Councilman Fulop Introduces Tax Payment Plan to Help

Struggling Jersey City Families

Jersey City- Monday, January 4, 2010: Councilman Steven Fulop (www.stevenfulop.com) announced today that he will introduce an ordinance at the next council meeting, on Wednesday January 13th, creating a Jersey City tax payment plan for struggling Jersey City families.

“2009 was a very hard year for Jersey City. This ordinance is being introduced on the heels of not only at 11.25% tax increase for residents, but many controversial tax abatements for developers, and a municipal budget that is more than 6 months late. I believe that this tax payment plan is crucial to helping the many struggling families in Jersey City.” Councilman Steven Fulop said.

Some specifics of the tax payment plan ordinance include:

-       Provide homeowners the option  to set a payment plan, for up to 3 years for qualified families, for taxes prior to the city pursuing a tax lien on the property

-       Allow homeowners that are currently collecting unemployment or have fallen on a difficult personal financial situation and have applied to a bank for a loan that has not been granted, an opportunity to qualify for the program

-       Ensure the city  can only  accrue interest on the delinquent payment rather than the entire tax bill

-       Establish a Council-created  subcommittee to review resident applications with a recommendation from the tax collector

“Every single day we hear of struggling families in Jersey City.. Nearly half of all Jersey City homeowners pay their own taxes directly to the city rather than through a mortgage company. As a government we need to do everything can in order to make sure that hardworking families don’t lose their homes.”

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