SCOTT FALLON / NORTHJERSEY.COM – In a move environmentalists likened to a betrayal, Gov. Phil Murphy plans to divert more than half of a controversial $225 million settlement with Exxon Mobil to balance the proposed state budget while using only $50 million for environmental restoration, an administration official confirmed this week.
Such a diversion was to be stopped under a constitutional amendment that voters overwhelmingly approved in November that dedicates “all moneys” from environmental settlements “to repair, restore, replace, or preserve the State’s natural resources.” …