Discovery of $200 million revenue mistake Bayshore Courier News Posted:05/26/10
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New Jersey - The latest $200 million revenue error, caused by the previous Corzine administration misreading changes to New York's tax code, was discovered after Assemblyman Declan O'Scanlon initiated a project to study the tax impacts of different states according to a press release.
While compiling the research, staffers at the Office of Legislative Services, or OLS, discovered that the previous Corzine administration did not fully consider an income tax increase in New York state, which meant less revenue for New Jersey from residents who work in the Empire State.
"I wanted to run the numbers to show some of the dramatic differences in the tax impact of other states. New Jersey has suffered never-ending tax increases over the last eight, which is driving away the types of people we need to rebuild our economy," O'Scanlon, R-Monmouth and Mercer, said. "People with high incomes can save hundreds of thousands of dollars by moving to other states and if we continue on the path of high taxes and unsustainable spending, they will leave and the rest of us will have to absorb the lost revenue."
Reportedly the nonpartisan research determined that a high-income earner would have the following income tax burden in various states:
New Jersey - $522,984 N.J. with Democrats' proposed tax increase - $612,074 Pennsylvania - $304,200 New York - $537,527 Virginia - $344,517 Delaware - $353,310 North Carolina - $464,190 South Carolina - $418,880 Florida - no income tax
O'Scanlon said bold action taken by the Christie administration in February enabled it to deal with the latest shortfall without increasing costs for residents. Regarding the $200 million oversight, O'Scanlon said:
"I would have preferred this to be an error that yielded a net plus for taxpayers, but I'm glad the Christie administration's wise moves earlier this year enabled us to deal with this without harming residents," O'Scanlon, a member of the Assembly Budget Committee, said. "This unfortunate episode only shows how it important it is for us to have accurate information as we make important decisions for the future of New Jersey."
