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N.J. headed for government contraction, experts say
In many ways, the New Jersey residents now know will disappear within five years because of yawning government budget gaps, a panel of top experts said Friday.
The bipartisan group of former officials and academics presented a dark view of the state’s future that included widespread government consolidation, worker layoffs, service cuts and tax increases. Experts said that future was nearly certain to come to pass, even with a rosy economic scenario.
Recent pension and benefit reforms, and a tougher property tax cap will not prevent the state from experiencing dramatic changes in New Jersey government, they said. That’s because the state will need five years for tax revenues to catch up to where they were before the great recession. (Method, Gannett)
