New York Governor Kathy Hochul is actively advocating for the maintenance of the Congestion Pricing policy in Manhattan, while President Donald Trump hopes to revive a previously rejected natural gas pipeline project. Their recent meeting indicates that these two policies may become negotiation chips, but uncertainties remain regarding reaching an agreement.
Hochul visited the White House last Friday, marking her second meeting with Trump in the Oval Office within three weeks. According to a spokesperson for Hochul’s office, she raised multiple issues with the President, including tariffs, the redevelopment plan for Penn Station, and requesting the federal government to withdraw its obstruction of the Manhattan Congestion Pricing.
The Department of Transportation had previously revoked approval for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to levy a $9 congestion fee, and the MTA is challenging this ban in court.
While Hochul is working to convince the President to support the congestion fee, Trump has shown concerns over a dormant natural gas infrastructure project called the Constitution Pipeline.
The project aimed to transport natural gas from Pennsylvania to Schoharie County in New York and further connect to the New England region. Due to New York’s refusal to issue a key water quality permit on environmental grounds, the project was shelved in 2020.
Before meeting Hochul, Trump had indicated to reporters his desire for the state government to reconsider the pipeline project and hinted at possible federal intervention to push it forward.
The project had faced a standstill due to strong opposition from environmental groups. Wes Gillingham, Deputy Director of the non-profit organization Catskill Mountainkeeper, stated that there would be fierce protests if the state government tries to revive the project.
It is currently unclear whether the original developers of the pipeline project are still interested in advancing the construction. Williams, a pipeline developer from Oklahoma, and its partners announced in 2020 that the project could not proceed due to financial issues, resulting in losses exceeding $300 million that year.
Following the meeting between Trump and Hochul, Williams released a statement expressing gratitude to the President for his attention to “addressing the natural gas supply shortage in the U.S. Northeast,” but noted that Hochul’s government must provide sufficient support to avoid “costly permit delays, legal battles, and construction prohibitions.”
Hochul’s stance remains unclear. Her spokesperson, Jerrel Harvey, stated after the meeting that they discussed various issues, including the redevelopment of Penn Station, congestion fees, tariffs, and “energy policy,” without explicitly mentioning the pipeline project.