Perhaps for fear of leaving taxpayers “holding the bag,” no New Jersey municipality or county has taken Gov. Phil Murphy up on his plan to circumvent the $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions enacted by President Donald Trump, Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver said this week.

The Republican tax overhaul set off efforts by high-tax blue states to create workarounds, such as allowing local local governments to establish charitable funds to accept donations — not property taxes. But there’s doubt these schemes are legally viable.

The law Murphy signed May 4, 2018, allows local governments to create charitable funds into which taxpayers can make donations in lieu of paying property taxes the conventional way. Charitable contributions aren’t subject to the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction cap.

While the Internal Revenue Service proposed rules last summer that would bar these types of strategies, it has not made a formal pronouncement. Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said last year he’ll take the IRS to court over any effort to block the charitable deduction workaround.

But, Oliver, who also serves as commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs, said local government leaders have been reluctant to take the risk.

“When I think about towns and mayors and the things they’re confronted with, there probably is a little trepidation on their parts to move forward and establish something on a municipal level that if the federal government intervenes, and if it goes through an appellate process and they’re deemed illegal, they’re concerned about their homeowners in their towns or the residents in their towns left holding the bag," Oliver said.

State lawmakers told Oliver they were surprised none had signed up.

“I can appreciate why somebody doesn’t want to be the first, but it’s a little surprising to me taxpayers haven’t tried their best to encourage someone somewhere among the group so we can see whether it’s going to fly or not,” said Assemblyman John McKeon, D-Essex.

“I think we’re all a little bit surprised,” added Assembly Budget Committee Chairwoman Eliana Pintor Marin, D-Essex. “There was a big kind of chaotic moment for all of us, and when we put forth legislation we were really thinking that some of the municipalities might find it useful.”

Likewise, the New Jersey Schools Boards Association is not aware that any district has established a charitable fund, spokeswoman Janet Bamford said.

The average New Jerseyan paid $8,767 in property taxes last year — the highest of any state.

A spokeswoman for Murphy, Alyana Alfaro, said the governor “still believes that charitable deductions are a viable solution, and the administration is committed to working with municipalities to address concerns while the legality of the Trump administration’s limit on the SALT deduction is tested in court.”

Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter@samanthamarcus. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

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