Dead last: NJ debt hits $52,300 per taxpayer, study shows

[Geee]

Watchdog.org:

New Jersey ranks worst in the country for state debt, according to a new nationwide study.

 

Each state taxpayer would need to pay $52,300 to erase New Jersey’s existing bills — including public pensions and retiree health benefits — reports Truth in Accounting, a think tank in Chicago.

 

Among “sinkhole states,” New Jersey was followed by Connecticut, $48,600 debt burden per taxpayer; Illinois, $45,000; Kentucky, $32,600; and Massachusetts, $27,400.

 

In the past year, the debt per taxpayer in New Jersey increased by $16,300, or 45 percent, according to the nonprofit.

 

The findings are consistent with a New Jersey Watchdog analysis of State Treasury records that found the Garden State’s pension and health benefit deficit for public workers is nearing $200 billion.

 

[Valin]

Gov. Chris Christie slashes tax hikes, signs $34 billion budget

ICHAEL CATALINI and JILL COLVIN

Friday, June 26, 2015

TRENTON, N.J. --

 

Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie used his veto pen Friday to strip more than $1.6 billion from the 2016 budget approved by the Democratic-controlled Legislature and signed a roughly $34 billion budget into law.

 

Christie vetoed an income tax increase and corporate business tax. He also conditionally vetoed the Democrats' millionaires' tax, but asked the Legislature to approve an increase in the earned income tax credit, something the Legislature has also called for. Christie proposes raising the credit for the 500,000 in the state who receive it to 30 percent of federal levels, instead of 20 percent. Democrats proposed raising it to 25 percent.

 

Christie signed the budget on Friday at the statehouse before a wide-ranging news conference.

 

(Snip)

[Valin]

:

New Jersey ranks worst in the country for state debt, according to a new nationwide study.

 

 

 

From The Comments

 

Nora

In 2009 when Christie was elected the transition team produced "Transition Reports". If anyone bothered to read them (besides me) they'd see that CC inherited $7 Billion in debt in school construction ALONE.. that doesn't count the DOT debt, or the pension debt.

 

Add all that up, then the fact the economy tanked then, and hasn't come back at all in Jersey. Add in the onerous regulatory nature of NJ and the high taxes which both drive businesses and residents out of state, further reducing the income producing potential and you get what we have now… a big BIG mess.

 

The next governor is pretty much screwed. If it's an R-gov, the odds of the D-legislature helping to get things fixed is slim. If it's a D-gov, the odds of the rest of the D-legislature going along to overturn their pet spending programs is also pretty slim as they don't all get along with each other that well either.

 

So whoever wins the hot seat… they have a BIG problem as the only way to get us out of debt is to stop borrowing and that means we have to cut back on the overhead of payroll for services. That will tick off the public service unions who currently control the legislature.

 

As voters have a tendency to switch parties back and forth in the Governor's office, It would be wise of the D-s in the legislature to start NOW fixing things that need fixing and stop head-butting with CC. After Nov's election, they have 2 years before 2017 gov's race… if they don't begin to act with fiscal responsibility, cutting spending vs raising taxes they are just shooting themselves in the foot and further wounding the residents of this state in the process.