Government Affairs & Lobbying

Since 2018, Kaufman Zita Group has worked with Orsted, a multinational energy company and leader in offshore wind, to advance and solidify their presence in the state. KZG developed and coordinated all aspects of the company’s public affairs strategy to position it favorably to respond to the complex NJ Board of Public Utilities bid solicitation for the first offshore wind project in the state and the largest windfarm in North America. KZG worked with state, county and local government officials and agencies, as well as numerous stakeholder groups to guide Orsted through the multi-dimensional permitting and regulatory process during the solicitation. “KZG also assisted Orsted in facilitation of its offshore wind partner, EEW, a specialty steel fabricator to locate its first US based monopile manufacturing facility at the port of Paulsboro, NJ, on the Delaware River.”

KZG continues to provide Orsted with a multi-faceted government affairs and strategic outreach plan to ensure the company and its operations have a reliable state regulatory structure to support the state’s future offshore wind energy marketplace.

As part of the proposed Fiscal Year ‘21 State Budget, Governor Murphy announced an increase in the state’s corporate business tax and reversed a standing policy to make the existing temporary surcharge permanent. A move towards an increase in the CBT, coupled with making the surcharge permanent, would have significantly changed the method by which New Jersey corporations file their income taxes and the amount they paid on an annual basis.

Kaufman Zita Group immediately intervened to ensure that the tax increase remained temporary. After consultation with our impacted clients, KZG helped to build and coordinate a coalition of interested stakeholders, which included corporate tax experts and business trade associations to influence the development of this proposal in the FY’21 budget.

KZG engaged directly with legislative leadership, Treasury officials and members of Governor Murphy’s senior leadership team to inform them of the significant impact the proposed changes to the corporate business tax rate would have on companies and the New Jersey economy.

As a result of these efforts, KZG helped to convince lawmakers and the Governor’s Office to pursue a short-term extension of the corporate business tax surcharge rather than a permanent extension as originally sought by the Administration.

The Fiscal Year ‘21 Budget was signed into law on September 29, 2020.

On behalf of our client, the Center for Secure and Modern Elections (CSME), KZG led and coordinated the legislative program to ensure the passage and enactment of legislation establishing Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) in New Jersey. KZG organized efforts among several voting rights organizations, worked with state agencies, legislative sponsors, Committee Chairs, and officials in the Governor Office, to achieve passage of this groundbreaking legislation. New Jersey became the 12th state, along with the District of Columbia, to enact automatic voter registration, joining a national trend in trying to boost voter participation in elections, while seeking to secure and modernize our election system.

AVR occurs when eligible citizens, who interact with certain government agencies, are registered to vote or have their existing registration information updated, unless they decline. State agencies then transfer voter registration information electronically to election officials. These changes create a process that will clean up the voter rolls and keep our elections safe and secure.

Upon signing the bill, Governor Phil Murphy called the legislation, “One of the most expansive Automatic Voter Registration policies in the nation, strengthening and enhancing voting rights for eligible New Jersey residents.”

KZG secured passage of this bill within the first 100 Days of the new Murphy Administration.

The coronavirus pandemic forced businesses and organizations across the state to adjust to new economic and regulatory realities, finding new ways to service their customers while complying with strict health and public safety protocols. The KZG team was instrumental in advocating for our clients and helping them comply with new regulations during this unprecedented time.

HelloFresh, a global meal kit delivery service, faced several challenges keeping their Newark facility operations running throughout the pandemic. Beyond what the state had implemented, Newark enacted additional restrictions on individuals and businesses within the city. KZG successfully advocated for the company to be deemed essential allowing them to remain open regardless of other city-wide closures and limitations.

UPS saw an unprecedented demand for their services throughout the pandemic as they delivered millions of pieces of PPE, COVID-19 vaccines, and other products across every corner of the globe. The KZG team worked with state and municipal officials to ensure that UPS technology facilities and warehouses could operate beyond curfew hours in order to keep their facilities fully operational. KZG also helped facilitate open lines of communication with the state’s Office of Emergency Management, the State Police and Governor’s Office so that essential public health supplies could be distributed broadly to help protect our frontline workers in the early days of the pandemic.

