BY ABBIE SARFO

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is looking to shed its bad reputation.

On Monday, a panel of experts convened to discuss reforming the agency, which is now tied to the George Washington Bridge scandal. Post-Bridgegate, four Port Authority officials have resigned, including chairman David Samson.

In 2012, an audit report referred to Port Authority as a “challenged and dysfunctional organization,” lehighvalleylive.com reported. In hopes of reversing such negative characterizations, the panel proposed these reforms:

1. TAKE POWER FROM THE GOVERNORS.

The governors of New York and New Jersey are responsible for selecting executive board members. According to wsj.com, New York’s governor appoints an executive director and vice chairman, while New Jersey’s governor chooses the deputy executive director and chairman.

However, these appointments are often political in nature. One panelist called the organization a “cookie jar” for the governors in power.

To depoliticize the Port Authority board, panel members advocated removing board-appointing powers from the governors. Panelists also suggested widening their net and searching nationwide for a director, who would then be appointed by the board.

According to wsj.com, Robert Yaro, president of the Regional Plan Association, said the agency should get out of “all their extraneous activates.”

One “extraneous activity” in particular, the PATH rail system, came under scrutiny.

While PATH is heavily used, the system is a consistent money-loser, abclocal.com said.

Discussions arose as to whether or not PATH could be folded into New Jersey Transit, which is one of the largest public transportation systems in the country.

According to lehighvalleylive.com, Vice Chairman Scott Rechler said, “it’s been 93 years… do we still need the same Port Authority?”

Port Authority’s panel hopes to answer this question in the coming months.