New Jersey Senate President Nick Scutari, with the October 1 deadline fast approaching for implementation of the state’s widely opposed independent-contractor rule, has asked Governor Mikie Sherrill to delay the rule’s implementation until July 1, 2027, so the Legislature can have more time to act.
Here is the letter that Scutari sent to Sherrill:
Scutari’s action is good news for independent contractors like me. He is showing leadership on this policy issue in response to all the independent contractors and the broader business community who continue to stand in fierce opposition to the rulemaking, which attempts to impose the Labor Department’s own interpretation of regulatory language that defines who can legitimately earn income as an independent contractor throughout the state.
What You Can Do
I believe this makes Scutari the 25th sitting legislator—and certainly the most powerful one—to speak out publicly with concerns about the Labor Department’s independent-contractor rule. A list of the other 24 is here.
It would be helpful now for all of us to contact Governor Sherrill as well as our own three district elected officials (we each have one state Senator and two Assembly members).
Please contact them all, and tell them two things:
You agree with Senate President Scutari and would like Governor Sherrill to delay the independent-contractor rule so that it does not take effect October 1;
You would like to see the Legislature put meaningful protections in place—with serious input from happy, thriving independent contractors—so that we will not be misclassified as employees in the future.