With one week to go, Sebelius returns to fertile NJ ground to stump for Obamacare.

Like a candidate who goes to where the votes are, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius returned to northern New Jersey this morning to get the administration's message out to the uninsured.

She delivered her stump speech a week before the deadline for Americans without health insurance to buy policies through the federal website, healthcare.gov.

The enrollment deadline is midnight, March 31.

"We don't intend to move that date," Sebelius said at a press conference at Montclair State University.

With a message aimed at college students, she said a 27-year-old North Jersey resident earning $25,000 a year could buy a policy for $114 a month after. "My guess is they can't get a cell phone plan for $114 a month, or a cable plan," she said.

The Obama administration has focused its last-minute efforts on regions of the country with a large potential crop of enrollees. While New Jersey doesn't have an unusual proportion of uninsured, the state's population density makes it fertile ground for getting out its message.

Some 40 percent of New Jersey's uninsured - or roughly 417,000 - live in Bergen Passaic, Essex and Hudson counties, said Sen. Nia Gill, who appeared with Sebelius to push the law's benefits.

The appearance by Sebelius drew quick criticism from Republicans, who noted the press conference was closed to the general public.

“It comes as no surprise Secretary Sebelius kept the public at bay at today’s event given that ObamaCare has resulted in more than twice as many insurance cancellation notices in New Jersey than it has provided coverage to the uninsured," said Republican National Committee spokesman Michael Short.

"No wonder a majority of New Jerseyans want to see this law scrapped. Instead of spending taxpayer dollars on scripted, closed-door PR junkets, Secretary Sebelius should be answering for why the Obama Administration mislead New Jerseyans about being able to keep their health care.”

The event was held at Montclair State because the university is hosting a temporary enrollment center that will be open every day until the deadline. Based in the Student Center and open to the public, its hours will be 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Tues., Thurs., Fri., Sat., and next Monday; 3 p.m. - 9 p.m. Wed., and 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Sunday.

Visitors are advised to bring along their Social Security number, income tax returns or pay stubs as proof of income, proof of citizenship or legal residence, and an existing email address.

MSU President Susan Cole said enrollment was important to the university because students who are uninsured and encounter health problems become a concern. Their uninsured families also an indirect impact, she said. "If the families of our students have health care problems, then our students have difficulty," she said.

Much of the press conference was devoted to convincing younger adults it was worth their while to enroll - emphasizing unexpected injuries instead of illnesses as a motive to get insured.

"I used to be a 'young invincible' myself," said Gill, mentioning the term policy-makers use for young adults who think they'll never be sick. "And I can tell you the last thing on their mind is what will happen if they get sick."

But "if you're out playing like LeBron or serving like Serena and you get injured," she said, being without coverage could result in big doctor or hospital bills.

So far about 74,000 New Jerseyans have signed up for private health insurance policies offered on the federal marketplace. Roughly 80 percent of them received some federal subsidy to offset the cost. Another 106,000 have become eligible for coverage under the state's expanded Medicaid.

Medicaid enrollment is year-round, so the March 31 deadline doesn't apply.

Vote on privatizing toll collection could be taken as soon as April 29

WOODBRIDGE — As the deadline nears for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority to decide whether to privatize toll collection on the Turnpike and Garden State Parkway, toll takers are bringing out big political guns to help save their jobs.

The first three speakers in a long list at today's Turnpike Authority meeting in Woodbridge were state Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester), state Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen), and state Assemblyman Thomas Giblin (D-Essex).

The lawmakers noted that under the threat of privatization three years ago, toll collectors agreed to salary cuts of about 25 percent, from $65,000 annually to $49,500 for veteran employees. The cuts and concessions have saved around $30 million, they said.

“They’ve given their share, they’ve taken some hard cuts,” Sweeney said. “I’m asking the commissioners to really consider scrapping the plan — whether you have to take a formal vote or just throw it out the door.”

Added Weinberg: “This issue in particular, it seems to be a solution in search of a problem. The employees who provide this service are hard-working men and women who go to work every day to ensure that the system is functioning effectively.”

Giblin told Authority commissioners toll collectors were their “eyes and ears at the different exchanges, as far as safety issues are concerned.”

“They look out, they go above and beyond and they wear that badge very proudly, being a worker associated with the New Jersey Turnpike Authority,” he said.

A decision on whether to privatize could be made at the authority's next meeting on April 29.

There are 200 full-time and 350 part-time toll collectors on the Turnpike and 136 full-time toll collectors and 35 to 40 toll supervisors on the Parkway. Also part of the privatization would be 20 Turnpike toll technicians, four toll clerks and about 100 toll and toll technician supervisors. In all, the proposal involves more than 800 workers.

State Transportation Commissioner Jim Simpson, who chairs the Turnpike Authority, is reserving comment on the privatization proposal until after bids are received from companies early in April.

“It all depends on what the numbers look like,” he said.

Nicholas Pappas has been a toll collector on the turnpike for two decades. He works in a booth at Exit 9 in New Brunswick.

He said he and fellow toll collectors took a $9-an-hour pay cut in the last contract because “we were told to accept this or be privatized and lose our jobs.”

“We are the ones who breathe your fumes, endure the elements and deal with the public,” Pappas said.

Since then, he said, the Turnpike and Parkway have raised tolls by 50 percent and the Turnpike Authority has amassed record-breaking revenues.

He said that had he and his wife not had a side business running a daycare, he would have “gone under.”

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Five storms in January and February cost the Turnpike and Parkway $10.5 million in lost revenue

Jack Frost, Mother Nature and Old Man Winter don’t pay tolls on the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway, but they sure have made their presence felt on the two roads this year.

Five major storms in January and February cost the Turnpike and Parkway an estimated $10.5 million in lost revenue, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority’s chief financial officer said today.

“On the Turnpike in those five storms, we estimated that we lost revenue of $7.2 million, and on the Parkway in those five storm days we lost revenue of $3.3 million,” Donna Manuelli said during the monthly meeting of the Turnpike Authority, which runs both toll roads.

Overall, the Turnpike Authority and the state Department of Transportation have spent nearly $170 million on snow removal costs this winter, the most ever.

Through Sunday, the authority had spent $39 million on snow removal in 2014 — $49.8 million if you go back to the start of the “snow season” on Oct. 15.

Noting the potential for another storm, Manuelli said, “After today, probably we will exceed $40 million for the calendar year and $50 million for the snow season. Those are both record numbers.”

In the first two months of 2014, she said, the Turnpike and Parkway had to contend with 51 inches of snow, compared with 16 inches during the same period last year.

