Rare bipartisanship — most NJ voters want SALT cap removed

Whether you're a Republican or a Democrat, a millennial or a senior citizen, or a man or a woman, there's one thing we're all in favor of — more money in our pockets.

According to findings released Monday, 63% of Garden State voters in a Fairleigh Dickinson University Poll say they're in favor of scrapping the $10,000 federal cap on state and local taxes that went into effect in 2017.

Full restoration of the property tax deduction received at least 60% support from Democrats (63%), Republicans (64%) and independent voters (60%). More than 800 New Jerseyans were surveyed.

The cap on state and local taxes that can be claimed as a deduction on federal taxes, better known as the SALT cap, has been seen as an attack on Democratic states, particularly high-tax states such as New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. The average tax load in many New Jersey counties is beyond $10,000.

"This is one of the few issues that you're ever going to find that has bipartisan agreement," said Dan Cassino, the poll's executive director and a professor of government and politics at FDU. "If anything trumps partisan politics, it's cold hard cash."

For half of the respondents, the poll mentioned President Trump's role in the cap when asking whether it should be removed. Responses registered no significant difference when compared to the responses of the individuals who were asked the question without noting Trump.

"There may be good reasons to support the SALT cap, as it's a tax increase that mostly falls on wealthier people," Cassino said. "But there aren't that many people who see their taxes go up and think it's a good thing."

About a third of voters said that the SALT cap has increased their taxes, 28% said it hasn't, and 30% said they're not sure if it's increased their taxes or not.

Opposition to the SALT deduction cap, according to the poll, is concentrated among voters most likely to own homes: older and more educated individuals.

Contact reporter Dino Flammia at dino.flammia@townsquaremedia.com.