WNYC and its Voting Block partners asked New Jersey residents to share their questions. Hundreds of questions poured in and now (drumroll, please) we present you answers to some of the most popular.

Property Taxes

Hands down, the most common question we received concerned property taxes. New Jersey's taxes are the country's highest, and the state's gubernatorial candidates have very different approaches to handling them. 

Democrat Phil Murphy proposes raising money in other ways so there is less pressure on the property tax revenue stream, namely a $1.3 billion tax hike on millionaires and certain corporations. He also wants to raise revenue by legalizing marijuana and encouraging towns to consolidate and share more services.

The Republican candidate, Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, said she also supports consolidation of public services. On the subject of property taxes, she proposes capping the school portion of a homeowner's property tax bill to 5 percent of household income.

The issue took center stage in the second and final gubernatorial debate on Wednesday. "Property taxes are up 17 percent during the Christie-Guadagno years," Murphy said. "We're committed to undoing the benefits that the corporations and hedge funds and wealthiest among us have had and driving that money into fully funding education and that is direct property tax relief."

Environment

A close second were questions about the environment, pipeline construction, conserving open space (most notably the Pinelands and the Highlands), protecting drinking water, and local responses to climate change. On this issue, there's a lot of overlap.

Both candidates said they would rejoin the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. Murphy said he would explore offshore wind opportunities and create a plan for New Jersey to reach 100 percent carbon-free electricity. Guadagno said she wouldn't want wind turbines to adversely affect tourism. She is not against pipelines in the state but said she would have a master plan or series of metrics against which to assess any pipeline development.

Affordable Housing

New Jersey residents shared their complaints with us about the high cost of housing, concerns about over-development, and questions about the state's landmark law that requires every town to build affordable housing. Many questions centered on what the candidates would do to preserve the suburban charm of their town.

The answers to these questions usually bring the candidates back to taxes — but not always. Murphy said he would strengthen tax credits for affordable housing. Guadagno said she thought affordable housing units should be built closer to public transportation and jobs, which sounds a lot like urban centers rather than suburban towns. 

Public Employee Pensions

It's no surprise that many people want to know what the candidates will do about the pension system, which serves some 760,000 people, both current and former public employees. It faces a $253 billion crisis that could result in higher taxes for residents, fewer services or even bankruptcy for state government.

At the second debate, Murphy lambasted his opponent and her boss, Gov. Chris Christie, for their handling of the pension issue and the state's downgraded credit rating. A retired Wall Street executive who has the support of the public employee unions, Murphy pledges to honor existing benefits and fully fund the state’s obligation although he won't say how. 

Guadagno warns that the state cannot afford its obligations to workers.

“The pension’s not going to be there – and you’re hiring teachers and police officers and career firemen right now – and promising them a pension that we know will not be there,” said Guadagno on NJTV’s “State of Affairs.”

Guadagno vows to protect the pensions of current retirees but also says the state will face hard choices on whether to fund future pension benefits at the expense of essential services.