In addition, she said, January was the sixth-coldest on record in New Jersey and temperatures in February were, on average, 5 degrees below normal and were at or below freezing on all but one of the 28 days.

Consequently, traffic was down 4.3 percent on the Turnpike and 5.5 percent on the Parkway during January and February, Manuelli said.

The state Department of Transportation more than six weeks ago broke its record for snow removal costs in a winter. The snow removal tally was about $120 million and the DOT had used nearly 489,212 tons of salt, officials said.

That is nearly double the previous record set last year, when the DOT spent $62.5 million and used 258,201 tons of salt.

State Transportation Commissioner Jim Simpson, who also chairs the Turnpike Authority, estimated that when the individual municipalities and counties are taken into account, more than a half-billion dollars has been spent in snow removal and keeping the roads safe.

“But there’s no substitute for it,” he said. “Look at what happened on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and other places that didn’t have salt (a 25-car pileup last month). You’ve got to have salt.”

Where will the money come from?

“The treasurer is promising me that we’ll have the money,” Simpson said.

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The notoriously witty Byrne celebrated his 90th birthday by taking a public ribbing for the New Jersey Performing Arts Center's education programs. Watch video

 NEWARK — Former Gov. Brendan Byrne is well known for protecting the Pine Barrens in South Jersey and promoting the Meadowlands to the point that the state named the arena there after him.

And though the state later renamed the arena for an airline that ponied up big bucks, the South Jersey forest still bears his name.

But Byrne, the state’s 47th governor, is also famous for his sharp wit and one-liners like "I want to be buried in Hudson County so that I can remain active in politics" and "I knew I’d get re-elected when people started waving at me using all five fingers."

Tonight at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, the former Democratic governor got a taste of his own medicine during a roast that celebrated his 90th birthday. The Celebrity Comedy Roast Benefit also raised $110,000 for NJPAC’s education programs.

The state’s A-list of political, business and civic leaders paid $500 each to watch and listen as Gov. Chris Christie and former governors Tom Kean, James Florio, Jim McGreevey, Donald Di Francesco and Richard Codey took turns paying comic tribute to Byrne.

Many of the jokes — predictably — focused on Byrne’s age.

"They called me and asked if I’d come. The guy’s 90 and I’m an undertaker. Are you serious?" Codey said to roars from the crowd.

Jazz singer and guitarist John Pizzarelli provided music for the sold-out fundraiser, while Jersey judge-turned-comic Vince August brought attitude. Comedians Joe Piscopo, Joy Behar and New York Friars Club Vice President Stewie Stone provided the street cred.

"To him, I’m jailbait." Behar quipped.

The former host of the television show "The View" also had some pointed jabs for Christie for the George Washington Bridge lane closing scandal.

"It was very brave of him to come," Behar, an unabashed liberal Democrat, said of the Republican Christie, who was sitting just feet away. "First the Velveeta shortage and now the bridge thing."

"This is a Byrne roast," Christie interrupted.

"Don’t bully me," Behar retorted.

The crowd loved it.

When it was his turn at the mic, Christie left the jokes behind, praising Byrne for always standing up for what he believed, regardless of the political climate.

"They told me I was supposed to roast you tonight and wrote me some extraordinarily corny material," Christie said. "My job tonight is to let everyone know how much I support you and love you and what an example you’ve been.

"When you got the job, I was in grade school," he said. "I’m lucky to be your successor. You are a treasure."

Byrne told a few self-deprecating jokes before a birthday cake was brought out to Pizzarelli’s rendition of "Happy Days Are Here Again."

"I survived 90 years. I can survive another half-hour," Byrne said. "I think I did come out of this pretty well. I hope to have another similar dinner 10 years from now, and you’re all invited."

Byrne was elected governor in 1973, defeating Rep. Charles Sandman. He was re-elected four years later, defeating Ray Bateman.

The roasters kept returning to his age, and the infamy of having his name removed from the Meadowlands arena.

"He’s going to get back," Kean said. "He’s going to change his last name to Izod."

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The U.S. Supreme Court struck down limits in federal law on the overall campaign contributions the biggest individual donors may make to candidates, political parties and political action committees

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court struck down limits today in federal law on the overall campaign contributions the biggest individual donors may make to candidates, political parties and political action committees.

The justices said in a 5-4 vote that Americans have a right to give the legal maximum to candidates for Congress and president, as well as to parties and PACs, without worrying that they will violate the law when they bump up against a limit on all contributions, set at $123,200 for 2013 and 2014. That includes a separate $48,600 cap on contributions to candidates.

The decision will allow the wealthiest contributors to pour millions of dollars into candidate and party coffers, although those contributions will be subject to disclosure under federal law. Big donors already can spend unlimited amounts on attacks ads and other outlets that have played an increasingly important role in campaigns.

But the court's decision does not undermine limits on individual contributions to candidates for president or Congress, now $2,600 an election.

Chief Justice John Roberts announced the decision, which split the court's liberal and conservative justices. Roberts said the aggregate limits do not act to prevent corruption, the rationale the court has upheld as justifying contribution limits.

The overall limits "intrude without justification on a citizen's ability to exercise 'the most fundamental First Amendment activities,'" Roberts said, quoting from the court's seminal 1976 campaign finance ruling in Buckley v. Valeo.

Justice Clarence Thomas agreed with the outcome of the case, but wrote separately to say that he would have gone further and wiped away all contribution limits.

Justice Stephen Breyer, writing for the liberal dissenters, said that the court's conservatives had "eviscerated our nation's campaign finance laws" through today's ruling and 2010 decision in Citizens United that lifted limits on independent spending by corporations and labor unions.

"If the court in Citizens United opened a door, today's decision we fear will open a floodgate," Breyer said in comments from the bench. "It understates the importance of protecting the political integrity of our governmental institution. It creates, we think, a loophole that will allow a single individual to contribute millions of dollars to a political party or to a candidate's campaign."

Congress enacted the limits in the wake of Watergate-era abuses to discourage big contributors from trying to buy votes with their donations and to restore public confidence in the campaign finance system.

But in a series of rulings in recent years, the Roberts court has struck down provisions of federal law aimed at limiting the influence of big donors as unconstitutional curbs on free speech rights.

Most notably, in 2010, the court divided 5 to 4 in the Citizens United case to free corporations and labor unions to spend as much as they wish on campaign advocacy, as long as it is independent of candidates and their campaigns. That decision did not affect contribution limits to individual candidates, political parties and political action committees.