The Brewers Guild of New Jersey faced challenges as their members had to rethink their business models when indoor dining and tasting room activities were prohibited or restricted throughout the pandemic. KZG was instrumental in advocating for new revenue streams to sustain the industry during this difficult time. On behalf of the Brewers Guild, KZG worked with the Governor’s Office, the New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, the Legislature, and other industry trade groups to pursue the signing of Executive Order No. 104, which in part, allowed breweries to deliver beer directly to consumers’ homes. This effort also led to KZG working on legislation signed by the Governor in May 2020 to extend brewery delivery privileges at least six months post the pandemic. These newfound delivery privileges were vital to keeping these small businesses open and workers employed.

Also, several of our clients with retail operations were in jeopardy of temporarily closing during the height of the pandemic if they were not deemed essential businesses. The KZG team worked with the Governor’s Office to ensure that telecommunications company storefront locations and in-person financial services were deemed essential under Executive Order No. 107 and could continue to serve customers in person. KZG’s efforts ensured that our clients could continue to meet their customers’ needs during these tumultuous times.

When Competitive Power Ventures (CPV) ran into legislative and regulatory challenges in its planned construction of a 700 megawatt electric generation facility on a brownfield site in Woodbridge, NJ, the company turned to the Kaufman Zita Group (KZG) to advance its interests.

KZG developed and negotiated amendments to complex legislation that would create long-term capacity contracts and coordinated with CPV’s internal and external legal teams. KZG advocated with senior officials in the governor’s office, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) and the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) to garner support for the proposed amendments and closely collaborated with Woodbridge officials to gain support for the amendments.

As a result of these efforts, the state passed legislation allowing CPV to successfully bid for and win a contract to develop a power plant in Woodbridge, NJ. KZG continues to help the company foster relationships with key NJBPU and NJDEP leadership and staff.

HelloFresh, a global meal kit delivery service, faced several challenges keeping their Newark facility operations running throughout the pandemic. Beyond what the state had implemented, Newark enacted additional restrictions on individuals and businesses within the city. KZG successfully advocated for the company to be deemed essential allowing them to remain open regardless of other city-wide closures and limitations.

UPS saw an unprecedented demand for their services throughout the pandemic as they delivered millions of pieces of PPE, COVID-19 vaccines, and other products across every corner of the globe. The KZG team worked with state and municipal officials to ensure that UPS technology facilities and warehouses could operate beyond curfew hours in order to keep their facilities fully operational. KZG also helped facilitate open lines of communication with the state’s Office of Emergency Management, the State Police and Governor’s Office so that essential public health supplies could be distributed broadly to help protect our frontline workers in the early days of the pandemic.

The Brewers Guild of New Jersey faced challenges as their members had to rethink their business models when indoor dining and tasting room activities were prohibited or restricted throughout the pandemic. KZG was instrumental in advocating for new revenue streams to sustain the industry during this difficult time. On behalf of the Brewers Guild, KZG worked with the Governor’s Office, the New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, the Legislature, and other industry trade groups to pursue the signing of Executive Order No. 104, which in part, allowed breweries to deliver beer directly to consumers’ homes. This effort also led to KZG working on legislation signed by the Governor in May 2020 to extend brewery delivery privileges at least six months post the pandemic. These newfound delivery privileges were vital to keeping these small businesses open and workers employed.

Also, several of our clients with retail operations were in jeopardy of temporarily closing during the height of the pandemic if they were not deemed essential businesses. The KZG team worked with the Governor’s Office to ensure that telecommunications company storefront locations and in-person financial services were deemed essential under Executive Order No. 107 and could continue to serve customers in person. KZG’s efforts ensured that our clients could continue to meet their customers’ needs during these tumultuous times.

Despite an explosion of interest in craft beer across the country, New Jersey breweries found themselves constrained by antiquated laws that dated back to the Prohibition era and restricted their ability to expand operations, market their products and compete with breweries in neighboring states. That’s when the Garden State Craft Brewers Guild, an association made up of production breweries and brewpubs licensed in New Jersey, turned to the Kaufman Zita Group (KZG) for help.

In order modernize New Jersey’s laws and unleash the economic potential of the industry,  the KZG team developed and executed a comprehensive public affairs plan. From helping draft legislation to relax the constraints on the industry to navigating the numerous political hurdles that arose during the legislative process, KZG managed a complex policy initiative and negotiated a successful outcome. In the end, KZG’s efforts yielded a law that created a more friendly business environment that attracted new investment, enabled many of the Guild’s existing members to expand their facilities and allowed new breweries and brewpubs to enter the New Jersey market.

This landmark legislation was signed into law in September 2012.  Since then, the number of craft beer production facilities in New Jersey has increased over 100 percent.