Government
Affairs & Lobbying
Legislative Intervention
Whether we’re trying to adopt, amend or defeat a bill, impacting the legislative process requires great strategy, great messaging, great contacts, and great timing. Our team works extensively with legislative leadership, committee chairs, members, and staff. We routinely draft bills and amendments, prepare testimony, brief staff, engage the Executive Branch, and coordinate the many moving parts involved in the process. We understand what our target audience cares about and how to make your issues relevant to decision-makers.
Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting
Information is power. We employ a state-of-the-art monitoring system that keeps you abreast of every move the Legislature makes on the issues you care about. We provide bill tracking, calendar reports and activity reports to clients every time the legislature conducts business. More importantly, we provide intelligence gleaned from personal interaction with those in and around the process. We will help you understand what is happening, why, and how best to impact the process.
Coalition Building & Management
Rare is the issue that impacts an audience of one. Organizing, leading or joining a coalition of individuals or organizations who share your goals can help improve the prospects for success. We help our clients identify potential partnerships, evaluate the potential benefits and liabilities and pursue those relationships that make sense.
Regulatory Compliance
Engaging government can often trigger a dizzying array of rules, regulations, laws and reporting requirements. Our team can dig into departments, divisions and agencies to help get the right attention on your project or problem. Whether you require our assistance with an isolated regulatory matter or broader insight into how to get things done The Zita Group will provide you with strategic advice and assistance to get you back on track.
Case Studies
Securing Funding for Critical Programs in Fiscal Year 2025 State Budget
On behalf of clients, TZG secured funding for the following programs that were approved in the Fiscal Year 2025 State Budget:
Higher Education: Polytechnic Aid
TZG secured funding to support a state polytechnic school. These specialized institutions focus on science and technology courses and are prevalent across various regions of the country, benefiting from state financial support. With this continued funding for higher education, these polytechnic schools will have the opportunity to enhance the programs they provide to their students, empowering them to become leaders in our ever-evolving and technology-dependent economy.
NJ 211
TZG secured funding for NJ 211, the statewide information and referral service. This invaluable service offers round-the-clock live assistance, completely free, confidential, and available in multiple languages. Individuals can connect with community resource specialists for basic needs like food, housing, healthcare, and other vital services who are well-versed in federal, state, and local support systems.
Public Broadcasting
Throughout the budget process, TZG worked to protect funding for New Jersey’s public media operations. Engaging with members of the budget committees, TZG stressed the importance and value of New Jersey public television. The secured funding will empower them to continually invest in operational enhancements, guaranteeing the provision of high-quality programming across the state and facilitating a seamless transition into the digital age of media broadcasting.
Prison Re-Entry Services
TZG’s close collaboration with lawmakers and a re-entry service provider resulted in secured funding in the budget for a diverse range of contractual services with the state. This funding is specifically intended to assist incarcerated individuals in their reintegration into society, offering essential services such as employment placement, life skills training, counseling, medical care, substance use disorder treatment, and referrals to social service agencies within the community.
United In Care
On behalf of United Way of Northern NJ, TZG worked with the Governor’s Office to secure funding for their program, the “United in Care” initiative. This program is designed to assist the 3.5 million NJ households who are either below the federal poverty line or below the ALICE threshold (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) who struggle to meet basic household needs including access to affordable childcare.
VITA – Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program
Also, on behalf of United Way of Northern NJ, TZG worked to secure funding for VITA, which assists residents with free tax preparation and filing services. This program has helped residents get back more than $30 million in federal tax refunds and saves most individuals $270.00 for a tax preparer. This amount can be the difference between affording rent, food, prescriptions or paying for a costly car repair.
ALICE Recovery Fund
TZG played a pivotal role in securing funding for a new initiative known as the ALICE Recovery Fund. This program is crucial for assisting ALICE households experiencing an economic emergency. No matter the financial crisis, this program assists individuals with direct, short term financial assistance to weather the storm of a job loss, natural disaster or an illness.
TZG takes immense pride in these accomplishments. The total budget funding secured for our clients stands as evidence of the dedication and collaborative efforts we demonstrated throughout the budget process, addressing a wide range of diverse issues.
As the new fiscal year begins, TZG remains committed to working closely with our clients to ensure the proper implementation of budget allocations throughout the fiscal year budget cycle.
Revolutionizing craft beer industry through major legislative reform
TZG has represented NJ’s craft brewing industry since 2009 and led the successful effort in 2012 that modernized New Jersey’s antiquated brewery laws and unlocked the industry’s economic potential. This involved drafting and passing legislation that relaxed constraints on the industry, created a more business-friendly environment for new breweries and brewpubs to enter the New Jersey market.
