Christie Backed Law That Lets Him Divert ExxonMobil Settlement From Environmental Cleanup

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4. N.J. senators plan lawsuit to block $250M pollution settlement from Exxon

N.J. senators plan lawsuit to block $250M pollution settlement from Exxon
State lawmakers are trying to block a reported pennies-on-the-dollar settlement with Exxon Mobil and get answers as to why Governor Christie’s administration reached that deal after a decade of litigation.

Days after the news of that settlement – a reported $250 million to end an $8.9 billion claim against the oil company for widespread contamination across Bayonne and Linden – legislators said they still don’t know why the state would strike a deal for a fraction of the estimated cost of damages, especially after the oil giant was found liable. But they are working to find out.

Senate President Stephen Sweeney, D-Gloucester, and Sen. Ray Lesniak, D-Union, said they intend to file a lawsuit to block the settlement, which has not been approved by a judge. The settlement was first reported Friday by The New York Times.

Lesniak, who grew up in the area that was contaminated, has also filed an open-records request seeking documents related to the settlement and vowed to challenge it “every step of the way.”