July 26, 2016
Different day, different plan, still dead.
That’s the upshot of an attempt to once again fund state transportation infrastructure with a 23 cent per gallon boost in New Jersey’s fuel tax.
Gov. Chris Christie vetoed the last legislative proposal, which included a cut in the state’s sales tax.
The new plan, again with a 23 cent tax bite, substituted a variety of tax cuts for the proposed reduction of the sales tax.
Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, and Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto, D-Hudson, announced the new plan Friday.
Monday, Christie put a stake through it, calling it “dead on arrival.”
Related story: New Jersey lawmakers propose 23 cent per gallon gas tax to fund transportation projects
Christie said the cuts in taxes in the new proposal did not go far enough.
The governor has preemptively pulled the plug on all state transportation projects because funding expires in August, the reason behind the proposed boost.
The governor said he hoped legislative Democrats will put forth a new proposal once the Democratic National Committee meeting in Philadelphia concludes.