Faced with new challenges, in 2022, TZG launched government affairs and strategic communications efforts to end various state-issued license restrictions that potentially jeopardized the long-term viability of the industry in the nation’s hyper-competitive alcoholic beverage marketplace. On behalf of the Brewers Guild of New Jersey, the state’s leading trade association for craft beer manufacturers representing both production breweries and brewpubs statewide, our firm formulated a comprehensive two-year plan aimed at ending these restrictions and establishing a new reliable statutory framework which explicitly detailed the rights and privileges of breweries in terms of both on-premise activities and off-premise events in their respective communities. TZG identified Assembly and Senate sponsors to champion and advance the cause, scheduled meetings with legislators, helped develop and execute a strategic communications plan, and mobilized grassroots resources that provided a measurable impact on the course of the legislation which led to successful passage of comprehensive reform bill in January 2024.
As a result of these efforts, New Jersey breweries are better positioned to expand operations, market their products, and compete with breweries in neighboring states.
Developing and negotiating amendments to complex energy legislation
When Competitive Power Ventures (CPV) ran into legislative and regulatory challenges in its planned construction of a 700 megawatt electric generation facility on a brownfield site in Woodbridge, NJ, the company turned to The Zita Group (TZG) to advance its interests.
TZG developed and negotiated amendments to complex legislation that would create long-term capacity contracts and coordinated with CPV’s internal and external legal teams. TZG advocated with senior officials in the governor’s office, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) and the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) to garner support for the proposed amendments and closely collaborated with Woodbridge officials to gain support for the amendments.
As a result of these efforts, the state passed legislation allowing CPV to successfully bid for and win a contract to develop a power plant in Woodbridge, NJ. TZG continues to help the company foster relationships with key NJBPU and NJDEP leadership and staff.
Winning Passage of Legislation to Streamline Health Care for Cancer Patients
On behalf of Regional Cancer Care Associates (RCCA), TZG secured passage and approval of legislation A-4447 (P.L. 2024 c. 87) that allows oncology physicians to refer patients to in-house pharmacies.
RCCA is a New Jersey medical practice owned by oncologists and one of the nation's largest cancer physician networks with 16 clinic locations throughout New Jersey and additional locations in Maryland, Connecticut, and Washington, D.C. RCCA provides cancer care to more than 26,000 patients each year.
As part of the care they provide, RCCA operates an in-house pharmacy as a central component to the treatment protocols their physicians use where their patients receive continuous oversight with respect to complex cancer drug regimens. While every RCCA patient is informed that they may fill their prescriptions at the pharmacy of their choice, patients choose RCCA’s pharmacy because it is a natural extension of the care they receive from their physicians.
In years past, the NJ Board of Pharmacy granted specialty permits for certain in-house pharmacies if they met certain requirements. However, the Board of Pharmacy reversed its interpretation of existing law and took the position that health care practitioners are prohibited from owning and integrating in-house pharmacies. In response to the Board’s action, TZG acted quickly to identify sponsors from both parties to introduce legislation intended to protect and preserve our client’s pharmacy license. The bill, as introduced, was met with opposition from the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office. However, TZG helped our client negotiate amendments to satisfy all parties involved in the bill.
The legislation was critical to create a clear exemption from existing law while continuing to protect against conflicts of interest, and preserving sensible health care practices for the benefit of cancer patients.
The bill was introduced on May 3rd, 2024. It passed with unanimous approval in both Houses and was signed by Governor Phil Murphy on October 30, 2024, less than six months after it was first introduced.
Winning Passage of Legislation Modernizing New Jersey Elections
On behalf of our client, the Center for Secure and Modern Elections (CSME), TZG led and coordinated the legislative program to ensure the passage and enactment of legislation establishing Automatic Voter Registration (AVR) in New Jersey. TZG organized efforts among several voting rights organizations, worked with state agencies, legislative sponsors, Committee Chairs, and officials in the Governor Office, to achieve passage of this groundbreaking legislation. New Jersey became the 12th state, along with the District of Columbia, to enact automatic voter registration, joining a national trend in trying to boost voter participation in elections, while seeking to secure and modernize our election system.
AVR occurs when eligible citizens, who interact with certain government agencies, are registered to vote or have their existing registration information updated, unless they decline. State agencies then transfer voter registration information electronically to election officials. These changes create a process that will clean up the voter rolls and keep our elections safe and secure. Upon signing the bill, Governor Phil Murphy called the legislation, “One of the most expansive Automatic Voter Registration policies in the nation, strengthening and enhancing voting rights for eligible New Jersey residents.”
TZG secured passage of this bill within the first 100 Days of the new Murphy Administration.
Helping Clients Navigate the Legislative and Regulatory Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic forced businesses and organizations across the state to adjust to new economic and regulatory realities, finding new ways to service their customers while complying with strict health and public safety protocols. The TZG team was instrumental in advocating for our clients and helping them comply with new regulations during this unprecedented time.
