Back in the mid-1990s when I was working at the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, there were three commissioners, two Republicans and one Democrat. The Democrat had been appointed by Gov. Florio and had gained great experience in utility matters by being a high school basketball coach. One of the Republicans, also appointed by Florio, had run a restaurant. The other guy was just a mediocre lawyer who needed a job and was appointed by Gov. Whitman.

These guys had three jobs among the most important in the state. Their decisions affected billions of dollars of economic activity. I have always found it amazing that the lights stay on given the qualifications of the people running the show. I spend more time checking the credentials of my plumber than the state spends on most of its appointees.

Few people notice who gets appointed to the boards, authorities and commissions that abound around New Jersey. There are specialty boards, regulatory boards, promotional boards, water boards, sewer boards, etc. There are statewide boards, regional boards and local boards. There are important boards and unimportant boards. Some board members get paid, some do not.

The governor has the authority to appoint thousands of people to all these boards. It is one of the greatest sources of political patronage, and unlike the state payroll jobs, these appointments are generally made without much public knowledge or oversight. It is a truly insider game that is being played.

As he prepares to leave office, Gov. Corzine has submitted 180 names for a myriad of boards to the Senate for confirmation. These range from the Board of Public Utilities to the board of directors of Horizon Blue Cross and Blue Shield to the New Jersey Maritime Pilot and Docking Pilot Commission.

While it is fairly common for outgoing governors to grant a few last favors, the magnitude of the Corzine appointments is really beyond the pale. The move is a cynical attempt to place as many poison pills around the state as possible, rather than an attempt to pay off a few old friends.

At the Board of Public Utilities, which I view as the most important of all the regulatory agencies, Gov. Corzine’s nomination of Ken Esser as a commissioner will ensure that the Democratic party maintains control of the board until 2012 with a three-to-two majority. Now, while Mr. Esser may be the most qualified nomination to come along in a long time, this breaks the time-honored tradition of allowing the party in control of the Statehouse to control the levers of government.

So why is this important? Is tradition all there is to this argument?

When we elect a new governor, we expect him to be able to govern. That is why the team at the top changes. We get all new cabinet officers and appointments several layers down in the different state agencies. This way new policies can be implemented.

However, when you have all these authorities, which actually have authority to do things, you cannot implement a policy agenda if the other side retains control. It basically undermines the election result. It is a poison pill.

A much better system would be to get rid of most of these appointed bodies and bring these semiautonomous groups back under the direct control of the state.

In the near term, however, Gov. Corzine should stop this shenanigan. He should withdraw these last-minute appointments and allow his successor, Chris Christie, a chance to do what he was elected to do – govern.

James Coyle
President

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