New Jersey Nixes Tax on Millionaires

In a sign that the popularity of Governor Christie with New Jersey voters may be forcing legislators in New Jersey to pay attention and act more fiscally responsible, lawmakers in the Garden State have conceded they don't have votes to override his veto of a substantial tax increase from earlier this year.

"New Jersey Democratic legislators on Monday failed to gather enough votes to extend a tax on millionaires that would have been used to provide property tax relief for senior citizens and the disabled.

Democrats wanted to override Republican Governor Chris Christie's veto of the plan but were unable to get any Republicans to join them to muster the two-thirds majority needed in the state Assembly.

The Democrats had wanted to reimpose a one-year, 10.75 percent tax on income above $1 million that would have hit 16,000 people, some of them likely to work as financial professionals just across the Hudson River in New York."

It's a shame that it takes a veto by the governor to stop lawmakers from imposing a draconian tax on the most productive members of society.

What lawmakers should actually be doing is cutting personal and corporate tax rates to encourage more people and businesses from neighboring states to move to New Jersey.

Yes, providing help to senior citizens and the disabled is certainly a noble cause. But if finding money for this cause was important enough, lawmakers could easily come up with the funds for those initiatives if they were willing to cut spending on their sacred cows - the public unions that have extorted money from the public for year and given lavishly to their campaigns in exchange.