A New Jersey state lawmaker is asking the Trump administration to halt a nearly $2 billion deal for a Singapore-based company to operate the state turnpike’s E-ZPass system because of alleged ties to the Chinese Community Party, which the company denies.
Sen. Joseph Pennacchio, Montville Republican, said he plans to plead for help from Washington because Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority have failed to ease the security concerns he and others have raised about the TransCore contract.
“I would hope the administration could halt the deal and vet this company for personal and national security issues that have been raised,” Mr. Pennacchio, the deputy Republican leader of the state Senate, told The Washington Times.
TransCore said it has no link to China. It said the blowback is from a bitter competitor “focused on public fear-mongering rather than on improving the quality of its products and services.”
Mr. Pennacchio said he trusts the Trump administration more than the Murphy or Biden administrations to conduct proper oversight.
President Trump issued an “American First Investment Policy” memorandum last week to restrict Chinese investments in the U.S.
Citing national security concerns, the policy says the “United States should not allow the [People’s Republic of China] to take over the United States critical infrastructure” and that China often uses “partner companies or investment funds in third countries” to pursue its interests in the U.S.
The White House declined to comment on the TransCore deal.
In September, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority Board of Commissioners unanimously voted to award TransCore an 11-year, $1.73 billion contract. The company was found to have “technical and operational capabilities … superior to those of its competitors.”
One of those competitors, Conduent Inc. of Newark, has operated the E-ZPass operations for decades and has appealed the decision. Conduent says its $1.479 billion proposal would have given New Jersey taxpayers a better value.
Conduent, which continues to run the E-ZPass operations while the new contract is under appeal, has warned about TransCore’s purported ties to China.
TransCore is owned by Singapore-based ST Engineering. A former board member of Temasek, ST Engineering’s parent company, is a high-ranking member of the Chinese Communist Party.
Temasek announced in November that the board member, Fu Chengyu, was stepping down.
TransCore has won other New Jersey contracts, including a 2022 award to design, build and operate an all-electronic toll collection system for the Atlantic City Expressway.
Rep. Jefferson Van Drew, New Jersey Republican, sent a letter this month urging the New Jersey Turnpike Authority Board of Commissioners to reconsider the TransCore deal.
“It is completely unacceptable that a company with connections to the CCP could be given access to vast amounts of sensitive U.S. traffic data, including driving habits, travel patterns, and potential infrastructure vulnerabilities,” Mr. Van Drew said. “This is a direct threat to both our national security and the privacy of millions of Americans.”
TransCore President Whitt Hall responded in a letter that Conduent is “paying a consultant to spread misinformation” and “false narratives” in an attempt to get the contract revoked and said there is “no connection between TransCore, or its parent company ST Engineering (STE), with the Chinese Communist Party.”
“TransCore entered into a National Security Agreement (NSA) with the U.S. government after rigorous Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) review and approval to assure that no personally identifiable information (PII) or protected data collected by TransCore’s tolling systems is ever accessible by or shared with any foreign entity or affiliate, including STE,” Mr. Hall said.
Mr. Hall said the company could not discuss the “merits of the best value contract award” while it is under appeal.
Conduent said TransCore “neglected to address the fact that Fu Chengyu, a longtime chairman of state-owned Chinese oil companies and a high-ranking member of the Chinese Communist Party with connections to China’s United Front was, until recently, a member of Tamasek’s board of directors.”
“Furthermore, the response portrayed Temasek as merely one of many shareholders, rather than acknowledging it as the majority and controlling shareholder that consented to Singapore Technologies’ acquisition of TransCore,” a Conduent spokesperson said.
Mr. Murphy’s office and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority did not respond to requests for comment. The issue was unresolved this week at the Turnpike Authority’s Board of Commissioners meeting.
A spokesperson for the turnpike authority, which operates one of the largest toll road systems in the U.S., previously said the contract will remain on hold until a decision is made on the Conduent appeal.
Despite TransCore’s assurances, Mr. Pennacchio said the company and deal need more vetting and hoped the Trump administration would intervene.
“We all looking at almost a $2 billion contract here,” he said.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.