Republican activist Shaun McCutcheon of Hoover, Ala., the national Republican party and Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky challenged the overall limits on what contributors may give in a two-year federal election cycle. The total is $123,200, including a separate $48,600 cap on contributions to candidates, for 2013 and 2014.

Limits on individual contributions, currently $2,600 per election to candidates for Congress, are not at issue.

Relaxed campaign finance rules have reduced the influence of political parties, McConnell and the GOP argued.

McCutcheon gave the symbolically significant $1,776 to 15 candidates for Congress and wanted to give the same amount to 12 others. But doing so would have put him in violation of the cap.

Nearly 650 donors contributed the maximum amount to candidates, PACs and parties in the last election cycle, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

The court did not heed warnings from Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. and advocates of campaign finance limits that donors would be able to funnel large amounts of money to a favored candidate in the absence of the overall limit.

The Republicans also called on the court to abandon its practice over nearly 40 years of evaluating limits on contributions less skeptically than restrictions on spending.

The differing levels of scrutiny have allowed the court to uphold most contribution limits, because of the potential for corruption in large direct donations to candidates. At the same time, the court has found that independent spending does not pose the same risk of corruption and has applied a higher level of scrutiny to laws that seek to limit spending.

If the court were to drop the distinction between contributions and expenditures, even limits on contributions to individual candidates for Congress, currently $2,600 per election, would be threatened, said Fred Wertheimer, a longtime supporter of stringent campaign finance laws.

The case is McCutcheon v. FEC, 12-536.

The awards honor those who have helped crime victims or their survivors

Mark Crawford, New Jersey director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, will be honored by the state Attorney General's Office Wednesday. He is seen here in 2011.Reena Rose Sibayan/The Jersey Journal 

An advocate for victims of clergy sex abuse and a prosecutor who handled one of Essex County’s most high-profile murder cases will be recognized Wednesday by the state attorney general for their service to crime victims.

Mark Crawford, the New Jersey director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, and Romesh Sukhdeo, an assistant prosecutor in Essex County, will receive awards during a morning ceremony at the Hughes Justice Complex in Trenton.

"Through their relentless efforts, the men being honored at this week’s ceremony change the landscape every day within their own communities and throughout New Jersey," acting Attorney General John Hoffman said in a statement today.

The awards, the first of their kind bestowed by the attorney general’s office, coincide with Crime Victims’ Rights Week and the 30th anniversary of the Victims of Crimes Act.

Crawford, who was abused as a child by his parish priest, will receive the Ronald W. Reagan Award. He was nominated by state Sen. Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex), who said Crawford tirelessly listens to and educates abuse victims from across New Jersey and beyond.

Essex County Assistant Prosecutor Romesh Sukhdeo, seen here in court in 2012, will be honored by the Attorney General's Office for his work helping victims of violent crime.John O'Boyle/The Star-Ledger 

"Because of Mark’s efforts, many individuals, after living in years of silence and shame, learned of their predators’ crimes and came forward themselves, finally getting help and holding their offender accountable," Vitale said.

Sukhdeo, who will receive the Gladiator Award, served on the prosecution team that won convictions in the 2007 murders of three college-age friends in a Newark schoolyard. A fourth person was seriously injured. Sukhdeo was an invaluable help to family members of the victims throughout the process, said Deputy Chief Assistant Prosecutor Gwendolyn Williams, who nominated him.

"When victim survivor family members had issues with their employers, he didn’t hesitate to assist them so they could be present at each stage of the court proceedings." Williams said. "All defendants were either found guilty at trial or pled guilty. Whenever the victim survivors have vigils celebrating the life of their loved one, Mr. Sukhdeo is present."

The new Jersey Shore tourism campaign "Going Strong" kicks off next week. The ads replace the controversial "Stronger Than the Storm" campaign.

The state's new Jersey Shore tourism campaign hit the airwaves this week.

The "Going Strong" television ads include a montage of surfers paddling out into the ocean, bicyclists pedaling down the boardwalk and children building sandcastles on the beach. The jingle playing in the 30-second ad goes: "Well hearts are beating. The summer down at the Shore. We're coming back for more. Anything you could ask for. We're going strong at the Jersey Shore."

Erin Gold, a spokeswoman for the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, said the ads started appearing in the the greater New York and Philadelphia markets on Monday.

She said a digital campaign kicked off in mid-March and radio ads will begin airing later this month.

"Going Strong" replaces the controversial "Stronger Than the Storm" tourism campaign promoted last summer in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

The state had $25 million in federal funding to support the "Stronger Than the Storm" campaign, which was produced by the East Rutherford-based public relations firm MWW

The "Stronger Than the Storm" ads featured Gov. Chris Christie and his family, sparking criticism from Democratic lawmakers who said the commercials unfairly promoted the governor during a re-election year. Some Sandy victims also questioned using federal funding for television ads when thousands remained displaced from their homes.

Christie defended the tourism campaign at a town hall last month, citing overall growth in spending by visitors to the Shore in 2013 as proof the campaign worked.

"The $25 million that we spent on those tourism ads have led to the numbers that we announced," he said at the town hall in Flemington. "Not a down year in 2013, which is what people predicted would happen, but in fact a better year in 2013 than we had in 2012 and I think that while the ads were not solely responsible for that, the ads contributed to letting people know the Jersey Shore was back open and ready to take tourists."

The state had a 1.3 percent uptick in tourism activity in 2013, according to an annual report from Tourism Economics. But Atlantic and Ocean counties — two of the four Jersey Shore counties that account for nearly half of tourism spending statewide — both saw declines in spending.

Gold said state is using $1.3 million left over from last year's campaign to fund the "Going Strong" campaign, which is also being produced by MWW.

The state requested an additional $5 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to support radio and television ads but that money has not yet been approved. Gold said the additional funding would allow for "enhanced television and radio exposure in our target markets."

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The request appears to be seeking records that could show conflicts of interest surrounding the major construction projects

Prosecutors in Manhattan opened an investigation into the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey last month, issuing a subpoena for information on major projects and communication between agency officials and Gov. Chris Christie's administration, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. issued the subpoena seeking correspondence between Christie staffers and Port Authority officials on a number of projects, including the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site, the PATH transportation hub in lower Manhattan and various other New Jersey-based projects, the report said.

The request appears to be seeking records that could show conflicts of interest surrounding the major construction projects, according to the Journal, which cited an unnamed source. Port Authority Chairman David Samson resigned in late March after it was revealed that he voted to award millions of dollars in agency contracts to a company with strong ties to his own law firm.

The new inquiry, launched in March and first reported by the Journal on Friday, is just the latest in a series of investigations into Port Authority activity since the agency became embroiled in the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal last fall.

