Editorial - Raiding N.J. Open Space Funds

New Jersey politicians are diving after a chunk of open-space money like seagulls after a french fry. In an egregious effort to paper over fiscal mismanagement, Gov. Christie wants to snatch $20 million of the estimated $80 million available for land preservation this year and divert it to operating expenses.
The administration is not alone in the dollar dive. Legislators can't agree on how to split up the money, and neither can environmentalists, which could cause delays in open-space acquisition.
Regrettably, the state's residents have no say in the matter - even though almost a million of them voted last fall to devote a portion of business-tax revenues to permanent open-space funding.
While the administration's plan to divert some of that money to manage and maintain state parks may be legal, it's contrary to the intent of the fund's sponsors and voters. The fund is meant to preserve land and prevent flood damage in the nation's most developed state. Park operations and maintenance should be covered by the general fund as they have been in the past.

Christie's maneuver would be the latest in a series of fiscal tricks that have contributed to a record nine credit downgrades during his administration. It's also disingenuous considering that he tried to kill the open-space funding, strong-arming Republican legislators into voting against it. Fortunately, several stood their ground and voted with Democrats to put the measure before voters.
Entire article at
http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20150506_Space_invaders.html