Corzine will visit E.B. to discuss toll hike plan
Boisterous crowd pans proposal at Marlboro stop
BY REBECCA MORTON and VINCENT TODARO Staff Writers

EASTBRUNSWICK- Gov. JonCorzine is scheduled to hold a "town hall"meeting in the township Sunday, and will discuss his controversial proposal to raise tolls.

Corzine ismaking stops in all 21 counties in New Jersey to explain his "Financial Restructuring and Debt Reduction" plan. The meetings are free and open to the public. Sunday's will take place from 2 to 4 p.m. at East BrunswickHigh School, 380CranburyRoad.

Corzine received a not-so-warm welcome on Monday when he visited Marlboro High School in Monmouth County to present his tollhike plan.The governorwasmetwithprotesters outside the building and a large crowd of opposition inside the school's auditorium.A crowd of over 1,000 people came to hear the discussion, with some being sent to an overflow room.

Introducing the governor was U.S. Rep. RushHolt (D-12),whowasmetwith jeers for his support of Corzine's plan. Holt was drowned out by the audience after he mentioned that the plan "will hit Monmouth County hard."

Trying to explain his plan to the gathered crowd proved to be hard forCorzine,who had to stop at times and wait for the roar of the crowd to die down before he could proceed.

Corzine's plan,whichwould dramatically increase tolls on the New Jersey Turnpike, Garden State Parkway andAtlanticCityExpressway, as well as placing a toll on Route 440, is designed to address the state's $32 billion debt. Much of the proposal relies on using toll revenues to pay off debt, aswell as to fund various road improvement projects.

First outlined during his State of the State address on Jan. 8, the plan involves at least four 50 percent toll increases, starting in 2010 and continuing in 2014, 2018 and 2022.After that, tolls would continue to increase every four years to keep up with inflation until 2085. The roads would be overseen by what has been called a Public Benefits Corp., an independent entity that will issue bonds that would be paid off by the increased toll revenue. The money gained would then be used to pay about half the state's debt,with the remainder going into funding road improvements.

At Monday's presentation, Corzine went over shortsighted financial decisions that weremade over the years, noting the belief in 2002 that inflation revenue figureswould pay for new spending. He also said that the first $860 in household taxes goes to paying interest and debt payments.Graphs displayed the net tax-supported debt outstanding on a rise of roughly 13 percent since 1990.

Without taking action,NewJersey's transportation needs will have no money to fund themafter 2011, Corzine said. He added that $40 billion is needed over the next decade for safety and congestion relief purposes, including attention to 700 bridges in the state that are deemed deficient.

In projections of toll revenue over a course of nine years, starting with fiscal year 2009, the governor told those assembled that this moneywould be reinvested in the areaswhere itwas generated, showingMonmouthCounty a $2.9 billion return.

When the meeting was opened up to the public for comments, residents rushed to form lines, eager to express their opinions on the controversial plan.

State Sen. Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth andMercer) wasmet with overwhelming applause when she approached themicrophone to tell Corzine and those present that she stands in opposition to his plan.

"We must restructure the liability for our pension and health benefits. Last year you were in negotiations with the union and you had an opportunity to do that, and you did only very minimal changes. That liability grows each and every year. We must statutorily change, for newpublic employees,what benefits they receive when they retire, so that liability starts to even out," Beck told Corzine.

"My question is this: This is a 75-year plan - you can't predict what new governors and new Legislatures will do with this $40 billion of debt,which is not paying off anything. This is an AmEx card to pay off your Visa Platinum," Beck said.