In addition to the subpoena from Vance, the Port Authority has come under scrutiny from a legislative committee in New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman of New Jersey and U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in Manhattan. Bharara later withdrew his own subpoena and deferred to Fishman's investigation, the Journal reported.

Vance's subpoena did not seek any correspondence between the Port Authority and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the report noted.

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Driver inattention was a major contributing factor in 1.4 million crashes in New Jersey during the past 10 years, accounting for roughly half of the total traffic accidents that occurred during that time.

Out of some 3 million motor vehicle accidents in New Jersey between 2004 and 2013, nearly half — 1.4 million — involved driver inattention, the state’s Acting Attorney General, John J. Hoffman, said today.

And during that same period, more than 1,600 people were killed in car crashes where driver inattention was a major contributing factor.

Hoffman said the statistics show the state has experienced a "distracted driving decade."

"The numbers tell the sad truth: we are in the midst of a surge in driver inattention, and crash statistics bear out that we can characterize the last 10 years simply as New Jersey’s Distracted Driving Decade," he said. "What is perhaps most troubling about these numbers is that the issue of distracted driving seems to be getting progressively worse.

"Our research indicates that while crashes and fatalities are trending downward as a whole, the number and proportion of distracted crashes are rising," he said.

In 2004, driver inattention was cited as a major contributing circumstance in 42 percent of crashes. But that number rose over the next 10 years and last year it peaked at 53 percent. Meanwhile, the proportion of distracted crashes has surged 26 percent during that same time.

In response to the grim numbers, 60 police departments in 10 New Jersey counties have received $5,000 each for a new Division of Highway Traffic Safety program to curb driver inattention, Hoffman said. The announcement of the new "U Drive. U Text. U Pay." campaign, funded and developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), calls for the money to be used to set up checkpoints and increase patrols.

More than halfway through the three-week campaign, which runs until April 21, police departments all over the state have issued some 3,000 summonses to drivers for using cell phones and other electronic devices while driving.

"People need to know that we are serious about stopping this deadly behavior," said NHTSA Region 2 Administrator Thomas M. Louizou in a statement about the new program. "Using a handheld phone and texting has reached epidemic levels. When you text or talk on the phone while driving, you take your focus off the road. That puts everyone else’s lives in danger, and no one has the right to do that."

Though 9 out of 10 people presumed it was against the law to text and drive in the Garden state, 3 in 10 admitted to sending and/or reading text messages while driving, according to a recent survey by the Plymouth Rock Management Group of New Jersey.

Text messaging is banned in 43 states, while talking on a hand-held cellphone while driving is illegal in 12. Both are outlawed in New Jersey.

Some studies suggest that even driving with a hands-free device is no panacea for distracted driving.

When researchers at the University of Iowa Public Policy Center scanned the brains of subjects using a hands-free cell phone while steering a simulated vehicle, they found a 37 percent reduction in activity in the parts of the brain needed for focused driving, which led to a kind of "inattention blindness."

For now, motorists who violate New Jersey’s primary cell phone law are subject to a $100 fine plus court costs. Under a new law signed by Gov. Christie last year, those penalties will increase on July 1 from a minimum of $200 to $400 for a first offense, $400 to $600 for a second offense and up to $800 and three insurance points for three violations.

"In recent years smartphones and other devices have become more sophisticated," said Gary Poedubicky, Acting Director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety, "and it’s clear to most of us that they’re being used more by drivers."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey should be selected by the agency's board of commissioners, not by the governor of New York, according to a panel of of experts convened by the agency to recommend reforms in the wake of the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal

NEW YORK — The executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey should be selected by the agency's board of commissioners, not by the governor of New York, according to a panel of of experts convened by the agency to recommend reforms in the wake of the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal.

The panel of five experts from academia and public policy groups, which met for the first time today at the Port Authority's Manhattan offices, also suggested the executive director should name the deputy director, a pick now made by the governor of New Jersey.

The pair of recommendations are particularly relevant to the agency's effort to restore smooth operations and the public's confidence because, panelists and commissioners agreed, letting the governors choose their own co-directors has resulted in the kind of divided leadership that allowed the lane closures to occur.

"This divided structure that Jim spoke about, with an executive director not responsible for the operations of the entire agency, we've all seen the kind of damage that can do," said Robert Yaro, president of the Regional Plan Association, a transportation planning group.

Yaro was referring to Jameson Doig, an emeritus political science professor at Princeton University and authority of "Empire on the Hudson," the definitive history of the Port Authority.

Yaro and Doig made it clear they were not attacking the current executive director, Patrick Foye, or Deputy Executive Director Deborah Gramiccioni, who both attended the meeting but did not speak.

Widespread media coverage of the Bridgegate scandal has fueled outrage and demands for reform at the Port Authority, and the panel was convened by the board of commissioners' oversight and operations committee, whose chairman is Commissioner Scott Rechler, an appointee of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The vice chairman of the committee is Commissioner Richard Bagger, an appointee and former chief of staff of Gov. Chris Christie.

"It's been said, never let a good crisis go to waste," said Rechler, who became the board's acting chairman last month following the resignation of David Samson amid investigations into the lane closures by lawmakers and state and federal prosecutors.

The two governors have even talked about breaking up the Port Authority. However, panelists dismissed the idea as infeasible, and one of them, Mitchell Moss of New York University's Rudin Center for Transportation, insisted that with bi-state travel and business activity increasing the Port Authority is more necessary than ever.

In addition to Doig, Yaro and Moss, the panel also included Carol Kellerman, president of the Manhattan-based Citizens Budget Commission; and Martin Robins, director emeritus of the Voorhees Transportation Center at Rutgers University and a former Port Authority planning director.

Panelists also recommended that: governors exercise restraint in directing Port Authority spending and patronage hires; the chairmanship of the board rotate; commissioners be limited to single six-year terms; roll call votes be taken on all board action. The bi-state compact that created the Port Authority in 1921 provides that the governor of each state appoints six members of the 12-member board, to six year terms that can be renewed.

The panelists all emphasized the importance of news organizations as watchdogs over the Port Authority and the governors' interaction with it.

Panelists said the politically balanced but organizationally questionable custom providing for an executive director from New York and a deputy executive director from New Jersey began in 1994. That was when then-Gov. Christine Todd Whitman of New Jersey demanded she appoint a deputy director in response to New York Gov. George Pataki's choice of a political ally widely viewed as having limited qualifications for the job.

Rather than serving as a director and deputy, however, the two have functioned more as co-directors responsible for operations and projects in their respective states.

