Efforts by Governor Chris Christie to stop New Jersey from turning into a California-like fiscal disaster are gaining support by people and commentators who understand the need for fiscal stability as the basis of sound governance and as the engine of economic growth.
Today, the Wall Street Journal ran an editorial entitled “Garden State Rollback.” The piece concentrated on Christie’s plans to present New Jersey voters with the ability to consider a constitutional amendment imposing a “2.5% cap on the increase in annual property taxes.”
The school tax is by far the lion’s share of New Jerseyans’ local real estate bills. If the 2.5% cap were in effect now in the Bridgewater-Raritan School District, taxpayers in Bridgewater Township would not see their school tax go up by the 5.42% increase contained in the school budget to be placed before voters on April 20th.
That is twice the amount permitted under the Massachusetts-like change envisioned by Governor Christie.
I’ve returned to my hometown in the Bay State numerous times since the enactment of Proposition 2.5 which was passed in 1980. Since then, the sky has not fallen, and education has not suffered. To the contrary, I have seen numerous school buildings go up to replace aging facilities.
Placing such a proposal before New Jersey voters in November will be a difficult undertaking. School unions can be expected to pull out all stops in their lobbying endeavors to suffocate this effort in the NJ Legislature before it ever reaches voters in a state-wide referendum.
No comments:
Post a Comment