30 Jan Are seniors getting a tax cut for 2026?

Q. Are seniors getting a tax cut for 2026?
— Taxpayer

A. We think you’re asking if there will be a new round of ANCHOR, the Senior Freeze and the new Stay NJ benefit.

Probably.

The current benefit year is for 2024, and the 2025 benefit would have to be funded in the state budget that’s due on July 1.

We have a long way to go before that process is complete.

Gov. Mikie Sherrill is scheduled to present her wishes for state spending — the annual governor’s budget speech — on March 10. Once she shares her plans, legislators will start negotiating.

As we reported for NJ.com, the state is facing a structural deficit. We’re spending more than we take in from tax revenue, so we’re going to have to take from the state’s cash reserves — its rainy day fund — to meet all the anticipated spending.

But that can’t go on forever. Somehow, sometime, the state will either need more revenue or less spending.

So how does that affect future tax breaks? We don’t know for certain. Property tax relief is popular, and making changes to lower benefits isn’t politically popular. But something will have to give.

When Stay NJ was first created, there was talk of having a lower income cut-off. Right now it’s at $500,000. We expect that could be part of the budget negotiations.

Stay tuned.

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This story was originally published in January 2026. 

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