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NJ Federal Judge Leo Gordon’s Order Blocks Congestion Pricing Tax

Requires further FHA review

Statement by Susan Lee, President, New Yorkers Against Congestion Pricing Tax

New Yorkers Against Congestion Pricing Tax, the coalition of residents from diverse neighborhoods around NYC who initiated a lawsuit to demand that the FHA perform an EIS to show the real impacts of Congestion Pricing on our communities, applauds the order issued by New Jersey Federal Judge Leo Gordon that sends the Congestion Pricing Tax back to the FHA to review whether this tax scheme complies with all federal legal mandates.

The Judge’s order confirms our position that this scheme is fundamentally flawed.  The order requires a further review that subjects any decision on its validity until late January into February of the new year. 

Any MTA attempt to proceed pending a final resolution would be both foolish and costly.  Following this order, we say to the MTA: “not so fast.”

Our Class Action lawsuit concerning the MTA’s failure to follow SAPA (the New York State Administrative Procedure Act) remains pending in SDNY.

SAPA requires consideration of socio-economic impacts, including on small business and workers. It is especially important because the toll tax impacts marginalized New Yorkers who will be hurt by the Congestion Pricing Tax which would cut into their pockets and pocketbooks.

The implementation of this toll-tax scheme would increase the costs of goods and services in every NYC neighborhood for small businesses and all New Yorkers whether they take public transit, ride a bike, walk, rely on for hire vehicles or drive a car; increase traffic and pollution and incidence of asthma in environmentally sensitive communities including the Lower East Side, Chinatown, and the South Bronx; and kill jobs that many lower income New Yorkers depend on –  one cannot get more socio-economic than that!

Last Spring we proposed “A 5-point Plan to Save Public Transit,” especially as a starting point. That plan includes funding MTA Capital Program the same way NYC and NYS fund their regular capital programs. Funding for public transit should be a priority in the same manner the city and state fund schools, hospitals, senior center, roads, libraries, museums and parks. Since PublicTransit fuels the City economy which fuels the state economy which fuels the U.S. economy, secure steady stream of capital funding from the Federal government.

The federal government must come through with substantial funding for the Public transit system that fuels the economy of the City and State that in turn fuel the national economy.

As to new revenues, look at the “menu” of one dozen alternatives identified by Keep NYC Congestion Tax Free.

Ultimately we still look forward to an outcome that leads to a path that protects New Yorkers from a deleterious environment and economy-killing toll-tax also harmful to public health and to devote public resources as appropriate and outlined above.

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GEORGE LATIMER GOES TO WASHINGTON

HAMILTON GREEN PHASE TWO DEBUTS

2024 THE YEAR OF HATE

THE WHITE PLAINS PLANNING BOARD IN ACTION  ONE WHITE PLAINS COMPREHENSIVE PLAN

LOCAL JOURNALISM LOSES 3 NEWSPAPERS

STATE OF THE COUNTY ECONOMY THEN AND NOW

LATIMER’S PRIMARY VICTORY OUSTS INCUMBENT JAMAAL BOWMAM

COUNTY COMPUTER OUTAGE RESTORED IN HOURS

WHITE PLAINS STAYS WITH WESTCHESTER POWER GREEN ENERGY PROGRAM WITH LOWER GREEN RATE

ONE WHITE PLAINS COMPREHENSIVE PLAN DEAD ON ARRIVAL AS MASSIVE REVISIONS ARE MADE AS NEIGHBORHOODS FIGHT SUGGESTED ENCROACHMENTS (YOU CAN FIGHT CITY HALL IN WHITE PLAINS)

BREADLINES IN WESTCHESTER COUNTY THE GROWING NEED FOR FOOD

MAYOR JOE DIES AT 91

FIRST “WHITE CHRISTMAS” IN 15 YEARS

SCHOOL BUDGET PASSES, COORDINATORS COMBINED DESPITE TEACHER PROTESTS

GEORGE LATIMER RIDES INTO THE SUNSET TO CONGRESS 16TH DISTRICT

30 STORIES IN 30 MINUTES: WHERE WE WERE WHERE WHITE PLAINS IS GOING

JOHN BAILEY AND HIS TRADITIONAL STORIES OF THE YEAR ROUNDUP REMUDA

JOHN BAILEY AND THE NEWS

THIS WEEK EVERY WEEK SINCE 2001 A.D.

2025 IS  THE WHITE PLAINS WEEK 24TH YEAR ON THE AIR IN THE UNIVERSE IN WHITE PLAINS NEW YORK USA

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JOHN BAILEY OF “PEOPLE TO BE HEARD” INTERVIEWS SENATOR MAYER DISTRICT 37 ON THE ISSUES AFOOT IN THE NEW STATE LEGISLATURE.

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Congressman-elect George Latimer (CD-16) is proud to announce the establishment of two district offices to serve the residents of the Bronx and Westchester County.

These offices, designed to be accessible and community-centered, reflect Latimer’s commitment to ensuring that every constituent feels connected to their federal representative and empowered to seek assistance.

With the offices set to open in January, Latimer, who has built his career on listening to his constituents and delivering meaningful results, is focused on bringing that same dedication to his work in Washington, D.C.

