NJ E-ZPass Contract Bungled

State Commission of Investigation officials have stopped short of recommending prosecution for the way the Whitman administration launched E-ZPass in New Jersey.

But in releasing a report Tuedsay, the panel suggested changes in the contract and oversight process.

The SCI said Whitman administration officials so badly mismanaged the deal that it smacks of wrongdoing.

The report said top transportation executives rushed the job and negotiated vaguely worded contracts.

The administration said fines on toll cheats would pay for E-ZPass.

The system routinely malfunctioned and was $400 million in debt by 2002. That's when Gov. Jim McGreevey fired the operator, cut toll discounts and ordered a monthly surcharge.

Author: NBC10/AP