Sherrill moves to cut red tape for NJ businesses

The basics:

• Sherrill advances ‘Save You Time & Money‘ agenda to reduce red tape, speed business permitting
• Executive Order 5 requires all state agencies to inventory permits, approvals by April 2026
• NJDOT, NJDCA NJDEP undergoing in-depth permitting reviews to cut delays, redundancies
• Administration developing real-time permitting dashboard to improve transparency, tracking

Gov. Mikie Sherrill announced progress on implementing her “Save You Time & Money” agenda. The key campaign promise focuses on reducing red tape and speeding up business permitting here in New Jersey.

Sherrill highlighted her administration’s efforts during a Feb. 18 visit to Advanced Solar Products in Flemington.

She noted initiatives to modernize state government, streamline regulatory processes and improve customer service for businesses. The governor emphasized that small businesses should see state government as a partner rather than a bureaucratic obstacle.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and central to job creation, innovation and strong local communities. Rather than being a source of red tape and bureaucratic roadblocks, state government should work for our business community, helping to build up entrepreneurs by expanding opportunity and lowering costs,” said Sherrill.

“My administration is making it a top priority to provide public servants with the tools they need to improve customer service by modernizing outdated systems and expediting permitting and regulatory processes so businesses can spend more time growing and investing.”

Today, I visited @advancedsolarpr in Flemington to hear directly about the challenges businesses face and to discuss progress on my Save You Time and Money Agenda. pic.twitter.com/7hg8y9lEUr

— Governor Mikie Sherrill (@GovSherrillNJ) February 18, 2026

Key Save You Time & Money actions include:

• Requiring all state agencies to complete a comprehensive inventory of permits and approvals by April 20, 2026, to identify outdated or duplicative requirements under Executive Order 5
• Conducting in-depth permitting reviews with the New Jersey Department of Transportation, New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection to reduce delays and improve coordination
• Developing a real-time permitting dashboard with the New Jersey Innovation Authority to increase transparency and allow applicants to track project progress
• Launching cross-agency efforts through executive orders to establish clear, enforceable timelines and reduce redundancies
• Planning a 21-county tour with Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell and Chief Operating Officer Kellie Doucette to gather feedback from business leaders statewide

A welcome change

The announcement builds directly on an August 2025 campaign pledge from Sherrill, which NJBIZ reported on. She promised to cut licensing and permitting wait times, modernize agencies, create a fast-track approval team and shift state government toward a “customer service” mindset

Business leaders including New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA) Chief Government Affairs Officer Christopher Emigholz and New Jersey Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Tom Bracken joined Sherrill in Flemington. They applauded the efforts by the nascent administration to engage the business community.

“Today’s visit in Flemington underscores a refreshing shift in how the administration is engaging with the business community,” said Bracken. “The outreach demonstrated by Gov. Mikie Sherrill and Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell, as well as Chief Operating Officer Kellie Doucette and others, marks a welcome change from past years and signals the beginning of a true partnership between government and business — one that can help accelerate the economic growth that is sorely needed across New Jersey.

“We also applaud the administration’s focus on cost savings and regulatory reform, priorities that are strongly supported by the business community and essential to making our state more competitive.”