The state’s tax amnesty program appears to have worked beyond anyone’s expectations, with more than a half billion dollars in past-due taxes making their way back into state coffers.
The money, according top top Democrats, will allow the state to restore property tax rebates that had been slashed as part of the various budget revisions offered by Gov. Jon Corzine to deal with flagging revenues caused by the failing economy and to deal with a structural deficit in the budget built up over the last two years.
Bringing back the rebates makes sense as a short-term measure, even if Republican candidate Chris Christie accuses Corzine of using the money for political gain. The rebates are desperately needed in this property-tax heavy state, especially with so many New Jerseyans facing economic uncertainty.
Is the amnesty program a one-shot gimmick? Maybe, but so was the rebate cut. And the program gives the state some time to find replacement revenue for next year’s budget.
Ultimately, as I’ve written, the rebates — like so many other attempts to rein in property taxes without changing the system’s fundamental structure — are just a patch. Eventually, the entire system will blow like an aging tire and a new one will be installed. That’s the only real hope.
In the meantime, the rebates will have to do.
Hank Kalet 