52:27H-80 et seq.;
2. Obtaining and installing, furnishings and
				  machinery, apparatus, or equipment, including, but not limited to, material
				  goods subject to bonus depreciation pursuant to sections 168 and 179 of the
				  Federal Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. §§ 168 and 179), for the
				  operation of a business on real property or in a building, structure, facility,
				  or improvement to real property, or any combination of the foregoing. Capital
				  investment shall include the value of a capital lease, as defined by generally
				  accepted accounting practices (GAAP), of furnishings and machinery, apparatus,
				  or equipment, based on the shorter of the useful life of the leased property or
				  the commitment period;
3.
				  Associated soft costs, which shall not exceed 20 percent of all capital
				  investment; and
4. Capital
				  investment does not include site acquisition or vehicles and heavy equipment
				  not permanently located in the building, structure, facility, or improvement.
"College or university" means a county college, an
					 independent institution of higher education, a public research university, or a
					 State college.
"Commitment period" means a five-year period commencing
					 with the date on which an eligible business may claim a tax credit pursuant to
					 the program.
"Completion date of capital investment" means the date of
					 the certificate of occupancy or other indication of completion acceptable to
					 the Authority.
"County college" means an educational institution
					 established by one or more counties, pursuant to Chapter 64A of Title 18A of
					 the New Jersey Statutes.
"Director" means the Director of the Division of Taxation
					 in the Department of the Treasury.
"Independent institution of higher education" means a
					 college or university incorporated and located in New Jersey, which by virtue
					 of law, character, or license is a nonprofit educational institution authorized
					 to grant academic degrees and which provides a level of education that is
					 equivalent to the education provided by the State's public institutions of
					 higher education, as attested by the receipt of and continuation of regional
					 accreditation by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, and
					 which is eligible to receive State aid under the provisions of the Constitution
					 of the United States and the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, but does
					 not include any educational institution dedicated primarily to the education or
					 training of ministers, priests, rabbis, or other professional persons in the
					 field of religion.
"Manufacturing" or "manufacture" means the performance of
					 an operation or series of operations, the object of which is to place items of
					 tangible personal property in a form, composition, or character different from
					 that in which they were acquired. The change must be substantial and must
					 result in a transformation of property into a different or substantially more
					 useable product.
"Mask" means any one of the following:
(i) an N95 respirator regulated by the United
				  States National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH);
(ii) any other respirator approved or
				  allowable under an active Emergency Use Authorization by the United States Food
				  and Drug Administration;
(iii) a
				  tightly-fitting face covering made of multiple layers of non-woven material,
				  with a nose wire and ear loops; or
(iv) a tightly-fitting face covering made of
				  multiple layers of cloth or other woven material or breathable fabric, with a
				  nose wire and ear loops. "Mask" does not include a face-covering that allows
				  light to shine through when held up to a light source or that contains
				  exhalation valves or vents.
"New hire" or "new qualifying full-time job" means a
					 qualifying full-time job created by the taxpayer that did not previously exist
					 in this State prior to the start date of capital investment. To qualify as a
					 "new hire," the employee filling the qualifying full-time job shall have been
					 hired between the start date of capital investment and the earlier of:
(i) 12 months after the completion date of
				  capital investment; or
(ii) the
				  application date. "New hire" shall not mean a full-time job filled by an
				  existing employee who was not involved in the manufacturing of personal
				  protective equipment who is transferred to a full-time job involved in the
				  manufacturing of personal protective equipment.
"Northern counties" means Bergen County, Essex County,
					 Hudson County, Hunterdon County, Mercer County, Middlesex County, Monmouth
					 County, Morris County, Passaic County, Somerset County, Sussex County, Union
					 County, or Warren County.
"Partnership" means an entity classified as a partnership
					 for Federal income tax purposes.
"Personal protective equipment" or "PPE" means coveralls,
					 face shields, gloves, gowns, masks, respirators, footwear coverings, head
					 coverings, safeguard equipment, and other equipment designed to protect the
					 wearer from the spread of infection or illness.
"Privilege period" means the calendar or fiscal accounting
					 period for which a tax is payable under the Corporation Business Tax Act,
					 N.J.S.A.
					 54:10A-5.
"Professional employer organization" means an employee
					 leasing company registered with the Department of Labor and Workforce
					 Development pursuant to
					 P.L.
					 2001, c. 260 (N.J.S.A.
					 34:8-67et seq.).
"Program" means the PPE Manufacturing Tax Credit Program
					 established by
					 sections
					 106 and
					 107 of
					 P.L.
					 2020, c. 156.
"Project" means the capital investment and the employment
					 commitment at a qualified facility required by the Act and this subchapter. The
					 capital investment must be completed during privilege periods 2020, 2021, or
					 2022.
"Public research university" means a public research
					 university as defined in section 3 of P.L. 1994, c. 48 (N.J.S.A.
					 18A:3B-3).
"Qualified facility" means a facility, or a portion of a
					 facility used in connection with the manufacture of PPE, including pro rata
					 areas such as bathrooms, breakrooms, or administrative spaces that support the
					 manufacture of personal protective equipment, that is:
1. Located in a redevelopment area or
				  rehabilitation area as defined in section 3 of P.L. 1992, c. 79 (N.J.S.A.
