New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine (D) on July 17 signed a law against misclassification of full-time construction workers as part-time contractors. It sets criminal penalties for knowingly misclassifying workers to avoid taxes and creates a presumption that workers are full-time unless proven otherwise. It allows third-party complaints and has a 90-day shield for whistle-blowers. Violators can be fined up to $75,000 and repeat offenders barred from public contracts. The law has been a longtime goal of the carpenters' union, says Troy Singleton, director of policy and planning for the New Jersey Regional Council of Carpenters. It takes elements of laws in Massachusetts, New Mexico, Florida, Illinois and California to build what he calls "the most comprehensive piece of legislation on the subject for the construction industry."