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Scuttled Hudson River tunnel project costing New Jersey a half million a month

Tuesday, 31 May 2011 17:16
BY BOB HOLT
NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

The legal fees in Governor Christie's fight with the government over the failed Hudson River tunnel project have been averaging over $500,000 per month.

In November, the Obama administration ordered New Jersey to repay $271 million for scuttling what at the time was the largest public works project in the country.

After the tunnel project was canceled, NBC New York reported the Federal Transit Administration sent a bill to NJ Transit on November 24 in the amount of $271,101,291 that had already been spent on the work. The FTA also charged penalties and interest on the money.

NJ.com reports that since April 29, interest on the state’s debt is $225,000 a month. Also, legal bills from a Washington law firm hired by Christie, Patton Boggs, average another $300,000 a month.

According to NorthJersey.com, before the tunnel contract was signed, New Jersey had won $219 million in stimulus funds and transportation grants. A transportation lawyer says that money was included in the tunnel contract, and Christie may have a chance to keep that amount.

But the federal government claims that Christie knew when he made the agreement that all the money was meant for the tunnel.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood believes Christie is misleading people when he says unexpected cost overruns led him to cancel the tunnel project. Christie has redirected the $271 million and other tunnel funds to New Jersey’s Transportation Trust Fund.

Some transportation experts say when all is said and done in the courtroom, New Jersey will have to pay a large portion of the $271 million fee anyway.

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Comments (2)
Free Money
2 Wednesday, 01 June 2011 18:43
PatriotMike
I could not disagree more with Politicalpony. BECAUSE it is our money I want the Feds to protect it. The logic that some of it comes from New Jersey fails the concept of a commonweal. We all pay taxes, don't try to track its allocation by from where it came - under that logic you are to get only what you contribute, which is the antithesis of the constitution of this country. That does not mean I believe New Jersey has no argument - since until there is a full funding grant agreement the cost of the work is all at risk, including the feds money. That said, I feel about the secessionists in Texas and the Minutemen in Montana the same as I feel about the call to just stiff the Feds - they really don't get the whole idea that this country above all others was founded on a social compact, to unilaterally claim a "right" to bug out over a disagreement is to refuse to be a citizen - we already had a war over that and the North won.
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Nullification
1 Wednesday, 01 June 2011 06:47
Politicalpony
Although Christie hasn't jumped in on the Obamacare lawsuit, for what I understand to cost peanuts in comparison to everything else, I think its a nice change to see the Central government get some of their own medicine. The states should nullify many of the actions that the Federal government takes with concerns of the peoples money. That said, this isn't the feds money, it is the peoples money. How much of this money might have originated from Nj to begin with? Why do we need Washington to tell us what to do by having control of the peoples money? I don't recall the feds being in business where they make a profit. In fact in recent years they have taken over private industry, turning our country into a socialist state and can't even make a profit after "taking" what's not theirs to take! We have simpleton people in charge of the greatest nation on earth. They do nothing more than create massive problems through the massive government which they have created. A form of government which can no where be found describe in our US Constitution. I say good work governor. But save the state of all the legal costs and have the legislature enact law or a resolution claiming we don't owe the feds and that their claims are frivolous.
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