Small New Jersey businesses may be granted 60 days to cure certain first-time violations before a monetary fine or civil penalty is imposed under a new state law that took effect on June 19, 2023. The bill (A-4753/S-3208) was part of a legislative package signed by Governor Phil Murphy on March 20, 2023, designed to support small business in the State.

The new law (N.J.S.A. 52:14B-10.2) provides a state agency, department, or authority with the “sole discretion” to grant a 60-calendar-day suspension of the enforcement of a fine or penalty resulting from a first-time violation by a business entity that employs up to 50 full-time employees, or the equivalent of 50 full-time employees, if the suspension would not “result in a significant adverse impact to the public safety or welfare, result in loss of income or benefits to an employee, or present the risk of environmental harm.” The business must resolve the violation within 60 calendar days of receiving written notice that the State has suspended enforcement of the violation.

The law does not apply to a violation that is: (1) criminal in nature (or if the failure to impose the fine or penalty would obstruct the exposure of criminal activity); (2) an intentional or knowing act; (3) cause for revoking or suspending the business’s license or authorization to operate; (4) cause for the business to be disqualified from public works contracts; (5) a violation of a state employment or labor-related law; (6) cause for issuing a stop-work order; or (7) related to a failure to comply with a federal requirement that was delegated to the State, and the fine or penalty is mandated by federal law.

Each state agency, department, and authority is required to adopt any administrative rules and regulations that are needed to bring the law into effect and, beginning next year, prepare annual reports (to be made publicly available on its website) addressing the violations that it waived.

It is uncertain how much the different agencies, departments, and authorities will make use of the new law, what factors will be taken into consideration in deciding whether to suspend the enforcement of a violation, and whether certain kinds of violations are more likely to be suspended than others.

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