Yesterday I participated in a press conference announcing the formation of the New Jersey Taxpayers Alliance, a coalition of business groups and taxpayer advocates (including NTU) dedicated to reversing decades of harmful economic policies in the Garden State. The scariest things I've encountered this Halloween are New Jersey's economic indicators (ZING!). Below is a transcript of my remarks.

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On behalf of the more than 10,000 New Jersey members of the National Taxpayers Union, I am proud to be a part of the New Jersey Taxpayers Alliance and fight for an end to the Garden State’s prolonged fiscal recklessness and economic stagnation. Our group exists to educate citizens and lawmakers in New Jersey about sound, pro-growth fiscal policy. In doing so, it is important to emphasize that the 50 states compete against one another. They fight for jobs, both the businesses that provide them and the people that perform them. Those businesses and people flock to the states that offer the best opportunity for economic growth. The fact that New Jersey is near the bottom of that list by almost every measurable statistic is why we’re all here today. So, in order for this meeting to be a productive start in turning things around, let’s review the extent of New Jersey’s crisis.

We’ll hear a constant refrain of the following statistic until we see significant change in New Jersey’s economic policies: The Tax Foundation recently ranked the state’s business tax climate dead last in the country for fiscal year 2009. This ranking takes into account the fact that the Garden State has the worst property tax, third worst income tax, and tenth worst sales tax in the nation. Job losses this year have exceeded 21,000. So much for competing for job-providers.

Unfortunately, New Jersey isn’t treating individuals any better. In a separate study, the Tax Foundation determined that New Jersey has the largest state and local tax burden in the country, at 11.8% of income. In 2008, residents worked until May 7th to pay their tax bills, waiting 127 days to see anything they could truly call ‘personal income.’ This number is a breath of fresh air as it is merely the second most burdensome in the country. So much for competing for job-seekers.

In addition to New Jersey’s current tax problem, legislators in Trenton insist on passing the burden along to future generations. The outstanding state and local debt per capita is $9,153. That’s the fifth highest number in the country, and a major reason why the National Taxpayers Union urges voters to pass Public Question 1 next Tuesday, which would require voter approval prior to the passage of any legislation that issues state authority bonds.

Furthermore, a study by Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore conducted for the American Legislative Exchange Council recently ranked New Jersey 43rd in its “economic competitiveness index.” The study digests 16 policy variables and ranks states based on their ability to attract people and investment. Perhaps most telling is the net gain or loss of citizens a state experiences over a period of time. As you might expect, the numbers paint a grim picture in New Jersey: Between 1997 and 2006, the state lost 409,409 people, fourth highest in the country.

Put succinctly, New Jersey’s situation is self-evident. You have the worst tax climate for business in the country. You have the worst tax load in the country for private citizens. Thus, not only are people avoiding a move to New Jersey, but natives are leaving in droves. Perhaps the only thing keeping this disaster from becoming a total doomsday is that New Jersey’s neighbors, such as New York and Connecticut, impose above-average burdens on their citizens too. But this situation can’t last with New Jersey at or among the worst in just about every bad fiscal indicator. The necessity of tax reform is no longer a partisan issue in New Jersey. It is a fact of life, and one the National Taxpayers Union, as part of the New Jersey Taxpayers Alliance, stands ready to fight for.