On August 6, 2019 Acting Governor Shelia Oliver signed the Wage Theft Act into law. The law revised New Jersey wage and hour laws to include new civil and criminal penalties for failure to pay compensation and benefits, pensions, medical treatment, disability benefits, and workers' compensation.

In Parts 1 and 2 of this series, we discussed the circumstances that led to the planned phase-out of the London Inter-bank Offered Rate, commonly referred to as “LIBOR” and the proposed replacement rate known as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”). In this last part of the series, we will present the proposed language recommended by the Alternative Reference Rate Committee (“ARRC”) to be used in new contracts that reference LIBOR.

On July 25, 2019, New Jersey Acting Gov. Sheila Oliver signed A1094 into law, which amends the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination to prevent employers from asking about workers’ wages and salary histories.

The New Jersey Constitution allows disabled veterans to benefit from special local property tax treatment in the form of a total exemption. The intent of the exemption, in part, is to compensate veterans for the experiences of war and to acknowledge their sacrifices.

In February of 2019, Governor Murphy signed a bill that gradually increases the minimum wage, over the span of multiple years, to $15.00 per hour. The minimum wage for most employees is currently $8.85 per hour. However, the minimum wage will increase on July 1, 2019. 

In February of this year, Governor Phil Murphy signed a bill that expanded the Family Leave Act. While some of the expansion took effect immediately, other changes are phased in. 

Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start of the summer season along the Jersey Shore. As the tourist season begins in earnest, the New Jersey Legislature is working quickly to pass legislative fixes intended to alleviate aspects of New Jersey's 11.65% tax on short-term rental properties located within the State (referred to colloquially as the "Airbnb Tax"). 

Yesterday, Governor Murphy signed A3975 into law, significantly expanding the New Jersey Family Leave Act (FLA) and Family Leave Insurance (FLI) programs to provide greater benefits to workers including additional time off, higher compensation, and increasing the class of individuals who qualify for leave.

On February 19, 2019, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority ("NJEDA") announced the expansion of the existing Business Lease Incentive Program (commonly known as the "BLI Program"). 

In accordance with an agreement reached between the Governor and legislative leaders earlier this month, the New Jersey Legislature approved legislation, A-15 (the “Bill”), on January 31, 2019 to increase the state hourly minimum wage requirement from $8.85 to $15 over a five (5) year period. The Governor is expected to sign the Bill into law on Monday, February 4, 2019.