Lawsuit challenging state constitutionality of Atlantic City casino PILOT awaits decision

Lawsuit challenging state constitutionality of Atlantic City casino PILOT awaits decision

Article brief provided by The Press of Atlantic City
  • Michelle Brunetti Post, The Press of Atlantic City
August 9, 2022 10:44 PM
  • Michelle Brunetti Post, The Press of Atlantic City

As Atlantic County fights the state in court to get what it considers its negotiated share of casino payments-in-lieu-of-taxes, a nonprofit called Liberty and Prosperity is suing to force the end of the amended casino PILOT.

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A hearing on the lawsuit was held Friday, and soon Judge Michael Blee will decide whether the amended PILOT violates the state Constitution’s uniformity clause and should be thrown out, as Liberty and Prosperity contends, or the group’s lawsuit should be dismissed, as the state contends.

The uniformity clause requires that “all real property assessed and taxed locally … shall be assessed according to the same standard of value … and such real estate shall be taxed at the general rate of the taxing district in which the property is situated,” according to the Liberty and Prosperity legal brief.