Murphy offers tepid support for interstate tax incentives ceasefire

Gov. Phil Murphy offered tepid support for a interstate tax incentives ceasefire between New Jersey and its neighbors Thursday.

“As a broader matter, yes. The European Union has done that, so one country cannot use tax incentives to compete with another country, so yes I’m open minded,” Murphy said when asked about his support of the ceasefire. “I think it would need to be more than the neighborhood. It would need to be a broader moratorium.”

Several other lawmakers — Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg, State Sen. Troy Singleton and State Sen. Joe Cryan — have offered some support for a ceasefire.

It’s not clear how beneficial such an armistice would be for New Jersey, which boasts some of the highest corporate tax rates in the nation.

Still, removing tax incentives altogether would remove one source of feuding between Murphy and Senate President Steve Sweeney.

The two are currently at odds over tax incentive abuses allegedly committed by firms with ties to South Jersey kingmaker George Norcross.