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New Jersey lawmakers can’t agree on how long the state should keep running Atlantic City. The law that lets the state call the shots expires in 2026, and now there’s a tug-of-war over whether to stretch that out for five more years—or ten.
Democratic Senator John Burzichelli wants to extend the Municipal Stabilization and Recovery Act (MSRA) until 2031. Across the aisle, Republican Senator Vince Polistina is working on a bill that would keep the takeover going until 2036. The MSRA, first passed in 2016, hands the Department of Community Affairs a lot of power: they oversee Atlantic City’s finances, contracts, and day-to-day operations. Lawmakers renewed it back in 2021, with Governor Phil Murphy’s support.
A History of State Oversight
The state takeover began amid Atlantic City’s fiscal crisis in 2016, when a $100 million budget deficit, high property taxes, and casino closures left the city on the brink of bankruptcy. Five casinos had shut down between 2014 and 2016, triggering tax appeal losses that devastated local revenue.
Governor Chris Christie pushed for the takeover, and the Democratic-controlled legislature signed off. Overnight, Trenton started making the big decisions. Later on, Governor Murphy, who once promised to give the city back its independence, changed his tune. He backed extending state control, saying the partnership brought stability.
In a June interview with The Press of Atlantic City, Murphy reaffirmed his stance:
“We’ve done a lot of really good things together. You have to have a very compelling rationale to break that partnership up.”
He added:
“It is a partnership that is moving things in the right direction, perhaps not at the pace I might like, and certainly we’ve not tackled everything. But there is a plan in place for the big items, and progress is being made. The partnership is working.”
Local Pushback
Not all local officials share that optimism. Atlantic County Executive Dennis Levinson voiced frustration over the city’s condition, questioning the state’s effectiveness.
“I want Atlantic City to succeed. I want it to thrive, but our streets are deplorable. The lighting is bad. We can’t even synchronize the lights. These are basic fundamental things that cities have to do,” Levinson told Casino.org.
He continued:
“If someone is in control of something, they have responsibility for it. The mayor and council’s hands are tied. The state controls the city, from fruit to nuts.”
PILOT Program Back Under Scrutiny
This whole debate has fired up old arguments about the Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) program. Since 2016, casinos have paid the city based on gross gaming revenue instead of regular property taxes. Supporters say it keeps revenues steady, but critics argue it shifts too much of the tax burden onto county residents.
Polistina supports keeping the PILOT model “in perpetuity,” while Levinson argues it’s unfair: “Why is the NJ Legislature unable to provide a mechanism for proper tax assessments of casinos without putting the burden on our hardworking families?”
As lawmakers weigh the competing bills, the future of Atlantic City’s governance and its recovery trajectory hangs in the balance.
Source: Yogonet
