NJ lawmakers demanded Trump reveal his tax returns, so we asked for theirs. We got 2 of 119
Nearly all state lawmakers who for three years taunted President Donald Trump to show his tax returns refused to show their own tax returns to the public when asked by the Trenton Bureau of the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey.
It's almost impossible for the public to clearly see a New Jersey lawmaker's income or understand the extent of his or her financial interests due to the state's skimpy disclosure statements. The statements filed each year are so weak for elected officials that they ask for fewer details than even non-elected executive branch officials must provide.
The Network asked all 119 current state lawmakers for copies of their federal and state tax returns for the last five years, documents that good-government groups and even some lawmakers agree provide a clear picture of financial interests and possible influences.
Only two New Jersey lawmakers, state Sen. Troy Singleton, D-Burlington, and Sen. Linda Greenstein, D-Middlesex, agreed to allow reporters to view their tax filings, which showed no apparent conflict with what they had reported on disclosure statements. No one from the Assembly, where all 80 seats are on the ballot in November, responded.
"There's a large area of cynicism where it comes to government and government officials," said Singleton, who allowed one hour for reporters to review his returns. "The ability to move beyond that in any way we can, to give the public a sense of confidence in those of us elected to represent them, I think is important."
Greenstein made her returns available for nearly two hours.
“I responded positively to the newspapers’ request for disclosure of my tax returns because I thought it was a fair request," she said. "I have supported the idea of other elected officials, like the president, disclosing tax returns. Elected officials best serve the public interest by being open and accountable."
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Most lawmakers declined to provide the documents through their party's spokesman, but one added that such a request was akin to asking "boxers or briefs?"
Singleton and Greenstein were among the 14 senators who co-sponsored the 2017 bill requiring candidates for president and vice president to publish their federal income tax returns if they wanted to appear on the ballot and receive New Jersey's votes in the Electoral College. Trump was the first president in decades who did not publicly release his tax returns, a tradition that is not required, but one that most candidates follow.
The New Jersey bill passed the Assembly (49-25) and the Senate (24-11) in 2017.
Republican Gov. Chris Christie vetoed it, writing that the "hallmark mantra" of New Jersey lawmakers was "do as I say, not as I do."
"The bill’s supporters disingenuously assert that the bill is designed to restore transparency — all the while demonstrating a complete disregard for the concept," Christie wrote in his veto. "Prior to final passage its supporters rejected efforts to make its requirements applicable to state-elected officials as well."
The bill was reintroduced again in January 2018 — with just six Senate sponsors — and earlier this year won a 23-11 vote in the Senate. The Assembly version, introduced by a dozen lawmakers, has not gotten a vote.
Tax returns can provide the public more detailed information about a legislator's finances, including adjusted gross income, tax rate or how much they give to charity, than what lawmakers are currently required to disclose.
Every May, lawmakers file statements that reveal the sources of their income, liabilities and other categories of financial interests like gifts and reimbursements. The four-page disclosures report income amounts in ranges, with the highest being $50,000 or more — a standard falling far short of states like New York, which requires lawmakers to report income in one of 108 ranges up to $10 million or more. Even when the transparency group Center for Public Integrity ranked New Jersey top in the nation in a 2012 assessment of government accountability and transparency, it faulted the disclosure requirements as too vague.
Using just the financial disclosure statements, the Network's Trenton Bureau reporters could not determine which lawmakers would have to pay an increased tax on millionaires, an issue that was at the center of the last two budget battles. That's because 87 lawmakers — more than two-thirds of the legislature — indicated they had outside income of $50,000 or more, on top of their $49,000 legislative salaries.
That makes it seem like lawmakers' incomes are much smaller than they really are.
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According to his 2018 tax returns, Singleton and his wife's adjusted gross income from the Keystone Mountain Lakes Regional Council of Carpenters, the Legislature and Rowan College at Burlington County, where she is a political science professor, is $275,000. Meanwhile, his legislative financial disclosure statement simply shows that Singleton and his wife bring in at least $109,000.
Greenstein reported about $125,000 adjusted gross income in 2018 from her work in the Legislature, Social Security and her late husband's pension, and about $3,000 in dividends from investments, according to her tax return. Meanwhile, on the disclosure statement, it is only clear her income was at least $84,000.
Gov. Phil Murphy allows reporters to view a binder of his tax returns for a few hours each year. His predecessor, Chris Christie, posted his returns publicly.
Murphy said that creating an "even standard of accountability" would "build trust in the political process."
"Especially because New Jersey legislators serve part time, it is even more important that we heighten accountability by tightening rules on outside income and strengthening conflict-of-interest laws," Murphy said. "If the executive branch follows certain ethics rules, there's no good reason why these standards shouldn't also apply to the Legislature."
Some legislators don't agree that tax returns provide voters with pertinent information. Among them is Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll, R-Morris, who is not seeking reelection on Nov. 5.
"In my view, there are certain things which are simply none of the public's business, even vis a vis their public servants," he wrote in an email to the Network. "These include answers to absurd questions like 'boxers or briefs' and requests for the tax returns of representatives. One does not sacrifice the right to privacy when one runs for office."
Otherwise, the lawmakers' spokesmen said the financial disclosure statements — which are not fact-checked in any official or government capacity — are sufficient. See the disclosure statements here.
"All of our member legislators comply with New Jersey’s financial disclosure requirements and all of this information is made available to the public," Richard McGrath, a spokesman for the Senate Democrats, said in a statement. "This achieves the important goal of disclosure by providing a public accounting of their sources of income.”
More: View your lawmaker's public disclosure report here.
In 2017 and 2018, Assembly Minority Leader Jon Bramnick, R-Union, backed a bill requiring candidates for legislative seats to disclose their tax returns. Singleton, then an assemblyman, signed on as a sponsor in 2017. But both times, the bill stalled in committee.
Bramnick has said tax returns provide more transparency and are more accurate because there are stiffer penalties if something is reported incorrectly to the IRS.
But he declined to provide his tax returns until his colleagues do.
"If I release my returns and the rest of the Assembly does not, clearly then we don’t have an opportunity to talk about what so-called influences are on other people," he said.