N.J. Admin. Code § 19:31V-1.7

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 12, June 17, 2024

Section 19:31V-1.7 - Approval of completed application; tax credit amounts

(a) Prior to March 1, 2029, for redevelopment projects eligible pursuant to N.J.S.A. 34:1B-325 and this subchapter, the Authority shall award incentive awards based on the order in which complete, qualifying applications are received by the Authority. If interest in the Program so warrants, at the Authority's discretion, and upon notice, the Authority may institute a competitive application process whereby all completed applications submitted by a date certain will be evaluated as if submitted on that date. The review will determine whether the applicant:

1. Complies with the eligibility criteria;

2. Satisfies the submission requirements; and

3. Provides adequate information for the subject application.

(b) Before the Board may consider a developer's application for tax credits:

1. The Authority shall confirm with the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Department of the Treasury that the developer, any co-applicant, and the lead development entity are in compliance by being in substantial good standing with the statutes, rules, and other enforceable standards of the respective department, or, if a compliance issue exists, the developer, any co-applicant, as applicable, or the lead development entity has entered into an agreement with the respective department and any co-applicant, which may include a practical corrective action plan, as applicable.

i. Substantial good standing shall be determined by each department and mean, at a minimum, that the developer, the lead development entity, and any co-applicant:

(1) As to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development and the Department of Environmental Protection:

(A) Is in substantial compliance with all material statutes, rules, and other enforceable standards of the respective department that apply to the developer and any co-applicant; and

(B) Has no material violations of those statutes, rules, or other enforceable standards that remain substantially unresolved through entry into a corrective action plan, or other agreement with the department, with respect thereto; and

(2) As to all other departments, has no unpaid liability in excess of any threshold dollar amount(s) that may be established by each respective department.

ii. If the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, the Department of Environmental Protection, or the Department of the Treasury promulgates or issues its own more stringent rule or standard defining the term "substantial good standing," the respective department shall use such rule or standard to determine whether an entity is in substantial good standing.

2. The Authority shall confirm with the Agency that the applicant and the lead development entity are in compliance by being in substantial good standing with regard to the Agency's low-income housing tax credit.

3. The Authority may contract with an independent third party to perform a background check on the developer, the lead development entity, and any co-applicant.

4. Any contractors or subcontractors that will perform work at the redevelopment project shall be registered as required by the Public Works Contractor Registration Act, N.J.S.A. 34:11-56.48 et seq., shall not have been debarred by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development from engaging in or bidding on Public Works Contracts in the State, and shall possess a tax clearance certificate issued by the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury.

(c) Provided that the requirements at (b) above are satisfied, the Authority shall allocate incentive awards to redevelopment projects according to the redevelopment project's score and until either the available incentive awards are exhausted or all redevelopment projects obtaining the minimum score receive an incentive award, whichever occurs first. The scoring shall be based on factors including, but not limited to, consistency of proposed use with applicable land use requirements or redevelopment plans; whether the redevelopment project adheres to smart growth, equitable development, and transit-oriented development principles; whether the redevelopment project has environmental or public health stressors and is located in an overburdened community pursuant to N.J.S.A. 13:1D-157 et seq.; whether the redevelopment project design anticipates long-term risks of climate change to the redevelopment project; and inclusion of workforce housing in a residential project not located in a distressed municipality. If insufficient funding exists to fully fund all eligible projects, a project may be offered partial funding.

(d) If a developer intends to apply to both the Authority and the Agency for tax credits, subsidies, or other financing, the developer shall notify the Agency simultaneously with any application made to the Authority. The Authority shall transmit its grant determination for such residential projects to the Agency, along with any information developed by the Authority and confirmation of the Authority's intent to provide an incentive award or award to the project. Approval of an application by the Agency, subject to the Agency's rules and guidelines for the applicable Agency Program, shall be the final determination required for an incentive award for a residential project pursuant to this section.

(e) Up to the limits established at (f) below, and in accordance with an incentive award agreement, beginning upon completion of the capital investment and the receipt of the temporary certificate of occupancy for the redevelopment project or the first phase of an approved phased project, or upon any other event evidencing project completion as set forth in the incentive award agreement, a developer shall be allowed a total tax credit pursuant to the Program that shall not exceed the percentages in this subsection. For purposes of the calculation of tax credits, project cost shall be reduced by the amount of State and local grants and tax credits other than those awarded pursuant to the Program.

1. Eighty of the total project cost for a redevelopment project that is located in a government-restricted municipality, not to exceed $ 120 million per redevelopment project or phase for a redevelopment project;

2. Sixty percent of the total project cost for a residential project that receives a four-percent allocation pursuant to the Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program or a redevelopment project that is located in a qualified incentive tract, enhanced area, or a municipality with a Municipal Revitalization Index score of at least 50, not to exceed $ 90 million per redevelopment project or phase of a redevelopment project; or

3. Fifty percent of the total project cost for any other redevelopment project, not to exceed $ 60 million per redevelopment project or phase for a redevelopment project.

(f) Notwithstanding the provisions at (e) above, for projects with tax credits pursuant to the Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program in which not all the residential units are reserved for occupancy by low- and moderate-income households, in no event shall the sum of all tax credits awarded pursuant to any program administered by the Authority and the Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program exceed 90 percent of the project cost. For all other projects, in no event shall the sum of all tax credits awarded pursuant to any program administered by the Authority exceed 90 percent of the project cost.

(g) The maximum amount of tax credits available to a developer to apply annually shall be equal to the total credit amount divided by the duration of eligibility period in years, fractions of a dollar rounded down.

N.J. Admin. Code § 19:31V-1.7

Recodified from 19:31-23A.7 56 N.J.R. 807(a), effective 5/6/2024