Judge Orders Feds to Send MTA $34M in Counterterrorism Funds

Funds have been used to purchase equipment like security cameras, improve cybersecurity, among other things.

NEW YORK CITY (TIP) : A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to send $34 million in counterterrorism funds to the MTA on Thursday, October 16.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to send over the funds to the MTA. The new development was first reported by the New York Post.

In a statement, post on X, Governor Kathy Hochul said the ruling was a victory for “every New Yorker who rides our subway, buses, and commuter rails.”

“Once again, the court made it clear: The GOP can’t punish New York by defunding our police or withholding critical safety funding,” she added.

Kaplan ruled that withholding the funds was a “blatant violation of the law.”

On Wednesday, Kaplan had extended a preliminary injunction blocking the federal government from withholding the counterterrorism funds.

The funds from the Transit Security Grant have historically been used to purchase equipment like security cameras, improve cybersecurity and support local law enforcement.

The Transit Security Grant was created in the wake of the Sept.11 attacks.

According to the report, FEMA withheld the funds due to New York City’s sanctuary city status.

On Oct. 3, the Trump administration said it would reinstate $187 million in separate counterterrorism funding grants for law enforcement in New York.

The federal funding supports a number of intelligence operations, bomb squads, security at sensitive targets like houses of worship and equipment purchases.