NY Transit Adjudication Bureau Still Collecting Debts Despite COVID-19
The COVID-19 crisis has increased the urgency of the class action lawsuit against the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA), an arm of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), brought by NCLEJ and co-counsel, New Economy Project, the law firm of Drinker Biddle & Reath, LLC, and the law firm of Jerry Hartman, with support from the McDowell Foundation. This case was brought on behalf of low-income New Yorkers who have received one or more tickets, called Notices of Violation, for infractions of transit rules, and have suffered financial penalties as a result.
The MTA is continuing to seize New Yorkers’ tax refunds to pay fines for minor violations, some 20 years old, with inadequate notice and documentation. Those refunds, sorely needed at any time, are necessary for survival during the pandemic. The only relief for these low-income New Yorkers is a byzantine appeal process, through offices that have been closed by the quarantine.
