Requires benefits under certain State property tax relief programs to be provided as credits and requires tabulation of credits and deductions be included on property tax bills.

A5190

ASSEMBLY, No. 5190

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED JUNE 1, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman� DAVID BAILEY, JR.

District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)

Assemblywoman� MARISA SWEENEY

District 25 (Morris and Passaic)

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires benefits under certain State property tax
relief programs to be provided as credits and requires tabulation of credits
and deductions be included on property tax bills.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning payment of benefits under certain State
property tax relief programs and amending various provisions of statutory law.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� Section 15 of P.L.2024,
c.88 (C.54:4-8.63a) is amended to read as follows:

���� 15.�
a.
� Notwithstanding
the provisions of any other law to the contrary, after the effective date of
P.L.2024, c.88 (C.54:4-8.75p1 et al.), ANCHOR rebates shall be paid to eligible
claimants on or before September 15 of each tax year annually
[
, whether such
rebates are to be paid by check, direct deposit, or
]
as a credit on the eligible
claimant's property tax bill.

����
b.��� In the case of an
eligible claimant whose homestead is a unit in a cooperative, mutual housing
corporation, or continuing care retirement community, the credit shall be paid
as a credit on the property tax bill of the cooperative, corporation, or
community where the eligible claimant�s homestead is located.� A cooperative,
mutual housing corporation, or continuing care retirement community that
receives a credit on behalf of an eligible claimant pursuant to this section
shall provide the amount of such credit as a credit against any charges imposed
by the entity on the eligible claimant for the share of property taxes
attributable to the eligible claimant�s unit.

(cf: P.L.2024, c.88, s.15)

���� 2.��� Section 4 of P.L.1997,
c.348 (C.54:4-8.71) is amended to read as follows:

���� 4. a. The director shall
administer the homestead property tax reimbursement program.� A payment for the
homestead property tax reimbursement amount, as calculated by the director,
shall be paid, by
[
check,
direct deposit, or
]

a
credit against the eligible claimant's property tax bill to each
person determined by the director to be an eligible claimant pursuant to
P.L.1997, c.348 (C.54:4-8.67 et seq.)
or a credit against the property tax
bill of a cooperative, mutual housing corporation, or continuing care
retirement community in which the eligible claimant�s homestead is located, as
the case may be,
and shall be made according to the following schedule:�

���� (1) for applications received
on or before May 1 of the tax year, the reimbursement amount shall be paid on
or before July 15 of that tax year; and

���� (2) for applications received
on or after May 1 of the tax year, the reimbursement amount shall be made on a
rolling monthly basis.

���� b.��� All payments made
pursuant to this section shall be appropriated from receipts in the Casino
Revenue Fund.

����
c.���� A cooperative,
mutual housing corporation, or continuing care retirement community that
receives a property tax credit on behalf of an eligible claimant pursuant to
this section shall provide the amount of such credit as a credit against any
charges imposed by the entity on the eligible claimant for the share of
property taxes attributable to the eligible claimant�s unit.

(cf: P.L.2024, c.88, s.18)

���� 3.��� Section 5 of P.L.2023,
c.75 (C.54:4-8.75e) is amended to read as follows:

���� 5. a. (1) The State Treasurer,
upon certification of the director and upon warrant of the Director of the
Division of Budget and Accounting, shall pay and distribute, on a quarterly
basis, beginning February 1, 2026, the amount of a Stay NJ property tax credit
payable under P.L.2023, c.75 (C.54:4-8.75a et al.) that is claimed for the tax
year by
[
check
or direct deposit payable to the eligible claimant or by
]
a credit
against the property tax bill of the eligible claimant
or, in the case of an
eligible claimant whose homestead is a unit in a cooperative, mutual housing
corporation, or continuing care retirement community, a credit against the
property tax bill of the cooperative, corporation, or community,
payable to
the tax collector of the municipality in which each eligible claimant
[
whose credit
is approved by the director
]

is located
[
,
provided, however, a credit due to an eligible claimant who claimed a Stay NJ
property tax credit pursuant to section 3 of P.L.2023, c.75 (C.54:4-8.75c), and
whose homestead is a unit in a cooperative, mutual housing corporation, or
continuing care retirement community, shall be paid directly to the eligible
claimant by the State Treasurer by check or direct deposit. In any year that
the director determines that a Stay NJ payment shall be made as a credit, a
]
.� A

