In 1966, New Jersey had no sales or income tax. Most families spent roughly 25% of their income on housing. One working parent comfortably supported most families. Students paid for a year of college with a summer of work. Most high schools then taught what is now taught in most colleges.
This Liberty and Prosperity was ruined by 60 years explosive growth by federal, state and local government.
President Trump and Elon Musk are now showing us what “progressive” Democrats and Nixon and Bush Republicans did to our Federal government.
Those same Democrats and Kean, Whitman and Christie Republicans did the same thing to New Jersey.
Until 1966, real estate taxes paid for most government in New Jersey. Everybody directly or indirectly paid property taxes at the same rate. Most people noticed and got angry when taxes went up more than everything else. They read the budgets and went to the public hearings. They routinely voted out politicians who raised taxes too much.
Government employees and their unions then turned to state government. They demanded more pay and benefits. However, they also demanded new state taxes for “property tax relief”.
They demanded and got a 3% state sales tax in 1966 and a 2% state income tax in 1976, they demanded and got a new 2% state income tax. However, this money was never enough to give government employees what they wanted without raising property taxes. And so these taxes were constantly increased.
Since then, few people know or care much about local government or school budgets. Most of the spending is funded and mandated by state and federal government. Most voters today now correctly believe that most taxes are paid by “somebody else”.
This political culture gave New Jersey the highest real estate taxes in America. It also gave us high state sales, income, and business taxes.
Murphy’s proposed $58.1 Billion budget for next year does more of the same.
It crushes our economy with bigger government, more laws, more permits, more lawsuits, more spending, more debt, and more taxes. It even includes a million dollars for more lawyers to sue President Trump and Elon Musk.
Government employees and contractors are big winners. Everyone else loses.
However, Murphy’s budgets cleverly fool most voters into thinking they are winners. This year’s budget will spend $4.3 billion for the “StayNJ” and “ANCHOR” programs. It also gives New Jersey Transit a half billion dollars more than last year so it doesn’t raise fares.
None of this controls spending. Property taxes will go up just as much. None of the doctors, hair salons, or businesses we buy from will get checks from “StayNJ” or “ANCHOR” to offset their tax hikes. They will raise the prices they charge us—including more state sales tax!
Murphy’s budget also raises a bunch of “excise” taxes. They taxes are taxes that target only some selected people. Murphy’s budget raises taxes on beer, wine, liquor, cigarettes, and internet gamblers. Politicians like excise taxes because most voters don’t care about taxes that are paid by somebody else.
Murphy’s budget also charges a new $20,000 tax on properties sold for a million dollars and $60,000 on properties sold for $2 million. Democrats like to call this a “mansion tax”. However, it is also collected for sales of business and apartment buildings. Most of those taxes will probably be paid by successful people getting out of New Jersey.
The StayNJ and ANCHOR programs are nothing but bribes and scams to fool voters. Murphy Democrats easily get away with this because Republicans rarely do or say anything to stop them.
On the contrary, many Republicans repeat Democrat lies and praise these programs.
In 2022, 2023, and 2024, Atlantic County, Republican State Senator Vince Polistina and Assembly Members Don Guardian and Claire Swift voted for and publicly praised Murphy’s budget and his fake “property tax relief”. Click Here For Link To 2023 Joint Press Release: Polistina, Guardian & Swift statement on FY2024 Budget – Insider NJ
Above Image: In 2022, Republican Assembly Members Erik Simonsen and Antwan McClellan representing Cape May and Cumberland counties praised the ANCHOR scam as “Historic Property Tax Relief” on their Facebook page.
With Republicans like this who needs Democrats? Our only hope is to elect a Trump-like Governor. We need the DOGE of an Elon Musk. We need the chainsaw of Argentina’s Javier Milei. We need to tear down the whole rotten mess that was built during the past 60 years and start over.
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Tom Kean and Christie Whitman completely threw away golden goose funds from Atlantic City revenue and gave contracts to their donors. Fat Boy C. Christie cut south jersey funding and also spent like a fat boy in a candy shop. And also Education in NJ needs a DOGE report