New Jersey Should Embody Its Values by Supporting Immigrants and Asylum Seekers

This week, at the direction of Texas’ Republican Governor Greg Abbott, buses of asylum seekers and immigrant families arrived unannounced at transit hubs across New Jersey. In response to the uncoordinated drop offs and reactions from local officials, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) releases the following statement.

Marleina Ubel, Senior Policy Analyst, NJPP:

“This is a humanitarian crisis created by Republican governors who are using asylum seekers and immigrant families to score cheap political points. We have to remember that, regardless of where someone was born or what their immigration status is, these are human beings who possess inherent dignity and basic human rights.

“Ideally, the federal government would play a more active role in coordinating the relocation of immigrants, but that shouldn’t stop New Jersey from doing the right thing for families fleeing hardship and seeking safety.

“New Jersey has a rich history of welcoming immigrants, and this is an opportunity for us to embody our values of fairness and inclusivity. When we say that hate has no home here, this is more than just a saying. It’s about supporting the most vulnerable among us and focusing on solutions rooted in solidarity, not xenophobia or bias.”

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Revenue Collections Nearly $400 Million Behind Last Year

On Thursday, New Jersey’s Treasury Department released new tax collection data for November showing that revenues remain lower than at this point in 2022, and even further behind projected revenues for the current fiscal year. Year-to-date, revenues are down $385.1 million (2.8 percent) from the prior year. Compared to projected tax collections, revenues are behind by 4.3 percent for the current fiscal year. In response to this new data, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) releases the following statement.

Peter Chen, Senior Policy Analyst (NJPP):

“Tax collections are still coming in behind projections and time is running out for the state to make it up. What the data doesn’t show is that this shortfall will only get worse in the new year if lawmakers let the corporate surcharge expire and hand a billion-dollar tax cut to the likes of Amazon and Walmart. Last year’s record-breaking tax collections were clearly an outlier, and now is not the time to cut the corporate tax rate. This is more proof that the state will need new revenue to balance its current budget and prevent cuts to NJ Transit, public schools, and other public services and programs.”

Read NJPP’s latest budget report, Red Flags Amid a Sea of Green, for more information on New Jersey’s structural deficit.

Read NJPP’s report, Stop the Sunset, for more information on the Corporate Business Tax surcharge.

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Fast-Tracked Bill Loosens Tax Credit Requirements for Big Developers

This afternoon, the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee quickly amended and approved a new, complex, and technical 68-page bill (S4175/A5833) that would further roll back requirements on the Aspire tax subsidy program for big developers administered by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA). Despite already loosening requirements in the June budget session six months ago and with regulations from those changes just recently approved, the Legislature is nonetheless fast-tracking even more changes that would benefit developers at the expense of the communities and families these projects are supposed to benefit. In response to the bill being fast-tracked in the final weeks of the legislative session, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) releases the following statement.

Peter Chen, Senior Policy Analyst, NJPP:

“This is another last-minute lame-duck special that will benefit big developers at the expense of everyone else. These changes would turn a tax credit program aimed at revitalizing communities into one that funds unpopular warehouse projects, eliminates affordable housing requirements for family units, and subsidizes parking lots.

“New Jersey should have learned its lesson that loosening rules on corporate tax credits leads to bad development and wasted state dollars. Instead, the Legislature is poised to repeat mistakes of the past that led to years of audits and investigations.

“Major changes in tax credits worth hundreds of millions of dollars should undergo robust hearings and public comment so we can all assess what they would actually accomplish, what they would cost, and who would benefit.”

Changes in the bill include, but are not limited to:

  • Providing tax credits for unpopular warehouse projects, which seem to have no shortage of funding without state assistance
  • Eliminating affordable housing requirements for family units (3-bedrooms), a major shortage in most rental markets
  • Subsidizing parking lots over actual commercial space and economic development
  • Creating a loan program for developers backed by tax credits, all approved by the same agency
  • Increasing the monetary value of tax credits through various financial changes, including:
    • Allowing recipients to carry forward their credits to future tax years
    • Allowing for transfer of credits
    • Making the credits tax-free for corporate and income tax
  • Weakening requirements for community benefit agreements
  • Limiting fees that NJEDA can charge for program administration.