Stay NJ property tax credit allowed by the director
[
to an eligible claimant who
claimed a Stay NJ property tax credit pursuant to section 3 of P.L.2023, c.75
(C.54:4-8.75c), and whose homestead is not a unit in a cooperative, mutual
housing corporation, or continuing care retirement community,
]
shall be paid
by the State Treasurer through electronic funds transfer made by the director
to the local property tax account maintained by the local property tax
collector for the homestead of an eligible claimant
, or for the cooperative,
mutual housing corporation, or continuing care retirement community in which
the eligible claimant maintains a homestead, as the case may be,
as the
eligible claimant shall identify, in four equal installments after the
application for the credit has been approved.� The State Treasurer shall pay
and distribute Stay NJ property tax credit payments to each municipal tax
collector
[
or
eligible claimant, as applicable,
]

on a quarterly basis at least 10 days prior to the statutory due date for each
property tax year quarter payment.� Notice of payments of Stay NJ credit
installments shall be provided to the eligible claimant and the appropriate
local tax collector.

���� (2)
[
Notwithstanding the provisions of
this section to the contrary, for the first year in which the Stay NJ property
tax program is implemented, each Stay NJ property tax credit awarded an
eligible claimant shall be paid and distributed by check or direct deposit.
]
�
(Deleted
by amendment, P.L.��� , c.��� ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)

���� b.��� Each municipal tax
collector who applies a Stay NJ property tax credit to the property tax account
of the homestead of an eligible claimant
[
pursuant
to this section
]

or to the property tax account of a cooperative, mutual housing corporation,
or continuing care retirement community in which the eligible claimant
maintains a unit as a homestead, as the case may be,
shall provide timely
notice thereof to the eligible claimant and to any mortgagee or servicing
organization noted on the property tax account that requires a mortgagor to
make property tax payments to an escrow account, for the purpose of encouraging
the escrow account property tax requirements to be promptly adjusted to the
benefit of the property tax taxpayer on account of Stay NJ property tax credit
payments.

����
c.���� A cooperative,
mutual housing corporation, or continuing care retirement community that
receives a property tax credit on behalf of an eligible claimant pursuant to
this section shall provide the amount of such credit as a credit against any
charges imposed by the entity on the eligible claimant for the share of
property taxes attributable to the eligible claimant�s unit.

(cf: P.L.2024, c.88, s.4)

���� 4.��� Section 11 of P.L.2024,
c.88 (C.54:4-8.75p1) is amended to read as follows:

���� 11. a. After the effective
date of P.L.2024, c.88 (C.54:4-8.75p1 et al.), the Director of the Division of
Taxation in the Department of the Treasury, in consultation with the Director
of the Division of Local Government Services in the Department of Community
Affairs and local officials, shall develop a process to implement a property
tax credit for the payment of benefits under the homestead property tax
reimbursement program and the Stay NJ property tax credit program.� As a part
of that process, the Director of the Division of Taxation shall collect
information from local officials regarding how to effectively implement
property tax credits in future years for those programs.� The collection of
such information may include, but shall not be limited to, the administration
of a standardized survey data collection instrument.

���� b.���
[
Notwithstanding
the provisions of subsection a. of this section regarding the development of a
process for implementing property tax credits, the Director of the Division of
Taxation shall also determine the feasibility of allowing eligible claimants
for homestead property tax reimbursement and Stay NJ property tax credits to
choose to continue to receive annual checks or direct deposits into a bank
account instead of a property tax credit.
]

(Deleted by amendment, P.L.��� , c.��� ) (pending before the Legislature as
this bill)

(cf: P.L.2024, c.88, s.11)

���� 5.��� R.S.54:4-65 is amended
to read as follows:

���� 54:4-65. a. The Director of
the Division of Local Government Services in the Department of Community
Affairs shall approve the form and content of property tax bills.

