And that next Generation may include Jersey city mayor Steve Phillip the gubernatorial hopeful is laying early groundwork in his campaign bid today unveiling an ambitious Transportation plan that includes everything from bringing back attacks on large corporations to New Jersey's own version of a congestion pricing plan senior correspondent Brenda Flanagan reports the end of the day it all comes back to mobility and transportation and how do we move people around a congested State Steven Phillip wants to fix NJ Transit tax major corporations to pay for it and hit New Yorkers with congestion pricing fees for driving West over the Hudson the first Democrat to declare he's running for New Jersey governor steered his campaign policy on Transportation straight into the progressive left lane from my standpoint I think we've put together a plan here that will change the focus more towards mass transit and have an impact on every single resident in New Jersey on moving people around Phillips Transportation policy paper lists some long-sought goals like a dedicated funding source for NJ Transit which was an early campaign promise of Governor Murphy's we will fix NJ Transit if it kills me and it might I mean I I don't think it's going to kill him if he doesn't fix it and I don't think it's going to get fixed Philip aims to reverse Murphy's policy and reinstate the two and a half percent and surcharge on New Jersey's corporate business tax due to Sunset this year to help the agency's looming billion dollar deficit it only impacts the larger corporations so there was no reason to have that Sunset and uh it matches almost perfectly with The Gap that exists today it clearly is an attainable goal because it is something that's been done before his policy promotes mass transit over regular highway driving although Philip wants to reform New Jersey's Infamous Motor Vehicle Commission but he's prioritizing the PATH train service which he says the Port Authority often ignores Philip would pay for path expansion and upgrades by imposing a congestion pricing fee on New York drivers who cross the Hudson tunnels and bridges into New Jersey he supports the concept as environmentally sound and says Jersey should have flexed its Port Authority veto as leverage instead of filing a lawsuit to get a better deal I think that that is a better conversation than going through the courts which we are surely going to lose I think it's a mistake the tone of New Jersey with regards to how we have approached the congestion pricing conversation transportation is just the first item on Phillips fixed New Jersey agenda he plans to introduce more over the next few months part of a political campaign with a deliberately long Runway if you are trying to use your time to your advantage by the time other candidates announce you want to have built the bandwagon you want people on board with you and so he's got to present interesting ideas along the way writers Micah Rasmussen says Phillips super early entry into the 2025 race for governor gives him time to build name recognition outside of Jersey City where he served a decade as mayor he's earned support from Hudson and Warren County Democrats and is wooing progressives as likely primary voters I think it makes sense that some of our more liberal Progressive voters in this kind country are in our cities and so it doesn't surprise me maybe that um an urban Transportation agenda would be more Progressive he says New Jersey rarely elects the same party to the governor's office three times in a row Phillips got to Buck that Trend and offer Democrats something different in the primary at least it's going to be a policy oriented Grassroots campaign and um we're going to put everything we have into it and let the voters decide in Jersey City I'm Brenda Flanagan NJ Spotlight news [Music]