Well, first we had Corzine's Treasurer, Rousseau arrogantly saying New Jersey isn't overtaxed.Then, adding insult to injury, we had wacky Jon Corzine himself adding expressing similar sentiments.
Now, along comes Democrat Assemblyman Lou Greenwald in Full Denial Mode arguing as well that Joisey ain't highly taxed.
Honest - I can't make this stuff up. Here's the story from Michael Symons of Gannett:
Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon, R-Monmouth, and Assemblyman Louis D. Greenwald, D-Camden, argued over the state's tax burden. The first-term Republican cited a Tax Foundation study that says New Jersey for the third straight year has the highest total tax burden; Greenwald dismissed it and said such analyses must be adjusted for wealth. "In assessment after assessment after assessment, New Jersey is either the top tax burden state right now or one of the top three," O'Scanlon said.
"That is not true," Greenwald answered. "That is not a true statement. . . . You're referencing one report that we all know is from one of the most conservative think tanks."
Greenwald said the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services last year provided a summary of studies and that New Jersey is "in the middle" when adjusted for wealth and if the middle of the income-tax brackets are considered, not the top marginal rate.
He went on, "The reality is when you look at our burden, our tax burden, based on income, every time you've sent that report to us, we fall in the middle of the country. That's where we fall. For better or worse, that's where we fall."
OLS budget and finance officer David Rosen pointed out: "When you put all the taxes together, on a per capita basis, we're at the high end of the spectrum. If you do it as a percentage of income, we're somewhere in the middle."
"And that's how you have to do that -- by your ability to pay, by the income you generate," Greenwald said.
"Look, there's plenty of folks in New Jersey who within the governor's own description now are rich, who would consider themselves middle class, who are struggling and cannot sustain this burden," O'Scanlon said.
"I must be living in Kansas with Dorothy," said Assemblyman David Wolfe, R-Ocean. "Because I have folks calling my office, mostly business people complaining and property owners complaining and single moms complaining."Greenwald said the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services last year provided a summary of studies and that New Jersey is "in the middle" when adjusted for wealth and if the middle of the income-tax brackets are considered, not the top marginal rate.
He went on, "The reality is when you look at our burden, our tax burden, based on income, every time you've sent that report to us, we fall in the middle of the country. That's where we fall. For better or worse, that's where we fall."
OLS budget and finance officer David Rosen pointed out: "When you put all the taxes together, on a per capita basis, we're at the high end of the spectrum. If you do it as a percentage of income, we're somewhere in the middle."
"And that's how you have to do that -- by your ability to pay, by the income you generate," Greenwald said.
"Look, there's plenty of folks in New Jersey who within the governor's own description now are rich, who would consider themselves middle class, who are struggling and cannot sustain this burden," O'Scanlon said.
Here are the facts:
- Taxes and fees in New Jersey have been raised 107 times in seven years under Corzine and the Democrats.
- New Jersey has the nation's highest property taxes. New Jersey has the nation's second-highest income tax.
- The nonpartisan Tax Foundation ranked New Jersey first in total tax burden three years in a row.
- In overall taxes New Jersey is the second-highest, after Connecticut.
- New Jerseyans actually work 119 days of the year just to pay taxes. Our "tax freedom day" doesn't arrive until April 29. Forty eight states and the District of Columbia have an earlier tax freedom day than we do.
- Citing taxes, homeowners and businesses continue to flee New Jersey.
You need look no further than nearby Delaware and Pennsylvania to see significantly lower real-estate taxes. And Delaware doesn't even have a sales tax.
So let's ditch the denials and admit the truth: New Jersey is over-taxed, over-regulated and shamelessly corrupt.
Those are the "givens." Let the debate begin from there.
No comments:
Post a Comment