Save Our Turnpike Pledge Not to Monetize Our Toll Roads Unless the Public Interest is Protected

I, Governor Corzine, will not monetize any of New Jersey’s toll roads in a deal that violates any of the following six principles:

1. Public control I won’t do a deal with a private operator unless the public retains control over transportation planning and management. I also won’t do a deal that gives a private company any control if New Jersey can keep control and can get comparable revenues.

2. Fair value I know that our toll roads are the highest grossing in the country, and are uniquely valuable to investors and the people of New Jersey. Despite the pressure of New Jersey’s dire fiscal straits, I won’t sell or lease our roads at a discount.

3. No deal longer than 30 years I realize the risks of a bad deal grow exponentially over time. We lawmakers can not reasonably anticipate our transportation system’s needs, or assess the value of our toll roads, beyond a few decades. So I won’t do a deal that’s longer than 30 years.

4. State-of-the-art maintenance and safety standards I recognize that our Turnpike and Parkway are special; they are models of how roads should be maintained. I won’t do a deal that violates this tradition by failing to require state-of-the-art safety and maintenance standards.

5. Complete transparency and accountability I want the public to have input into the substance of a deal, and to be able to hold us accountable for doing a deal. At least six months before the final decision, I will make the full text of a proposed deal and any sub-agreements public and I’ll hold public hearings on the proposal. And I won’t sign any deal that the Legislature has not voted to approve in its final form.

6. No budget gimmicks If I sign a deal, the next question is: How do we spend the money? Our state has a terrible history of one time budget gimmicks that have produced today’s fiscal crisis. I won’t let that happen again. I will not do a deal unless New Jersey uses the proceeds only to solve our structural budget problems, spending them on meeting our long-term transportation needs, paying down debt, and, if any revenues remain, making capital investments.