Lonegan to lead statewide effort to defeat Green Acres ballot initiative
By Wally EdgeFormer gubernatorial candidate Steven Lonegan, the state director of Americans for Prosperity, is expected to announce today that he is forming a campaign organization to urge the defeat of the Green Acres referendum on the ballot next month. The state is seeking voter approval to spent $400 million for Green Acres, water supply and floodplain protection, and for farmland and historic preservation projects.
In 2007, Lonegan led the statewide effort to reject three public questions - all supported by Gov. Jon Corzine -- on the statewide ballot that year. A proposed constitutional amendment to dedicate 1% of state sales and use taxes for property tax reform failed 51%-49, and a proposed $450 million stem cell research bond issue failed 53%-47%. A $200 million Green Acres/Blue Acres bond issue passed 54%-46%.
New Jerseyans pass most public questions that make it to the ballot. Until two years ago, voters had approved 31 successive ballot questions. The last to fail was a 1990 $135 million bond issue to help low and moderate income families secure housing construction; that was rejected 51%-49%.
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Open space is a taxpayer's FRIEND
Fiscal conservatives, of which I am one, need to realize that preserving open space keeps taxes lower, because most towns that give out development permits don't realize the all-in services costs and the COAH, redevelopment, and other obligations over time with developed land.
Open space is also an investment in water filtration, tourism and other things that save big dollars and bring in big dollars. It's simply a wise investment. It's a taxpayer's friend.
It's no coincidence that NJ is the most densely populated and the highest taxed state; the key is to contain sprawl and overdevelopment and we'll see our tax rankings drop from 50 to 45 toward 40, which is a first step.