file photo by Boyd Loving
September 25,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, The Garden State saw a net decrease in population, with the number of people that moved out of the state of roughly 33,700, costing New Jersey about $2.6 billion in taxable income between 2014 and 2015, according to a USA Today Network analysis of IRS migration data.
New Jersey is constantly ranked as the worst business climate in the USA and the state the leads the nation in people wanting to leave .
According to OpportunityNJ, New Jersey ranks dead last in national rankings on the impacts of our four most significant taxes: property, income, sales and corporate business tax.Outmigration of New Jersey residents has had a significant impact on the state’s economy. High taxes and numerous barriers for business operations are causing people to leave the state which has led to the loss of income, economic activity and job creation.
OpportunityNJ (ONJ) is a non-partisan, grassroots coalition comprised of New Jersey interests representing employers, employees, business, trade groups, community organizations and other concerned citizens in the State.
This exodus has become so concerning to New Jersey business leaders that they have championed a campaign to make the state more affordable for its residents and more attractive to out-of-state residents on the move.
“We are at the bottom of every tax ranking. We have an affordability issue. We know why people are leaving,” Michele Siekerka, president and CEO of New Jersey Business and Industry Association.
Her organization estimates that New Jersey has lost over $21 billion in adjusted gross income since 2004 from people leaving the state. That translates to about 87,000 jobs, $13 billion in lost economic activity and $4.6 billion in lost labor income, Siekerka said.
Addressing the affordability issue would help keep seniors and millennials, both of which are the leading demographic groups leaving New Jersey, Siekerka said. When seniors leave, they take with them the bulk of the lost income. But when millennials flee, they take with them a life time of potential earnings. It’s a hit to the state’s future workforce, which means the state sees no benefit from roughly $250,000 per student in public education spending.“We invest in our K-12 education system significantly to have a good product,” Siekerka said. “When millennials leave New Jersey, we aren’t getting a return on that investment.”