Death Taxes in New Jersey
NJPRO’s newest report, New Jersey: An Outlier in Death examines how state’s laws regulating the estate and inheritance taxes, also known as “death taxes,” negatively impacts the decision making process of both the members of the general public and small business owners. In addition, it discusses why New Jersey policymakers should be concerned about death tax policy now, and in the future.
I’ve been a tax attorney in private practice in Newark and later Westfield, where I work presently, since mid-1985. I was regularly in contact with Art Maurice and after Art, Dave Brogan, at the NJBIA. Before then I was regularly in contact with Jim Leonard at the NJ Chamber. I wrote a popular piece for the Chamber after the “McGreevy Tax Increases” I am currently on the NJBIA Tax Committee.
Anyway, I just ordered Art Laffler et al.’s Inquiry Into The Wealth of…States. I plan to study it.
Personally, I think overall the facts are NJ’s economy has been weak since the Dotcom bust during 2001. I recognize some sectors may be different, but I believe they are not in sectors economists would recognize as being especially fertile for small business start-ups that are more likely than not to become profitable and hire a wide range of employee skill sets.
I don’t think the NJ EDA’s many programs of the last 5 years are effective enough, and can’t be because aggressive NJ state controlled capital formation and capital intervention is ultimately a taxpayer funded endeavor inherently inefficient.
Also, as a member of the Florida Bar since 1989, I personally counseled many former NJ tax residents in legally disestablishing NJ income and estate and other NJ taxes residency. Your report reflects my anecdotal experience.
I think NJ crossed the Laffler Curve’s, more taxes and kinds of taxes equals less tax revenues before 2008, and certainly it has had to more recently. I could be wrong, as I am guessing.
I would like to vocally and in writing contribute to a campaign to cut the NJ estate tax, GIT tax and/or CBT tax, outlaw the closed shop union laws for NJ government employees, etc. Alternatively, thinking small is beautiful, I know the details of the McGreevy-Cody-Corzine administrations many relatively small but annoying taxes and tax like imposts of hundreds of kinds. It would be a step in the right direction to get rid of them, one-by-one if necessary, and of course take on the many “single interest groups” that likely exist behind and in staunch support of many of them.
I recognize things are never as bad as the headlines say, or as good as they say. But NJ has declined in terms of growth in prosperity relative to many. many states since I moved in ’85 and compared to the NJ glory days of the 50s and 60s. I am going to read the Laffler book with the facts in mind NJ had no sale tax until I think ’66, no or a reasonably law and flat income tax until I think ’85, and now of course its $675,000 estate tax exempt is a standing joke for most of our estate planning clients.
So, I am primed to join in a campaign I can personally live with to cut NJ taxes.