April 1, 2020
NJ’s Tax Deadline is Extended
Governor Phil Murphy, Senate President Steve Sweeney, and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin issued the following joint statement today on the tax filing deadline and the state budget timetable:
“The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused hardships, financial strain, and disruptions for many New Jerseyans and New Jersey businesses. As part of our response, we have reached an agreement that the state income tax filing deadline and the corporation business tax filing deadline will be extended from April 15th to July 15th.”
“Additionally, as part of the whole-of-government effort that is going into fighting COVID-19, we have agreed that the state fiscal year should be extended to September 30th. This will allow the Administration and the Legislature to focus fully on leading New Jersey out of this crisis, and to allow for a robust, comprehensive, and well-informed budget process later in the year.”
NJBIA Webcasts
The New Jersey Business and Industry Association (NJBIA) hosted a webcast on legislation enacted in New Jersey. You can
listen to the recording
of yesterday’s webcast with New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA CEO) Tim Sullivan. He answered as many questions as possible about NJEDA's new programs to assist New Jersey small businesses and nonprofits during this time of crisis. Comprehensive information about New Jersey’s response to the novel coronavirus outbreak is
available here.
NJBIA is hosting a webcast at 4:00 PM today for members in the construction industry. The agenda will include a discussion on how the construction industry is meeting critical needs and the challenges facing the industry. You can
register here
.
Small Business Emergency Assistance Grant Program
NJEDA announced yesterday that applications for its
Small Business Emergency Grant Program
will be accepted between
April 3 at 9:00 AM and 9:00 AM on April 10. A link to the grant program application will be posted on the State’s
COVID-19 Business Information Hub.
The grant program is part of a package of initiatives announced last week to support businesses and workers facing economic hardship due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus COVID-19. More information on the application process, including screen shots of the application, is
available here.
Under the Small Business Emergency Assistance Grant Program, funding may be used for unrestricted payroll and working capital support; however, funding cannot be used for capital expenses, including construction.
Businesses applying for the Small Business Emergency Assistance Grant Program must provide:
- A contact who is authorized to speak on behalf of the company.
- Basic information about the company:
- Registered legal name and “Doing Business As” name;
- Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN);
- Year your company was established;
- Full-time employees as of December 31, 2019 and Part-Time Employees as of December 31, 2019.
- Industry as defined by your NAICS code;
- Answers to the State’s basic debarment questions
- Certification that the business:
- Is not a home-based business;
- Is not a prohibited business;
- Has been impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak;
- Has a material financial need that cannot be overcome without the grant funds;
- Will make a best effort not to lay off any additional employees and re-hire any whom have already been laid off;
- The NJEDA may check your entries against other State sources of data.
Eligible businesses may receive $1,000 per full time employee (FTE), with the calculation based on the WR-30 filing from the most recent payroll period from date of application. The minimum grant amount (per application) is $1,000; and maximum grant amount (per application) is $5,000.
While the maximum grant amount per small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) is $5,000, specific grants amounts will be calculated based on $1,000 per FTE – based on the FTEs reported on company’s most recently filed WR-30 with the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DOL). Implied FTE calculations will be rounded to the nearest FTE (e.g., 2.24 FTEs would be counted as 2 FTEs for the program, whereas 2.50 or 2.75 FTEs would be counted as 3 FTEs). While the calculation of FTEs is based on weeks worked and wages as reported on the Company’s 4
th
Quarter 2019 WR-30 filing, in no event will a company receive grant funding based on a number of FTEs that exceeds the number of employees employed by the company. Because WR-30 filings are based on Employer Identification Numbers (EINs), SMEs with more than one EIN will be able to submit one application per EIN. SMEs that may have multiple locations but only one EIN can only apply once for a maximum of $5,000.
We will share more details as they become available. Please visit
our
COVID-19 Resource Page
for more updates.
Feel free to contact any member of our team at (610) 828-1900 (PA) or (732) 341-3893 (NJ) with questions. Rich Higgins, CPA, managing principal – New Jersey office can be contacted at
Richard.Higgins@MCC-CPAs.com
. I can be reached at
Marty.McCarthy@MCC-CPAs.com
. As always, we are happy to help.
Stay safe,
Marty McCarthy, CPA, CCIFP
Managing Partner
McCarthy & Company
Sources: New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA), New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (DOL) and New Jersey Business and Industry Association (NJBIA)
Disclaimer: This alert is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Information contained in this communication is not intended or written to be used as tax advice, and cannot be used by the recipient to avoid penalties that may be imposed under the Internal Revenue Code. We strongly advise you to seek professional assistance with respect to your specific issue(s).