���� b. (1) Each tax bill shall
have printed thereon a brief tabulation showing the distribution of the amount
raised by taxation in the taxing district, in such form as to disclose the rate
per $100.00 of assessed valuation or the number of cents in each dollar paid by
the taxpayer which is to be used for the payment of State school taxes, other
State taxes, county taxes, local school expenditures, free public library
taxes, and other local expenditures.� The last named item may be further
subdivided so as to show the amount for each of the several departments of the
municipal government.� In lieu of printing such information on the tax bill,
any municipality may furnish the tabulation required hereunder and any other
pertinent information in a statement accompanying the mailing or delivery of
the tax bill.

���� (2)�� When a parcel receives a
homestead property tax credit pursuant to the provisions of P.L.2007, c.62
(C.18A:7F-37 et al.), the amount of the credit shall be included with the tax
calculation as a reduction in the total tax calculation for the year.� One-half
of the amount of the credit shall be deducted from taxes otherwise due for the
third installment and the remaining one-half shall be deducted from taxes
otherwise due for the fourth installment.

���� (3)�� There shall be included
on or with the tax bill the delinquent interest rate or rates to be charged and
any end of year penalty that is authorized and any other such information that
the director may require from time to time.

���� (4)�� In municipalities
wherein a property tax reward program is operational, there shall be included
on or with the tax bill the amount of the property tax reward as a credit
against property taxes due and payable by a property owner who participates in
the program.� The property tax reward program shall be identified on the tax
bill as the source of the property tax credit.

����
(5)�� Each tax bill shall
have printed thereon a brief tabulation showing the amount, if any, by which
the taxpayer�s bill was reduced due to any credits or deductions received under
the following programs:

����
(a)�� the ANCHOR Property
Tax Relief Program authorized pursuant to sections 2 through 10 of P.L.1990,
c.61 (C.54:4-8.58 through C.54:4-8.66) and sections 3 and 14 through 16 of
P.L.1999, c.63 (C.54:4-8.58a and C.54:4-8.66a through C.54:4-8.66c);

����
(b)�� the Homestead
Property Tax Reimbursement Program authorized pursuant to P.L.1997, c.348
(C.54:4-8.67 et seq.);

����
(c)�� the Stay NJ Property
Tax Credit Program authorized pursuant to P.L.2023, c.75 (C.54:4-8.75a et al.);

����
(d)�� the veterans property
tax deduction authorized pursuant to P.L.1963, c.171 (C.54:4-8.10 et seq.); and

����
(e)�� the senior and
disabled persons property tax deduction authorized pursuant to P.L.1963, c.172
(C.54:4-8.40 et seq.).

���� c.���� The tax bill shall also
include a statement about the availability, on the Internet website of the
Department of Community Affairs, of the amounts of State aid and assistance
received by the municipality, school districts, special districts, free public libraries,
county governments that offset property taxes that are otherwise due on each
parcel, along with a statement about the availability, on the Internet website
of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury, of a listing of,
and eligibility requirements for, the various State property tax relief
programs.� The tax bill shall also include the links to the Internet websites
of the Department of Community Affairs and the Division of Taxation containing
this information.� The director shall cause the amounts of said State aid and
assistance that shall serve as the basis for the calculation for each parcel to
be displayed on the Internet website of the Department of Community Affairs.�
The director shall set standards for the display of the statement on the tax
bill.�

���� d.��� The tax bill or form
mailed with the tax bill shall include thereon the date upon which each
installment is due.

���� e.���� If a property tax bill
includes in its calculation a homestead property tax credit, the bill shall, in
addition to the calculation showing taxes due, either display a notice
concerning the credit on the face of the property tax bill or with a separate
notice, with the content and wording as the director provides.

