- and don't forget consultants, contracts, bond documents, legal fees, etc....... PA v Suffolk OTB,
- just because the PA has got the cash doesn't mean OTB can't do as the Romans do or vice versa
Port Authority of NY and NJ approves $7B budget
Associated Press
NEW YORK — Board members approved a $7 billion budget for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey on Thursday despite complaints by commuters that too much of the money is going to build the new World Trade Center and not enough to bridge and tunnel improvements.The total budget is $70 million lower than in 2011, but the World Trade Center dominates it. More than half of the $3.6 billion set aside for construction is going toward the complex of buildings in Lower Manhattan, including its signature tower and a rail station.
Under pressure to rein in spending, board members on Thursday said the agency will post the names and salaries of all 6,777 employees on its website beginning Friday, and will also report overtime costs quarterly to the New Jersey and New York governments.
The move should help expose waste, said Patrick Foye, executive director of the Port Authority.
"What you can measure you can manage," Foye said.
The Port Authority Police Benevolent Association, the agency's biggest union with 1,345 members, said it would not contest the release of the payroll information.
"It is what it is," said union president Paul Nunziato. "We're not particularly thrilled, but we don't have anything to hide."
Port Authority officials said the decision was prompted by an investigation published in November by The Record newspaper of New Jersey. It found that Port Authority executives had collected more than $2 million in extra compensation through payroll loopholes.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie had called the extra pay "inappropriate and excessive."
The Port Authority's finances began coming under scrutiny in August, when the board voted to raise bridge and tunnel tolls. The Port Authority said the increases were needed to carry out projects like the World Trade Center.
Many commuters were outraged, and the AAA motorists' club sued the agency, saying the Port Authority was violating federal highway funding laws.
On Thursday Foye said none of the additional toll revenue will go directly to the $11.7 billion World Trade Center. The project is being funded by bonds, Federal Transit Administration grants, insurance payouts and private investment, he said.
However, the added toll money improves the Port Authority's creditworthiness, allowing it to borrow more money more cheaply, he said.
"The disclosures that were made in August and September and the disclosures now are consistent and true," Foye said. "The fare and toll increase reduced the drag, reduced the burden on the rest of the organization."
The AAA and Port Authority argued their case on Thursday in a U.S. District Court in Manhattan, but there was no immediate ruling from Judge Richard J. Holwell.
The toll hike has also prompted Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to order an outside audit of the agency.
Christie, said Thursday he was concerned about how much money was being spent on the World Trade Center project and promised to act on any waste that auditors turn up.
"There are certain things you inherit based on the mismanagement and inattentiveness of your predecessors, and I inherited it, so now we're fixing it," Christie said.
The budget passed unanimously on Thursday but is considered temporary until the auditors finish their review, Chief Financial Officer Michael Fabiano said.
About $2 billion of the Port Authority's $3.6 billion capital budget will go toward the World Trade Center.
The next-biggest chunk, $402 million, goes to construction at the Lincoln Tunnel. The Port Authority says it needs to overhaul the tunnel's "helix," a corkscrew entrance ramp on the New Jersey side of the Hudson River.
Another $259 million will go to toward the Port Authority Trans Hudson train, where crews are working to fortify tunnels against a possible terrorist attack.
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Associated Press Writers Tom Hays in New York and Samantha Henry in Newark, N.J. contributed to this report.
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