TRENTON - Regional Plan Association (RPA) today released a report calling for the current property tax debate in New Jersey to acknowledge the tax system's massive impacts on land use policy. The report, "Fundamental Property Tax Reform: Land Use Implications of New Jersey's Tax Debate," challenges the Gubernatorial and legislative candidates to address the implications of tax reform on land use and its related issues - congestion, open space protection, housing production and economic development. The report, which is attached to this email, also identifies ideas for reform.

"The spirited debate over property taxes needs to go beyond relief to discuss real reform and the broader implications for how we live in New Jersey," said Thomas G. Dallessio, Vice President and NJ Director for RPA. "By relying so heavily on property taxes to fund education and other services, New Jersey has created an environment that works against open space preservation, reasonably priced housing and sustainable economic growth. Both candidates for Governor have unveiled plans that could have tremendous impacts on these issues, but there's little public discussion about these implications."

The report follows a series of roundtable discussions on the topic hosted by RPA and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy earlier this year. The experts and public officials at these events agreed that while the state is ripe for a property tax reform debate, there is no framework for evaluating complicated proposals in a comprehensive manner.

Commenting on the report, former Governor James Florio, a Vice Chairman of RPA, said, "Regional Plan Association has played an important role in encouraging a public debate throughout New Jersey about how to reform the property tax system. By focusing on land use implications, RPA hopes that elected and appointed officials on all levels of government will think about how property tax reform can improve the quality of life for all citizens of New Jersey."

The report outlines a series of criteria for judging property tax proposals, and also puts forth a number of ideas for dealing with the land use implications of reform that have not been adequately presented in the gubernatorial and legislative debates, including:

* Cost-based state aid
* State assumption of education costs
* Smart growth zoning incentives
* Tax-base sharing
* School district consolidation
* Split rate taxation
* Varying taxes by State Plan designation

According to Carol Cronheim, former Acting Secretary of State, "The reform ideas presented in RPA's report raise the property tax debate to a new level. This report is a positive step forward in getting people to look at how changes in the property tax system can improve land use decisions."

Fellow RPA/NJ Committee member Sean Monaghan, a partner in the firm Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP, added, "So far, the debate has focused on property tax relief, not reform. This report brings to the discussion a crucial element which has been largely ignored - the impact of local property taxes on land use policy."

Christopher Daggett, RPA Vice Chair, concluded by stating, "Regional Plan Association's report has made clear that the current property tax system has profound effects on how we use land. We are pleased to be able to put this issue before the people of New Jersey, and look forward to a vigorous debate on how we can not only reduce property taxes but also increase property values through better planning."

Copies of the report, "Fundamental Property Tax Reform: Land Use Implications of New Jersey's Tax Debate," may be found online at www.rpa.org <http://www.rpa.org/> .

Regional Plan Association improves the quality of life and the economic competitiveness of the New York-New Jersey-Connecticut region through research, planning, and advocacy. For more than 80 years, RPA has been shaping transportation systems, protecting open spaces, and promoting better community design for the region's continued growth. We anticipate the challenges the region will face in the years to come, and we mobilize the region's civic, business, and government sectors to take action.