In Your Opinion: ‘Grow NJ’ Program Must Be Extended

By Mike Kerwin.

New Jersey is in a tough position. As with every other state throughout the country, we are consistently fighting for growth. This means fighting for new businesses, while at the same time trying to hold onto businesses currently operating in the State. Over the past few months, there has been an active debate regarding New Jersey’s use of business attraction and retention incentives, specifically the Grow New Jersey Assistance Program (Grow NJ). While the current Grow NJ program is certainly far from perfect, with some minor changes, it can and should remain an important part of the State’s economic development toolkit.

In a perfect world, New Jersey would be competitive without the need for business attraction and retention incentives. Doing business here would be economically efficient, the cost of living would not be as high, and it would be 70 degrees and sunny all year around. Imagine the possibilities—it would be easy to attract and retain businesses. New Jersey wouldn’t have to fight tooth and nail, just hoping to get a shot at making a case for why New Jersey is a great place for a business to operate. In reality, that is not the case. In the real world, we are not only competing with our neighboring states, we are competing with states throughout the country. On a regular basis, we hear about companies growing operations in the Southeast or Midwest. While those states are selling the promise of reducing a businesses’ overall operating costs, they are also offering aggressive business incentives.