A 5324

Title 34
Chapter 11F
(New)
Employer Fee
Concerning
Certain Employees'
Health Benefits
Coverage
��1-3
C.34:11F-1
to 34:11F-3
�4
Note
P.L.
2026, CHAPTER 23, approved June 30, 2026
Assembly, No. 5324 (First
Reprint)
An Act establishing a fee on certain employers that employ
individuals receiving health benefits coverage through the State Medicaid
program, and supplementing Title 34 of the Revised Statutes.
���� Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New
Jersey:
����� 1. a. As used in this
act:
����� �Commissioner� means
the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development.
����� "Department"
means the Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
����� �Division� means the
Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services in the Department of the Treasury.
����� �Employee� means any
person suffered or permitted to work by an employer, except that an independent
contractor shall not be considered an employee.� For purposes of this act, the
employer shall have the burden of establishing that an individual is an independent
contractor, by showing that the individual and the services that the individual
provides meet the test for independent contractor status set forth in
R.S.43:21-19.
����� �Employer� means any
individual, partnership, association, joint stock company, trust, corporation,
the administrator or executor of the estate of a deceased individual, or the
receiver, trustee, or successor of any of the same, employing any person in this
State that has at any time during the previous calendar year employed 50 or
more employees who receive health benefits coverage through the State Medicaid
program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.).� For the purposes of
this act, the officers of a corporation and any agents having the management of
such corporation shall be deemed to be the employers of the employees of the
corporation.� In addition, any members of a partnership or limited liability
company and any agents having the management of such partnership or limited
liability company shall be deemed to be employers of the employees of the
partnership or limited liability company.
����� �"Dependent"
means an employee's spouse, civil union partner, or domestic partner, an
unmarried child of the employee who is less than 31 years of age and lives with
the employee in a regular parent-child relationship, or an unmarried child of the
employee who is not less than 31 years of age and is not capable of
self-support. "Child of the employee" includes any child, stepchild,
legally adopted child, or foster child of the employee, or of a domestic
partner or civil union partner of the employee, who is reported for health
benefits coverage through the State Medicaid program pursuant to P.L.1968,
c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.) and dependent upon the employee for support and
maintenance.
����� b.�� Except as
provided in subsection d. of this section, an employer shall annually pay to
the division a fee, which shall be determined pursuant to subsection c. of this
section and assessed by the division, for each employee of the employer, and
each dependent of the employee, who receives health benefits coverage through
the State Medicaid program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.) for
the purpose of raising revenue to defray State Medicaid costs.�
����� c.�� The fee to be
imposed on an employer shall be determined based on the number of employees,
and dependents of employees, who receive health benefits coverage through the
State Medicaid program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.) on
December 31 preceding the date employers are notified of their liability under
this section pursuant to subsection e. of this section as follows:
����� (1) for an employer
with at least 50 but fewer than 250 employees who receive health benefits
coverage through the State Medicaid program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413
(C.30:4D-1 et seq.), $325 for each employee, and for each of the employee�s
dependents, who receives State Medicaid benefits;
����� (2) for an employer
with at least 250 but fewer than 500 employees who receive health benefits
coverage through the State Medicaid program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413
(C.30:4D-1 et seq.), $525 for each employee, and for each of the employee�s
dependents, who receives State Medicaid benefits; and
����� (3) for an employer
with 500 or more employees who receive health benefits coverage through the
State Medicaid program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.), $725
for each employee, and for each of the employee�s dependents, who receives
State Medicaid benefits.
����� d.�� Notwithstanding
the provisions of subsections b. and c. of this section to the contrary, an
employer shall not be liable for the fee established pursuant to subsection b.
of this section for any employee of the employer, or dependent of the employee,
with a developmental disability as defined in section 3 of P.L.1985, c.145
(C.30:6D-25), an intellectual disability as defined in section 13 of P.L.1965,
c.59 (C.30:4-25.1), or a permanent physical disability as defined in section 2
of P.L.1987, c.350 (C.30:4G-14).�
����� e.�� On or before
March 1 of each year, the division, using the information provided pursuant to
section 2 of this act, shall notify an employer that the employer is required
to pay the fee imposed under this section and to file information to facilitate
the processing and tracking of such payment.� The notification provided by the
division shall indicate the number of employees, and dependents of the
employees, who receive health benefits coverage through the State Medicaid
program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.), for which an employer
is required to pay the fee.� An employer required to pay the fee and provide
any related filing information shall do so through an electronic method
specified by the division.� Payment methods may include electronic funds
transfer, payment card, or any other electronic method approved by the
division.� Filing information shall be submitted over the Internet or through
any other electronic method approved by the division.� All payments and filings
shall be due on or before April 15.
����� f.��� An employer who
fails to pay the fee for each impacted employee or dependent required under the
provisions of this section shall be subject to a penalty not to exceed $500 per
day for each day the fee remains unpaid.
