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A 6000

Provides for the advance payment of the earned income tax credit

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Harry Bronson and 26 co-sponsors

New Jersey bill shields veterans, active-duty service members, and military spouses from creditors by exempting primary and secondary homes and key assets (retroactive to 2025).

REFERRED TO WAYS AND MEANS
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Bill Summary · A 6000

Summary: A 6000 – New Jersey Veterans and Military Spouses Asset Protection Act (asset protection provisions)

Note: The bill’s header indicates “provides for the advance payment of the earned income tax credit,” but the introduced version content and text describe the New Jersey Veterans and Military Spouses Asset Protection Act, focused on creditor protections for veterans, service members, and military spouses.

Purpose and intent

  • Provide enhanced creditor protections for veterans, active-duty service members, and military spouses.
  • Establish broad exemptions for primary and a second residence, certain benefits, and motor vehicles to help safeguard family stability and housing in times of debt collection or financial distress.
  • Align protections with a remedial purpose, to be liberally construed to safeguard military families.

Key provisions and changes

Residence exemptions

  • Primary residence: Exempt from levy, execution, attachment, or forced sale for debts, judgments, or claims, without a value limit.
  • Secondary residence: Exempt from levy, execution, attachment, or forced sale for debts, judgments, or claims, without a value limit.
  • Ownership requirements: Exemptions apply if both properties are properly recorded with the county clerk; if the properties are held jointly with a military spouse, the exemption extends to both parties.
  • Limitations/Exceptions:
    • Not exempt from mortgages or voluntary liens on the property.
    • Not exempt from taxes, assessments, or obligations owed to government entities.
    • Not exempt from judgments arising from willful misconduct, fraud, or criminal activity.

Other protected assets

  • Retirement accounts, pensions, disability benefits, and veterans benefits: Fully exempt from creditor claims.
  • Motor vehicles: Exempt up to a fair market value of $25,000 per vehicle, with a maximum of two vehicles per household.
    • Not exempt from voluntary liens, taxes/obligations to government entities, or judgments arising from willful misconduct, fraud, or criminal activity.

Additional protections and coordination

  • Any attempted levy, execution, or sale in violation of these protections is void and unenforceable.
  • Protections operate in addition to federal protections, including the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.

Scope, retroactivity, and applicability

  • Effective date: Immediately upon enactment.
  • Retroactive to January 1, 2025, but applies only to debts incurred or claims filed on or after that date.
  • Does not impair the validity of any final judgment entered prior to the effective date.

Affected parties

  • Veterans, active-duty service members, and military spouses (including surviving spouses in certain circumstances).
  • Creditors seeking to levy, execute, attach, or sell protected property to satisfy debts.

Legislative status and sponsors

  • Status: Referred to Ways and Means ( Assembly action); introduced November 17, 2025.
  • Primary sponsor: Jo Anne Simon (with numerous cosponsors, including Angelo Santabarbara, John T. McDonald III, and others).
  • Related bills: Companion and prior-session counterparts exist (S 4858; S 4425; A 10775; A 2533; A 5577).

Potential impact and considerations

  • Stronger housing security and asset protection for military families in New Jersey.
  • Increased complexity for creditors, especially around property encumbrances and joint ownership scenarios.
  • Retroactive element could affect debts and claims from 2025 forward, while preserving final judgments issued before the effective date.
  • Questions for stakeholders: interaction with existing mortgage agreements, tax liens, and state/local government obligations; implementation details for recording primary/secondary residences with county clerks; enforcement against fraudulent conveyances.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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