| Advertisement |
March 24 (UPI) -- The Supreme Court on Thursday blocked New Jersey from exiting a watchdog agency regulating ports and piers in New York Harbor. The high court granted a motion by New York to grant preliminary relief barring New Jersey from enforcing the law it passed to withdraw its representative from the bi-state Waterfront Commission thus forcing it to shut down.
Advertisement
It also prevents New Jersey from completing the process of transferring the responsibilities of port enforcement to New Jersey State Police, which is already underway.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said he was disappointed in the Supreme Court's decision but said he believed the state's efforts to withdraw from the commission "will be vindicated" when the dispute is argued before the court in the coming months.
"I will not give up the fight to protect New Jersey's interests, which are poorly served by a commission that operates without transparency and has long outlived its usefulness," he said.
The International Longshoremen's Association also said it was "deeply disappointed" by the high court's decision but added it would not prevent New Jersey from withdrawing from the commission but would merely "temporarily slow it down."
"The ILA has good reason to cheer the New Jersey State Police taking over the duties of longshore background checks and oversight from the abusive and ineffective Waterfront Commission," the union said.
New Jersey had argued that much of the work on the ports of New York Harbor has since been concentrated in marine terminals in New Jersey and that the deal between the two states -- established in 1953 -- made no mention of whether either state could exercise its sovereign right to exit the pact.
The state had planned to leave the commission by March 28.
New York filed a new brief with the court just hours before the Supreme Court issued its ruling on Thursday with New York Attorney General Letitia James warning Monday's withdrawal date would terminate or reduce activities and make it difficult "or in some cases impossible" to restart the regulatory functions of the commission.
James also said "confusion and upheaval" would likely result if New Jersey were allowed to leave with two sets of officials asserting "conflicting police powers over the port."
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul praised the Supreme Court ruling as a victory for the safety of New Yorkers and the health of the state's economy.
"In light of current geopolitical uncertainty, the work of the Waterfront Commission in combatting crime at the port and protecting vital industries is more important than ever before," she said. "We will continue to fight for New Yorkers to crack down on corruption and crime and protect the safe transport of goods."
