Property tax increase to help rebuild after Sandy? (Sayreville: lease, insurance)

[Informed Info]

Listening to the radio (briefly) this afternoon, this was a point being discussed. From what I heard FEMA is expected to cover about 75% of the cost and NJ has to come up with remaining 25% (estimated to be anywhere from $30-$50 billion). Please correct me if I heard wrong, as I mentioned, I didn't hear the entire discussion.

Apparently property taxes are expected to rise in the towns hardest hit and more than the allowed 2% cap due to a loophole in the bill allowing for "emergency situations".

There is concern that towns not hit heavily or barely touched will also use this loophole to increase property taxes above and beyond the 2% cap using the loophole.

According to the following article, in LA, after Katrina, state revenues got a "boost".

.....based on the experience of Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina, state revenues could even get a net boost as a result of massive reconstruction financed by federal disaster relief funds and insurance settlements in the remaining seven-and-a-half months of the current fiscal year, David Rosen, budget and finance officer for the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services, said in an interview.

"When Katrina hit in August, Louisiana’s contingent revenue forecasting group met in October and reduced their revenue forecast by 10 percent,” Rosen reported. “The Republicans in the Legislature loved it because they wanted to cut spending anyway. But when the revenues came in, they exceeded the pre-Katrina amount.”

“The amount of federal and insurance money coming in was enormous, and it was amazing how quickly it got spent,” Rosen said of post-Katrina Louisiana.

Too soon to speculate? Or should some or all of us be expecting an increase above the 2% cap?


Storm Costs Won't Necessarily Spell Budget Disaster - WNYC


Gov. Christie expects property taxes to rise in Sandy-ravaged areas | NJ.com

[NJBest]

Christie said he would make sure that extra property taxes can only be used to recovery from Sandy. I don't know how well that can be enforced, but hopefully it can be.

My town has relatively very little damage but I would be for increased property taxes to help the state rebuild.

[manderly6]

This isn't a "loophole". It is what was agreed upon. There are other reasons towns can go over the 2% as well. As far as towns not hit by Sandy trying to go over the 2% I have two comments:

1. Hopefully there is some oversight to not allow that to happen.
2. Any town that tried that would see every single person get voted out in the next election.

[Informed Info]

Originally Posted by NJBest

Christie said he would make sure that extra property taxes can only be used to recovery from Sandy. I don't know how well that can be enforced, but hopefully it can be.

Yes. That is a concern because property taxes get paid to the towns, not the state. My town is famous for keeping salaries for jobs that do not exist on the books in certain budgets for years and years, just to keep that budget inflated. I don't trust the folks who run my town with much, and certainly not when it comes to something like this.

My town has relatively very little damage but I would be for increased property taxes to help the state rebuild.

We were hit worse with Irene due to the flooding around here. Trees still went down, some didn't have power for a few days, some didn't have power for over a week due to the sitting water with no place to go AND trees down, etc., until PSE&G could get in to fix. Bridges were out, parts of roads were washed away, town owned historical properties were damaged. Our property taxes went up (always do), but not above the 2% cap (if I remember correctly it was even less) citing "Irene".

From what I understand, some NJ shore towns voted for no building up of dunes because they didn't want their views obstructed. We vacation in OBX. Dunes everywhere. The only house you'll find sitting on it's foundation (as opposed to on pilings) are the homes that were built 50-60 years ago. There is a reason houses on OBX don't get washed away during a direct hit from a cat 2 hurricane in the same way Sandy did, as a tropical storm. Docks & piers do get broken up and washed away, businesses sitting on the piers do, dunes get washed away - but only to a point. Violent wind is violent wind and can tear any house to shreds, but the water doesn't wash away thousands of homes because of the dunes.

So do I feel my property taxes should be increased to rebuild the shore? I don't know yet.

[Informed Info]

Originally Posted by manderly6

This isn't a "loophole". It is what was agreed upon. There are other reasons towns can go over the 2% as well. As far as towns not hit by Sandy trying to go over the 2% I have two comments:

1. Hopefully there is some oversight to not allow that to happen.
2. Any town that tried that would see every single person get voted out in the next election.

