They'll take the "or go home" option

New Jersey has a reputation for shooting itself in the foot, but the Wall Street Journal has an article by Andrew R. Johnson about the latest:

New Jersey fired back at American Express after the company moved to pull its gift cards from the state’s retailers over a law regulating sales of the products. The credit-card company said earlier this week it was no longer selling gift cards through New Jersey retailers because of a law requiring merchants to collect ZIP codes from card buyers.
The requirement, which has yet to take effect, is part of a law passed in 2010 that allows the state to reclaim unused gift-card balances after the cards have been dormant for two years. Under guidelines yet to be issued by the state, retailers would be required to collect ZIP codes and potentially other information, such as addresses, to track cards purchased in New Jersey.
“Because American Express sells its gift cards through third-party independent retailers, we are not able to ensure compliance with that part of the law,” a spokeswoman for American Express said.
The New Jersey Treasury Department said it felt the “need to set the record straight” following the American Express decision and criticism from other retailers and trade groups.
The state agency said the law was intended to help consumers by preventing sellers of gift cards from charging inactivity fees. Once a card has been inactive for two years, the law allows the state to take unused balances to hold for consumers. “Unlike balances taken as extra ‘profit’ by an issuer, every penny the state holds in unused gift cards can be reclaimed by consumers— forever,” the agency said. “And the value of the card is available to the customer— with interest— forever.”
US merchants sell an estimated $100 billion of “stored value” cards each year, with about $6 billion going unspent annually, according to the New Jersey Treasury Department.
Collecting ZIP codes is “not a big lift” for retailers, the agency said, adding that businesses, including Modell’s Sporting Goods and Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc. restaurants, already collect ZIP codes from gift-card purchasers.
American Express gift cards are still available from its own website and can still be used at New Jersey stores that accept the company’s credit cards.

Rico says all of this foolishness ignores the complication of people living in New Jersey buying the cards and giving them to, say, their kids or grandkids who live in another state, or vice versa...