NJ vs NY Tax War - A battle worth losing

American's for Tax Reform had an article tuesday discussing the battle going on between NJ legislators and NY legislators. Since there is only one thing both of those esteemed groups of politicians take seriously, you can guess what the article is all about:

New York and New Jersey are locked in an epic battle. The fight: which state can raise the tax burden the highest until virtually every resident and business just leaves.

The article proceeds immediately into a depressing mode:

In mid-march, we reported on New Jersey's attempt to turn the Garden State into a depopulated ghost town by raising $1 billion in taxes on individuals, businesses, homeowners, and consumers. As a result of having raised more taxes than any other state since 2002 (a combined $22 billion), the Garden State has seen hundreds of thousands of residents flee for low tax states like Pennsylvania and Florida.

It is so sad that we in New Jersey are routinely listed in case studies as one of 4 states that you really do not want to emulate-in any category. But there was at least some good news.

In a resounding victory for fiscal imprudence, the budget will give the Empire State the worst-ranked business tax climate in the nation - stealing the number one spot away from rival New Jersey.

Read the entire article here.

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Random Bailout and Stimulus Thoughts

My creativity has been a bit off lately with too much going on at work to really think about the political and financial tsunami around us. Or maybe it is more about avoidance. Either way, it's time for some randomness....

The NJ Governor signed legislation today that has been reported(here) as a business inducing change in the state's taxation rule. What strikes me as strange is that while we have had a stampede of business unfriendly legislation (increased taxes, paid family leave, increased rules and regulations etc) that have had an absolutely direct impact on revenues and/or costs, this legislation represents some esoteric rules changes that will frankly only do something for the companies who apparently lobbied someone. You want to stimulate business in New Jersey? Give a three year tax holiday for any company that hires more than 250 people in the next three months. Stop with the lame pretend improvements.

The state Minnesota has spent millions to get to a foregone conclusion. That a clownish Democrat will somehow procedurally be declared a senator. The same team(read here) that accomplished a similar overturn of an election in Washington state is on the job. And Minnesota will only begin to be embarassed should Franken get away with it.

New York woke up recently to the announcement of their Governor's plan to tax everything that moves. I commented on the Patterson's plan here at njtaxrevolution. Then I read this opinion piece in the Inquirer. And main thrust of the argument is that at least NJ and PA are not in New York's situation. The joke of that argument is that when the economy was much better, New Jersey already enacted the same pack of clownish legislation taxing everything that moved. And look where it has gotten us. We still have outrageous deficits and the only reason it isn't more obvious in the news is that New York already knows that they are in trouble. Our state leaders haven't done the math yet.

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NY tries the NJ Nickle and Dime Approach

New York's weakest Governor of all time who is still whining about his Saturday Night Live depiction has presented a budget that is absolutely underwhelming in every way after promising something grand.

I will give him minor credit. Patterson made an attempt at getting the out of control pension costs under control by exercising some restraint on new employees. But event that does not go far enough.

The real issue is the 88 new taxes and fees he has proposed on virtually everything. Corzine did it in NJ two years ago and gave birth to this site. And I hope someone in NY does the same thing there. 88 new taxes and no spending cuts. Not only is the governor blind, he is deaf (pc police can insert there bile here).

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