Governor Corzine and the Democrat majority in the Senate and Assembly chose to ignore their constitutional responsibility to enact a balanced budget by July 1 and continued to engage in a prolonged power struggle – not over how to lower your property taxes – but over which new taxes to impose on the hard-working people of New Jersey.
New Jersey State Assembly Update
~ From Assemblyman Kevin O'Toole
District 40
Oct 2, 2006 6:20 PM
Now that the government shutdown has ended, we wish we could report that the weeks of turmoil, economic disruption and political posturing that preceded the adoption of the new state budget put an end to our state’s wasteful spending practices and provided meaningful and immediate property tax relief. But Governor Jon Corzine and the Democrat majority in the Legislature refused to heed our call for a budget that does not rely on higher taxes.
In fact, they refused to accept even a small portion of the $2.2 billion in savings and fiscally responsible reforms that both the Senate and Assembly Republicans proposed as an alternative to any new taxes or increased spending.
Governor Corzine and the Democrat majority in the Senate and Assembly chose to ignore their constitutional responsibility to enact a balanced budget by July 1 and continued to engage in a prolonged power struggle -- not over how to lower your property taxes -- but over which new taxes to impose on the hard-working people of New Jersey. The impasse resulted in an unprecedented eight-day shutdown of state government that left more than 100,000 public and private sector employees without jobs and cost the state millions of dollars in lost revenue.
After inflicting considerable economic damage on middle-class families and the state economy, not to mention New Jersey’s reputation, the Governor and the Democrat majority in the Legislature finally agreed on a budget that increased spending by $3.4 billion and raised the state sales tax from 6% to 7%.
The new state budget imposes a tax on the laundering or dry cleaning of items such as curtains and drapes; shipping and handling charges; self-storage rental units; ring tones, music and video downloads; landscaping; health club memberships and flooring and carpet installation. What also made this budget appalling was the over $480 million in “political pork” projects that were added.
What Governor Corzine and the Democrat majority in the Legislature don’t want you to know is that they cut $200 million from the property tax rebate program and that they slashed rebates for many non-senior homeowners. If you earn more than $70,000, you will receive a $250 rebate check -- that is $100 less than last year. Since the budget freezes state aid for most school districts yet again, property taxes will surely rise and chase more families out of New Jersey. For these reasons, we did not vote to support this budget.
If you would like to view our complete list of $2.2 billion in sound, detailed spending cuts and efficiencies, please visit our website at NJAssemblyRepublicans.com or if you prefer, contact our office and we will send you a copy. Together, we must renew the fight for lower taxes and fiscal integrity. We must not allow New Jersey to become even more unaffordable than it is today.
Assemblyman Kevin O'Toole
District 40 Legislative Office
573 Valley Road, Suite 2
Wayne, NJ 07470
973-696-2323
http://www.njassemblyrepublican
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