what is the question that needs answering but you can't figure the answer?
Did you take an IRA distribution in 2021 ?
Yes, money was took from the IRA to buy a house, primary, not first one and it really is hurting me on the Federal side but on the state side , I am getting a message to fix an error " PART A, LINE 4A , I do have a 1099-r form , i am not sure what number to put in this box .
You have a basis in your IRA as far as NJ is concerned because you did not deduct IRA contributions from your NJ taxable income in all those past years.
Those are unrecovered.
See Worksheet C in the NJ Resident Return Instructions for how to avoid double taxation on that money (i.e. recover it) when you withdraw from your IRA. There is a first year calculation, and then a calculation for all subsequent years. OR use TurboTax to do it, it is the same thing but in a different presentation.
You will need good records showing what you put in over the years, or some way to reconstruct that information.
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to skip recovery, enter -0-
if that doesn't work enter some small number and enter a humongous value for your IRA like $40,000,000.
your recovered contribution will be zero.