The governor quickly backtracked, extending the BEIP payouts for an extra year to compensate for canceling this year's payments. In the wake of the furor, a panel has been formed by the state to study BEIP and other state incentive programs and their relative effectiveness.

Co-chaired by William Watley, who heads the New Jersey Commerce & Economic Growth Commission, and attorney Ted Zangari of the Sill Cummis Law Firm of Newark, the New Jersey Business Incentives Study Commission is made up of top public and private sector leaders, including many of the state's best-known real estate people. The commission, which has been divided into "critical examination" and "comparative analysis" working groups, is dotted with such names as Seena Stein of Newmark of NJ, Mitchell Hersh of Mack-Cali, Richard Johnson of Matrix, Harrison LeFrak of the Lefrak Organization, Gil Medina of Cushman & Wakefield and Robert Rudin of Insignia/ESG, to name a few.

"The current [state] budget crisis has forced public officials to weigh competing budgetary priorities," co-chair Zangari told the group at its initial meeting Monday. "Funding for BEIP has not gone unscathed in the budget process, but even before recent events surrounding BEIP, the soft office real estate market and uncertainty within the telecom and pharmaceutical industries had already prompted many of us in commercial real estate to take a step back and consider whether New Jersey remains at the top of its game.