Create New Rail Commission

Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Gateway Development Commission Act".

§ 2. Gateway Development Commission. 1. Legislative findings and intent. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that: the state of New Jersey and the state of New York and their respective citizens share a common concern to preserve the functionality and strengthen the resiliency of long-distance and commuter rail infrastructure between New Jersey and New York, including passenger rail infrastructure owned, controlled, or utilized by the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, also known as "Amtrak"; the two states and their respective citizens share the benefits of existing interstate passenger rail infrastructure between the two states, including the existing North River Tunnels; interstate passenger rail service and infrastructure is vital to the economies of New Jersey and New York; that, because of the passage of time and damage caused by natural disasters, both states recognize the existing interstate passenger rail infrastructure, including the existing North River Tunnels, is at risk of system failures that could result in prolonged service disruptions that would severely damage the economies of the two states and many other participants in the economy of the Northeast Corridor; both states recognize the urgent need to undertake projects necessary to create passenger rail capacity under the Hudson

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets

[ ] is old law to be omitted.

LBD13164-07-9

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River, rehabilitate passenger rail infrastructure, maintain current levels of long-distance and commuter rail service between the two states and provide additional reliability, safety and security; the citizens of both states will share the benefits of expanded capacity and rehabilitated passenger rail infrastructure between the two states; and there has been a long history of cooperation among state and local governmental entities, Amtrak, and various private organizations and individuals in the two states to ensure the preservation of a variety of passenger rail service options.

(b) The legislature therefore determines that there is a need to endorse and formalize that bi-state cooperative effort to help ensure that the functionality of long-distance and commuter rail infrastructure between New Jersey and New York and thence throughout the Northeast Corridor, is preserved and maintained for the benefit of the economy of New Jersey and New York and for the well-being of present and future generations of citizens in both states; and that the creation of a bi-state commission that shall be a body corporate and politic established by the state of New Jersey and the state of New York, acting in the public interest and exercising essential governmental functions, is an appropriate means to accomplish these very important goals and is not intended to impair, limit, diminish, or otherwise affect any right, power, or jurisdiction of the United States of America or any department, branch, agency, court, bureau, or other instrumentality thereof with respect to any matter, or grant or confer any right or power on such bi-state commission, or any officer or trustee thereof, to regulate commerce between the states.

(c) It is the intention of the legislature that the commission so created constitute an institution which has been established by the states to effectuate a public purpose and is therefore eligible to apply for financial assistance from the United States government, including the agencies thereof.

2. Definitions. Except where different meanings are expressly specified in subsequent provisions of this section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

(a) "Act" means the Gateway Development Commission act.

(b) "Amtrak" means the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, a corporation organized under 49 U.S.C. § 24101 et. Seq. and the laws of the District of Columbia.

(c) "Board" means the board of commissioners of the commission.

(d) "Commission" shall mean the gateway development commission which is established pursuant to this act.

(e) "Facilitate" means the planning, designing, financing, acquisition, development, redevelopment, expansion, construction, reconstruction, replacement, approval of works, lease, leaseback, licensing, consigning, asset management, optimization, rehabilitation, repair, alteration, improvement, extension, management, ownership, use and effectuation of the matters described in this act. "Facilitation" shall have a concomitant meaning.

(f) "Full Funding" means the sum of commitments to fund, from sources deemed by the Commission to be creditworthy, plus Commission cash-onhand, plus any institution of a tariff or an agreement to impose user fees not subject to further approvals (if any), plus such other sources of funding deemed certain to be available as and when required, found by the Commission to be sufficient to facilitate the project or a discrete component thereof which is beneficial to the public.

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(g) "Meeting" means any gathering, whether corporeal or by means of communication equipment, which is attended by, or open to, the Board, held with the intent, on the part of the commissioners present, to act as a unit upon the specific public business of the Commission. "Meeting" does not mean a gathering (i) attended by less than a quorum of commissioners; (ii) in which the board is engaged in ordinary course supervision of Commission staff; (iii) in which consideration of Commission business matters are informally discussed without the intent or effect of effectuating any action of the Commission; or (iv) attended by or open to all the members of three or more similar public bodies at a convention or similar gathering.

(h) "Project" means a passenger rail transportation project between Penn Station, Newark, New Jersey and Penn Station, New York, New York currently referred to as the "Gateway Program" consisting of:

(i) phase one of the Project including: the replacement of the existing Portal Bridge; the construction of a tunnel connecting the states of New York and New Jersey and the completion of certain ancillary facilities including construction of concrete casing at Hudson Yards in Manhattan, New York; the rehabilitation of the existing North River Tunnels; all Projects necessary to connect the aforesaid Projects to the contiguous Amtrak Northeast Corridor Facilities; and

(ii) phase two of the Project including: the Portal South Bridge Project; the Sawtooth Bridge replacement Project; the Secaucus Loop Project; the Secaucus Junction renovation and expansion Project; and the Penn Station South Project, and other related Projects, but only if such phase two projects are authorized pursuant to a memorandum of understanding between the Governor of New York, the Governor of New Jersey and Amtrak.

