Provides gross income tax deduction to eligible educators and paraprofessionals for expense of classroom supplies.

A2046

ASSEMBLY, No. 2046

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman SHAMA A. HAIDER

District 37 (Bergen)

Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman Bagolie, Assemblymen Karabinchak, Stanley,
Assemblywoman Reynolds-Jackson, Assemblymen Sampson, Freiman, Assemblywomen
Speight, Swain and Assemblyman Tully

SYNOPSIS

���� Provides gross income tax deduction to eligible
educators and paraprofessionals for expense of classroom supplies.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act

providing a gross income tax deduction to eligible educators
and paraprofessionals
for expense of
classroom supplies, and supplementing chapter 3 of Title 54A of the New Jersey
Statutes.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

����� 1.�� a.�
The Director of the Division of Taxation shall allow a taxpayer, who is an
eligible educator or a paraprofessional during the taxable year, to deduct from
the taxpayer�s gross income for the taxable year the unreimbursed expenses, not
to exceed $250 for the taxable year, incurred for the purchase of classroom
supplies in the taxable year.

����� b.�� As
used in this section:

����� �Classroom
supplies� means books, computer equipment, including related software and
services, and other equipment, supplies, and supplementary materials used by an
eligible educator or paraprofesional in the classroom.� Classroom supplies
shall not include nonathletic supplies for courses of instruction in health or
physical education.

����� �Eligible
educator� means an individual who is employed as a kindergarten through grade
12 teacher, instructor, counselor, speech language specialist, or principal for
at least 900 hours during a school year by a public or private school located
in the State that provides elementary education or secondary education.

����� �Paraprofessional�
means an individual who is employed as a school aide or classroom aide who
assists a teaching staff member with the supervision of pupil activities

by a public or private school located in the
State that provides elementary education or secondary education.

���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and apply to taxable years beginning on or after the January
1 next following the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

����
This bill provides a gross income tax deduction
to eligible educators and paraprofessionals employed by a New Jersey elementary
or secondary school for certain expenses incurred by the educator or
paraprofessional for classroom supplies during the taxable year.� This New
Jersey gross income tax deduction is modeled on the federal income tax
deduction for educator expenses allowed under section 62 of the federal
Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. s.62).

���� The bill defines an �eligible
educator� as an individual who is employed as a kindergarten through grade 12
teacher, instructor, counselor, speech language specialist, or principal by a
public or private school located in this State for at least 900 hours during a
school year.� The bill defines a �paraprofessional� as an individual who is
employed as a school aide or classroom aide who assists a teaching staff member
with the supervision of pupil activities by a public or private school located
in the State that provides elementary education or secondary education.�

���� The bill also allows the
deduction of unreimbursed expenditures by an eligible educator or
paraprofessional for supplies (other than nonathletic supplies for courses of
instruction in health or physical education), books, computer equipment,
including related software and services, and other equipment and supplementary
materials used by the eligible educator or paraprofessional in the classroom.