Christie Administration Ignores Proof That Remaining ‘Tool Kit’ Bills Do Little On Property Taxes

TRENTON – Senate President Steve Sweeney issued the following statement today regarding the Christie Administration’s failure to acknowledge that the remaining bills in the so-called “tool kit” will do little to solve the issue of the largest property tax increase in four years:

“The one-way governor cut $1.1 billion in education funding, $448 million in state aid, and eliminated rebates to the tune of $848 million. That is over $2.3 billion in cuts he made to New Jersey towns. But he wants us to believe that saving $140,000 by changing public employee discipline guidelines is going to solve your property tax problems. I said it before and I will say it again: What a bunch of garbage.

“For some ‘tool kit’ bills, the savings is so miniscule as to be almost non-existent. For others, there are no savings. Others don’t even have anything to do with property taxes. As for civil service and sick leave payout caps, we passed those…and the one-way governor vetoed them.

“The governor’s statements about the tool kit have been definitively proven false. He should begin taking responsibility for the largest property tax increase in four years.”