Legislation signed today by the governor that allows Jersey City to impose a payroll tax will hurt businesses of all sizes and chip away at the city’s competitiveness, said NJBIA Vice President Andrew Musick, who urged city leaders to refrain from imposing the new tax on its businesses.
Gov. Phil Murphy signed the law today giving Jersey City the authority to impose up to a 1 percent payroll tax as part of the state’s overhaul of the school funding formula. The legislation, A-4163, allows municipalities with a population exceeding 200,000 to impose the payroll tax and disperse the proceeds to the school district. The law’s intent is to allow Jersey City to make up for any decreases in state school aid.
So education cost is on the back of businesses who have no voting rights on school budgets, nor voting rights. Home rule by Jersey City residents means they should be responsible for their own costs. The students who go through this school system will most likely not work for the firms in Jersey City.