"The bill in question would have dissolved the town of Teterboro, New Jersey - a tiny municipality that at the time consisted of only two residential streets, 17 residents, and 50 businesses. Spread across a square mile of converted swampland, Teterboro was designed as an admitted tax haven, a legal gimmick in which a friendly regulatory environment and low tax rates would lure business investment to the bare bones town."
"Albanese laid out his allegations, accusing a former prosecutor of approaching him at a meeting of business leaders and whispering, 'You can name your own price,' in his ear. Another New Jersey politician added that he'd received a call from the Teterboro police chief who had warned him of 'implied bodily injury and personal and business losses,' if he continued to support the bill."
In May 1967, New Jersey Assemblyman Vito Albanese announced on the assembly floor that he had been approached with a bribe to kill legislation dissolving Teterboro, a tiny tax haven municipality. Teterboro consisted of only two residential streets, 17 residents, and 50 businesses spread across converted swampland. The town offered extremely low tax rates—59 cents per $100 of assessed value for industrial properties—while residents paid no property taxes. Albanese's bill aimed to eliminate this tax haven and redistribute its property tax revenue to neighboring resource-poor towns. A subsequent investigation revealed allegations of bribery and threats, but the legislature dismissed Albanese's charges as lacking evidence, characterizing them as McCarthyism.
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