A study conducted last October through a Monmouth University/Gannett New Jersey Poll found that 49 percent of adults living in New Jersey would rather live somewhere else. Among the most common reasons for choosing to live somewhere else, respondents cited high property taxes (28 percent), the cost of living (19 percent), housing costs (6 percent) and state taxes (5 percent).
Given this large number, we are forced to consider what we can do to save our state from the mass emigration that has already begun. A Rutgers University study, completed after the aforementioned poll, concluded that the number of residents that left the state more than tripled between 2002 and 2006. In total, some 231,565 New Jerseyans moved to Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and other states.
Despite the growing distaste with our living conditions here in the Garden State, 44 percent of residents that suggested they would rather live somewhere else at present, still admitted they would like to stay in New Jersey. For these people, and for the future of our state, we must save New Jersey from the overtaxed mess it has become.
Currently, we have the highest property taxes in the nation. That is coupled with a 7 percent sales tax and high state income taxes that do not allow for deductions of federal taxes. We cannot expect to keep middle class and wealthy residents of our state to continue living in New Jersey when they can move to Florida and enjoy a warmer climate, significantly lower property taxes, a lower sales tax and no state income tax. In many ways, continuing to live in New Jersey makes absolutely no economic sense for many residents of our state.
With this emigration, we are beginning to see the results of a decrease in state revenue. Though there is an unfortunate belief in this deep blue state that middle and high income individuals should be forced to pay a great deal more in state taxes, we have failed to realize what will come of these absurdly high tax rates. Those who can afford to buy homes will not continue to buy them in New Jersey when they can pay a third the price for that same home somewhere else, and a lot less in property taxes. If it weren't for our location between the largest market in the world in New York City and one of the biggest markets in the United States in Philadelphia, we would see this trend increase even quicker than it already has.
Our flawed monetary policy will continue to result in the emigration of wealthy residents. I'm amazed that it isn't clear to our elected officials that this demographic trend will make them wholly unable to pay for their social legislation. In a state where so much of our budget is dedicated to entitlement programs, we will become increasingly reliant on a small number of people to pay for our exorbitant programs. This has come to a breaking point recently, and it is because of our faulty tax system that we are faced with a budget crisis today and remain one of a few state governments that are running a deficit.
And yet, we still find a way to elect the same people to office even while our state is crippled by an impossible tax system and rampant corruption. Our government is broken, and it will not be an easy fix, but the first step to fixing our state is to demand accountability and transparency from the governor's office and our state legislature.
We live in a state that is infamous for having a corrupt government. Somehow, though I know many like to question the integrity of all politicians, our state has stood as a shining example of how not to run a government. In the last eight years, we have seen our state turned on its side with corruption.
In 2004, Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned amidst a corrupt administration. His resignation is largely attributable by his own selfish acts, including nominating Golan Cipel as his Homeland Security adviser even though Cipel wasn't an American citizen. Cipel later claimed that he was repeatedly sexually harassed by McGreevey. In true Jersey style, McGreevey made himself seem like a victim of social prejudices when he announced that he was a homosexual. He used this, rather than his corrupt tenure, as a public reason for his resignation.
Sadly, even the court system in our state is rife with judges who would rather legislate from the bench than read our laws. In 2002, when Sen. Robert Torricelli was under investigation for taking bribes from a Korean businessman, he was pressured by the New Jersey Democratic Party to step down. But Torricelli had already won the primary and was 35 days away from the general election. His falling poll numbers made Doug Forrester's election - the first for a Republican senatorial candidate since 1972 - almost a certainty. But in one of the most egregious violations of law in New Jersey history, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled unanimously to allow the Democratic Party to change their candidate on the ballot to former Sen. Frank Lautenberg. As Forrester said at the time, "The laws of the state of New Jersey do not contain a 'We think we're going to lose so we get to pick somebody new' clause." Regardless, the court kneeled before the Democratic Party machine and violated our laws for their own personal gain.
And so we have a choice in this state. We can continue to elect officials that are taxing us to death and are rife with corruption, or we can try a new way. Democrat or Republican, we cannot allow our state to be destroyed by corrupt politicians. I'm proud to live in New Jersey, but I'm not proud of our government. As a state, we need to start demanding that our representatives in Trenton and Washington look out for our interests and not their own.
We can change our government, but this government won't change. We need new people, new ideas and a new respect for the citizens of this great state.
Kian Barry is a Rutgers College senior majoring in political science and history. His column "The Man Who Was Tuesday," runs on alternate Tuesdays.
