Pledging to attack New Jersey’s “outrageous debt burden,” Governor Jon Corzine today said he will propose to the new Legislature that takes office in January a fiscal restructuring plan based on these principles:
-A reduction of the state’s bonded debt by at least 50 percent.
-Permanent funding for the State Transportation Trust Fund.
-Establishment of new limits on state borrowing.
In an address before the annual convention of the State League of Municipalities in Atlantic City, Corzine confirmed that his plan “will involve leveraging the untapped value in the state’s toll roads.” He asserted that this will not involve sale of any roads or lease to any private bidder or foreign owner.
As to his timetable, Corzine declared that “an initiative of this magnitude deserves a broad public debate --- one not suited to a lame duck timeframe.”
The Governor declared that New Jersey has roughly $32 billion in bonded debt and another $75 billion in unfunded liabilities for pensions and post-retirement medical benefits. He stressed that these fiscal burdens accumulated under Governors and Legislatures of both parties.
“I am willing to risk losing my job if that’s necessary to set our fiscal house in order,” Corzine concluded, to an audience of local officials which included Alliance for Action President Philip Beachem and Executive Vice President Jerry Keenan as invited guests.
