A Department of Transport lawyer appears to have mistakenly uploaded an internal memo detailing the federal agency’s plans to kill crowd pricing in New York, admitting that it is “highly unlikely” to succeed.
11 pages of filing Posted A court docket, then quickly removed late Wednesday, will list the hole in the legal debate of Transport Secretary Sean Duffy, and will suspend a fee program that will charge drivers entering Manhattan under 60th Avenue for $9 fees.
The three government lawyers were tasked with defending Duffy’s move, raising doubts on his claim that the Fed is entitled to elicit approval of the first national scheme to be given green light during the Biden administration under the DOT pilot program.
“That judge is unlikely [Lewis] Liman or further review courts; [congestion pricing plan] He was not a legally licensed “value price” pilot under the Value Pricing Pilot Program,” the letter reads.
“We were unable to identify any compelling legal arguments to support this position,” the lawyer continued, “cited many examples of courts that are giving space to local governments to try new social and economic experiments.
The lawyers were also skeptical of Duffy’s claim that crowded prices violated federal law because they didn’t provide drivers with free replacements.
And Duffy pointed out that the fee amount was set based on how much money the state needs to raise for the Metropolitan Transportation Agency, not as a way to actually ease gridlocks on Manhattan’s busiest streets.
“Both of these reasons… are likely to convince the court,” the memo said.
“It is very unlikely that Judge Liman or further review courts will support the Secretary’s decision on the legal basis as clarified in the letter,” the lawyer wrote.
They also stated that “there is no other material thing to support or explain Dot’s change in position” besides Duffy’s decision itself. It could be at risk of “including requests for the production of emails from officials of the agency, including secretaries,” and “particularly including requests for record-breaking discoveries.”
The lawyer pointed out another pathway where Duffy could kill plans through management and budget firms “as a matter of changing agency priorities.” However, they pointed out that arguments could also be criticized in court.
A letter that Duffy sent to Gov. Kathy Hochul this week appears to indicate he has a shifting strategy after the second federal deadline to stop collecting tolls, including a “formal ‘end’ notice.”
However, the lawyers pointed out that the so-called “cooperative agreement” between the MTA and the federal government “does not have an explicit termination provision” and that the changes could lead to a separate environmental review process, which could “evaluate the environmental impact of termination.”
The memo was filed in Manhattan Federal Court for the MTA’s case against DOT, which attempts to stop the Fed from suspending its controversial program.
In a recent hearing in the case, government lawyers postponed questions about the Trump administration’s move to kill traffic prices on Duffy.
Hochul’s office did not immediately return a request for comment.
Proponents of the Transit quickly celebrated the careless sharing of internal memos.
“Last night’s leaks scream at the quiet part. The federal government at Fakeless won’t sue New York’s hugely successful crowd relief program,” said Danny Pearlstein, Director of Rider Alliance Policy and Communications.
“Bus riders and drivers can enjoy faster commutes, while subway riders will gain reliable signals and accessible stations for a very long time to come.”
