An overwhelming majority of low-and-moderate income families in New Jersey are losing out on critical tax benefits, unaware that they could benefit from filing or overwhelmed by the tax system, especially when finding affordable and reliable tax preparers appears nearly impossible.

During the financial crisis of 2008, Dauna Thompson was living paycheck to paycheck as a single mother in Montclair, taking on temp jobs to make ends meet. So, paying someone to do her taxes wasn't an option. "I had to find something free. I needed every penny," Thompson said

Last October, New Jersey home bakers rejoiced when the state became the last in the country to enact cottage food regulations. These rules, set forth by the Department of Health, allow bakers and other non-TCS food producers to apply for a permit for the direct sale of their goods, with a gross income up to $50,000. Since then, nearly 500 Cottage Food Operator Permits have been issued to residents throughout the state. Others haven’t been so lucky. The reason why lies at their own town halls.

On January 10, 2022, legislation was passed by both the state Assembly and Senate to codify Cottage Food production regulations set forth by an administrative rule change that went into effect in October 2021. This was a culmination of efforts by food freedom proponents throughout New Jersey—work that took more than a decade— to see the state end its holdout as the last with a ban on the sale of homemade foods.