Gov. Chris Christie has prided himself on having an open administration. At least that’s what he says.
But one has to wonder how he defines openness, given that it has withheld a state revenue report even as it is “suggesting New Jersey collected more tax revenue in July 2012 than it did in July 2011,” according to a blog post by John Reitmeyer of The Record.
The governor says July revenues are up, though for the moment we’ll have to take his word for it because
the governor’s office did not release the full revenue report for July 2012, and neither did the state Department of Treasury – the agency that traditionally collects and disseminates data on tax collections.
Last year, the department released a July revenue report on Aug. 12.
The full report for July 2012 would show how revenue collections during the month compared to the budget projections included in the $31.7 billion spending plan Christie signed into law in late June. That budget, which increased spending by $2 billion, called for roughly 7 percent growth through the end of June 2013 to help sustain the spending hike.
Budget projections are important because they are used to set spending in the budget. If tax collections surpass projections, the state builds its surplus. But if collections fall short, that can eat into surplus or bring on mid-year cuts as was experienced when the recession hit during then-Gov. Jon S. Corzine’s tenure.
The timing is disturbing, because the governor and Legislature just concluded a very public fight over his budget projects and the governor is scheduled to give the keynote speech at the Republican convention later this month.
As long as the Christie administration withholds the full July 2012 report, it’s impossible to say definitively whether the state is in a position to responsibly dip into surplus to fund the tax cut right now.
And it also preserves Christie’s ability to go to Tampa and proclaim economic growth — the “New Jersey Comeback” he regularly talks about – even if it’s really a mixed bag back home.
So much for the straight talk, I guess, Mr. Governor.
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