Dunn: How much does it cost NJ to combat anchor fraud?

The New Jersey Division of Taxation has successfully fended off more than 900,000 attempts to obtain tax relief through fraud. “But at what cost?” asks Rep. Aura Dunn. The fraud in the state's Anchor program shows that state bureaucracy must be replaced with direct tax cuts, she says.

“The fact that the Treasury Department has foiled nearly a million fraud attempts makes me angry. Yes, angry, but not happy,” said Dunn (R-Morris). “It makes you wonder how many frauds were successful and how many additional people the government had to hire to get this problem under control?”

This fall will be New Jersey's third year distributing Anchor benefits. Last year, $2 million was spent on marketing and outreach, and the program provided more than $2.1 billion in checks and direct deposits to more than 1.8 million homeowners and renters. This year, the cost is expected to be $2.28 billion.

According to budget documents, fraud attempts increased significantly after the program's first year, so many taxpayers applying for Anchor this year will have to go through additional identity verification.

“If New Jersey didn't take money out of taxpayers' pockets in the first place, we might not have these concerns,” Dunn said. “Residents deserve permanent relief through tax cuts that will significantly reduce the high cost of living in this state.”

According to a July analysis by Forbes, New Jersey had the fifth-highest cost of living in the country. Only Hawaii and California were the states with the highest rental costs. The Tax Foundation reports that the state's property tax rate is once again the highest in the country.

“Anchor screams about bloated government and the need for change. It would be much easier and less expensive to cut taxes across the board than to administer a program that simply gives people back the money they've already paid,” Dunn said. “Anchor scammers and swindlers wouldn't be able to take money from hard-working taxpayers if the government didn't take it first.”

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