Seven awards were doled out for the program at the New Jersey Economic Development Authority's last board meeting of 2021. The initiative has picked up some of the tab for 30 productions in the state since its reintroduction in 2018.

Officials set a deadline of Jan. 5 to apply for SBA funds, which are only available to companies, homeowners and renters in Bergen, Essex, Gloucester, Hudson, Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Passaic, Somerset and Union counties.

The measures are designed to help businesses recoup the costs of complying with pandemic restrictions and to encourage investments in small and mid-size companies.

A lame duck proposal that would prohibit the state from mandating that commercial and residential properties make the switch from oil and natural gas was approved by a Senate committee on Dec. 6.

Legislation to bolster the program cleared an Assembly committee on Dec. 6. The effort comes as productions pick up in the Garden State, following the standstill imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although New Jersey is a “national leader in policies that support working families,” the program leaves much to be desired, said Debra Lancaster, head of the Rutgers Center for Women and Work, and one of the lead authors of the report.

The initiative will make low-interest loans up to $350,000 available to for-profit organizations and grants of up to $350,000 available to nonprofits and local government units.

The legislation is a bid to boost the state's workforce. According to a Dec. 2 statement from the Assembly Democrats, more than 88,000 additional families could benefit from the expanded tax subsidy program.

Proponents of the measure contend that anything that increases access to such services is vital to help many New Jerseyans- especially women - get back into the workforce.

Jose Lozano previously worked for the health care system prior to his time with the Murphy administration.

The proposal is part of the so-called “Path to Progress” reforms Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-3rd District, has championed since 2018 as a means to cut taxes.

The proposal calls for major spending on Hackensack Meridian Health, the New Jersey Wind Port in South Jersey, and hundreds of millions of dollars toward other projects meant to bolster the state’s health care infrastructure and the economy.