Paying to guard nuke plants
It probably was news to most New Jersey residents to learn that the state pays to help guard the Oyster Creek nuclear power plant in Lacey and three reactors in Salem County. But no more, if Gov. Corzine has his way. His budget proposal calls for an assessment of $4.4 million on the plants' owners for the State Police and National Guard personnel who supplement the private security forces at the four plants.
It's remarkable that these private companies - Exelon at Osyter Creek and PSEG at Salem - have been getting away with this free service from the state all these years. Any sharp state auditor should have caught it long ago.
It's remarkable that these private companies - Exelon at Osyter Creek and PSEG at Salem - have been getting away with this free service from the state all these years. Any sharp state auditor should have caught it long ago.
posted by Larry Benjamin at 2:21 PM
2 Comments:
If, as is being suggested, the Parkway and Turnpike are sold to a private company, should that company be charged with keeping the peace and protecting motorists' safety on those roads? If the State Police were to continue to patrol, rather than telling the company to provide its own security, would that be an outrageous boondoggle?
Just a thought.
If it is passed on the the ratepayers (golly that is just about everybody), the utility will be able to add a profit to it. The utility will also have to pay people to keep track of the costs and take care of the added complications in tax compliance.
So the suggestion of the brilliant journalist would actually increase everybody's costs and add nothing to benefit anybody.
Maybe newspapers and banks should also pay protection money to the state. After all this is New Jersey.
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