Murphy's plan funds ANCHOR, StayNJ, Senior Freeze
By: Katie Sobko
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Property tax relief programs that have made headlines during Governor Phil Murphy's time in office will continue to receive funding in his final budget proposal, though what happens next year [2026] remains to be seen.
.....
The most discussed, known as StayNJ is scheduled to start officially in January, [2026] so the last tranche of its funding - about $280 million -was included in the fiscal year 2026 spending plan laid out by Murphy on Tuesday [02/25/2025] afternoon.
..... The program is geared toward keeping seniors in New Jersey during their golden years by cutting property taxes for those 65 and older with incomes of up to $500,000. It is projected that 90% of eligible recipients have incomes of less that $200,000.
..... Including this third year of funding, the state has set aside $600 million for the program and is expected to cover payments eligible recipients from January through June 2026, which is when fiscal year 2026 ends.
..... Treasury officials confirmed there is no "buildup plan" for fiscal year 2027, which is estimated to cost $1.2 billion annually.
.....
"This budget provides what is needed to put StayNJ in place for FY26. It does not address FY27," state Treasurer Elizabeth Maher Muoio said.
Tax rebate programs using shared application
..... The ever-popular ANCHOR program also made the cut for Murphy's 2026 budget plan. It would receive $2.4 billion.
..... Last year [2024] the program paid out more than $2.2 billion to more than 1.9 million people throughout the Garden State during it's third round.
..... The state's Treasury Department has praised the ANCHOR program as the single largest property tax relief program in state history. Payouts will continue to range from $450 to $1,750.
..... In all, more than 5.3 million recipients have received payouts totaling more than $6.2 billion.
..... Senior Freeze is also expected to continue and would receive $239 million funding in the proposed budget.
..... All three of these programs will sue a combined application, which is available now for 2026 at propertytaxrelief.nj.gov