The lane closure scandal demonstrated one of the pitfalls of the agency's divided leadership, after then-Deputy Executive Director Bill Baroni told lawmakers he was aware of the closure plans ahead of time but failed to notify Foye. Two bridge managers testified under oath that Baroni aide David Wildstein had ordered them to implement the closures and to keep quiet about it. Baroni and Wildstein were both forced to resign in December.

The sole note of disagreement came when Moss said Doig and others were "naive" to think that governors would or even should resist the temptation to steer Port Authority decisions. Moss insisted the agency had always been subject to pressure from the governors, who, after all, can be held accountable by voters.

Asked after the meeting how decades of gubernatorial control could be reversed or at least tempered, Rechler and Bagger told reporters it would take strong "leadership," which they vowed to provide.

"Clearly, we had a governance gap," Bagger had said in his opening remarks, "when, operationally, something like the the George Washington Bridge lane closures can happen outside the chain of command."

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About 73 percent of the 883 people asked in a Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind conducted in December say prayer is OK "as long as the public officials are not favoring some beliefs over others"

MADISON — Nearly three-quarters of American voters approve of allowing prayer at public meetings, a new poll finds.

About 73 percent of the 883 people asked in a Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind poll conducted in December say it's OK "as long as the public officials are not favoring some beliefs over others."

"This has always been a praying nation, despite its very secular Constitution," Peter J. Woolley, professor of comparative politics at Fairleigh Dickinson University said in a release. "People generally see generic prayer as harmless, if not uplifting, not as something that is oppressive."

Still, 23 percent are not in favor of it and agree "public meetings shouldn't have any prayers at all because prayers by definition suggest one belief or another."

More Republicans (88 percent) than Democrats (60 percent) said they think public prayer should be allowed. There were no major discrepancies across gender, racial or age boundaries.

"An overwhelming number of Americans are upset by two things — not being allowed to pray, and someone insisting that only their prayer is legitimate," Woolley said.

The poll was conducted as the U.S. Supreme Court will soon rule on a case on the intersection of religion and government in a dispute over prayers used to open public meetings.

The justices are reviewing an appeals court ruling that held that the town of Greece in suburban Rochester in upstate New York violated the Constitution by opening nearly every meeting over an 11-year span with prayers that stressed Christianity.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the town should have made a greater effort to invite people from other faiths to open its monthly board meetings.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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His last election was more than a decade ago, but the former governor — who resigned in disgrace after disclosing an extramarital affair with another man put on the state payroll as his homeland security advisor — hasn’t lost his touch as a politician.

JERSEY CITY — Even now, Jim McGreevey knows how to work a room.

Walking through a crowded conference center, he spots a familiar face and calls out in Yiddish. He hugs another, gently needles a judge and greets just about anyone else as a long-lost friend.

His last election was more than a decade ago, but the former governor — who resigned in disgrace after disclosing an extramarital affair with another man, who was put on the state payroll as McGreevey’s homeland security adviser despite a lack of qualifications — hasn’t lost his touch as a politician.

“Feel free to fast,” he tells his audience, after first warning them that his budget for lunch that afternoon was not enough to feed everyone there. “We only have so much food.”

He insists that everyone call him Jim. They all call him governor.

Re-emerging after years in the political wilderness, James McGreevey is back in the public arena. He was hired by Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop as the $110,000-a-year executive director of the Jersey City Employment & Training Program, counseling former inmates on returning to society.

He serves as an adviser to the mayor, who many believe is eyeing a run for governor. Two weeks ago, he was speaking to students at Princeton University, and he participated in a comedy roast of Gov. Brendan Byrne earlier this month.

McGreevey says he’s not returning to politics, declined to answer questions about himself, and refused repeated requests for interviews about politics and his future.

“I’d rather not be the focus of a story. I don’t want my involvement to be a distraction to the work we’re doing,” he said.

The former governor said what he does, almost every day, is work with ex-offenders, addicts and those at the margins of society.

Former NBA star Jayson Williams, who did prison time in connection with the fatal 2002 shooting of his chauffeur and an unrelated drunk driving charge, hugs former Gov. Jim McGreevey after speaking at the Prisoner Reentry Conference at St. Peter's University in Jersey CityReena Rose Sibayan/The Jersey Journal 

“It is not some heroic deed. It’s what my faith asks of me. I do it to … the best of my limited abilities,” he said in a series of email exchanges. “This part of my life is not about electoral politics. If people ask advice, I provide my thoughts, but it’s not what I do every day of every week of every month.”

Calling his days as governor “far in the rear-view mirror,” he said he is now in a different place. “My time has fortunately passed.”

But while McGreevey’s efforts on prisoner re-entry and substance abuse have put a renewed focus on the issues, his return to the public stage is apparent to many, putting him back on the scene in a way few could have envisioned only a few years ago. And, deny it though he may, there are plenty of political watchers who see a future that could include politics in a big way again one day.

“He greets everyone like he’s going to be on the ballot next week,” said John Weingart, director of the Center on the American Governor at Rutgers University’s Eagleton Institute of Politics.

A graceful return

Weingart noted that others ensnared in very public scandals who lost their office — including former New York Democratic Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who resigned in 2008 amid a prostitution scandal, and Anthony Weiner, caught in a sexting scandal that drove him from Congress — have attempted comebacks that quickly rubbed the public the wrong way, making McGreevey’s return more impressive by contrast.

“He’s doing it remarkably gracefully, by spending years working with people that most don’t pay any attention to,” Weingart said. “Humble is not the right word, but he’s done it with some sincerity and gracefulness. I think maybe like Jimmy Carter, he is going to be a better former governor than he was a governor.”

State Sen. Richard Codey (D-Essex), who as Senate president succeeded the former governor when he resigned, said he believes McGreevey finds it difficult to walk away from a public role.

“I think there’s a void in his life. So if that’s what he needs, I’m happy for him,” said Codey. “The last 10 years had to be tough for him and I understand that.”

At the same time, though, there is a growing buzz among some political observers over whether the former governor may be trying to put the old band back together. Not only is McGreevey advising Fulop, but his former chief of staff, Gary Taffet, who left the administration under a cloud over a series of billboard development deals, is also now in Jersey City doing insurance work through the city’s insurance broker, Acrisure, according to officials.

Those closest to him, however, say McGreevey is not looking to run for office again.
“That’s not to say he hasn’t been thinking about it, but every time he has thought about it, he’s concluded that it would not be a good thing for him to do,” said state Sen. Raymond Lesniak (D-Union), a friend and longtime confidant. “He readily acknowledges that’s not a healthy way for him to go.”

