Bill Text: NJ SJR66 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes "Commission to Review Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses."
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-03-03 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Commerce Committee [SJR66 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-SJR66-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator NILSA I. CRUZ-PEREZ
District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes "Commission to Review Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses."
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Joint Resolution establishing the "Commission to Review the Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses."
Be It Resolved by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. There is hereby established the "Commission to Review the Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses."
b. The commission shall consist of eleven members, three of whom shall be appointed by the Governor, four of whom shall be appointed by the Senate President, and four of whom shall be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly. Of the three members appointed by the Governor, one shall be the Commissioner of the Department of Health, or the commissioner's designee, who shall serve ex officio, one shall be a representative of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce, and one shall be a representative of the New Jersey Business and Industry Association. Of the four members appointed by the Senate President, one shall be the Senate Majority Leader, one shall be the Senate Minority Leader, and two shall be public members, one with a background in health care and one with a background in the hospitality industry, or small business ownership or management. Of the four members appointed by the Speaker, one shall be the Majority Leader of the General Assembly, one shall be the Minority Leader of the General Assembly, and two shall be public members, one with a background in health care and one with a background in the hospitality industry, or small business ownership or management.
c. Any vacancy in the membership of the commission shall be filled in the same manner in which the original appointment was made.
d. It shall be the duty of the commission to review existing administrative rules and regulations, or any Executive Order, or local or county rule or regulation that is issued in response to the public health emergency declared pursuant to Executive Order 103, to analyze the impact on small businesses, investment and economic growth in the State, and the ability for the economy to recover. After each meeting, the commission shall issue a report to the Governor and to the State Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), that includes the commission's findings and recommendations on the existing administrative rule or regulation, or any Executive Order, or local or county rule or regulation that was issued in response to the current public health emergency.
e. The members of the commission shall be appointed within 20 days following the date of enactment of this section. The commission shall organize as soon as is practicable after the appointment of its members, and shall select a chairperson from among its membership and a secretary who need not be a member of the commission. The presence of six members of the commission shall constitute a quorum. The commission may conduct business without a quorum, but may only vote on recommendations when a quorum is present. The commission shall be entitled to call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of the employees of any State, county, or municipal department, board, bureau, commission, authority, or agency as it may require, and as may be available to it for its purposes. Members of the commission shall serve without compensation, but shall be entitled to employ stenographic and clerical assistance and incur traveling and other miscellaneous expenses as it may deem necessary in order to perform its duties, within the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to it for its purposes. The commission shall meet regularly for the duration of the public health emergency, at the times and in the places the chairperson may deem appropriate and necessary to effectuate the commission's duties, and it shall conduct at least three public hearings at such place or places as the chairperson shall designate.
f. As used in this section, "small business" means a business which has its principal place of business in the State, is independently owned and operated, and has 100 or fewer full-time employees.
2. This joint resolution shall take effect immediately, and shall expire upon the expiration of the public health emergency declared by the Governor pursuant to Executive Order 103, or any extension thereof or any replacement therefor.
STATEMENT
This joint resolution establishes the "Commission to Review the Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses." The commission is to consist of eleven members: three members appointed by the Governor, which are to include the Commissioner of the Department of Health, a representative of the New Jersey Chamber Commerce, and a representative of the New Jersey Business and Industry Association; four members appointed by the Senate President which are to include the Senate Majority Leader, the Senate Minority Leader, and two public members, one with a background in health care and one with a background in the hospitality industry, or small business ownership or management; and four members appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, which are to include the Majority Leader of the General Assembly, the Minority Leader of the General Assembly; two public members, one with a background in health care, and one with a background in the hospitality industry, or small business ownership or management. Members of the commission are to be appointed within 20 days following the date of enactment of the joint resolution. The commission is to hold at least three public hearings.
Under the joint resolution, the commission is to review existing administrative rules and regulations, or any Executive Order, or local or county rule or regulation that is issued in response to the public health emergency declared pursuant to Executive Order 103, to analyze their impact on small businesses, investment and economic growth in the State, and the ability for the economy to recover. After each meeting, the commission is to issue a report to the Governor and State Legislature that includes the commission's findings and recommendations on these existing administrative rule or regulation, or Executive Order, or local or county rule or regulation that was issued in response to the current public health emergency.