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Workers and Advocates Tell Lawmakers: Do Not Cut a $1 Billion Check to Amazon and Walmart

With the end of the legislative session approaching, more than 100 workers, policy experts, and advocates from For The Many NJ rallied outside the State House to tell lawmakers: Do not cut a $1 billion check to the world’s most profitable businesses!

As state tax collections continue to come in lower than projected, members of the coalition warned that not renewing the Corporate Business Tax surcharge would threaten essential public services, programs, and infrastructure that everyday New Jerseyans rely on.

“We cannot give the largest corporations in the world a $1 billion tax cut on the backs of working people across New Jersey,” said Antoinette Miles, Interim Director of the New Jersey Working Families Alliance. “We need this revenue to fund our communities, our schools, our infrastructure, and our environment. The writing is on the wall with the fiscal cliffs on the horizon, and we have a solution right here. Lawmakers need to stop this tax cut and have these big corporations pay what they owe.”

Eliminating the corporate surcharge, a 2.5 percent tax paid only by corporations with annual profits over $1 million, would cost the state $1 billion every year. Governor Murphy said he would allow the tax to expire at the end of the year in his budget address, stating “A deal is a deal.” The state’s financial outlook has dramatically shifted since then, however, as the state is now operating at a structural deficit.

“We’ve heard a lot about a deal being a deal, but why is a deal with big out of state corporations the one that counts?” asked Peter Chen, Senior Policy Analyst at NJPP. “What about the deal to New Jersey’s commuters and students who ride buses and trains to get to work and school? Instead of honoring a deal to fix NJ Transit, we’re writing a check to Amazon and Wells Fargo instead. These are not small businesses or mom-and-pops or pizzerias paying this tax, it’s the world’s largest corporations.”

A report released earlier this year by New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) found that only the most profitable 2 percent of businesses operating in New Jersey — including out of state companies like Amazon and Walmart — pay the surcharge, while 98 percent of businesses do not pay it. The report also found that more than 70 percent of the tax cut would go to companies with more than $10 million in annual profits.

“Public employees saw the damage caused during the Christie era when the state failed to raise revenues to pay for health care, education, and infrastructure,” said Dennis Trainor, CWA District 1 Vice President. “At a time when the state needs to strengthen its investments and ensure vital services to the public and continue to fully fund the pension, our lawmakers should not be robbing the state of $1 billion to hand to the likes of Amazon and Walmart.”

Earlier this month, Senate President Nick Scutari (D-Union) said he was considering maintaining the surcharge to fully fund NJ Transit, which is facing a looming $1 billion budget shortfall. Millions of residents risk losing bus and train service they rely on if the agency’’s budget is balanced through cuts.

“​​New Jersey Transit is facing a massive deficit, and that means fare hikes and service cuts for me and hundreds of thousands of working-class New Jerseyans who use transit to get to work,” said Margarita Rodriguez, Passaic resident and member of Make the Road New Jersey. “But instead of standing up for working families, Governor Murphy, Assembly Budget Chair Eliana Pintor Marin, and Senate Budget Chair Paul Sarlo will give a billion-dollar tax break to mega-wealthy corporations like Amazon, a well-known violator of workers’ rights. Which side are you on? Do you stand with New Jersey workers and students, who need a functioning public transit system, or billionaire corporations? Don’t let NJ Transit crumble. Listen to your constituents and keep the Corporate Business Tax Surcharge. It is time Amazon pays its fair share.”

Members of the coalition also pointed to other programs and services that are underfunded or at risk of being cut, from affordable housing to environmental protection. Six percent of the corporate business tax is dedicated to environmental purposes, for example, funding open space preservation and the upkeep of city parks, farmland, and historic sites.

