New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (Edwin J. Torres/Governor's Office)
TRENTON, N.J. - New Jersey homeowners facing economic strain from COVID-19 as well as a May 1 deadline to pay their property taxes could take until June 1 under an executive order Gov. Phil Murphy signed on Tuesday.
The new order comes the same day the state recorded the highest number of coronavirus deaths yet at 402, bringing the overall toll to 6,442. There were about 3,000 new positive cases since Monday, bringing the total to about 114,000.
FULL COVERAGE: CORONAVIRUS
Murphy, a Democrat, stressed that the death toll spike doesn’t reflect a big jump overnight, but instead shows the number of deaths from the weekend are still being counted.]
New Jersey property taxpayers face among the highest taxes in the nation at nearly $9,000 a year on average.
The order authorizes local governments, which levy property taxes, to grant a one-month grace period to taxpayers. Under current law, the grace period is just 10 days. The order also means that taxpayers won’t incur penalties or interest if they take advantage of the grace period.
For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up within weeks. Older adults and people with existing health problems are at higher risk of more severe illness or death.
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