SENATE BUDGET AND APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
STATEMENT TO
[First Reprint]
SENATE, No. 4485
with committee amendments
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
DATED: DECEMBER 15, 2025
The Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 4485 (1R).
As amended, this bill establishes the New Jersey Innovation Authority (authority) in, but not of, the Department of the Treasury as an instrumentality of the State. The authority will consist of 13 members, nine of which will be public members. The public members will have knowledge and expertise in one or more fields including, but not limited to: data science; public engagement; the development and implementation of digital technologies and digital product development; and the digital delivery of products, services, or benefits, and the practical applications of the same. The chairperson of the authority will be appointed by the Governor from among the public members. The authority will delegate to the Chief Innovation Officer the ability to appoint, retain, or employ a legal director, engineers, attorneys, accountants, financial experts, and any such officers, agents, employees, and experts, or other persons as it may require for the performance of its duties, all without regard to the civil service law.
The day-to-day operations of the authority will be directed and administered by the Chief Innovation Officer. Upon enactment of this bill, the initial appointment of the Chief Innovation Officer will be made by the Governor, and all subsequent appointments will be made by the authority upon a majority vote of its members. The Chief Innovation Officer will be the chief executive officer and will serve at the pleasure of the authority.
The responsibilities of the authority will include serving as the primary authority on technology innovation for the State and advising and providing centralized implementation and delivery services to the executive branch of State government. On or before March 31 of each calendar year, the authority will prepare an annual report of its activities for the preceding calendar year and submit such annual report to the Governor and the Legislature.
This bill provides that all purchases, contracts, or agreements made by the authority are to be made or awarded directly by the authority after public advertisement for bids, unless certain circumstances are met, in which case the purchase, contract, or agreement may be made without public bid or advertising. The authority is also authorized to consult with, enter into agreements or contract with, and transfer, disburse, or grant funds, in the authority’s discretion, to an established nonprofit entity, including the National Center for Civic Innovation, Inc., as such nonprofit entity may be identified by the authority, to effectuate any of the purposes or powers, either directly or indirectly, granted to the authority.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:
The committee amended the bill to:
(1) require that five of the public members are to be directly appointed by the Governor and that two are to be appointed by the Governor upon recommendation of the Speaker of the General Assembly and two are to be appointed by the Governor upon recommendation of the President of the Senate;
(2) provide that of the five public members first directly appointed by the Governor to the authority, instead of the first nine members appointed, two members, rather than three, are to serve a term of five years, two members, rather than three, are to serve a term of four years, and one member, rather than three, is to serve a term of three years;
(3) provide that each public member appointed by the Governor upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the General Assembly or the President of the Senate are to serve for a term of five years and until the member’s successor has been appointed and qualified;
(4) require that the Chief Innovation Officer promote and discharge experts and other persons without regard to Title 11A, Civil Service, of the New Jersey Statutes in addition to officers, agents, and employees; and
(5) provide that the Chief Innovation Officer is required to determine the services provided by certain officers, agents, employees, experts, or other persons in addition to their qualifications, terms of office, duties, and compensation,.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) estimates that establishing a New Jersey Innovation Authority will result in a minimum State expenditure increase of $500,000, for salary increases and media and design costs, in the year following the bill’s enactment, and a minimum State expenditure increase of $175,000 for salaries each year thereafter. The actual annual State expenditure increase will depend on numerous factors, including the degree to which the authority duplicates services and personnel currently housed under the New Jersey Office of Information Technology and whether the authority will require new or additional office space beyond the State’s current real estate portfolio.
The bill provides the authority with considerable latitude to set fees and charges for the use of its platforms and services, as well as the ability to accept donations for its operations from public and private sources, which may result in an indeterminate annual increase in State revenues.