McGreevey’s career has spanned the worlds of politics and advocacy. He worked as an assistant prosecutor in Middlesex County, served as a lawyer for the Assembly Democrats, and was executive director of the state Parole Board.

There was a stint as a lobbyist at Merck & Co., brief terms in the New Jersey Assembly and the state Senate, and then a campaign for mayor in Woodbridge, where he beat a former mentor in a rough campaign, despite an opponent who was facing bribery and conspiracy charges.

Serving as mayor of Woodbridge from 1991 through 2001, McGreevey challenged Republican Gov. Christine Todd Whitman in 1997, losing by just 1 percent. He launched a second campaign for governor four years later, defeating Republican Bret D. Schundler, the former mayor of Jersey City.

It all came apart in 2004, when McGreevey — then married and facing the possibility of a sexual harassment lawsuit from Golan Cipel, an Israeli he named as his homeland security adviser despite questions about his qualifications — suddenly announced his resignation.

Declaring: “I am a gay American,” the governor admitted he had engaged in an affair with another man, later revealed to be Cipel.

Following a bitter divorce that played out publicly, McGreevey kept a low profile as he studied for the ministry in hopes of becoming an Episcopal priest, and began counseling work at Integrity House drug treatment centers in Newark and Secaucus and at the Hudson County jail.

It is his work on substance abuse and prisoner re-entry that many laud him for, even among some of his political detractors, all of whom declined to speak on the record.

“He’s making a substantial impact on those issues beyond Jersey City,” said Lesniak.

Greater visibility

Still, last year there were signs of McGreevey taking a more visible role in New Jersey. He participated in an HBO documentary about his life, “Fall to Grace.” He joined a panel of former governors at the annual League of Municipalities conference in Atlantic City — something Lesniak said he had avoided in the past.

He attended a ceremony honoring Stephen Adubato Sr., the North Ward power broker who helped elect him. And he served on the transition team of Mayor Adrian Mapp in Plainfield, where McGreevey now makes his home.

“The governor was the governor,” explained Mapp of his turning to McGreevey. “He has a lot of knowledge and experience.”

Even Republican Gov. Chris Christie, who agreed to speak at the high-profile, daylong conference McGreevey organized this month at St. Peter’s University in Jersey City on prisoner re-entry — a conference also attended by U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman, former NBA star Jayson Williams, Fulop and others — had kind words for a predecessor he once had in his cross-hairs as U.S. attorney, as part of a criminal investigation into a top Democratic fundraiser.

Following his passion

While Christie said he agreed on practically no public policy issues, McGreevey needed to be a leader in the state on issues that he’s passionate and cares about.

“From the time I’ve become governor, I’ve reached out to him for advice and to urge him to get out more in public,” said Christie. “When you’re in these jobs, the advice you can get from somebody who’s actually sat in the chair is qualitatively different than the advice you can get from anybody else.”

McGreevey, hired by Fulop last year as executive director of the Jersey City Employment & Training Commission, is also giving advice to the mayor, who called himself lucky to have him.

“Any time someone can have access to a former governor, it is a huge advantage,” said Fulop, who said he wanted McGreevey for his expertise on prisoner re-entry issues, but also looks for political advice. “If I have a good opportunity to bounce something off him, why wouldn’t I do that?” he asked.

Making his way back?

Former state Republican Party chairman Tom Wilson said to see McGreevey in a public setting was not surprising.

“It’s not lost on anybody he’s in the kitchen cabinet of Steve Fulop. I don’t think there is anyone who ever thought Jim McGreevey would not find a way to weave a path to get back into public life,” he said. “Politics courses through his blood.”

Having McGreevey’s ear is a smart move on Fulop’s part, Wilson added.

“He’s heard it all. He can facilitate introductions. It’s incredibly helpful to have someone on your team who has lived through the fire before,” he remarked.

As for re-entering politics, Wilson said that would be a hard road of redemption. He had no doubts McGreevey cared deeply about the issues of prisoner re-entry and substance abuse, but he noted New Jersey is a very cynical state and said the governor would face new scrutiny if it looked like he was lining up the stones for a path back to office.

For now, Wilson said McGreevey has weaved a course that brings his public passion into the public space.

“He has retaken his position as a former governor, not a disgraced one,” he said.

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The proposal is likely to come up Monday when DEP Commissioner Bob Martin is scheduled to appear before the Assembly Budget Committee

TRENTON — A change located deep inside New Jersey's proposed budget for the 2015 fiscal year appears to allow the state to divert money paid to communities damaged by corporate polluters to the state's general fund.

With the principal defendant in the state's lawsuit over Passaic River pollution yet to settle, environmentalists fear the budget language change could pump hundreds of millions of dollars in new revenue into the state's general fund at the expense of the environment in cities and towns waiting to be compensated for assets damaged by oil and chemical contamination.

"This is terrible policy," said Brad Campbell, a former state Department of Environmental Protection commissioner who is now an environmental lawyer.

He said it conflicts with "the clear language" of New Jersey's Spill Act, which enables the state to seek compensation directly from polluters and it means significant natural resources will never be restored.

"And it's bad fiscal policy, using another nonrecurring and completely unpredictable revenue stream to mask a structural deficit," Campbell said.

But former Treasurer David Rousseau, now a budget analysis for New Jersey Policy Perspective, said the budget is a balance between long-term goals and immediate needs.

At issue is the amount of money deemed necessary to restore a damaged environmental resource and compensate residents for the loss.

The budget Gov. Chris Christie proposed in February says the state wants the first $50 million in natural resource recovery settlements to be used for cleanups, remediation and legal fees while claiming any additional settlement money for the general fund, which can be used for any purpose. Budget experts interviewed by The Associated Press said the administration needs to clarify its intent because the language in the budget proposal is imprecise.

"If the money is used for some other purpose, the communities will have to continue to live with this legacy of pollution and not be able to enjoy their natural resources," said Debbie Mans of NY/NJ Baykeeper.

Such a diversion of funds also could make polluters less willing to settle claims for more than $50 million, she said.

The proposal is likely to come up Monday when DEP Commissioner Bob Martin is scheduled to appear before the Assembly Budget Committee.

DEP spokesman Larry Ragonese declined to comment Friday.

The nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services has flagged the proposal for clarification.

Lawmakers will want to know, for example, how much of the settlement will actually be used for the cleanup of the Passaic, which for decades was an industrial dumping ground for toxins generated from the Diamond Alkali Co. plant in Newark, which produced Agent Orange and other deadly pesticides during the 1960s. About 100 companies dumped pollutants into the river.

