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Health & Fitness

Property Tax Reform Conference Scheduled for June 11 at Monmouth University

"The Prospects, Politics and Potential Impact of Property Tax Reform"

The New Jersey State League of Municipalities and the Monmouth University Kislak Real Estate and the Monmouth University Polling Institute are sponsoring a conference on “The Prospects, Politics and Potential Impact of Property Tax Reform” at Monmouth University on Tuesday, June 11.

“Property taxes continue to be Public Enemy Number One and a primary concern of New Jersey residents and businesses, and for good reason,” said Janice Mironov, president of the New Jersey State League of Municipalities and the Mayor of East Windsor.  “By any measure, New Jersey continues to lead all states in the nation, having the highest property tax burden.  The time has come to fundamentally change direction and begin a serious dialogue on property tax reform and reduction.”

The League’s Property Tax Reform Task Force will lay out its ideas for property tax reform at the conference, which also features Assembly Majority Lou Greenwald (D-Camden) and Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon (R-Monmouth), the GOP’s Assembly budget officer.

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The conference will be held in Monmouth University’s Woodrow Wilson Hall Auditorium from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

“The League of Municipalities has been working on property tax reform for many years, and we convened a bipartisan committee of 24 mayors charged with finding ways to reduce property taxes,” said Eatontown Mayor Gerald Tarantolo, who chairs the Property Tax Reform Task Force. “We met with various stakeholders, including state legislators, education experts, academics and civic leaders, in considering every policy option.”

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Peter Reinhart, director of Monmouth’s Kislak Real Estate Institute, said “it is so important to energize the debate over property tax reform.”

“Homeowners have been concerned about high property taxes for many years,” Reinhart said. “A meaningful reduction in property taxes should ease the tax burden for homeowners, reduce their monthly payment, increase their property values, make New Jersey more competitive with neighboring states and enable seniors to remain in their homes during their golden years. We are pleased to help promote the dialogue on this important public policy issue in New Jersey.”

Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute, emphasized that “property taxes have been Garden State residents’ top issue for nearly a decade. Those concerns were heightened and continue to persist because of promises to reform the system that never materialized.  We do know from prior efforts that New Jerseyans are willing to consider alternatives if the prospect of property tax relief is real.”

Mayor Mironov, will open the conference at 8:45 a.m. The first panel will present the report of the Property Tax Reform Task Force, followed by panels on “The Politics of Property Tax Reform,” “The Impact on Municipalities of a Property Tax Cut,” and “The Impact of a Property Tax Cut on the Real Estate Market.”

Other panelists include NJSLOM First Vice President Suzanne Walters, the mayor of Stone Harbor; Manchester Township Mayor Mike Fressola and Somerdale Mayor Gary Passanante. All three served on the Property Tax Reform Task Force with Tarantolo.

Michael Vrancik, director of Government Relations for the New Jersey School Boards Association, and Mark Magyar, New Jersey Spotlight’s budget and tax policy expert, will speak about property tax reform options, and Murray will report on the findings of his polling on property taxes.

Dr. Donald M. Moliver, MAI, CRE, dean of the Leon Hess Business School at Monmouth University, and Paul Giannone, executive vice president of Cushman & Wakefield, will join Reinhart on the real estate panel.

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There is no fee for attending the conference, which is open to the public.

To RSVP for the conference, please email Jon Moran, Senior Legislative Analyst for the New Jersey State League of Municipalities, at jmoran@njslom.org (please include Conference Registration in the subject field) or call him at (609) 695-3481.

Monmouth University’s Woodrow Wilson Hall is located at 400 Cedar Avenue, West Long Branch. It is readily accessible from Exit 105 on the Garden State Parkway, from Route 18 or from I-195.

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