Coughlin, Murphy closer to agreement on senior tax relief

There are more signals today that Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and Gov. Phil Murphy are moving closer to an agreement on the StayNJ senior citizen property tax relief bill that had threatened to divide the two Democratic leaders over the last few weeks.

“I am grateful for the careful consideration the Assembly Aging and Senior Services Committee gave yesterday while advancing the three bills to provide meaningful tax relief and health care savings for seniors, as well as the bipartisan support the package earned,” Coughlin said.  “I will thoughtfully consider issues brought up in the hearing as the three bills are reviewed by the legislature.

Murphy had opposed Coughlin’s plan to over New Jerseyans over age 65 a property tax credit of up to $10,000, but George Helmy, the governor’s chief of staff, hinted of a thaw.

“We look forward to working closely with the Speaker to see this relief delivered in this budget,” Helmy said in a statement that praised Coughlin’s relationship with the governor.

Coughlin agreed to amend part of his StayNJ legislation to include portions of the senior freeze budget proposal advocated by Murphy.

“I look forward to continuing to work with groups like the AARP, NJEA, small businesses, and municipal officials who offered support and constructive ideas to improve the relief package,” Coughlin said.

The StayNJ plan also won the endorsement of Assemblyman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic).

“Having served as Assembly budget chair when we first embarked on the path toward full budget funding and school funding, I believe that the StayNJ program can be successfully implemented in a fiscally responsible and sustainable way for this and future years. For this reason, I support the Speaker’s senior tax cut plan,” Schaer said.  “A budget is a statement of priorities: if StayNJ is adopted it must be with the understanding that this will become a long-term commitment in much the same way as fully funding the pension.   Most importantly I believe that adoption of the bill is fiscally prudent as long as our current surplus remains robust and we continue in the direction we have under Governor Murphy’s leadership.”

Deborah Cornavaca, the NJEA government affairs director and Murphy’s former deputy chief of staff, said the state’s largest public employee union supports the plan.

“On behalf of NJEA’s nearly 200,000 members, I am pleased to offer our support of A1 as a bold approach to address a major challenge for our senior homeowners, 65 years and plus, who are faced with property tax bills that often force them to leave their homes, the state, and cause real disruption to the quality and safety of their lives,” she said.