Constitutional Problem With Toll Plan?

On Toll Roads News I just saw an article that says this:

New Jersey Republican legislative leaders have raised an interesting constitutional challenge to Governor Cozine's tollroad monetization scheme. Senate GOP leader Tom Kean and assembly leader Alex DeCroce say it violates a constitutional bar on granting special privileges.

They say the issue arises under Article IV, Section 7, paragraph 9 of the New Jersey Constitution: "The Legislature shall not pass any private, special or local laws... Granting to any corporation, association or individual any exclusive privilege, immunity or franchise whatever..."

Corzine's draft bill provides for a newly created Capital Solutions Corporation (CSC), the successor to the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, to enter into a long term concession agreement with a to-be-created Public Benefit Corporation (PBC). The bill requires that the CSC "enter into a concession agreement with the PBC on a sole source basis, giving it the exclusive right to operate maintain, manage, expand and improve any or all assets of the CSC specified in the agreement during the PBC concession period and to impose, adjust and collect tolls and charges."

There's more, and the whole article is worth reading, with deeper analysis.

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