Tag: tolls

Lack of votes taking their tollon proposed toll hikes

Sometimes, when you write a column on a weekly deadline, the world moves and you’re left talking about things that have changed.

That appears to be what’s happened with the governor’s toll-hike plan, which he now is acknowledging is nearly death.

“I’m not conceding that it’s dead. On the other hand, I’m a realist. I don’t have 21 and 41 votes for this,” Corzine said, referring to the minimum votes he needs to push his proposal through the state Senate and Assembly.

The governor now says he is willing to listen to alternatives — he’s been saying that all along, but now actually seems serious about doing so.

Corzine said yesterday he will review a proposal by Assembly Transportation Committee Chairman John Wisniewski, the first detailed alternative to his plan.

“We’ll have to see what it actually accomplishes,” Corzine said. “But it’s a healthy addition to the dialogue. I’m searching for a solution that actually addresses the failed financial position of the state.”

The plan announced Wednesday by Wisniewski (D-Middlesex) would phase in an 18-cent increase in gas taxes over three years and consider privatizing the state Lottery. Under this scenario, tolls would rise by less than half of what the governor has proposed.

There are other options that, if considered, could be part of a more varied approach — income taxes, for instance. In any case, the toll plan as currently conceived seems on life support.

The other question that this raises is whether the governor will remove the toll plan from his budget calculations and how this might affect his planning.

Corzine had previously pledged to hold spending flat, a move that alone requires more than $2 billion in spending cuts.

“We can only spend the revenues we have, and details of the plan will come on Tuesday,” said Corzine spokeswoman Lilo Stainton.

Corzine said he still hopes to halve the state’s $32 billion debt. But his comments Thursday focused more often on investing in state infrastructure, the second of the two prime goals in his toll plan.

“We may not get everything I want with regards to these issues, but if we get a long way down that path, I think we will have made real change, a real contribution to both the present and the future of this state,” Corzine said.

It’s not a solution, but at least the issue of the state’s fractured finances is on the table. That’s more than we’ve gotten from anyone else in recent years.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick

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Dispatches: Corzine’s losing bet

There are a lot of flaws with the governor’s toll-hike plan, as I point out in my Dispatches column and Charles Stiles points out in this column, but I have to wonder whether Gov. Jon Corzine is really ready to listen.

He has asked for alternatives, but how willing is he to consider them?

The Tri-State Transportation Committee offers a way to cut down on the transportation costs — basically, by rethinking the state’s approach to what it spends its cash on. Most interesting to me is this:

Include a fix-it-first mandate in the asset monetization legislation. To ensure that New Jersey continues to reduce its backlog of roads and bridges in poor condition, fix-it-first legislation should be included within the asset monetization plan. The legislation could require that 4% or less of transportation dollars raised by the plan go to expanding roadways, for example. Currently, less than 3% of NJDOT’s transportation program is spent on expansion, a trend that should extend to the other transportation agencies in the state.

The state has a woeful record of keeping its roads, bridges and rail lines up to day — as the governor has acknowledged — so it needs to make this a priority and enshrine this priority in state law.

The governor also should follow the prescription offered by New Jersey Policy Perspective and include a gas tax increase in the plan. As I’ve said, the state may need to raise tolls to cover rising costs, do some needed maintenance and even pay down some of the toll road debt, but a mix of other options — gas tax, income tax, budget cuts, consolidation, etc. — has to be on the table. Solely relying on tolls is foolish politically and generally unfair.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick

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Email me at grassroots at comcast dot net.

I hope the governor is not surprised

Poll numbers released today by Quinnipiac University show in statistical black and white that the governor’s toll hike plan is unpopular and that its unpopularity has voters in an ornery mood. The governor’s disapproval raiting is strikingly high — 52 percent, the highest of his term in office. (That said, he remains far more popular than President George W. Bush. But then most people are these days, with the possible exception of Roger Clemens.)

I can understand the numbers, though I do think they are a bit unfair. But that is politics. The governor is making a good-faith effort to fix a problem that has been growing for a dozen years, a problem that presents no easy or painless solutions. So he catches grief.

I agree that his toll plan is the wrong approach, but I also think he is being far more realistic than most of the elected officials in this state — and more realistic than most voters.

I keep having this same conversation with people. They complain about the plan, but offer the same cliched response — eliminate waste and corruption. I say, “great,” but how much of the budget do you think that accounts for?” No answer. Once you back out the debt, pension and other fixed payments, you’re left with maybe $15 billion in spending to tackle, maybe not even that much. If waste and corruption account for 10 percent — an absurdly generous assumption — you still manage to trim just $1.5 billion, about 40 percent of what would be needed to plug what has been a recurring hole. And it still leaves you dealing with future budgets.

I’ve said it before. We need to be realistic and we need to be comprehensive. Everything has to be on the table — streamlining government at all levels, cutting spending, redirecting money to where it is most necessary (antipoverty programs, for instance), reducing the local portion of the school tax bill by increasing school aid, cutting corruption, controlling debt. The list is endless, so we better get started.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick

E-mail me by clicking here.

Email me at grassroots at comcast dot net.

Hey, governor,here are some alternatives

Gov. Jon Corzine has said repeatedly that he was willing to listen to alternative approaches to heal the state’s failing fiscal health. Well, here is something interesting from New Jersey Policy Perspective. The advocacy group says that a mix of the gas tax and assorted driving fees would go a long way toward fixing things.

I agree, though I also would add that we need significant budget cuts, changes in local spending and an increase income tax.

South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick

E-mail me by clicking here.

Email me at grassroots at comcast dot net.