“Corporate business tax funding is vital to maintaining open space, which is important for outdoor recreation and is also an economic boon. Outdoor recreation in New Jersey was valued at $20.3 billion in 2021 alone,” said Ed Potosnak, Executive Director, New Jersey League of Conservation Voters. “This money should continue to be invested in open spaces, which brings environmental and economic benefits for the entire state. We’re asking Governor Murphy and the New Jersey Legislature to continue our state’s long legacy of support and funding for land preservation and open space by not letting the surcharge expire. The expiration of the surcharge on the 2 percent wealthiest corporations would mean the loss of $480 million in critical open space funding over just 10 years and will do irreparable harm to our beautiful state.”

“We have a lot of talents in New Jersey, and one of them is being able to walk and chew gum at the same time,” said Matthew Hersh, Director of Policy and Advocacy at the Housing and Community Development Network of New Jersey. “We should not have to consider abandoning an immensely important revenue stream at the risk of losing tools that help all New Jerseyans. We’ve seen the effects of austere budgeting and what it looks like when state agencies are not properly funded. We know that fewer resources in housing means fewer affordable homes.”

With a $1 billion novelty check in hand, the coalition called on the Legislature and Governor Murphy to extend the surcharge permanently, and invest those funds in services and programs that working families rely on.

“Since the corporate surcharge was enacted, corporations like Amazon continue to enjoy record-breaking profits every year,” said Liz Glynn, New Jersey Citizen Action Director of Organizing. “But New Jersey working families have struggled to meet essential needs, and these needs continue to grow. The revenue received from the surcharge has helped meet the growing infrastructure and service needs of low-and moderate-income families across our state. Now is not the time to sunset the surcharge. We urge Governor Murphy and our State Legislature to extend the surcharge and help ensure everyday New Jerseyans can prosper during these difficult times.”

Watch a recording of the event here.

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For The Many is a statewide coalition of more than 30 organizations working to expand funding for essential services and improve budget practices to meet current and future needs, especially for communities that have been historically left behind.

Backroom Deal or Not, New Jersey Needs the Corporate Surcharge

Earlier today, at a business and industry event, Governor Murphy reiterated his call to eliminate the Corporate Business Tax surcharge while also noting that the state is currently operating at a structural deficit as revenue collections continue to come in lower than projected. The 2.5 percent surcharge on corporate profits, which is only paid by companies that make more than $1 million in profit in New Jersey, brings in $1 billion in revenue and helps fund critical public services. In response to the governor’s remarks, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) releases the following statement.

Peter Chen, Senior Policy Analyst, NJPP:

“A backroom deal with the big business lobby doesn’t change the fact that New Jersey desperately needs this revenue to balance the budget and continue paying for schools and transit infrastructure. As the governor noted in his remarks, the state is operating at a structural deficit, which is neither sustainable nor fiscally responsible.

“Let’s not forget that the multinational corporations that pay the surcharge made record-breaking profits with this tax in place, so we have ample proof that they can afford it. The surcharge is primarily paid by companies like Amazon and Walmart, and they have no incentive to stop selling their products in New Jersey.”

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The Senate President is Right: New Jersey Needs More Revenue to Fund NJ Transit

In an interview that aired earlier today on Reporters Roundtable, Senate President Nick Scutari (D-Union) proposed extending the Corporate Business Tax surcharge as a solution for NJ Transit’s looming $1 billion budget shortfall. The corporate surcharge, targeted to the top two percent of corporations with more than $1 million in annual profits, currently brings in $1 billion in revenue per year. In a report released in September, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) outlined the benefits of using the surcharge to fully fund NJ Transit and prevent catastrophic service cuts and fare hikes. In response to the Senate President’s comments, NJPP releases the following statement.

Alex Ambrose, Policy Analyst, NJPP:

“The Senate President is not exaggerating when he says that the state is in dire need of more revenue. With tax collections coming in lower than projected and NJ Transit facing a $1 billion shortfall, the only other option would be drastic service cuts and fare hikes that would hurt commuters and the broader economy.

“Keeping the corporate business tax surcharge should be a no-brainer. This is a modest tax targeted to the most profitable companies in the world, like Amazon and Walmart, that raises $1 billion every year. Instead of letting this tax expire at the end of the year, lawmakers should make it permanent and invest those funds in public services and infrastructure we all rely on. There isn’t another proposal out there that would raise this much revenue, all without affecting small businesses or working families.”

