Trenton collected more than expected — could NJ taxpayers get a check?

💰 Sen. Anthony Bucco wants unexpected state revenue returned to taxpayers through one-time tax credits or rebates.

📈 July major tax collections hit $3.63 billion, up 9.2% from July 2025, although Treasury cautions the numbers cover portions of two fiscal years.

🏛️ Republicans face steep political odds: Democrats control 57 of 80 Assembly seats and 25 of 40 Senate seats.

New Jersey takes in more money than expected. What should Trenton do with it?

Senate Republican Leader Anthony Bucco has a simple answer: Give it back.

Bucco is preparing legislation that would create an “Unanticipated Revenue Fund,” requiring qualifying revenue collected above budget estimates to be set aside for taxpayer relief instead of becoming available for additional government spending.

NJ tax collections beat expectations

The proposal comes after a strong start to the fiscal year.

NJ Senate GOP

Major state tax collections totaled $3.632 billion in July, an increase of $306.4 million — or 9.2% — compared with July 2025. Treasury cautions that July is treated as a 13th month for accounting purposes because some collections apply to the fiscal year that ended June 30.

Still, Bucco argues that when revenue exceeds expectations, taxpayers should benefit.

“Unexpected revenue is not Trenton’s money. It’s not the Democrats’ money. It is the taxpayers’ money,” Bucco said.

How Bucco's taxpayer rebate plan would work

Under the proposal, excess qualifying General Fund revenue would be placed into the new fund and dedicated to one-time refundable income tax credits or rebates.

The money would not automatically go out the door. Lawmakers would still have to appropriate it and determine who gets relief and how much.

Bucco's plan would replace the existing Surplus Revenue Fund, which can currently be used for multiple purposes, including emergencies, revenue shortfalls, capital projects and property tax relief.

The proposal is part of Bucco's broader four-point affordability agenda, which also includes indexing income tax brackets for inflation and reducing New Jersey's sales tax from 6.625% to 6%.

The political reality in Trenton

Here comes the hard part: getting Democrats to even consider it.

Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, in the central chair on the dais, moderates debate over legislation overhauling the state’s open records in Trenton, N.J., Monday, May 13, 2024. Over jeers of “shame” shouted from the gallery, state lawmakers passed legislation to overhaul the state's open public records law despite objections from civil rights groups and the state's press association. The Associated Press signed onto a letter by the state's press association urging the bill to be rejected. (AP Photo/Mike Catalini)

Democrats hold overwhelming majorities in Trenton — 57 of 80 Assembly seats and 25 of 40 Senate seats — giving Republican leaders little leverage over which bills advance.

Meanwhile, New Jersey's current budget totals a record $60.7 billion. Democrats and Gov. Mikie Sherrill argue it contains record property tax relief, a full pension payment and more than $6 billion in surplus while reducing the state's structural deficit.

That leaves taxpayers with a familiar Trenton debate: When the state collects more than expected, should government find another way to spend it — or should taxpayers get some of their money back?

I think we know which option most taxpayers would choose.

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