The Greater Atlantic City Chamber is reaching out to area elected officials in opposition to A4389/S2676, a new tax on health insurance that would do real harm to small businesses already struggling to stay afloat.

South Jersey’s business community—from hotels, restaurants, and casinos—have all taken significant losses, and now, we are trying our best to keep our community members employed and financially stable. To do so, we ask that our elected officials support policies that put us on a path to recovery—not legislation that increases our cost of doing business.

Unfortunately, the tax proposed would put an even bigger strain on the state’s business community and the hard-working New Jerseyans we employ. In fact, estimates show that this tax could raise the average family health insurance plan by $550 annually and the businesses would should tens of thousands in added costs per year. This steep increase in health care costs would also make it more difficult to hire. And at a time when New Jersey’s unemployment rate tops 16 percent, lawmakers should not be dissuading businesses from adding additional staff