Bergen County Executive Jim Tedesco and the Bergen County Board of Commissioners have filed an amicus brief in support of the State of New Jersey’s legal action against the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s proposed congestion pricing scheme in New York City.
“New York’s unilateral decision to finally address years of financial mismanagement at the MTA by plugging revenue holes at the environmental and financial detriment of Bergen County residents and businesses is shameful and must be stopped,” Tedesco said. “In the interest of Bergen County’s nearly one million residents, my administration fully supports the State of New Jersey and Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich’s efforts to pump the brakes on this selfish money grab by New York City.”
“By joining the State of New Jersey lawsuit against congestion pricing, we affirm our commitment to supporting the well-being of our community,” Bergen County Commissioner Chairwoman Germaine Ortiz said. “The failure to thoroughly consider the impact on neighboring states is evident. We demand to be part of the decision-making process and will never stop advocating for the needs and health of all Bergen County residents.”
In the brief filed Jan. 8, the county argues the plan will burden Bergen County residents by increasing air pollution and increased traffic. The brief further argues the congestion pricing plan is designed to only benefit New York City at the expense of Bergen County and its residents.
The county’s legal team is expected to receive a decision on whether its brief is accepted on Feb. 5.
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, a place where he has served on and off since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on Facebook Live, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to West Hudson to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.