New Jersey tax amnesty nets millions

    New Jersey’s tax amnesty program could net the state 700 million dollars when all the checks are cashed.

    New Jersey’s tax amnesty program could net the state 700 million dollars when all the checks are cashed. Guilt could have been a motivating factor for many people who paid up.

    Listen:
    [audio: 090629tmamnesty.mp3]

    Thousands took advantage of the amnesty program, which gave delinquents the opportunity to pay their back taxes without paying penalties or half of the interest.

    • WHYY thanks our sponsors — become a WHYY sponsor

    Christina Ritsema is a professor at St Norbert College who did research on people who’ve participated in tax amnesty programs. She says the announcement of an amnesty program stirs feelings of guilt in delinquents.

    Ritsema: They take advantage of tax amnesty programs to avoid the penalty and to remove the guilt, to become free of the guilt of not having paid taxes in the past.

    Governor Jon Corzine says if negotiations are successful, New Jersey’s recent windfall from the program will be used for property tax relief.

    WHYY is your source for fact-based, in-depth journalism and information. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on financial support from readers like you. Please give today.

    Want a digest of WHYY’s programs, events & stories? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

    Together we can reach 100% of WHYY’s fiscal year goal