(i) "Public business" means matters which relate in any way, directly or indirectly, to the performance of the functions of the commission or the conduct of its business.

3. Creation of the Commission; purposes. There is hereby created the Gateway Development Commission, a body corporate and politic established by the state of New Jersey and the state of New York, which shall be deemed to be acting in the public interest and exercising essential government functions in taking action hereunder and which shall be a public authority and a government sponsored authority. The purposes of the Commission shall include the following:

(a) Facilitate the Project;

(b) Coordinate activities of governmental entities, Amtrak, and private entities providing assistance to the Project or otherwise regulating the Project, with a view to achieving full funding, and encourage and enable such parties to participate in the effectuation of the Project;

(c) act as a coordinating agency to arrange for cooperation among the federal government, the state of New Jersey, any local government thereof, the state of New York, any local government thereof, any agency, instrumentality, department, commission, or authority of any one or more of the foregoing, any bi-state agency, Amtrak, any individual or private firm, entity or corporation, or with any one or more of them (including by contract among the parties), for and in connection with the Facilitation of the Project for any of the purposes of this act, and to enter into an agreement or agreements (and from time to time to enter into agreements amending or supplementing the same) with the federal government, the state of New Jersey, any local government thereof, the state of New York, any local government thereof, any agency, instrumentality,

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department, commission, or authority of any one or more of the foregoing, any bi-state agency, Amtrak, any individual or private firm, entity or corporation, or with any one or more of them, for or relating to such purposes, including but not limited to agreements with respect to financial assistance, loans, grants or any other funding as may be available for the Project. The Commission is hereby intended to qualify for, authorized, and empowered to apply for and accept, financial assistance, loans, grants, or any other funding for such purposes under federal, state, or local laws, and to make application directly to the appropriate officials or agencies for the application for and receipt of federal, state or local assistance, loans, grants or any other funding in aid of any of the purposes of this act;

(d) pursue efforts to assist federal or state agencies and other entities to fulfill their goals set forth in federal law or the laws of New York or New Jersey to further passenger rail transportation between states including 49 U.S.C. §24901, et seq.;

(e) take any and all actions authorized by this act which are or may be necessary or appropriate to constitute and maintain itself as an applicant eligible to qualify to apply for and be awarded financial assistance, loans, grants or other funding as may be available for the Project, including that awarded by federal, state, and local governments and the agencies thereof; and

(f) facilitate the Project by making and enforcing such rules and regulations; and

(i) accepting, collecting, and receiving funds pursuant to the provisions of the memorandum of understanding established pursuant to subdivision nineteen of this act, which may include bonded revenues, state appropriations, dedicated revenues, and any other funds or revenues made available pursuant to that memorandum of understanding, and using those funds to provide for the financing, construction or asset management of the project and the payment of, with interest upon, and the amortization and retirement of bonds or other securities or obligations issued or insured for Project purposes, including establishment of prudent reserves, in the same manner that all funds or revenues included in the memorandum of understanding established pursuant to subdivision nineteen of this act may be used for such purposes; and

(ii) establishing, levying, and collecting tolls and fees payable by entities using the Project or any portion thereof, as it may deem necessary or appropriate, provided that any such tolls or fees:

(A) shall not be established at a rate greater than the amount determined by the commission to be necessary to meet the expenses of the financing, construction, or asset management of the Project, including the establishment of prudent reserves;

(B) shall be approved by an affirmative vote of the board, in accordance with the voting requirements provided pursuant to this act, at a meeting duly noticed and held, provided that the commission has complied with subparagraph (iv) of this paragraph;

(C) may be used to provide for the payment of, with interest upon, and the amortization and retirement of bonds or other securities or obligations issued or insured for Project purposes, including establishment of prudent reserves, in the same manner that all funds or revenues included in the memorandum of understanding established pursuant to subdivision nineteen of this act may be used for such purposes;

(D) shall not conflict with applicable federal law and the laws of the state of New York and the state of New Jersey; and

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(E) that may be directly or indirectly levied or imposed on or payable by the New Jersey Transit Corporation shall be expressly and specifically authorized pursuant to the memorandum of understanding established pursuant to subdivision nineteen of this act, or any amendment thereto, and that the revenue from any toll or fee shall count toward the state share of funding pursuant to the memorandum of understanding.

(iii) The power of the commission to establish, levy, or collect tolls or fees that are payable by the New Jersey Transit Corporation shall be narrowly construed.

(iv) Not less than thirty days and not more than ninety days prior to any vote or action taken by the board to establish, levy, or collect a toll or fee imposed by the commission or relating to any increase in a toll or fee, the commission shall conduct at least three public hearings in the manner prescribed as follows:

(A) Locations for public hearings shall be selected in such a way as to be geographically accessible to a majority of users of the facility or facilities to be impacted by the toll or fee, provided that at least one hearing shall be held in each state.

(B) At least seventy-two hours before the first hearing held pursuant to this section, the commission shall make the following information available to the public, including posting on the commission's official website:

(1) a written explanation of why the toll or fee, or any increase in a toll or fee, is necessary;

(2) the amount of revenue expected to be generated from the establishment of or increase in the toll or fee; and