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Dear Mayor:
The League
of Municipalities has been joined by the following groups,
in urging the Legislature to approve A-5269 and ACR-25.
-
American
Association of Retired Persons of New Jersey
-
Black
Ministers' Council of New Jersey
-
Citizens
for Property Tax Reform
-
Citizens
for the Public Good
-
New
Jersey League of Women Voters
-
New
Jersey Policy Perspective
The
property tax accounts for over 44% of total State and local
tax revenue in our State. The National average is just slightly
above 30%. In 2002, the New Jersey per capita property tax
burden amounted to $1,868 - almost doubling the National
average of $968. New Jersey property taxes equaled 5 %,
as a percentage of personal income - almost 2 points above
the National average of 3.2 %. And in our State, those with
the least shoulder a disproportionate share of the burden.
Households with incomes in the lowest 20 % pay 9.2% of their
earnings in property taxes, while the wealthiest 20 % pay
3.6% of their income through this assessment. The property
tax is universally regarded as the most regressive source
of revenue. So it is obvious that New Jersey's current tax
policy yields neither fair, nor equitable, results.
The call for a Constitutional Convention is focused exclusively
on the need to relieve the people of our State from our
well-documented over-reliance on property taxes to fund
local governments and schools. Time and again, New Jersey
governors have called into being a long line of Special
Blue Ribbon Property Tax Commissions. Over and over again,
they have studied New Jersey's regressive over-reliance
on the property tax as a source of funding for essential
services and programs. Dutifully, they have filed their
conclusions and recommendations. Yet New Jersey remains
nationally notorious for its unequaled and inequitable over-reliance
on the property tax. Why? Because, despite the best of intentions,
the Legislature has never enacted any of the core recommendations,
carefully crafted and exhaustingly justified by study after
study. Only a Convention, such as that envisioned by the
supporters of change, can move reform beyond the political
logjam that inevitably blocks its progress in the Legislature.
If the Legislature passes A-5269 and ACR-25, the people
will have the opportunity to decide whether or not they
want a convention. The people will have the opportunity
to elect the delegates of that convention. And the people
will have the opportunity to accept or reject the recommendations
of those delegates.
Given the severity and duration of the problem, that hardly
seems like a radical proposition.
Because of Constitutional deadlines for the publication
of public questions, A-5269 needs to pass with simple majorities
in both Houses (41 'yes' votes in the Assembly and 21 in
the Senate) and be signed by Governor Codey before the Legislature
breaks for Summer Recess (on or about June 30), in order
for the people to be able to vote this November on whether
or not they want a special convention for property tax reform.
ACR-25 is a proposed temporary Constitutional Amendment
that would allow the convention to propose statutory changes.
It requires a three-fifths vote in each House (48 votes
in the Assembly and 24 in the Senate) to appear on this
November's ballot for citizen approval.
Before the Assembly can vote on these measures, they need
to be approved by the Appropriations Committee, which is
next scheduled to meet on the afternoons of Monday, May
2 and Thursday, May 12. The Assembly could then vote on
these initiatives on Monday, May 16. If the Assembly votes
to advance A-5269 and ACR-25, they will need to be scheduled
for action in one or more of the Senate's Committees, prior
to final action of the Senate Floor. (Last session, similar
bills went to the Judiciary Committee, for initial review,
and then to the Budget and Appropriations Committee.)
We obviously need to clear a lot of hurdles between now
and June 30. And a stumble on any one will force us to return
to the starting line in 2006.
As property tax pressures intensify this year, the people
of New Jersey must be given hope for future relief. Please
urge your Legislators to act on the property tax convention
bills, in time to get the question on this November's ballot.
Don't let anybody tell you that movement toward a property-tax
convention precludes the possibility of legislative progress.
The passage of a special property tax convention bill will
do nothing to prevent the unanticipated, unprecedented and
highly unlikely prospect that the Legislature just might
decide, at long last, to tackle the issue. All action on
a convention bill will do is set a time limit.
The Legislature will have until Election Day 2005 to convince
the people of New Jersey that they do not need a special
convention to get true property tax reform. If they can
do that, there will be no special convention. If they cannot,
then there has to be one.
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