				  40A:12A-3);
2. Located in a Smart Growth Area as
				  identified by the Office of Planning Advocacy;
3. A facility in which the manufacturing of
				  personal protective equipment is part of a research collaboration between the
				  taxpayer and a college or university located within the State;
4. A facility in which the taxpayer has
				  established an apprenticeship program or pre-apprenticeship program with a
				  technical school or community college located within the State; or
5. A building vacant for not less than seven
				  years, in need of rehabilitation with a minimum of 250,000 square feet.
"Qualifying full-time job" means a full-time position in a
					 business in this State at a qualified facility, which the taxpayer has filled
					 with a full-time employee at least 50 percent of whose time is dedicated to the
					 manufacturing of personal protective equipment in this State or to the support
					 of such manufacturing. The employee's primary place of business shall be the
					 qualified facility, and the employee shall spend at the qualified facility at
					 least 80 percent of the employee's time, or any other period of time generally
					 accepted by custom or practice as full-time employment in New Jersey, as
					 determined by the Authority. The employee shall be employed for at least 35
					 hours a week and shall be paid employee wages at a rate of not less than $
					 15.00 per hour, and the employee's wages shall be subject to withholding as
					 provided in the New Jersey Gross Income Tax Act, N.J.S.A. 54A:1-1et seq. A
					 qualifying full-time job shall also include a person who is employed by a
					 professional employer organization pursuant to an employee leasing agreement
					 between the taxpayer and the professional employer organization for the
					 manufacturing of personal protective equipment in this State for at least 35
					 hours a week and who shall be paid employee wages at a rate of not less than $
					 15.00 per hour, and the person's wages shall be subject to withholding as
					 provided in the New Jersey Gross Income Tax Act, N.J.S.A. 54A:1-1et seq. The
					 Authority may determine any other standard of service generally accepted by
					 custom or practice as full-time employment. A qualifying full-time job shall
					 not include any person who works as an independent contractor or on a
					 consulting basis for the taxpayer. A qualifying full-time job includes only a
					 position for which the taxpayer provides employee health benefits no later than
					 90 days following the date of hire under a health benefits plan authorized
					 pursuant to State or Federal law.
"Retained qualifying full-time job" means a qualifying
					 full-time job in a business in this State that was at risk of being eliminated
					 because the taxpayer was negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic or the
					 mitigation measures required by the State after the declared state of emergency
					 on March 9, 2020, including, but not limited to, the taxpayer's business was
					 temporarily shut down, was required to reduce hours, had at least a 20 percent
					 drop in revenue, had been materially impacted by employees who could not work
					 due to the pandemic, or relied on a supply chain that has been materially
					 disrupted and therefore slowed firm-level production. A retained qualifying
					 full-time job may include an employee who was not involved in the manufacturing
					 of personal protective equipment who is transferred to a qualifying full-time
					 job.
"Soft costs" means all costs associated with financing,
					 design, engineering, legal, or real estate commissions, including, but not
					 limited to, architect fees, permit fees, loan origination and closing costs,
					 construction management, and freight and shipping delivery, but not including
					 early lease termination costs, air fare, mileage, tolls, gas, meals, packing
					 material, marketing, temporary signage, incentive consultant fees, Authority
					 fees, loan interest payments, escrows, or other similar costs.
"Southern counties" means the following counties in New
					 Jersey: Atlantic County, Burlington County, Cape May County, Cumberland County,
					 Gloucester County, Ocean County, or Salem County. A facility that is located
					 partially in a southern county and partially in a northern county shall be
					 treated as located entirely within the southern county.
"Square foot of gross leasable area" means a rentable area
					 of the building or structure as calculated pursuant to the measuring standards
					 of the project. This standard will be defined in the lease for tenant
					 applicants. The rentable area measures the tenant's pro rata portion of the
					 entire office floor, including public corridors, restrooms, janitor closets,
					 utility closets, and machine rooms used in common with other tenants, but
					 excluding elements of the building or structure that penetrate through the
					 floor to areas below. The rentable area of a floor is fixed for the life of a
					 building or structure and is not affected by changes in corridor sizes or
					 configuration.
"Start date of capital investment" means the date of
					 execution of the first contract under which the taxpayer incurs expenses for
					 eligible capital investments at the qualified facility or the date of the first
					 invoice for such expenses, but no earlier than March 9, 2020.
"State college" means a State college or university
					 established pursuant to Chapter 64 of Title 18A of the New Jersey
					 statutes.
"Taxable year" means the calendar or fiscal accounting
					 period for which a tax is payable under the New Jersey Gross Income Tax Act,
					 N.J.S.A. 54A:1-1et seq.
"Taxpayer" means the individual, estate, or trust filing a
					 tax return pursuant to the New Jersey Gross Income Tax Act, N.J.S.A. 54A:1-1et
					 seq., or the entity filing a tax return pursuant to the Corporation Business
					 Tax, section 5 of P.L. 1945, c. 162 (N.J.S.A.
					 54:10A-5). A taxpayer shall also include a
					 partnership, a New Jersey S Corporation, or any entity treated as a partnership
					 for tax purposes.
"Technical school" means a program approved by the
					 Department of Education that offers a sequence of courses that provide students
					 with the coherent and rigorous content aligned with challenging academic
					 standards and relevant technical knowledge and skills needed to prepare for
					 further education and careers in current or emerging professions. A technical
					 education program provides technical skill proficiency, an industry-recognized
					 credential, a certificate, or an associate
					 degree.