It's kind of an "agreed upon" loophole.

I agree with your two points!

[NJBest]

Originally Posted by Sawdustmaker

We were hit worse with Irene due to the flooding around here. Trees still went down, some didn't have power for a few days, some didn't have power for over a week due to the sitting water with no place to go AND trees down, etc., until PSE&G could get in to fix. Bridges were out, parts of roads were washed away, town owned historical properties were damaged. Our property taxes went up (always do), but not above the 2% cap (if I remember correctly it was even less) citing "Irene".

From what I understand, some NJ shore towns voted for no building up of dunes because they didn't want their views obstructed. We vacation in OBX. Dunes everywhere. The only house you'll find sitting on it's foundation (as opposed to on pilings) are the homes that were built 50-60 years ago. There is a reason houses on OBX don't get washed away during a direct hit from a cat 2 hurricane in the same way Sandy did, as a tropical storm. Docks & piers do get broken up and washed away, businesses sitting on the piers do, dunes get washed away - but only to a point. Violent wind is violent wind and can tear any house to shreds, but the water doesn't wash away thousands of homes because of the dunes.

So do I feel my property taxes should be increased to rebuild the shore? I don't know yet.

Yea, Irene did a number on us as well... much worse than Sandy. It was from the rain more than anything else.

I'm not so concerned with rebuilding the beaches right now. But I'm all for an increase in taxes to rebuild roads, NJTransit buses and rails, bridges, trade ports and other infrastructure. The faster we get these back to the norm, the faster people can rebuild their lives.

[Informed Info]

Originally Posted by NJBest

Yea, Irene did a number on us as well... much worse than Sandy. It was from the rain more than anything else.

I'm not so concerned with rebuilding the beaches right now. But I'm all for an increase in taxes to rebuild roads, NJTransit buses and rails, bridges, trade ports and other infrastructure. The faster we get these back to the norm, the faster people can rebuild their lives.

That's where FEMA monies should kick in. To help rebuild the infrastructure. FEMA does that everywhere else and all the time.

I have a client, who drove a mid-2000 something hoopty Kia minivan. She not only received $7,500 dollars for "transportation" (her minivan got washed away, she lives in Sayreville) recompense because she had had to rent a car for ONE week before she leased a new one. She also received an additional $13K for the replacement value on her hoopty POS. It was nowhere worth $13K. All this through FEMA. Who is signing these FEMA checks? Where is the due diligence, let alone common sense and follow through?

Go figure.

[NJBest]

Originally Posted by Sawdustmaker

That's where FEMA monies should kick in. To help rebuild the infrastructure. FEMA does that everywhere else and all the time.

I have a client, who drove a mid-2000 something hoopty Kia minivan. She not only received $7,500 dollars for "transportation" (her minivan got washed away, she lives in Sayreville) recompense because she had had to rent a car for ONE week before she leased a new one. She also received an additional $13K for the replacement value on her hoopty POS. It was nowhere worth $13K. All this through FEMA. Who is signing these FEMA checks? Where is the due diligence, let alone common sense and follow through?

Go figure.

I lost a mailbox in Sandy. It cost me about $2600 after labor (it was a custom brick setting). A streetlamp fell right on it. Can I get reimbursed by FEMA?

FEMA needs to stop handing out money and set up loan programs. Getting people cash fast so they can rebuild while their insurance plans or savings go through the paperwork.

[nybbler]

Originally Posted by NJBest

I lost a mailbox in Sandy. It cost me about $2600 after labor (it was a custom brick setting). A streetlamp fell right on it. Can I get reimbursed by FEMA?

I would think the municipality or county should actually reimburse you for that -- whoever's streetlamp it was.

FEMA needs to stop handing out money and set up loan programs. Getting people cash fast so they can rebuild while their insurance plans or savings go through the paperwork.

They did that in Katrina. Only they didn't tell the suckers who got the loans that they were loans, and in fact denied it to their face. Then came back some time later demanding the money plus interest.

[JERSEY MAN]

so your saying FEMA gave her already 20,500 for a around 2005 kia hoopde? i find that hard to believe. i know people that lost 300,000 houses with no insurance and didn't get a nickel.