James Nash

The (Bergen County, N.J.) Record

As some New Jersey property owners scramble to prepay 2018 property taxes before the end of the year to write them off of their 2017 returns, Gov. Chris Christie signed an executive order Wednesday requiring municipalities to credit the payments.

The outgoing governor's action comes as federal tax reform that President Trump signed Friday sets a $10,000 limit on state and local tax deductions beginning in 2018. Christie supported the new law even though high-tax states like New Jersey, New York and California stand to lose the most from rolling back the deduction.

“The action I took today will ensure that local governments are flexible and accommodating of their local property taxpayers as we transition to the new federal tax code for 2018," Christie said in a statement from his press office. "This executive order requires local officials to dedicate the resources and staffing to serve New Jerseyans who are planning in this way for their families and their futures."

The prepayments must be postmarked on or before Dec. 31.

► Dec. 27:Prepaying property taxes can be a win in 2017 and 2018

► Dec. 27:Some New Jersey homeowners rush to prepay 2018 property taxes

► Dec. 21:Tax bill passage prompts last-minute tax tips for 2017

The federal law barred taxpayers from prepaying their income taxes for 2018 but made no such prohibition on property taxes, so some localities in New Jersey and other states made provisions for early payments before year's end.

Christie's order requires all New Jersey jurisdictions to do so.

With the nation's highest property taxes, New Jersey has among the largest proportion of taxpayers who itemize their tax returns to claim deductions for state and local taxes. According to the nonprofit Tax Foundation, the average value of such deductions represents 8.7% of New Jersey residents' income, second only to New York.

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