Latimer said: “Everyone who knows me knows that I am committed to being as embedded in the communities I serve as possible. These two district offices will ensure that residents of the Bronx and Westchester County have direct access to their federal representative. This is about listening, responding and solving problems together.”

What the District Offices Will Provide:

• Constituent Services: Assistance with federal programs, including Social Security, Medicare, veterans’ benefits, and immigration.

• Community Outreach: A space for engaging with local organizations, hosting town halls, and collaborating on community initiatives.

• Advocacy Support: A resource for navigating federal agencies and addressing pressing local issues.

Locations:

• Bronx District Office: 177 Dreiser Loop Room 3 Bronx, New York 10475

• Westchester District Office: 222 Mamaroneck Ave., Suite 312, White Plains, NY 10605

The public is invited to attend ribbon-cutting ceremonies at both locations, scheduled for mid- January and tour of the new facilities.

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	View in browser Outbreak Outlook – Northeast – Dec 23 DEC 23 READ IN APP Welcome to the Northeast edition of Outbreak Outlook! It is only available to paid subscribers. If you wish to become a paid subscriber and access region-specific information, please click the Subscribe now button below. Thanks for reading! -Caitlin Subscribed Respiratory Diseases ILI There is plenty of influenza-like illness in the Northeast, as we head into the biggest gathering weeks of the year. Still, the region is in better shape than other parts of the country when it comes to severe illness (plot below shows ED visits). New York City leads the Northeast with very high outpatient ILI at 6.8%, up from 5.7%. New Jersey is next with outpatient ILI at 5.7%, up from 5.4% last week. ED visits there are quite low though, up to 1.4% from 0.8%. New York and Connecticut show similar activity levels, with outpatient ILI at 2.9% and 2.8% respectively. New York’s ED visits doubled to 1.0% from 0.5%, while Connecticut’s ED visits rose to 0.6% from 0.3%. Massachusetts follows closely with outpatient ILI at 2.7%, as ED visits increased modestly to 0.8% from 0.6%. Pennsylvania is reporting outpatient ILI at 1.9%, showing a slight decrease from last week, while ED visits increased to 0.8% from 0.6%. Northern New England shows lower activity levels. New Hampshire reports outpatient ILI at 1.7%, with ED visits rising to 1.1% from 0.6%. Rhode Island and Maine show similar outpatient ILI rates around 1.5%, though their ED visit patterns differ. Vermont maintains the region’s lowest activity with outpatient ILI at 0.8%, while ED visits increased slightly to 0.3% from 0.1%. COVID-19 Covid-19 is poised to make a comeback, though thankfully we are starting from a place of very low activity so it will be a while before levels are substantial. New Hampshire leads the region with very high wastewater levels, nearly doubling from the previous week. ED visits increased slightly to 1.2% from 1.1%. Massachusetts, Maine, and Rhode Island all report high wastewater activity. Massachusetts shows ED visits increasing to 1.0%, while Maine’s ED visits rose to 1.2%. Rhode Island’s ED visits increased to 0.8% from 0.5%. Pennsylvania maintains high wastewater levels with ED visits slightly increasing to 0.8%. Connecticut shows moderate wastewater activity with stable ED visits at 0.9%, while hospitalization rates decreased significantly to 0.2 from 3.2 per 100,000. Vermont reports low wastewater levels with ED visits increasing to 1.1%. New Jersey and New York show minimal wastewater activity. New York’s ED visits remained stable at 0.5%, while hospitalization rates decreased to 1.2 from 3.1 per 100,000. RSV RSV is up too, rounding out the “big 3” respiratory infections. Massachusetts and New Jersey lead with ED visits at 1.1%, with New Jersey increasing from 0.9% last week. New Hampshire follows closely at 1.0%, up from 0.7%. New York reports ED visits at 0.6% but shows elevated hospitalization rates at 3.0 per 100,000, up from 2.0. Connecticut shows ED visits at 0.8% with hospitalization rates increasing to 2.1 from 1.6 per 100,000. The remaining states show lower activity levels. Pennsylvania reports ED visits at 0.6%, while Rhode Island, Vermont, and Maine show decreasing activity levels from 0.5% to 0.1% in ED visits. Stomach Bugs Data were not updated this week, but I think we can assume that activity is still high! Food recalls The following foods are being recalled because they are contaminated. Please check your cupboards and throw out any of these items: New: None Previously reported: Connie’s Thin Crust Cheese Frozen Pizzas (more info) Daily Veggies Enoki Mushrooms (more info) Sprouts Markers Market Gyro Family Kit (more info) MadeGood Granola Bars (various flavors and varieties) (more info) Blue Ridge Beef log Puppy Mix [for Dogs]. While not for human consumption, humans may be infected by Salmonella if they do not adequately wash their hands or contaminated surfaces after handling the product. (more info) If you have food allergies, you may wish to review these FDA safety alerts and USDA alerts for foods with undeclared allergens. In other news Programming note: I’m off next week so there will be no regional editions. Happy holidays! North Penn High School in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania has reported an outbreak of pertussis (whooping cough). Pertussis is having a banner year around the country.