����� g.�� An employer may
dispute the determination that the employer is required to pay the fee
established pursuant to this section by filing an appeal with the department
for a review of that determination; and the department shall have authority to
reverse the division�s determination that the employer is required to pay the
fee if it concludes the fee was improperly imposed.� An employer shall file the
appeal in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to section 3 of this act and
shall submit data satisfactory to the department to demonstrate that the
assessment of the fee was incorrect; provided, however, the employer shall
remit the fee as required by subsections b. through e. of this section pending
the disposition of the appeal.� If the department determines that the employer
has satisfactorily demonstrated that the division incorrectly assessed the fee,
then the department shall notify the division, which shall refund the amount
paid by the employer.� The employer shall not be entitled to a return of any penalty
paid pursuant to subsection f. of this section.� The review by the department
shall be in conformity with the provisions of the "Administrative
Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.). The decision of the
department in such cases shall be subject to appeal to the Appellate Division
of the Superior Court.
����� h.�� For purposes of
administering this section, the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce
Development, if the commissioner deems it necessary, may make or cause to be
made an audit, examination, or investigation of the books, records, papers,
accounts, and documents of any employer receiving notification from the
department pursuant to subsection e. of this section.� It shall be the duty of
each employer receiving notification from the division pursuant to subsection
e. of this section to exhibit to the commissioner, or to any employee of the
department, all such books, records, papers, accounts, and documents of the
employer.
����� i.��� If the
commissioner determines that an employer has failed to properly classify
employees to avoid paying the fee required under the provisions of this
section, the commissioner shall be authorized to assess and collect penalties
in accordance with section 1 of P.L.2019, c.373 (C.34:1A-1.18).
����� j.��� Beginning on
July 1, 2027, the following employees who receive health benefits coverage
through the State Medicaid program shall be excluded from the requirements of
this section:
����� (1) an employee of
the employer who has been employed by the employer for less than 90 days at the
time the fee is determined pursuant to subsection c. of this section;
����� (2) an employee who
works part-time, on a per diem basis, or who is a temporary employee; or
����� (3) a seasonal
employee.
����� If, prior to July 1,
2027, an employer is charged a fee pursuant to this section for an employee who
would be excluded under this subsection beginning on July 1, 2027, the employer
shall be entitled to a credit against any liability for the provisions of this
section, or if there is no liability, a refund in the following year for any
fee paid by the employer concerning that employee.� The employer shall bear the
burden to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the commissioner that the employer
paid a fee for an employee who meets the criteria for an exclusion in paragraph
(1), (2), or (3) of this subsection, in a form and manner as determined by the
commissioner.
����� 1k.� (1) An employer shall not rely upon, use, or
consider information disclosing whether a job applicant or employee receives
health benefits coverage through the State Medicaid program pursuant to
P.L.1968, c.413 (C.30:4D-1 et seq.) as a basis for denying to the applicant or
employee the opportunity to obtain or maintain employment, or to advance in
position in their job.
����� (2)� The
substantive right established by paragraph (1) of this subsection may be
enforced pursuant to P.L.2004, c.143 (C.10:6-1 et seq.).
����� l.��� Notwithstanding
the provisions of any other law to the contrary, individually identifiable
information about an employee or a dependent who receives health benefits
coverage through the State Medicaid program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413
(C.30:4D-1 et seq.) contained in data prepared for the purposes of implementing
the provisions of this act shall be confidential and privileged.� The
commissioner, the Director of the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services,
or any employee engaged in the administration thereof or charged with the
custody of any such data shall not divulge, disclose, use for their own
personal advantage, or examine for any reason other than a reason necessitated
by the performance of official duties any information obtained from the data.�
Individually identifiable information about an employee or a dependent shall be
exempt from disclosure under P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), commonly known
as the open public records act.1
���� 2.��� Notwithstanding the provisions of any law or
regulation to the contrary, the Departments of Human Services, Labor and
Workforce Development, and the Treasury shall enter into a memorandum of
understanding to share any data and other resources necessary to implement the
provisions of this act to the extent allowed under federal law.
���� 3.��� Notwithstanding the
provisions of the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410
(C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to the contrary, the State Treasurer, in consultation
with the Commissioners of Labor and Workforce Development and Human Services,
may adopt, immediately, upon filing with the Office of Administrative Law,
regulations that the State Treasurer deems necessary to implement the
provisions of this act, which shall specify the number of days that employees,
and dependents of the employees, shall be required to receive health benefits
coverage through the State Medicaid program pursuant to P.L.1968, c.413
(C.30:4D-1 et seq.) and employed by an employer to cause the assessment of the
fee established pursuant to section 1 of this act and the procedure for
appealing the issuance of the fee.� The regulations shall be effective for a
period not to exceed 365 days from the date of the filing, and the State
Treasurer, in consultation with the� Commissioners of Labor and Workforce
Development and Human Services, shall thereafter amend, adopt, or readopt the
regulations in accordance with the requirements of P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1
et seq.).
���� 4.��� This act shall take effect immediately and remain
inoperative until July 1, 2026.
���� Establishes fee on certain employers that employ
individuals who receive health benefits coverage through State Medicaid
program.