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Low Revenue Collections Underscore Need to Keep Corporate Business Tax Surcharge

Today, New Jersey’s Treasury Department released new tax collection data showing revenues continue to lag behind collections over the same period in 2022, as well as behind projected revenues for the current fiscal year. Year-to-date, revenues are down $452.9 million from the prior year. In response to this new data and worrying trend, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) releases the following statement.

Peter Chen, Senior Policy Analyst, NJPP:

“The latest Treasury report shows exactly what budget experts have warned: The state will need more revenue to balance its books and pay for the public investments that keep our communities running. Lower-than-expected revenue collections are always a concern, but this latest trend is even more alarming since the current budget was already set to spend more money than the state would collect. This structural deficit threatens New Jersey’s fiscal health and will make it harder to fund public schools, NJ Transit, child care, and other areas supported by federal pandemic aid that’s about to expire.

“One obvious way for lawmakers to plug this budget hole would be extending the corporate business tax surcharge on companies with over $1 million in annual profits. This revenue source is not only needed to balance the state budget, but also a fair and targeted tax on the world’s wealthiest corporations earning record profits.”

Read NJPP’s latest budget report, Red Flags Amid a Sea of Green, for more information on New Jersey’s structural deficit.

Read NJPP’s report, Stop the Sunset, for more information on the Corporate Business Tax surcharge.

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Poll Shows That Taxing Big Corporations is Not Only Good Policy But Incredibly Popular

A new poll released earlier today from Fairleigh Dickinson University shows that New Jersey residents strongly support extending a tax on the most profitable corporations to fund NJ Transit. The poll results show a majority of overall voters (54 percent support, 29 percent oppose), independents, and Democrats support the policy, as well as a majority of voters in regions across the state. In response to the new poll, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) releases the following statement.

Peter Chen, Senior Policy Analyst, NJPP:

“This new poll is proof that taxing big corporations to fund public infrastructure like NJ Transit is not only good policy but incredibly popular. Large multinationals like Amazon and Wal-Mart have been raking in record profits while public investments and programs continue to suffer from decades of disinvestment. Handing Big Business a billion-dollar tax cut is the wrong move while everyday New Jerseyans still need help with basic needs. Across all races and regions, residents clearly believe in getting profitable corporations to pay their fair share for the public services we all rely on.

“This poll underscores the Legislature’s simple choice when lawmakers return to Trenton: let corporations take a massive and unpopular tax cut, or fund popular infrastructure.”

 

Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver Will Leave a Lasting Legacy

On the passing of Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver, who made history as the first Black woman to serve as Speaker of the General Assembly, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) releases the following statement.

Nicole Rodriguez, President, NJPP:

“New Jersey has suffered a great loss today. Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver committed her life to public service and fighting for a fairer society, leaving a lasting legacy that will inspire future generations. She was a trailblazer in every sense of the word, boldly carving her own path in state and local politics. Our thoughts and deepest condolences go out to the Oliver family.”

The Best Response to Congestion Pricing is to Improve and Expand NJ Transit

Earlier today, Governor Murphy announced a new lawsuit against the Federal Highway Administration for approving New York’s congestion pricing plan for vehicles entering downtown Manhattan. Congestion pricing is meant to decrease the number of cars entering Manhattan and incentivize the use of public transportation. The governor’s announcement comes days after the NJ Transit Board of Directors approved a new annual budget that fails to address an imminent $1 billion shortfall that could result in drastic service cuts and fare hikes. In response to this announcement, New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP) releases the following statement.

Alex Ambrose, Policy Analyst, NJPP:

“The best way to respond to New York’s congestion pricing plan is to improve and expand our own public transit systems here in New Jersey. Fully funding NJ Transit would be a far better use of taxpayer dollars than suing the federal government for a plan lawmakers have known about for years and did nothing to prepare for. The irony here is that congestion pricing will benefit New Jersey and New York alike by reducing traffic, reducing air pollution, and generating revenue for subways that residents of both states rely on. It’s easy to oppose congestion pricing to score political points, but this sort of lawsuit does nothing for the nine out of ten New Jersey commuters who already rely on mass transit to get to and from work everyday.”