Cynical Nation

For clarity, the "16%" rise in the tax was from 6 cents on the dollar to 7 cents on the dollar. Not saying you are wrong, just making it clear.

Also, I figured you'd be happy about this one. Half the money raised from the one penny on the dollar is to go to property tax relief, and we get to vote in November on whether the entire thing goes to property tax relief thereafter. It does work to the advantage of the property owner.

Personally, I think the entire tax system in this state is so f***ed up it is beyond belief. There's a good piece on it at Bluejersey. I think huntsu wrote it. This business of collecting one tax to reduce another tax is ridiculous.

No, we're not so far apart on any of this, truth to tell. I'm beginning to think of our state taxes as a tangled ball of twine. It's all knotted up and confused and would take a very long time for anyone to straighten out, but it would repay the entire state if someone would straighten it. A complete rewrite of the tax code would possibly save all of us some money, but I am not hopeful on that account. I certainly don't have the qualifications to do it.

Mind you, I believe there are a great many services that we receive that are essential, but that there are probably a number of them that are political patronage that we can afford to eliminate and that there is also waste and fraud in the system. Without specifics, I hate to make charges like that.

In the meantime, this weekend is supposed to be very nice. Maybe I'll take Mrs DBK to AC, now that it's open again. If I win one of those multi-million dollar progressive slot machines, I'll be able to pay my property taxes this year.

> Also, I figured you'd be happy about this one. Half the money raised from the one penny on the dollar is to go to property tax relief, and we get to vote in November on whether the entire thing goes to property tax relief thereafter.

Yeah, I'll take what I can get. Still, as your point out, something about raising one tax in order to rebate another seems like a recipe for getting screwed. Time will tell, though.

Personally, I think the entire tax system in this state is so f***ed up it is beyond belief.

Yep.

so let me get this straight. Yet again, we NJ residents send tax dollars to Trenton, then get some of it back in the form of a 'rebate' and that qualifies as tax relief of some sort. Hilarious!

Fred, you have a perfect grasp of what is happening. Guess what? This nonsense is being criticized by liberals and conservatives alike. At last we have common ground for all. And on taxes, no less!

Had to laugh when Corzine said with a straight face that there was nowhere more that the budge could be cut and proclaimed that they had already cut $2.5 billion.

The budget, after those Draconian cuts went up $3 billion.

As to the property tax relief, I would dearly love to hear what the Garden Staters on this blog receive for tax relief next year. Hint: don't expect to see a dime of relief from your corrupt local governments.

I have said before that NJ is the most corrupt state in the country and gladly stand by it.

I have also said they have the dumbest voters and eagerly await the re-election of Dems in both Novemeber and 2007 as a reaffirmation of that.

Anybody wanna bet against it?

"so let me get this straight. Yet again, we NJ residents send tax dollars to Trenton, then get some of it back in the form of a 'rebate' and that qualifies as tax relief of some sort. Hilarious!" (Fred)
"so let me get this straight. Yet again, we NJ residents send tax dollars to Trenton, then get some of it back in the form of a 'rebate' and that qualifies as tax relief of some sort. Hilarious!" (Fred)



Well, you get a rebate, so long as you own property/real estate.

Think what this would be called if a GOP administration in NJ did this - raising the sales tax that EVERYONE pays in order to "give property tax relief," or cut taxes for "the rich"/property owners.

Where's the class warfare drumbeat from the MSM now?!

Good question, JMK. A regressive sales tax used to fund tax relief for the landed gentry.

Yes, it's certainly more "regressive" than an "across the board rate cut for the federal Income Tax," and yet, no cries of "Tax Cuts for the RICH" against Corzine and the NJ Democrats!

And in this case, it's actually "tax INCREASES for EVERYONE (including the poor, as they pay sales taxes too) and tax cuts for relatively well-off property owners.

Man! Those Democrats just can't do anything wrong, even when they violate all the principles the MSM has been screeching about over the past six years.

Some argue that the MSM is hopelessly partisan, but the biggest problem I have with most reporters and newspeople is that most of them (John Stossel's are few and far between) are imbeciles when it comes to basic economics.

I guess there's too much math involved in economics for most news-folks to really "get into it."

Don't forget also that New Jerseyans receive only 50 cents back for every Federal tax dollar we pay in -- dead last among the 50 states. You don't have to be a genius to see that this has an effect as well.

Jill that's largely due to population density.

Places like Wyoming, with small populations, get relatively little in the way of federal tax dollars, but when divied up over its small population, it's larger than more densely populated areas that get much more federal funding.

That's ALWAYS been the case and probably always will.

Now I support the property tax relief in NJ.

I own properties there and I don't use the school system...so I think property tax cuts would be GREAT!!!

NJ's new 7% sales tax will still be lower than NY's 8.25% so they'll still benefit from that.

What's kind of ludicrous is a Governor padding the budget with billions of $$$ in new spending and then crying about a revenue shortfall (that HE created)!!!

How about some HELP for the peeps!

How abot DOING LESS...and SPENDING LESS....and give the hard-working people of NJ a real break.

Replacing a key missing word:

"Places like Wyoming, with small populations, get relatively little in the way of federal tax dollars, but when divied up over its small population, it's larger PERCENTAGE than more densely populated areas that get much more federal funding.

> Don't forget also that New Jerseyans receive only 50 cents back for every Federal tax dollar we pay in -- dead last among the 50 states.

Well, if you have a progressive tax structure, the logica result is a net transfer of wealth from high-income states to low-income states. If you don't like it, you're more than welcome to join me in supporting a flat tax.

NJ's new 7% sales tax will still be lower than NY's 8.25% so they'll still benefit from that.

Actually, I think you are incorrect here, JMK.

NYS has, I believe, a 4.25% sales tax. What you are forgetting is that NYC, where you reside, adds another 4% to make the 8.25%.

We in Westchester pay different amounts depending on the town's additional tariff.

Which leads me to this question for New Jersey residents:

Do you likewise have towns adding to the state's tax or is it handled differntly?

Yes, that's correct mal!

It's only NYC that has the 8.25% sales tax.

Living in NYC makes it easy to forget that the rest of the State doesn't get socked with the extra 4%...it must be for the ambience of NYC.

We have something called, I think it is, "Urban Enterprise Zones" that have a different sales tax. They are half the state tax, so in some communities you pay only 3%. That will rise to 3.5%, I guess, in the new budget.