New Jersey S 1779: Requires data collection and issuance of report on drug evidence testing by New Jersey State Police Office of Forensic Sciences.

Bill Text

S1779 1R 

[First Reprint]

SENATE, No. 1779 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

� 

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Senator TROY SINGLETON

District 7 (Burlington)

Senator PARKER SPACE

District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)

Co-Sponsored by:

Senator Cruz-Perez

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes Downtown Economic Growth Program to 
encourage business development in certain small municipalities.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT 

���� As reported by the Senate Economic Growth Committee 
on October 8, 2026, with amendments.

�� 

An Act 
creating the Downtown Economic Growth 
Program and supplementing P.L.1974, 
c.80 (C.34:1B-1 et seq.).

���� Be It 
Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of 
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� This act shall be known 
and may be cited as the �Downtown Economic Growth Act.�

���� 2.��� The Legislature finds 
and declares that:

���� a.���� Many municipalities in 
this State having small populations with substantially developed commercial 
areas face considerable obstacles in fostering new jobs and business growth and 
do not qualify for assistance offered by the State�s municipal and business 
assistance programs.

���� b.��� Recognizing the 
difficulties faced by these municipalities and businesses, it is in the 
long-term economic interest of this State to establish an economic development 
incentive program to encourage business growth in the commercial areas of 
smaller, substantially developed municipalities so that the local economy of 
these municipalities may grow and thrive.

���� 3.��� As used in 
P.L. , 
c. (C. ) 
(pending before the Legislature as this bill):

���� �Area business� means any 
entity authorized to do business in the State of New Jersey which, at the time 
a small municipality designates an area as a downtown area, is engaged in the 
active conduct of a trade or business in that area; or an entity which, after a 
small municipality designates an area as a downtown area, becomes newly engaged 
in the active conduct of a trade or business in that area and has at least 25 
percent of its full-time employees employed at a business location in the area 
who are residents within the small municipality.

���� �Authority� means the New 
Jersey Economic Development Authority established by section 4 of P.L.1974, 
c.80 (C.34:1B-4).

���� �Center� means the New Jersey 
Business Action Center created in the Department of State.

���� �Department� means the 
Department of Community Affairs.

���� �Developed� means areas 
included within the Level 1 Urban or Built-up Land category in the 2012 New 
Jersey Department of Environmental Protection land use/land cover data set.

���� �Director� means the Director 
of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury.

���� �Downtown area� or �area� 
means an eligible area designated by a small municipality pursuant to section 5 
of P.L. , 
c. (C. ) 
(pending before the Legislature as this bill).

���� �Full-time employee� means a 
person employed by an area business for consideration for at least 35 hours 1[a] per1 week, 
or who renders any other standard of service generally accepted by custom or 
practice as full-time employment, or a person who is employed by a professional 
employer organization pursuant to an employee leasing agreement between an area 
business and the professional employer organization, in accordance with 
P.L.2001, c.260 (C.34:8-67 et seq.) for at least 35 hours 1[a] per1 week, 
or who renders any other standard of service generally accepted by custom or 
practice as full-time employment, and whose wages are subject to withholding as 
provided in the �New Jersey Gross Income Tax Act,� N.J.S.54A:1-1 et seq. or a 
person who is a resident of another State but whose income is not subject to 
the �New Jersey Gross Income Tax Act,� N.J.S.54A:1-1 et seq., or who renders 
any other standard of service generally accepted by custom or practice as 
full-time employment, and whose distributive share of income, gain, loss, or 
deduction, or whose guaranteed payments, or any combination thereof, is subject 
to the payment of estimated taxes, as provided in the �New Jersey Gross Income 
Tax Act,� N.J.S.54A:1-1 et seq.� �Full-time employee� shall not include any 
person who works as an independent contractor or on a consulting basis for an 
area business.

���� �Fund� means the �Downtown 
Economic Growth Assistance Fund� established pursuant to section 10 of 
P.L. , 
c. (C. ) 
(pending before the Legislature as this bill).

���� �Opportunity zone� means a 
federal population census tract in this State that was eligible to be 
designated as a qualified opportunity zone pursuant to 26 U.S.C. s.1400Z-1.

���� �Program� means the Downtown 
Economic Growth Program established pursuant to section 4 of 
P.L. , 
c. (C. ) 
(pending before the Legislature as this bill).

���� �Small municipality� means any 
municipality with a population of under 11,000 persons, according to the mo