HelloFresh, a global meal kit delivery service, faced several challenges keeping their Newark facility operations running throughout the pandemic. Beyond what the state had implemented, Newark enacted additional restrictions on individuals and businesses within the city. TZG successfully advocated for the company to be deemed essential allowing them to remain open regardless of other city-wide closures and limitations.
UPS saw an unprecedented demand for their services throughout the pandemic as they delivered millions of pieces of PPE, COVID-19 vaccines, and other products across every corner of the globe. The TZG team worked with state and municipal officials to ensure that UPS technology facilities and warehouses could operate beyond curfew hours in order to keep their facilities fully operational. TZG also helped facilitate open lines of communication with the state’s Office of Emergency Management, the State Police and Governor’s Office so that essential public health supplies could be distributed broadly to help protect our frontline workers in the early days of the pandemic.
The Brewers Guild of New Jersey faced challenges as their members had to rethink their business models when indoor dining and tasting room activities were prohibited or restricted throughout the pandemic. TZG was instrumental in advocating for new revenue streams to sustain the industry during this difficult time. On behalf of the Brewers Guild, TZG worked with the Governor’s Office, the New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, the Legislature, and other industry trade groups to pursue the signing of Executive Order No. 104, which in part, allowed breweries to deliver beer directly to consumers’ homes. This effort also led to TZG working on legislation signed by the Governor in May 2020 to extend brewery delivery privileges at least six months post the pandemic. These newfound delivery privileges were vital to keeping these small businesses open and workers employed.
Also, several of our clients with retail operations were in jeopardy of temporarily closing during the height of the pandemic if they were not deemed essential businesses. The TZG team worked with the Governor’s Office to ensure that telecommunications company storefront locations and in-person financial services were deemed essential under Executive Order No. 107 and could continue to serve customers in person. TZG’s efforts ensured that our clients could continue to meet their customers’ needs during these tumultuous times.
Securing Funding and Helping Clients Raise Their Profile
TZG has represented New Jersey’s regional health insurance funds (HIFs) since 2010. These funds offer public entities a cost-effective source for providing quality health benefits to their employees. TZG works to advance the HIFs’ legislative and public affairs objectives.
Several years ago, at the beginning of Gov. Chris Christie’s first term in office, legislation was introduced and eventually enacted that revolutionized local government and school district health insurance financing by significantly increasing employee and retiree contributions. It also required that employees have a choice of five plans, promote generic drug utilization and wellness programs, require enrollment audits, and create labor-management committees to oversee plans. While many of the provisions contained in the legislation were consistent with HIF cost-containment efforts, the funds sought clarification on certain provisions in the bill to ensure that HIF practices would not be hindered.
TZG worked with Fund professionals and commissioners to develop a detailed position paper on the bill and a background piece explaining how the HIFs operate, the benefits of HIF membership, and key financial and membership data about the HIFs. Leveraging its contacts in the Legislature and Administration, TZG arranged a series of meetings for the Fund with state legislators, senior legislative staff, and the chief of staff for the Department of the Treasury, which was leading the Administration’s efforts on the bill. These meetings provided the Fund with an opportunity to voice its concerns and helped to ensure that the Fund’s recommendations and input were incorporated into the final version of the legislation.
In the spring of 2024, TZG secured a $1 million line-item appropriation in the State Fiscal Year 2025 Budget for Joint Health Insurance Funds. This funding was for costs HIFs incurred associated with COVID-19 Surveillance Testing during the 2021 and 2022 school years.
On behalf of the HIFs, TZG developed and executed a legislative budget strategy and worked with the HIFs to develop salient messaging that would resonate and garner support for this budget request. At the outset, TZG identified legislators who would introduce budget resolutions in both the Senate and Assembly and help champion the cause throughout the legislative budget process.
TZG arranged and led meetings with legislative bill sponsors, members of the Budget and Appropriations Committees and reached out to legislative leaders in both houses to secure their support. TZG also engaged with the Governor’s Office which included representatives from Governor’s Counsel, Governor’s Policy Office as well as officials from the Department of the Treasury.
Throughout the budget process, TZG spoke with decision makers about the costs of surveillance testing which were inadvertently sent to insurance, and were not the liability of the HIFs.
The meetings with legislators and administration officials also provided an opportunity to further explain how HIFs typically operate and the cost savings that HIFs have generated to local municipalities, school districts and to local taxpayers.
Soon after the FY 2025 State Appropriations Act was signed and enacted on July 1st, TZG turned its focus on next steps necessary to ensure the appropriate implementation of this budget appropriation. TZG reached out to the Department of Education, the agency responsible for allocating the funds, and helped to secure a grant agreement that ensures the funds will be easily accessible to the HIFs when the funding becomes available.