Hochul Giving Up on Commuter Tax is Too Little, Too Late
Opinion Advocates for ideas and draws conclusions based on the author/producer’s interpretation of facts and data.
We recently saw Kathy Hochul and Albany Democrats finally give up on the so-called “congestion pricing plan” they’ve been trying to shove down our throats. They abandoned their plan to charge drivers $15 to enter lower Manhattan.
Before we start applauding this decision, however, there are a few questions worth asking.
We can assume this decision wasn’t made because of the consistent opposition from first responders, small business owners and Rockland residents who have no reliable mass transit options for their commute into Manhattan. If this was done out of respect for them, Albany would have listened to them the first 20 times they raised this concern on the floor of the state legislature, at numerous public hearings and in the news.
Could it be that Hochul and friends are anxious about the 2024 election season and the consequences that races in the New York metro area will inevitably have on the national level?
Another valid question: What was the cost to taxpayers for this 11th-hour reversal? Congestion pricing was set to begin in a matter of weeks. How much have we all paid for the cameras, tolling software and endless bureaucracy? How much money was spent on “consultants,” private contractors and senior-level advisers who paved the way for this plan, who chose these people and according to what criteria?
Perhaps most importantly, who will be held accountable for this blatant waste of money? Some elected officials have consistently opposed this, including the Hudson Valley’s own Congressman Mike Lawler, who introduced legislation to withhold federal transportation funding from the MTA until congestion pricing was repealed. Other politicians agitated for this cash grab, like former congressman Mondaire Jones and disgraced ex-governor Andrew Cuomo. Now they try to rewrite the story.
Voters know better and won’t fall for it. Oppose Jones’ and Hochul’s vain attempts to save their own skin. Support leaders like Lawler, who have been consistent on this issue from the start.
Gabrielle Smith
Mahopac
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