Formal Request for Senior Property Tax Freeze (Age 65+)

Honorable Members of the New Jersey Senate,My name is Ricardo Batallas, I am 53 years old, and like thousands of other hardworking residents of New Jersey, I am deeply concerned about the future of our state. I am writing to you today not just for myself, but to advocate for the generation of workers who are currently reaching retirement age only to find that they are being taxed out of their own homes.New Jersey’s property taxes have reached a level that can only be described as merciless. For decades, the working class has seen tax hikes that far outpace inflation and wage growth. It is a widely held belief among citizens that these constant increases are not a necessity of public service, but a symptom of systemic waste, lack of accountability, and administrative corruption within municipal and county governments across all 21 counties.While programs like the Senior Freeze (Property Tax Reimbursement) and the new Stay NJ are a step in the right direction, they are often subject to budget appropriations and complex eligibility rules that leave many behind.I am formally proposing that the Senate introduce and pass legislation to:Enact a Mandatory Property Tax Freeze: Automatically freeze the property tax assessment for any primary residence once the owner reaches age 65, regardless of future municipal budget increases.Increase Oversight on Local Spending: Implement stricter state audits on municipal and county budgets to ensure that taxpayer money is not being lost to local corruption or "wild" administrative spending.Protect Home Ownership: Ensure that New Jerseyans who have paid into the system for 40+ years are not evicted by the very government they supported.We cannot continue to allow local mismanagement to be funded by the forced displacement of our seniors. I urge you to take a stand for the working people of New Jersey and protect the homes of those who built this state.I look forward to hearing how the Senate plans to address this critical issue in the upcoming legislative session.