���� f. (1) At the sole discretion
of the municipality, the tax bill may also include a statement listing the
number and type of shared services entered into by the municipality, the dollar
value of the savings to the municipality from each of those shared services,
and a total amount of municipal savings resulting from those shared services.�
The statement shall be in a format promulgated by the Director of the Division
of Local Government Services in the Department of Community Affairs pursuant to
paragraph (2) of this subsection.

���� (2)�� On or before the first
day of the third month next following the enactment of P.L.2019, c.393, the
Director of the Division of Local Government Services in the Department of
Community Affairs shall promulgate the format for the shared services statement
permitted to be placed on the tax bill by a municipality pursuant to paragraph
(1) of this subsection.

(cf: P.L.2021, c.99, s.3)

���� 6.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and shall apply to property tax relief benefits distributed
on or after the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires the payment
of benefits under certain State property tax relief programs to be provided as
credits on an eligible claimant�s property tax bill.� In addition, the bill
also requires the amount of all property tax credits and deductions to be
printed on a taxpayer�s property tax bill.

���� Currently, the State provides
property tax relief through three major programs:� the Affordable New Jersey
Communities for Homeowners and Renters (ANCHOR) program; the Homestead Property
Tax Reimbursement Program, more commonly referred to as the �Senior Freeze�;
and the Stay NJ Property Tax Credit (Stay NJ) Program.�

���� The ANCHOR program provides
rebates to eligible claimants between $1,000 and $1,750, depending on the
extent to which certain age, income, and property requirements are met.�
Generally, eligible claimants who are age 65 or older, that have a New Jersey gross
income of $150,000 or less, and are homeowners, will qualify for higher rebate
amounts, while those claimants who are age 64 or younger, have a New Jersey
gross income of $150,000 or less, and are renters qualify for lower rebate
amounts.�

���� The Senior Freeze program
provides eligible claimants who are either age 65 or older or disabled and who
meet certain income and residency requirements with an annual property tax
reimbursement representing the difference between the amount of property taxes
paid for the year in which a reimbursement is sought and the amount of property
taxes paid during the claimant�s initial year of eligibility.�

���� In addition to these two
programs, the State recently established the Stay NJ program to provide
eligible senior citizen claimants with a property tax credit in the amount of
50 percent of the property tax billed to their principal residence during the
prior tax year, up to a certain amount. �For tax year 2026, the first year of
the program�s implementation, the maximum amount to be credited to eligible
claimants is set at $6,500, with adjustments to be made in subsequent tax years
based on the annual percentage increase in the Statewide average residential
property tax bill. �The credit would be calculated in a manner that first takes
into consideration the amounts a claimant may receive as an ANCHOR rebate and
Senior Freeze reimbursement respectively before calculating the amount to be
provided as a Stay NJ property tax credit.

���� Under both the ANCHOR program
and the Senior Freeze, benefits are required to be paid by the Director of the
Division of Taxation by either a check, direct deposit, or as a credit on an
eligible claimant�s property tax bill.� Similarly, the director is also
required to provide benefits under the Stay NJ program through those same
means, except for the first year of the program�s implementation, during which
benefits are to be distributed by check or direct deposit.�

���� The bill would require that
benefits under each of these programs be provided by as a credit on the
property tax bill for eligible claimants.� In the case of an eligible claimant
whose homestead is a unit in a cooperative, mutual housing corporation, or continuing
care retirement community, the credit would be provided against the property
tax bill of those entities and later remitted to the eligible claimant as a
credit against any charges imposed by the entity on the eligible claimant for
the share of property taxes attributable to the eligible claimant�s unit.

���� The bill also requires all
property tax bills to contain a brief tabulation showing the amount, if any, by
which the taxpayer�s bill was reduced due to property tax credits received
under the ANCHOR, Senior Freeze, and Stay NJ programs, as well as the $250
property tax deductions provided for certain eligible veterans, seniors, and
disabled persons.