Federal officials recently proposed a $1.7 billion cleanup of the lower 8 miles of the river, from Belleville to Newark, in one of the largest Superfund remediations ever proposed.

Officials anticipate that number will reach 2,000 before long

Nearly 1,000 Hurricane Sandy victims in New Jersey have filed lawsuits against their flood insurance providers since late 2013, and that number is expected to double in the next year, according to a report on NorthJersey.com.

The U.S. District Court Clerk’s Office said there have been 974 Sandy-related civil cases filed in New Jersey, and officials anticipate that number will reach 2,000 before long. The caseload is so intense that Chief Judge Jerome B. Simandle was tasked with creating a special plan to resolve cases within a median period of six months, the report said.

The spike in lawsuits was noticed about a year after Sandy, the report said, when many homeowners received compensation that was inadequate to cover the damage that the storm wreaked upon their homes.

There were also disputes over denied claims, when insurers attributed damage to winds, or any other cause not related to rising waters, the report said. The cases were filed against some 90 private insurance companies, which work with FEMA to provide flood insurance to residents and businesses.

In New York, where another 1,000 residents have filed lawsuits, experts found that homeowners have received fewer than 50 percent of the claims filed with flood insurance companies.

Simandle created a committee of two district court and six magistrate judges to make recommendations on how to manage the deluge of lawsuits. The committee established a six-month goal from the time of a filing to disposition of the case, the report said.

The committee consulted with the federal court for the Eastern District of New York, which established a similar plan, and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, which experienced a surge in lawsuits after Hurricane Katrina, the report said.

U.S. Sens. Robert Menendez and Charles Schumer today pledged to fight for Hurricane Sandy aid for New Jersey and New York. The federal government is considering creating a national competition for up to $2 billion of the remaining aid.

NEW YORK — Censuring a plan to set aside $1 billion or more of Hurricane Sandy relief aid for a national competition while homeowners continue to struggle to attain the financial resources to rebuild, two federal lawmakers today said they are fighting to give New York and New Jersey first dibs on the funding.

U.S. Sens. Robert Menendez, (D-N.J.), and Charles Schumer, (D-N.Y.), chastised the idea of creating the chance for other states to vie for funding for resiliency projects as a large need still remains among residents in the areas they represent. The money should be funneled into New York and New Jersey first, they said, then whatever funding remains may be offered up elsewhere.

“We must keep Sandy recovery funds for Sandy victims and not build our disaster relief capabilities in the future on the backs of those who already have lost so much,” Menendez said during a press conference at Schumer’s office in New York City. “Every dollar is critical for maximizing the effectiveness of our ongoing recovery efforts.”

The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is considering using up to $2 billion in Sandy aid to create a national resiliency competition. The report, which cited unnamed sources, said federal officials believed funding had to be spent in other areas because of the way the Sandy relief aid legislation was crafted.

Schumer today disputed that claim. He said while HUD technically has authority to give money to help with other disasters in 2011, 2012 and 2013, it’s not a requirement.

“Sandy was the reason the Sandy bill was passed. It was the clear intent of the legislation that New York and New Jersey homeowners get aid first and foremost,” he said.

However, according to HUD, others parts of the country hit by natural disasters have already received more than $1 billion in Sandy aid. That funding was partly directed to help with the aftermath of tornadoes in Joplin, Mo., and mudslides in Colorado.

Congress took three months after Sandy ravaged coastal communities in New York and New Jersey to pass a $50 billion Sandy aid package.

Of that, $16 billion was set aside for a flexible grant program administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Federal spending cuts reduced that amount to $15.2 billion.

So far, roughly $10.5 billion has been allocated, with most of that dedicated to New York and New Jersey.

New Jersey has so far received nearly $1.83 billion, with another $1.46 billion on the way. But nearly $18 billion in unmet needs for housing, economic development and infrastructure will remain in New Jersey after that second round of funding is distributed, according to the state.

The federal government has some $3.6 billion in flexible grants left to spread out.

HUD spokesman Patrick Rodenbush said the agency’s top priority is to work with state and local officials to address unmet needs for residents impacted by natural disasters.

“In regards to any disaster funding, no determination has been made on programming or allocations of remaining funds," he said.

A new report finds New Jersey's high school graduation rate is relatively high, and the number of "dropout factory" schools is shrinking.

TRENTON — A new report finds New Jersey's high school graduation rate is relatively high, and the number of "dropout factory" schools is shrinking.

But a national study released Monday by America's Promise and other education groups finds the state's low-income students are graduating at a lower rate than others.

The study finds that 86 percent of New Jersey students who entered the ninth grade in 2008 went on to graduate in 2012. That rate is among the top 11 in the nation and is 6 points higher than the national rate.

Seventy-five percent of New Jersey low-income students graduate, compared with 90 percent of others. That 15-point gap is the same as the national average.

The state had 21 "dropout factory" schools in 2012, three less than it had in 2002.

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Federal housing assistance this week ends for hundreds of New Jersey families who have been relying on the aid as they recover from Hurricane Sandy.

Federal housing assistance this week ends for hundreds of New Jersey families who have been relying on the aid as they recover from Hurricane Sandy.

The Wall Street Journal reported that more than 700 families in the state will lose the help on Thursday, as well as nearly 600 families in New York.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency provides the funding for the displaced residents. The aid is capped at $31,900.

Lawmakers earlier this year asked the federal government to extend the assistance for everyone remaining in the program. FEMA only extended the aid for the dozens of families staying in manufactured homes and at the former Fort Monmouth military base until the end of August.

The Wall Street Journal, citing FEMA statistics, reported that New Jersey had a high of 44,592 families relying on the temporary housing assistance.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as state governments, are working with families to find long-term housing help. A FEMA spokesman told The Wall Street Journal that they are working on a "one-on-one basis with disaster survivors in support of this mission."

Fines of up to $55,000 a day could be levied against airlines and online ticket sellers that fail to show all costs up front

Heading into the summer travel season, U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) wants to double fines against airlines and online ticket sellers that fail to post a ticket’s total cost upfront and hit buyers with additional charges when they check out.

Legislation announced today by Menendez would double the maximum penalties to up to $55,000 a day for airlines and large ticket sellers that are found to engage in such deceptive tactics.

Rep. Donald Payne Jr.William Perlman/The Star-Ledger 

"We may be living in the Information Age, but for passengers trying to understand the full cost of their airfare, it often feels more like the Stone Age," Menendez said in a statement. "There are more hidden costs seemingly every time they fly — bag fees, seat fees, pet fee — for years, airlines tried to hide these costs from travelers, making air travel look significantly cheaper than it actually is."

