MILLBURN, N.J. - Enough about the poor. Try being rich, even just comfortable.

"We have to pay for this, pay for that," said Sal Miwa, who runs an Internet company in Manhattan. Property taxes on his Tudor in Millburn's tony Short Hills section are almost $25,000. Helping the needy is fine, Miwa said, but "sometimes we feel like Robin Hood is attacking us."

The people of Millburn don't want sympathy. Like anyone feeling overtaxed, they just want a way out. And they found one. They're done whining; they're walking.

Or trying to. Their effort to escape Essex County (and the tax burden of Newark) for neighboring pastoral Morris County is picking up steam. Residents voted overwhelmingly for secession last year, and Morris County freeholders recently said they wanted the town. Who wouldn't? Great schools. Juicy taxable properties such as the Mall at Short Hills. And few demands for county services beyond the occasional sweep of a snowplow.

Legislature wary

Getting the Legislature's needed approval is less likely. But with the region plunged deeper into tax mania, the roar of otherwise sleepy, satisfied Millburn might be inspiration for others who feel there's always another hand creeping toward their wallet.

Connecticut has a $500 million budget deficit. New Jersey froze aid to towns and schools to help plug last spring's $6 billion budget shortfall - a sure formula for higher local taxes. Nassau County, N.Y., raised county taxes by 19.4 percent. Westchester County, N.Y., is weighing a proposed 28.6 percent increase. And New York's Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has proposed a commuter tax.

"It's another taxation without representation," said Nathaniel Feldman, a doctor returning home to Millburn by train from his New York office.

Taxation without return is the cry of Millburn's secession movement. Millburn's 19,500 residents pay $34 million to Essex County, while Newark's 250,000 residents pays $43 million, said Thomas C. McDermott, the Millburn mayor.

'Over the top'

"We have to support the less fortunate," he said. "But there's a point in time when you just say it's just over the top."

The average cost of a house in Millburn is $750,000, and taxes on mansions can hit $70,000.

Millburn officials are trying to keep this debate from being rich vs. poor. They say they get little back from county taxes. They question tax abatements given businesses to locate in Newark, and the $165 million Newark pledged in public money to build a sports arena.

Then there's corruption. James Treffinger, the Essex County executive who is charged with extortion, replaced a county executive who was convicted of extortion.

But class conflict is just below the surface. "I work hard, my husband works hard," said Shala Powell, a Millburn gift boutique owner and secession cheerleader. "Why should we have to pay for people without jobs?" And, she added, county services are poor. Take snowplowing. "I live on a private road, and I live up a hill," said Powell. "I leave my house at 5:30 in the morning to go to the gym, which is at the Hilton, and my road is clear because it's done by the town." When she hits the county road, she said, "Forget it."

Millburn officials said joining Morris County would cut average property taxes by $2,700 - leaving a hefty bill for Essex County. And Millburn is "a lot like beautiful towns in Morris County," said Jack Schrier, a Morris County freeholder.

Joseph DiVincenzo, the Essex County executive-elect, said he told Morris officials that if they wanted Millburn, they also had to take 21 other towns. He added, "You think they want Newark and East Orange?"