NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) -- New York and New Jersey told a federal judge that the Trump administration has yet to unfreeze federal funds withheld from the $16 billion Gateway tunnel under the Hudson River, even after her order became effective Thursday for the money to be paid.
US District Judge Jeannette Vargas agreed to hold a status conference at 3 p.m. Friday, after the states asked her for a hearing to discuss reasons for the delay, according to court filings.
Last week, Vargas put her order on hold until 5 p.m. Thursday to allow the administration time to secure an emergency stay from an appeals court. That deadline passed without the court intervening, except to agree to consider the government’s request at a hearing no sooner than Feb. 23. The states say the US Department of Transportation has had 20 hours to release the funds, and still hasn’t.
The administration hasn’t “provided any clear assurances about when the funds would be released,” the states said in the filing. “In the meantime, plaintiffs continue to suffer irreparable harm with each additional day of delay.”
A Transportation Department spokesperson said Friday the agency is following the court order. A spokesperson for the Justice Department didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Work on the project has been suspended since early February after the Trump administration froze its federal funding in October over a new Department of Transportation rule that bans race or gender-based contracting requirements. Gateway says that it has complied with the DOT’s regulations. Roughly 1,000 construction workers were let go when the project was suspended.
The case is State of New Jersey and State of New York v US Department of Transportation, 26-cv-939, US District Court, Southern District of New York.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com.