Posted on 03/22/2006 5:36:07 AM PST by Calpernia
The people who may get hit the hardest by the Governor Corzine's proposed tax hikes are those he and the Democratic Party champion the most-- New Jersey's working class. The poor receive help from entitlement programs; the wealthy can absorb the blow.
It is the working class, made up of your average family of four with a mortgage, rising property taxes, energy costs, and college tuition bills to pay, that may feel the biggest squeeze as Trenton reaches deeper into their well-worn pockets for even more of their money.
We visited blue collar Middlesex County and spoke to folks who know any raise they may get will certainly be swallowed up the by the Governor's proposed budget.
Joe Ferigni, 61, lives in Jackson with his wife, and hopes he can retire soon. "Well, it's less money for me, more money for the government, and if I want to do something I'm not going to be able to do it. It's gonna be harder to do." Ferigni says he does "pretty good" financially, but with an ever growing tax burden "it's not enough for me to take two vacations a year, want to buy a new car, you know. It's hard."
And Ferigni fears he may have to keep working late into his 60s to afford living in New Jersey. "I'm 61 years old and I can't afford to retire. I don't even know if I am going to retire at 65."
Raymond Iodice of East Brunswick is 30, owns a home, and works as a union plumber. "I just don't understand how people still live around here, considering if you are going from paycheck to paycheck. You can't advance."
He feels betrayed by the Governor. "Hey, thank you very much. My union supported you and I actually did about 5 labor walks for your campaign, shook hands with you, looked me in the face and smiled. And it was a lie? Thanks for working so hard for us," said Iodice, unhappy that Mr. Corzine has already broken his campaign promise on property taxes.
http://www.nj1015.com/absolutenm/templates/?a=2226&z=1
Governor's Campaign Promises Fall By the Wayside as he Delivers Budget Address
Governor Jon Corzine's gloom-and-doom budget message to a joint session of the legislature yesterday proves it's easier for a politician to make promises than it is to for a politician to keep promises. Arguably, two of then-U-S Senator Corzine's campaign trail promises won him the backing of homeowners and unions and may have been the deciding factors in helping him win the office.
Restoring property tax rebate checks to their high-water mark of 2005 and increasing them by 10% a year for the next four years was a Corzine campaign promise that garnered massive media attention and rave reviews. During a candidate's forum broadcast live across the Millennium Radio Network, Corzine said, "I have a real program, it'll work, a 40% increase in those rebates turned into a credit….it's actually an immediate and doable program."
Apparently it's not as doable as first thought. In his Budget Address Corzine said, "I'll be first to acknowledge that some things will have to wait. In this case, while I recommend that we increase existing (and lower) rebates 10%, we will have to put off restoration of the rebate cuts made last year."
Candidate Jon Corzine also promised to fully fund the state's contribution to the pensions systems. He said in the very same Candidate's Forum, "The state has an obligation to put its fair share into those pension funds on a regular basis, if they do, the power of compound interest will end up solving this problem."
"It is with great reluctance that I am proposing," the Governor said yesterday, "we fund only 70% of the current pension obligation." A full funding would have cost the state $1.7 billion. Corzine will put roughly $1.2 billion in."
Republican leaders says, "Corzine is 0-for-2 so far."
By: Kevin McArdle
http://www.nj1015.com/absolutenm/templates/?a=2227&z=1
More Isn't Better When You're Forced to Pay It
Kevin McArdle
If Governor Jon Corzine's budget proposal is adopted as is, you should get prepared to be spending a lot more money this year. He suggests hiking the state sales tax and then expanding it to items never before subject to the tax. There are surcharges as well. These concepts come at the very same time the Governor looks to drastically cuts state programs.
"Reluctantly," says Corzine, "I am forced to seek new tax revenues of about $1.4 billion, primarily through a 1-cent increase in the general sales tax along with a modest extension of that tax into some services." Proving, 'modest' is a relative term, the Governor is expecting to raise nearly a quarter-billion dollars from the extension.
'Some services,' is evidently a relative phrase. Page 46 of the Governor's 'Budget-In-Brief' book states the following, "Affected items could include membership fees in golf and health clubs, landscaping services, shipping and handling services, self-storage services, private investigator services, electronic data access and downloading music and videos." Parking, tanning salons, massage parlors and tatoo services are also being considered.
Conventional wisdom might tell you that with these added taxes including tax increases on beer, wine, liquor, cigarettes and even a surcharge of water supplies that state programs can expect to see more funding. Wrong! Corzine says, "I propose cuts and constrained growth (in programs) of almost $2 billion…..we have eliminated 75 programs, we have reduced funding for 130 more below the current level and we have cut back the growth for another 30 programs."
"If you don't like the taxes," suggests Corzine, "give me more cuts. If you don't like the cuts, then you're out of luck, because there are already more taxes than I want."
ping
ping
You worked for this socialist, you supported this socialist and you voted for this socialist. Now you are upset because he acts like a socialist? What did you expect - Ronald Reagan?
you reap what you sow, and all my fellow western neighbors, wait till you ge your next real estate tax bill. just out of curiosity look at the top income tax rate for nj and ny and tell me which is higher.
Who reaps what who sows?
He's doing exactly what Bill Clinton did in 1992. He runs on empty promises and then the minute he gets in office and assumes the power, he does what liberals do and jacks up the taxes to assume greater power.
I don't know if you heard Steve Lonegan on the radio last night; but he said the Corzine packs a liberal audience that actually cheers for the tax announcements at the town hall meetings et al.
I wonder if he goes to Paterson and Newark to pick his liberal audience members. Dummies. (PS - I just looked at your Breederville site. Looks kind of interesting.)
Paterson, Newark, Camden, Rutgers, prime lib breeding ground.
>>>I just looked at your Breederville site. Looks kind of interesting
Thanks!
Jon Corzine was notorious on Wall Street for being a greedy pig. He then turned into a leftist liberal so that no one else could achieve the same wealth he has. My name for him thus suggests he enjoys sexual intercourse with pigs.
Nothing he is doing now contradicts this view. He is probably the most loathsome socialist in democratic politics.
Regards, Ivan
Property taxes are going up because Corslime is cutting funding for schools.
Perhaps the schools will get the message to stop wasteful spending and concentrate on basics, such as reading, writing, and arithmetic for a change.
Jose can you? Si!
Of course, he immediately raised taxes and broke every promise ever made but not a peep from the media and of course, the first President Bush never ran around the world calling slick willie the liar he was, and 'is'.
I've got no sympathy for you, Mr. Iodice. In fact, you are such a dumb f#cking moron that you have no business even breathing the same air as me -- let alone voting in a statewide election.
We have a number of threads on Corzine's creative engineering of the Goldman Sachs days.
Torricelli was somehow involved in getting Corzine involved in politics. I would love to know more about that deal.
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