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Port Authority cooperating with probe

Ex-chairman Samson under federal investigation for possible preferential treatment from airline.

JERSEY CITY, N.J. - The chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said Thursday the agency is cooperating with authorities investigating whether his predecessor received preferential treatment from United Airlines.

John Degnan, at the Port Authority's monthly board meeting, addressed questions about former Chairman David Samson, who is being investigated over flights between Newark and Columbia, S.C., where he has a vacation home.

Federal authorities have requested records from United and from Columbia Metropolitan Airport. A direct flight between Newark and Columbia began while Samson was chairman of the Port Authority and ended days after he resigned last year.

Degnan said he wouldn't comment on the Samson investigation while it was going on, but said it would be illegal for any Port Authority commissioner to use his position for personal gain.

If it happened, he said, it would lead to an investigation and those found to be involved would "pay the consequences."

"There's no . . . lack of clarity on what the responsibility is for the commissioners in respect to that. We should not ever, under any circumstances or for any reason, leverage our positions at the Port Authority to secure a personal benefit."

Samson hasn't commented on the investigation.

The Port Authority, which runs area bridges, tunnels, and transit hubs, including Newark Liberty International Airport, has been receiving deep scrutiny since accusations early last year that approach lanes to its George Washington Bridge were shut down from political motives. The lanes were allegedly closed to spite the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee after he declined to endorse Republican Gov. Christie for reelection.

Christie, who along with New York's governor appoints Port Authority board members, has denied any knowledge of or involvement in what happened at the bridge, one of the nation's busiest.

The Port Authority's inspector general's office is investigating airport perks that may have been received by several commissioners, Degnan said. He added that the practice was a holdover from an earlier era at the Port Authority, and wouldn't be allowed to continue.

"For years, in a different climate and different times, commissioners frequently asked for that kind of assistance," he said. "I'm not prepared to indict someone or criticize them for taking advantage of what was then a permissible policy by the Port Authority. I applaud the Port Authority for keeping records, and I think we made the right decision by making them public. Should it be done today? No."

United Airlines, which is based in Chicago and whose parent company is United Continental Holdings Inc., has confirmed receiving a subpoena in the Samson probe.