Politics & Government

Boracchia Runs for Assembly to Lower Property Taxes, Reform Pensions

Boracchia is running as a Republican for Conservative Leadership with a Bayshore Tea Party backing.

Stephen Boracchia is looking to heat up the District 13 primary race on Tuesday with a plan to permanently reform the state's pension and lower property taxes.

“We spend a lot of money, we have a lot of taxes and we if we stop spending money things would get better,” he said.

Boracchia is seeking an Assembly seat under the Republican for Conservative Leadership ticket, which is backed by the Bayshore Tea Party Group. The Atlantic Highlands resident, who graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and Rutgers School of Law, is employed in the oil and chemical industry. 

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He said with property taxes "higher than in the Corzine administration," true reform is necessary.

“[Republicans] are going around telling everyone how they fixed the pension system But if you look at the group they are supposed to be conservatives while Kyrillos actually supported a $3 billion in bonding to secure unfunded pension liabilities and a 9 percent increase in public employee benefits."

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The conservative Republican candidate is running in the primary for a spot in the NJ State Assembly, against incumbents Amy Handlin and Declan O'Scanlon.

Boracchia said issues like pension reform keep property taxes high in the state. But the candidate said the underlying issue is judges in New Jersey.

Boracchia believes courts have taken over decisions such as Abbott school districts and affordable housing. These decisions, he said, have cost state taxpayers. 

“The only way we’re going to get control of our taxes if by having people that you vote for being in charge of them," Boracchia said. "If the judges want to take over the legislatures role like they have been doing, and that’s why they need to be accountable.”

New core curriculum standards handed down federally and adopted by the state is what Boracchia calls "cooperative federalism," a move he said he wouldn't have made and sees a lot of problems with.

“Handlin supported common core, which the Republican National Convention rejected. New Jersey took it on and is the only group of Republicans that hasn’t come out against it," Boracchia said. "Why are they not going along with the rest of the Republican party?”


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