a. Hearings held by the General Assembly Task Force on Business Retention, Expansion and Export Opportunities revealed that many companies buy products or services from out-of-state businesses because they are unaware that such goods or services are available from companies within this State, often at a substantial discount from the costs of purchasing the same goods or services from out-of-state companies;

b. While the Division of International Trade in the Department of Commerce and Economic Development has developed directories useful for trade purposes which highlight certain selected industries in this State, cutbacks in staff and the limited resources of the department impede its efforts to develop and promote a more comprehensive set of State and regional business directories that could promote the sale of New Jersey’s goods and services to other companies within the State as well as to companies in other states and foreign locations; and

c. Given the importance to the State’s economy of encouraging the purchase of goods and services from New Jersey businesses, it is in the public interest for the State to place a priority on encouraging the development and use of comprehensive business directories and to undertake public-private cooperation in promoting the purchase of products and services produced in this State.

L.1995,c.210,s.2.