“Poop & Taxes”


Well for the two of you that have this website bookmarked on your computer it has been a long time since anything new has been posted here. The reason for that is because my computer was being upgraded for the past few days, leaving me with no internet access. My computers’ colors are now sharper and it makes a louder machine like noises so it must be better! I also finally got rid of Windows 98! So for the next few days I am going to try to update this place a bit more than usual to get back into the swing of things here.


Now that I am back on the Internet (Internet, eh stroking chin) its time to tackle a story I wanted to for awhile. As Drew would say its long past due.

Well our Governor who never meet a tax he didn’t like recently decided to make hotel and lodging taxes ridiculous. Keep in mind this money is going to fund the arts and theater of New Jersey. Why these tools can’t sit outside their theater with a tin-cup and beg for money is behind me. The following is fresh of the New Jersey Hotel and Lodging Association

Recently enacted legislation (P.L. 2003, c. 114) imposes a 7% State Occupancy Fee on the rent for every occupancy of a room in a hotel, motel or similar facility in most New Jersey municipalities, between August 1, 2003 and June 30, 2004. For occupancies on and after July 1, 2004, the Fee is reduced to 5%. A hotel/motel is a building regularly used and kept open for the lodging of guests, including bed and breakfasts, inns, etc. The State Occupancy Fee is imposed on the room rentals that are currently subject to the 6% New Jersey sales tax and is in addition to the sales tax.

So basically anyone who made their vacation plans in advance (most people do to get off of work) and slated their down time for the last month of summer are totally screwed. What the heck? Couldn’t they impose this tax after Labor Day? That would at least be fair. Or even December for that matter. The people who stayed in July didn’t have to pay this tax. Imagine how pissed off anyone from another state is who planned to go down the shore this place month. People budget their money ahead of time, and they are now shelling out boatload more of money since the taxes more than doubled. A 3 day weekend at a cheap motel could cost you 60 bucks in taxes easily. That doesn’t even include the town getting a piece of your wallet. Add another 1 % on if you stay in Newark or Jersey City, although I guess you have a death wish to stay in such miserable cities. Down the shore AC rakes in 1 % and Wildwood rakes in 3.15 %. Perhaps that money goes to drug dealers who want to start their own businesses.

I guess this plan may have been in the works behind the scenes for quite awhile perhaps they could not predict the months of rainy days that washed out profits for shore businesses. Or even all the sewer leaks that gave the Shore bad press this season. However you can’t tell me this isn’t going to encourage people to go to say Ocean City MD, instead of NJ. Its bad enough both Cape May and Ocean City has poop floating in their waters this summer. Is there a poop tax on the horizon?


This extra tax money is money that was likely to be spend on a nice dinner, or on the boardwalk. So if people spend that money on taxes the businesses at the shore get hurt because of decrease in people, and tighter wallets for the people down there.

Apparently JIMBO never took a ride down 73 in our area to realize that there are a boat load of hotels just the other side of Philly. The industry is booming in that area, but now it will be less tempting for people staying in Philly to bother with booking a hotel in NJ.

So to sum up, since people don’t go see a production of the latest Sean O’brien plays, people going down the shore have to be rapped out the ass. How about throwing a benefit concert or something? Why are we punishing such tourists? Why are we punishing blue collar NJ residents who stash away for their summer vacation?

Next time anyone is in Oaklyn and driving past the Ritz theater (the one where plays are performed near the Arter brothers), tell them to shove their funding up their ass. I am not sure if they are actually receiving money from the state or not, but it would be pretty funny.




POOP!