In the coming months, voters in New Jersey will decide which of the nine (and counting) gubernatorial candidates they would like to see be their next governor.
This morning, the business community is making known its concerns for that person.
The 66th annual Business Outlook Survey by the New Jersey Business & Industry Association, released today, makes it clear that taxes are on the minds of business leaders.
Nearly one and four respondents – all high-level business leaders – listed ‘lowering property taxes’ as the action that could have the greatest positive impact on their business.
Of the 620 respondents, all of which were asked to list their top three impactful actions, more than half (53%) listed lowering property taxes among their top three.
There’s more:
- Reducing health insurance costs was cited in the top three by 51%, including 15% who listed it as their top want.
- 40% listed lowering corporate taxes in their top three, including 16% who made it their first wish.
As a reminder, in 2024, Gov. Phil Murphy returned New Jersey to the top corporate income tax rate in the nation (11.5%), reversing his 2023 commitment to lower it.
Michele Siekerka, the CEO of the NJBIA, said she hopes all elected officials will address the request.
“That a reduction in property taxes is desired by New Jersey businesses isn’t necessarily surprising, but the idea that they never seem to be in the conversation for property tax relief by policymakers is,” she said.
“New Jersey businesses have been excluded from any property-tax reductions from the ANCHOR and Stay NJ programs, even though they pay nearly half the property taxes in the state annually. A new governor clearly has the opportunity to endear themself to our job creators by finding them some much-needed property tax savings.”
The tax request ultimately impacts another major concern: Affordability.
Employers also continued to be extremely disappointed by business affordability in the state. When asked if the governor and New Jersey lawmakers have done enough to address business affordability in the past 12 months, only 4% said yes for the second straight year.
This year, 74% said no to the same question – compared to 68% in 2023.
Further, 79% said business affordability has decreased in New Jersey over the past five years, compared to only 4% that said it has improved in the same time frame. Seventeen percent said business affordability has remained the same over the past five years.
“Business affordability unfortunately does not seem to get any meaningful traction with policymakers,” Siekerka said. “It’s our hope that a new regime in Trenton will recognize the extreme costs of doing business in the state, taken as a collective, and consider policies to improve this sobering trend.”
About the survey: Questions for NJBIA’s 66th Annual Business Outlook Survey, conducted in partnership with Signet Research of Englewood, were sent to New Jersey business owners and executive staff in September and October 2024. The report is based on 620 valid responses.
Most respondents were small businesses, with 66% employing 24 or fewer people.
Complete results for any survey question allowing a single response may equal slightly more or less than 100% due to calculations made before rounding.
To see the complete survey, click here.
