On Tuesday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie announced the formation of a bi-state “Special Panel on the Future of the Port Authority” with the mission of studying the “governance, legal and operational issues” that could lead to reform of the beleaguered agency. The panel will include two commissioners from each state, as well as the legal counsel of both Governors. (The announcement included no information about whether any good government groups will be included.) The panel is to report back in 60 days, well after Albany’s legislative session has ended.

While structural reform is undoubtedly needed at the Port Authority, and an initial comprehensive analysis of the options is a good place to start, there are two key concerns about the panel’s formation:

First, to what degree will this process be uninhibited by the interests of both Governors? Panel independence is key to any reform success. If Governor Cuomo’s recent comments about the Moreland Commission –“It’s my commission. I can’t ‘interfere’ with it, because it’s mine. It is controlled by me.” — are an indication of the level of independence that a special panel on the Port Authority panel would see, reform could be hard to come by.

Second, will the formation of this panel conveniently delay the Governors from signing crucial legislation that would immediately improve public access to information related to the Port Authority’s decisions? The public needs and deserves a seat at the table, both literally and figuratively. If the Governors are really serious about reform, they should move quickly, outside the panel’s work, to close a loophole that keeps the public in the dark: applying “sunshine” laws that grant the public access Port Authority documents. As TSTC recently pointed out:

[R]equests for information are considered under the Port Authority’s “Freedom of Information Code,” which is neither policy nor law. The code can be altered without legislative oversight, and there are no state courts that have clear jurisdiction to appeal a denied request.

As an act of good faith, Governors Cuomo and Christie could help move legislation, widely supported in both the New York and New Jersey’s legislatures, that would close this loophole without the approval of the Governors’ proposed panel.