The Clean Communities and Recycling Grant Act was recently signed into law in New Jersey as P.L. 2002, c. 128. This Act imposes a Litter Control Fee on manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers on their sales of litter generating products within or into New Jersey. The
Litter Control Fee is essentially identical to the Litter Control Tax which was imposed in New Jersey from 1986 through 2000 under N.J.S.A. 13:1E-99.1. The
Litter Control Tax terminated on December 31, 2000. There was no tax or fee on the gross receipts of sales of litter generating products for the 2001 calendar year. The Litter Control Fee is similar to the expired Litter Control Tax and is imposed annually on the previous calendar year's gross receipts from sales of litter generating products. It is due and payable on March 15th of each year. The fee rates and litter generating product categories remain the same. Revenues from the
Litter Control Fee furnish support to the Clean Communities Program for litter pickup and removal and recycling grants to New Jersey counties and municipalities.
Unlike the prior Litter Control Tax, the new
Litter Control Fee exempts:
- all retailers with less than $500,000 in annual retail sales of litter generating products (the prior tax had a $250,000 retailer sales exclusion);
-
restaurants, if more than 50% of their food and beverage sales are for on-premises consumption (but continues to include restaurants with 50%or more of sales of food and beverages for off-premises consumption);
and
- paper product sales of roll stock produced by paper product manufacturers and
wood pulp.
The new
Litter Control Fee applies retroactively to the year beginning January 1, 2002. Thus the 2002 return will include the gross receipts of all sales of litter generating products back to that date. The return and fee payment are due on or before March 15, 2003. Litter Control Fee returns and instructions are being sent to all businessesthat were eligible for the Litter Control Tax.
Inquiries
regarding the
Litter Control Fee should
be directed to the Regulatory Services Branch at (609) 292-5994, by
e-mail,
or in writing to New Jersey Division of Taxation, Regulatory Services Branch,
P.O. Box 269, Trenton, NJ 08695-0269.
LF-5
- Litter Control Fee Return
