New York officials are suing the Trump administration to recover more than $73 million in highway funding, in a fight over noncitizens’ access to commercial drivers licenses.
It’s the latest of several battles between the federal government and New York over transportation — with courts repeatedly smacking down the Trump administration’s attempts to hold back funding over policy disputes.
State Attorney General Letitia James and Gov. Kathy Hochul filed the suit in federal court Friday. They’re looking to recover funds the federal Department of Transportation is withholding over licenses and permits it says were illegally issued. The state argues that it’s done nothing wrong, and that the licenses at the heart of the issue were issued in compliance with both state and federal regulations.
James and Hochul said in a press release that revoking the licenses would disrupt key industries, and could lead to bus driver shortages.
The Department of Transportation has said an audit by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration released in December found that more than half of the New York licenses reviewed had been issued in violation of federal law. Gothamist reported in February that the Hochul administration stopped issuing commercial drivers licenses to many immigrants following federal threats to withhold funding in response, drawing sharp criticism from transit unions.
But the transportation department alleges New York remains out of compliance, and this month announced it would withhold the $73 million — 4% of the state’s National Highway Performance Program. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy. said at the time he was holding the state accountable for failing to protect its residents from “unvetted, unqualified foreign drivers,” including by issuing eight-year licenses to noncitizen drivers without regard to when their legal status expires.
That money is used for road maintenance, safety upgrades and infrastructure projects across New York, according to Hochul and James. They plan to file a motion to expedite the case to head off any disruptions, according to their statement.
The federal transportation department has threatened to withhold an additional $147 million in future highway funding each year if New York doesn’t comply, according to James and Hochul.
State and federal authorities have also gone to court over New York City’s congestion pricing rules, with a federal judge saying in March the Trump administration’s attempt to stop the tolls was unlawful. Courts also ordered the administration to restore funds for the Second Avenue subway in a standoff over what the feds claimed were unlawfully awarded “DEI” contracts, as well as the Gateway Hudson Tunnel project.
— Stephen Nessen contributed reporting
