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FIRST ON FOX: Government watchdog group Democracy Restored is calling on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate U.S. attorneys in the Southern District of New York (SDNY), accusing them of potentially seeking to undermine Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's efforts to end New York City's driving tax, also known as a congestion tax.
New York City's congestion pricing program essentially assesses drivers a toll for driving on some streets in Manhattan, with the price varying depending on the time of day.
Late in the night of April 23, SDNY attorneys representing Duffy and the Department of Transportation published an 11-page confidential memo in federal court in Manhattan, explaining that the Trump administration's argument to end the NYC driver's tax was weak and included "considerable litigation risk." The next day, the memo was taken down from the public case docket, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District said the filing was a mistake.
In response, officials at the Transportation Department said they would be transferring the case to the DOJ's civil division, according to the New York Times. Fox News Digital reached out to the DOT to confirm the attorneys involved in the mistaken filing were off the case, but did not immediately receive a response.
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Traffic enters lower Manhattan after crossing the Brooklyn Bridge, Thursday, Feb. 8, 2024, in New York. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday, June 5, 2024 indefinitely delayed implementation of a plan to charge motorists big tolls to enter the core of Manhattan, just weeks before the nation's first "congestion pricing" system was set to launch. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)
"It's imperative to know whether this filing was inadvertent, and incompetent, or something worse," Houston Keene, the director of Democracy Restored said. "The memo contains confidential legal advice that just happens to criticize the secretary and department's legal strategy — quite an inconvenient document to have made public for lawyers doing their best for their client."
Democracy Restored said in its letter that more fact-finding must take place, but indicated there are "a variety" of potential ethical and legal violations associated with the mistaken filing, particularly if the act was done on purpose.
While it can not be concluded whether the act stemmed from incompetence, or whether it was purposeful, Democracy Restored points to the "partisan political activity" and involvement in political non-profits by the attorneys involved, suggesting it could shed light on the motivations behind the action.
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According to Democracy Restored, the attorneys involved were all registered Democrats and had a history of donating to Democratic political candidates and campaigns. The attorneys' public social media posts also showed them supporting left-wing political groups and acts of defiance against President Donald Trump's executive directives.
"US Attorneys must be nonpartisan and objective in their work and the partisan backgrounds of these attorneys add to the doubts," Keene said. "Far too many questions remain unanswered about this incident. The DOJ must investigate this matter immediately."
In early January, NYC launched its congestion pricing program, or driver's tax, which imposed a $9 daytime toll on most individuals driving their cars into Manhattan's core, south of Central Park. A month later, the Trump administration issued a federal order meant to halt the program by March 21, but the tolls have continued as the result of a federal lawsuit filed by New York City's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the state agency that runs New York City's public transit system.
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License plate readers, such as those pictured above, are being used by New York City officials to tax drivers operating their vehicles in the city. (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)
The Department of Transportation and the MTA subsequently reached an agreement extending the deadline to end the program until at least the fall. Earlier this month, as the legal battle over the matter has continued, New York City and the MTA requested a federal judge block the Trump administration's efforts to squash the program. City officials say the program has significantly reduced congestion, improving travel times due to reduced traffic.
Because the program involves tolls on federal highways, it must have Department of Transportation approval.
The Justice Department declined to comment for this article. Fox News Digital also reached out to the Department of Transportation and the office of the U.S. Attorney or the Southern District of New York, but did not hear back in advance of publication.
Fox News Digitals' Alexandra Koch and Landon Mion contributed to this report.
