Posted on 06/21/2004 7:28:01 PM PDT by wagglebee
TRENTON, N.J. -- A bill to raise the income tax on New Jersey's wealthiest residents is scheduled for a vote Monday in both houses of the state Legislature.
The so-called "Millionaire's Tax" is the centerpiece of Gov. James E. McGreevey's "Fair and Immediate Relief" plan to combat the effects of rising property taxes by granting increased rebates to homeowners and renters.
The legislation calls for imposing a 40 percent income tax increase on the estimated 28,500 New Jerseyans who earn more than $500,000 a year. The additional $800 million in state revenue would be used to boost rebates for senior citizens, the disabled and middle-class homeowners.
Maximum rebate checks for senior citizens would rise from $775 to $1,200. Maximum rebates for homeowners would rise to $800 from $250.
The four-bill package also would impose restrict annual spending by school districts and local governments and create a task force to recommend how a state constitutional convention on property tax reform would be set up. Under the FAIR plan, voters would decide in November 2005 if they want to approve a constitutional convention.
"We're mounting a frontal assault on a property tax system that is unfair, antiquated and economically punitive," said Assembly Speaker Albio Sires, D-Hudson.
But wealthy taxpayers and other critics have described the "millionaire's tax" as class warfare and say it will prompt successful business people to move out of New Jersey and businesses not to move in.
"This tax is not needed. There is no revenue dimension to this. This is to take money from a small group of people and give it to a larger group of people," economic consultant Donald Scarry told The Times of Trenton for Sunday's editions.
"Boiled down, the rationale here is, `From each according to his means, to each according to his needs.' That's Karl Marx," added Scarry, a member of former Gov. Christie Whitman's Council of Economic Advisers.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsday.com ...
Does anyone know how this vote went? This is Marxism plain and simple.
It passed. I predict all the rich folks will leave New Jersey. The funny thing is the state's junior Democratic U.S Senator will be hit hard by the new tax.
I would definitely move to Florida. Two-fold advantage: no state income tax and help Bush get re-elected.
By raising INCOME taxes? If the problem is property taxes, then fix the property taxes. Oh no... that would mean the STATE giving up its precious FUNDING. God forbid that the STATE cut spending in order to fix the property tax structure.
well... looks like allot rich jersey folks are on the move....(wonder how this will help the economy in NJ?) I know I would be.
Texas is nice... warm and no state income theft... errr taxes.
This is hilarious. The result of this will be that the rich people will move and the total tax revenue will go down.
These "lawmakers" are idiots.
"This is hilarious. The result of this will be that the rich people will move and the total tax revenue will go down.
These "lawmakers" are idiots."
No, they are worse.
They are Democrats.
Bill From Nutley
The Pennsylvania GOP is for the most part, keeping Rendell in check.
Come on over boys.
I've been hearing those commercials ad nauseum.
While I certainly don't qualify for this millionare's tax, I'll bet I don't qualify for the transfer payment either. After all, my income is over 75k...makes me RICH in the eyes of the scum in Trenton.
I know a few people that will be affected by this tax. They own they company I work for. My guess is that they will restructure their wages to fall below this level and have the business eat any difference and the business will make up any income shortfalls.
This is pure marxism on the part of Jim mcgreedy and it will only work for one year. Next year, NJ will have the least number of people making over 500k per year vs other states.
McGreedy is an idiot.
There simply aren't enough "rich" people in New Jersey, or anywhere else for that matter, to pay for the kind of socialist state the Dems want.
Besides, people like Kennedy, Gore, et al, the fabulously rich who inherited their money without working for it, can afford to tie it up and protect it in Foundations and other tax free instruments.
The lying Dems KNOW this.
Yet they appeal to the ignorant greed of the masses to allow them to get their foot in the door.
Gradually, they will lower the "rich" tax trigger until anybody making more than minimum wage will find their paycheck raped by these super-rich hypocrites who pay little or nothing.
This is an entrance for punishing anyone who is willing to work hard for a living and achieve the American dream, in order to permit these Democratic scabs to secure money to buy welfare votes and the support of illegal aliens.
Once they succeed in Jersey, the Official National Testing Laboratory for ALL kinds of crackpot leftist ideas, they will try to peddle it in other states and nationally.
Remember Ronald Reagan and his legacy of removing the 70% tax bracket?? Well, they want to bring it back.
They're thieves, every last prostituting one of them. And they have the Federal Court System, filled with elitist super-rich socialists to help them.
They'll be some nice houses for sale, CHEAP if this happens.
The Senior Senator won't feel a thing. He's got a $25-50 million non-taxable fund!
Did you get out in time? I did.
40 percent? That must be a typo. Certainly they mean 4.0 percent. That's un-freakin'-believable. Where are those 28K people going to take their money?
That's exactly what I would do.
28,500 x $280,701 = $800,000,000
12 x $23,392 = $280,701
That must be a great place to live. I'll just repeat myself: un-freakin'-believable.
Except that there's nothing fair about it. Forty percent is a staggering increase!
What the Lawyers, politicians, and judges do NOT want is the national sales tax!
That would tax on what they spend! Not what they claim they earn.
Can't hide the spending!
Yep! Income redistribution at its worst.
But I feel the tide is turning as far as the views of Americans in general. The 20th Century belonged to the liberals and their pie-in-the-sky Utopian dreaming. The 21st, however, I believe will belong to US - the folks .
Otherwise, why would the Looney Left be screaming bloody murder right now and driving themselves even further onto the fringe?
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