The New Jersey Economic Development Authority announced Tuesday that it will reopen applications for the residential component of the Economic Redevelopment and Growth Program on June 1.
The program was able to reopen thanks to $50 million in tax credits designated in the Economic Recovery Act of 2020 in March. The ERG program, which was originally created to address project financing gaps in development projects, had previously stopped accepting new applications in June 2019.
The new phase of the ERG program will be administered based on preexisting ERG regulations and statutes, as amended by the Economic Recovery Act, which added new prevailing wage and minimum wage requirements.
For additional information and detailed eligibility requirements, including a clarifying document outlining all requirements and application review protocols for interested parties, click here.
Specific questions can be directed here.
EDA CEO Tim Sullivan said restarting the program will allow projects to move forward faster.
“The decision by Gov. (Phil) Murphy and the Legislature to include $50 million for residential ERG projects will enable us to move much-needed, shovel-ready housing projects forward now, while the new programs created by the Economic Recovery Act are being developed,” he said. “These projects will help to drive investment in the state while also creating good-paying construction job opportunities that will put people back to work and communities in New Jersey on a path to economic recovery.”
Under the Economic Recovery Act, residential ERG projects can receive tax credits of up to 30% of total eligible project costs. Projects in five cities — Atlantic City, Camden, Paterson, Passaic and Trenton — can receive tax credits of up to 40% of eligible project costs. ERG tax credits are not meant to be a substitute for conventional debt and equity financing, and applicants should generally have their primary debt financing in place before applying.
For more information about the extension of the ERG program and other programs created by the Economic Recovery Act, click here.
