NEW JERSEY – Assemblyman Mike Inganamort is calling out New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s congestion tax as an unfair and desperate “money grab” targeting New Jersey commuters.
“This is a money grab, plain and simple,” said Inganamort, a member of the state Assembly Transportation Committee. “The MTA is hemorrhaging money and New Jerseyans shouldn’t be forced to bail them out. We’re not chumps.”
He pointed to a Citizens Budget Commission report showing that nearly half of New York bus riders skipped fares in 2023, costing the MTA more than $700 million. He also criticized the agency for wasting $1 billion on unnecessary, oversized designs for its Second Avenue subway expansion plan in East Harlem.
President-elect Donald Trump has called the tax a “disaster” and promised to cancel it during his first week in office. Inganamort echoed Trump’s criticism, insisting that the tax unfairly shifts the MTA’s failures onto New Jersey commuters.
“If Governor Hochul’s goal is to keep New Jerseyans out of New York City, the rising violent crime is doing that already,” said Inganamort. “Instead of improving safety, after a year where 11 people were murdered on New York subways, she’s making it more expensive for people to drive in the safety of their own cars.”
He urges New Jersey and federal leaders to block the congestion tax, calling it a direct attack on the wallets and safety of hardworking commuters.
