Federal lawsuit filed to stop Ohio Turnpike toll money from going toward non-Tur

[cpzilliacus]

Cleveland.com: Federal lawsuit filed to stop Ohio Turnpike toll money from going toward non-Turnpike projects

A lawsuit filed in federal court in Cleveland is challenging the state of Ohio's decision to pay for highway and construction projects with toll money collected from drivers on the Ohio Turnpike.

The suit says the commission's use of toll money to pay for non-Turnpike projects violates both the state and U.S. constitutions.

"The Turnpike and the non-Turnpike projects are not part of an integrated transportation system and there is no benefit confirmed on Turnpike users, as Turnpike users, by the unrelated non-Turnpike projects funded with the increased tolls," the lawsuit says.

Jim DeRoche, an attorney who works for Cuyahoga County Democratic Party Chairman Stuart Garson's law firm, filed the lawsuit against the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission. The suit was originally filed in March in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, but the commission moved it to federal court on Monday.

[hbelkins]

"No benefit confirmed...?"

Don't lawyers have to pass basic English courses anymore?

I wonder if that is anything like "no benefit conferred?"

[kkt]

Lawyers, yes.  Newspaper reporters, no.

[oscar]

The typo is in the lawsuit itself, signed by a lawyer, rather than by the reporter. However, other parts of the filed lawsuit correctly use "conferred" instead.

Lawyers use, and fall victim to, spell-check too.

[The Nature Boy]

Wouldn't everyone who lives in Ohio NOT have standing here? You get a benefit from the maintenance of the roads that lead you to the turnpike. Even out of staters get some benefit from the tolls going to non-turnpike roads. Someone has to staff those rest areas and if they can't get to work, you don't get your services.

[oscar]

Wouldn't everyone who lives in Ohio NOT have standing here? You get a benefit from the maintenance of the roads that lead you to the turnpike. Even out of staters get some benefit from the tolls going to non-turnpike roads. Someone has to staff those rest areas and if they can't get to work, you don't get your services.

Standing is not an issue here -- even a small amount of specific, concrete injury to an individual can be enough to get her into court. Plus, IIRC, this suit was filed as a class action, so it's not just one or a few taxpayers or road users.

I only scanned the lawsuit papers for the typo discussed above. Especially with claims raised under the Ohio Constitution, which I know nothing about, I have no idea whether the suit might have any legal merit. 

[cpzilliacus]

Wouldn't everyone who lives in Ohio NOT have standing here? You get a benefit from the maintenance of the roads that lead you to the turnpike. Even out of staters get some benefit from the tolls going to non-turnpike roads. Someone has to staff those rest areas and if they can't get to work, you don't get your services.

Which then begs the question - what about all the other states that divert toll dollars to projects and services that have little or nothing to do with the toll road or toll crossing on which the money was collected?

Such as:

New Jersey
New York
Pennsylvania (probably the most-egregious)
Virginia (though the case could be made that Dulles Toll Road dollars diverted to Dulles Rail construction has some benefit for Toll Road patrons).

And probably several other states.