NJ Judge Scales Back Casino Tax Breaks

Law360
 
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By Ryan Harroff (September 1, 2022, 6:19 PM EDT) -- A New Jersey judge has struck down a state law amendment reducing the payments in lieu of taxes casinos must make to local government entities, reasoning that industry-specific tax breaks don't carry out the public purpose intended by the statute behind the PILOT program.

Superior Court Judge Michael J. Blee sided with a government watchdog group's position that the 2021 amendment, which modified New Jersey's Casino Property Tax Stabilization Act, was unconstitutional.

Although Judge Blee's Monday decision rejected a bid by Liberty & Prosperity 1776 Inc. to nix the law altogether, he found that the December amendment went too far. The...