In its summary of New Jersey's Transportation Trust Fund, NJ Spotlight notes the challenges the Garden State faces in financing surface transportation projects. Under former Gov. John Corzine (D), the state relied increasingly on borrowing and less on ongoing state appropriations for "pay as you go” capital. And although current Gov. Chris Christie (R) promised to borrow less to fund transportation projects, in the first four years of his administration, the state has borrowing 97.4 percent of all transportation capital costs in the first four years of the Christie administration, which is a higher percentage and higher dollar amount than any previous four yearsin the state’s history.

 

Reliance on bonding and borrowing for transportation projects has worsened New Jersey’s state tax-supported debt burden, which is already the nation’s third largest behind California and New York. New Jersey’s current financial situation provides a challenge for its legislative and executive branches in a few years as a new Transportation Trust Fund plan will need to be approved by the spring of 2016.

 

Click here to view the summary from NJ Spotlight.