The Real Transparency in Airfares Act retains an existing rule that ticket sellers must disclose the full cost of a ticket upfront, but doubles the maximum penalty for violating the law, now $27,500 for airlines and large ticket sellers. A $2,500 per day maximum fine for small travel agencies would stay the same.

Menendez was joined for an afternoon press conference at Newark Liberty International Airport by Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-10th Dist.), who vowed to support the measure in the House and whose district includes the airport.

Menendez has called attention to deceptive airline ticketing practices in the past. In 2011, he called on the U.S. transportation secretary to create rules mandating transparent pricing, after they failed to be approved in federal legislation.

Similar rules, requiring price breakdowns for baggage, seating, boarding and any other costs, as well as taxes, were imposed by the U.S. Department of Transportation in January 2012.

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State Senate President Steve Sweeney issued a statement today calling on Rutgers University to explain why school officials allegedly rescinded an offer to former football player Eric LeGrand to serve as commencement speaker

TRENTON — State Senate President Steve Sweeney issued a statement today calling on Rutgers University to explain why school officials allegedly rescinded an offer to former football player Eric LeGrand to serve as commencement speaker.

LeGrand said Monday night a campus official asked him over the weekend to replace Condoleezza Rice as speaker at the May 18 ceremony. But he got another call Monday saying Rutgers President Robert Barchi had decided to name former Gov. Tom Kean as speaker.

“Eric LeGrand is an inspiration to the nation and arguably the most respected and visible ambassador for Rutgers," said Sweeney (D-Gloucester). "Eric is the quintessential role model, and a perfect choice to address Rutgers graduates and offer them advice about overcoming life’s challenges. He deserves an explanation.”

Rutgers officials have not responded to requests to comment.

LeGrand, who finished his degree in January, said he is unsure if he will attend the commencement ceremony at High Point Solutions Stadium in Piscataway. He became an inspiration to students and Rutgers fans after he fought to recover after he was paralyzed in a 2010 game.

Rice, the former U.S. Secretary of State, backed out of giving the speech Saturday after months of protests from faculty and students who said it was inappropriate to honor someone involved in the Iraq War, waterboarding and other Bush Administration policies.

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Former football player Eric LeGrand will speak at Rutgers University's commencement after all, campus officials announced today.

NEW BRUNSWICK — A few days ago, Rutgers University had no one to give its commencement address. Now, it has two graduation speakers.

The state university announced today former Rutgers football player Eric LeGrand will join former Gov. Tom Kean in addressing the graduates at the May 18 commencement ceremony. They will replace former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who dropped out Saturday amid campus protests about her involvement in the Iraq War.

LeGrand made headlines late Monday night when he posted on his Twitter account that university officials had asked him over the weekend to replace Rice as commencement speaker, then rescinded the offer Monday. LeGrand said he was hurt when he was told that Rutgers President Robert Barchi had selected Kean instead for "political reasons."

About 15 hours after LeGrand's tweet, Barchi released a statement saying it had all been a misunderstanding.

"Eric LeGrand will speak at our commencement and personally receive his degree from me as a representative of the Class of 2014," Barchi said in a statement. "It was never our intention that Eric would be the only speaker. We have resolved that miscommunication and are delighted to have him participate."

LeGrand was paralyzed in a 2010 Rutgers football game. He has since become an inspirational speaker and Rutgers fundraiser known for his positive attitude and support of the school as he works to regain movement in his body.

LeGrand, a labor relations major, finished his degree in January.

"Eric holds a special place in the hearts of the Class of 2014 and the entire university community. We are thrilled that he will be joining us on stage to make this special occasion ever more memorable," Barchi said.

LeGrand said he spoke to Barchi by phone today and the president explained there was confusion among Rutgers officials scrambling to line up a commencement speaker over the weekend. Barchi said he had secured Kean as speaker early Saturday, but members of his administration did not know that and called LeGrand later that day to see if he was available to speak.

"He said, 'Eric, I want to offer you a huge apology on my part on everything that has happened over the past 24 hours,'" LeGrand said. "He explained to me the whole situation and then before he ended it he said, 'I'm very sorry that you had to go through this whole thing.'"

LeGrand said he was told Kean will still be commencement speaker, but the former football player will be given as much time as needed to address his classmates in the stadium where his No. 52 jersey hangs. His number became the first in Rutgers history to be retired last fall.

"I just wish everything was worked out before, but I'm very happy now . . . to be able to speak at the commencement and I get to address the crowd," LeGrand said. "It's going to be amazing."

University officials did not say if LeGrand will be paid for his remarks. Rice was scheduled to receive a $35,000 honorarium for her speech.

Kean declined to take the fee for his commencement address. LeGrand said if he is offered a fee, he would like the money to go to "Team LeGrand" or a similar foundation dedicated to spinal cord research.

The addition of LeGrand to the graduation ceremony caps a whirlwind few days for Rutgers, which appeared to be caught off guard when Rice announced she was dropping out of the ceremony Saturday.

Last week, Rutgers students staged a sit-in outside Barchi's office to protest the selection of Rice as speaker. Faculty groups also objected to Rice, arguing a university should not give an honorary degree and $35,000 to someone involved in the Bush Administration's support of the Iraq War and controversial prisoner interrogation techniques, including waterboarding.

Rice announced she was bowing out because she didn't want the controversy to overshadow the graduation celebration.

About 40,000 people are expected to attend the commencement ceremony at High Point Solutions Stadium on the Piscataway campus.

LeGrand said he was first contacted by Greg Jackson, Barchi's chief of staff, Saturday night and asked to do the university a "favor" and give the commencement speech. LeGrand, who was attending a spinal cord research fundraiser in Florida, accepted the offer over the phone and the pair agreed to speak again Monday when he was back in New Jersey.

But on Monday, LeGrand said Rutgers athletic director Julie Hermann called him to say Barchi had named Kean as speaker.

"She told me, 'I was pushing for you, but President Barchi decided to go in another direction for political reasons. But he wants you to come to the ceremony. He wants to personally give you your degree,'" LeGrand said. "I just didn't know how to feel. I was hurt. They offered me this on Saturday and then they take it back on Monday. I was like, 'Why?'"

State Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D-Gloucester) was among the politicians who issued statements today urging Rutgers officials to explain why LeGrand would not be addressing the graduates.

After Rutgers' announcement that he would be speaking after all, LeGrand was back on Twitter this afternoon urging his supporters to move past the controversies and "keep the focus on the graduates."

NJ.com's Dan Duggan contributed to this report.

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