Group seeks pledge from Corzine on toll road sale BY TOM CAIAZZA Staff Writer A public interest research group has called on Gov. Jon Corzine to pledge not to sell the state's toll roads if the deal does not adhere to a series of monetization principles. Abigail Field of New Jersey Public Interest Research Group (NJPIRG) and members of local municipal governments held a press conference at the Edison municipal building on June 19 to urge the governor to follow six principles of monetization when considering the best way to sell or lease the state's three main toll roads - the New Jersey Turnpike, the Garden State Parkway and the Atlantic City Expressway. Corzine has expressed interest in selling or leasing those lucrative toll roads in an attempt to infuse the state with cash to pay down a deficit several billions of dollars deep. Field said that some 15 municipalities in three counties have passed resolutions opposing the sale or lease of the toll roads. Field said Corzine has played the issue too close to the vest and has not given the public enough assurance of what kind of deal he expects to make. He has also refused to sign NJPIRG's pledge. The pledge consists of six principles, including securing a fair value for the three roads, limiting the lease deal to no more than 30 years, and maintaining complete transparency and accountability during the negotiation process and in oversight after the sale. The sale of toll roads is an expanding practice, with governments finding they can provide a large influx of money; however, Field said similar projects in Chicago and most notably in Indiana have been failures both fiscally and practically and that there is no reason to believe the same would not happen in New Jersey. She said that some valuations of the sale price for a toll road in Indiana came in $8 billion more than it was sold for. The current working number for the sale of the three roads in New Jersey is about $15 billion, and Field wants to be sure the state is not underselling its assets. That is why the pledge would require the governor to give the public full disclosure of the deal six months before the final agreement is signed, in a chance to vet both the final contract and the negotiation process. It would also require the deal to pass the Legislature through an up or down vote that Field said would give it public accountability while leaving the governor powerful enough to negotiate with whatever firm or firms would enter into the agreement. Massaro was concerned about the precedent that selling the state's assets would create. and asked if police and fire departments and schools would be next on the list for monetization. Field said there may only be 100 companies that can handle a lease agreement like this. She said the larger problem, though, is not the company but the deal. "The question isn't who is buying," Field said, "but what they are selling them." Field and NJPIRG may have to wait a bit longer for a resolution to the toll road issue. Corzine has announced that he is putting the sale of the toll roads on the shelf at least until after the November elections. Additional information may be found at www.njpirg.org.